Imagining humanity’s fate in some future-dated world has been a hallmark of the science fiction genre. This was especially true in the 70s and 80s when filmmakers crafted dystopian visions in such far-flung years as 1997, 1999, 2017, and 2019.

Nearly 40 years later, many of these sci-fi classics are well past their expiration dates, creating a new sub-genre called “future past” films. Many “future past” films accurately predicted the rise of A.I., the popularity of reality TV, the threat of mega-corporations, and how fascist governments use technological advances to exert control of the masses. Yet many of these same movies featured flying cars, floating hoverboards, and memory-recording VR devices that seem no closer to reality.

Tim to revisit a collection of future past movies that only Nostradamus could love, with the films listed in the year they were set compared with the reality that came to pass.

The Mad Max Trilogy (1979, 1982, 1985)

Future Set Years: 1983, 1985, 2000

Director George Miller practically created the dystopian genre with his Mad Max trilogy, starring a young Mel Gibson. While the movies list no specific dates, eagle-eyed viewers can tell from the signage that the first film takes place in the mid-80s and the sequel, The Road Warrior, a few years later. The first two entries explore a world ravaged by a sudden oil shortage, causing a breakdown in modern civilization, culminating in a brutal world war. The third picture, Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, takes place 15 years later, with humanity reduced to a tribal society after the nuclear fallout from the global conflict.

Miller utilized this stylized setting to stage some of the most jaw-dropping action sequences featuring Max’s iconic V8 Interceptor. The film’s vision of an oil-starved world on the brink of collapse was inspired by the 1978 Iranian Revolution that caused a worldwide oil crisis. And while the post-apocalyptic atmosphere is an exaggerated version of that conflict, the idea that countries would go to war over crude fossil fuels was prophetic. From Iran to Iraq and, most recently, the Russian invasion of Ukraine, our addiction to oil shows no sign of slowing.

As for the 2015 reboot/sequel, Mad Max: Fury Road, the new series timeline has been pushed out to the 2050s. We’ll have to wait another 30 years to see if that nightmare vision comes to pass.

A Clockwork Orange (1971)

Future Set Year: 1995

Stanley Kubrick’s ultra-violent dystopian satire courted controversy upon its release, with the original cut earning an X rating. Based on Anthony Burgess's 1962 novel, A Clockwork Orange follows the exploits of a sadistic gang as they embark on a horrific crime spree in a fascist-style future Britain. But when Alex, the gang’s leader, is captured, he undergoes a brutal psychological re-conditioning to rehabilitate him back into society.

Like Mad Max, Kubrick never ties the future past movie to a concrete year, but Alex and his droog gang drive a futuristic car called the “Durango 95.” The film’s bleak setting reflected the alarm over rising crime rates in 1970s London and the fear of teenage delinquency. In reality, 1995 had violent crime falling to its lowest levels in decades, a booming economy, and democratic institutions alive and well.

But Kubrick’s stylized films were never meant to reflect the real world. A Clockwork Orange may well be his most divisive work, but the director warned that the fear of violence can lead a free society to embrace fascism. The picture also explores the idea of free will versus psychiatric conditioning and how some humans are inherently evil by nature.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)

Future Set Year: 1995

Anyone who has seen any of James Cameron’s action classics knows the idea of humankind’s destruction by nuclear warfare recurs as a theme in much of the director’s work. From the nuclear warhead threatening peaceful underwater aliens in The Abyss to terrorists smuggling uranium-rich bombs in True Lies, Cameron highlights the threat of these word-destroying devices between his high-octane action sequences.

The specter of nuclear annihilation fuels the premise of Cameron’s post-apocalyptic Terminator franchise. In a twist on the classic Man Versus Machine trope, a military A.I. called Skynet becomes self-aware and decides to eradicate humanity by manipulating the U.S. and Russia into a global nuclear conflict. In the aftermath, humanity managed to rise and defeat Skynet’s robotic army in 2029, causing the A.I. to send cyborg terminators back to various timelines. Their mission: kill the messiah-like resistance leader John Connor.

Terminator 2: Judgement Day remains the high point of the increasingly convoluted franchise. Set in the year 1995, the plot focuses on Arnold Schwarzenegger’s cyborg baddie, now programmed to protect ten-year-old John Connor and his mother, Sarah. While technically not a future set film, it’s in the sequel where Sara gives the exact date of Judgement Day: August 29, 1997. The Terminator also provides a chilling run down of events that led up to that fateful day, starting with the creation of Skynet by earnest and hopeful computer scientist Miles Dyson.

Of course, the threat of nuclear warfare faded in the 1990s, although the recent Russian invasion of Ukraine has reignited those fears. But Terminator 2’s most prescient warnings remain the use of A.I. Over the last few years, the rapid embrace of generative A.I. has upended several industries and shows no sign of stopping. Many say that we must slow down and implement some guidelines. Otherwise, we may unleash our version of Skynet in the not-too-distant 2029 future.

Escape From New York (1981)

Future Set Year: 1997

Filmmaker John Carpenter specialized in spinning B-movie plotlines into cinematic gold. Escape from New York features a borderline absurd premise, but the film works mainly due to Kurt Russel’s brooding performance as anti-hero Snake Plissken. The movie became a standout in Carpenter’s early filmography, taking his horror bono-fides into a science fiction setting.

Set in War World III-ravaged 1997, an exploding crime rate forces the United States to turn the island of Manhattan into a maximum-security prison. Problems arise when Air Force One carrying the corrupt President crashes on the criminal-filled island after a terrorist attack. To retrieve the leader of the free world, they send the recently captured Snake, a former lieutenant in the U.S. Army who’s now embraced a life of crime.

Much like A Clockwork Orange, the 1990s saw violent crime dropping and the Cold War thawing between the U.S. and the former Soviet Union. This makes EFNY even more of a science fiction piece, reflecting the Cold War anxieties of the Reagan era. Sadly, since the 1990s, a gentrified New York has transformed into an expensive tourist trap that’s its own form of a dystopian prison.

Strange Days (1995)

Future Set Year: 1999

The criminally overlooked 1995 cyberpunk thriller remains a highlight in Kathryn Bigelow’s early directing career, even if the outdated premise hampers its rewatchable factor. Strange Days explores Y2K's anxieties during the last few days leading up to New Year's Eve 1999, set in a broken Los Angeles torn apart by crime, tense race relations, and police corruption. The plot centers on Lenny Nero, a black-market hustler who sells “playback” clips of an illegal VR technology that records a user’s memories.

Between the thrilling “playback” sequences, Strange Days tackles thorny social issues such as crumbling race relations and class warfare. Nero stumbles unto a clip showing two LAPD officers executing Jericho One, a Malcolm X-style rapper. The New Year's Eve finale features a harrowing scene where Mace, played by Angela Bassett, is beaten by the same LAPD officers that killed Jericho One, inciting a mob riot between black partygoers and police.

Director Bigelow and James Cameron, who produced and co-wrote the screenplay, stated that the controversial storyline was a reaction to the Rodney King beating in 1991. Yet, watching the film from today’s lens, the plot parallels recent events in an uncanny way. The rash of police shootings that fueled the Black Lives Matter protests in 2020 makes Strange Days a prescient observation that racial divisions would continue far into the new millennium.

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)

Future Set Year: 2001

Nine years before Star Wars, director Stanley Kubrick gave audiences their first glimpse of a jaw-dropping, widescreen vision of a future traveling amongst the stars. 2001: A Space Odyssey centers around a mysterious Monolith artifact that appears during critical moments in humankind’s evolutionary journey. When a Monolith appears near the moons of Jupiter, a spacecraft with a crew of astronauts and the supercomputer HAL 9000 is sent to investigate. Problems arise when the HAL 9000 starts to malfunction, turning the deep space voyage into a battle between man and machine.

2001: A Space Odyssey hit screens one year before the Apollo 11 moon landing, so it’s no surprise that its vision of a future was hopeful. Twenty-two years later, nobody has opened a sprawling moon base or a colossal spinning space station that houses a luxury Hilton and the last Howard Johnson’s restaurant. And wait, didn’t Pan Am go out of business in 1991?

Despite the outdated references, the film presented audiences with an early version of A.I. through the supercomputing HAL 9000. With its cold, monotone voice, HAL makes for a frightening villain who systematically kills the astronauts. It makes the current embrace of A.I. even more unsettling. Just don’t give the new version of ChatGPT a monotone voice feature.

Freejack (1992)

Future Set Year: 2009

In 1992, Freejack came and went without much fanfare, becoming one of the year’s big-budget bombs. Despite the presence of big names like Anthony Hopkins, Renee Russo, Emilio Estevez, and a rare acting turn by Mick Jagger, the film failed to connect with audiences.

The plot follows race car driver Alex Furlong, who’s transported into the year 2009 just seconds before a deadly crash claims his life. A group of bounty hunters are behind the time travel heist and intend to sell this “freejack” body to a dying billionaire. It seems in the future, the ozone layer will collapse, creating a black market for healthy, pre-climate-ravaged humans to extend the wealthy elite’s lifespan.

Freejack features many wild ideas brimming with storytelling potential, but the filmmakers embrace every cyberpunk cliché that makes for a dull watching experience. When Alex gets his first glimpse of “future” 2009 New York, it’s a carbon copy of Blade Runner’s Los Angeles, minus the flying cars. The film does feature a scene-stealing performance by Mick Jagger as the villainous lead mercenary. One wonders why the Rolling Stones' frontman didn’t act more, as he’s a complete natural in front of the camera.

In the intervening years, this forgotten future past film has aged badly, particularly the ozone layer subplot, which did make headlines in the late 1980s. If we swap out “ozone” with “climate change,” the film warns of a future where Earth may not be so hospitable to humankind.

The Postman (1997)

Future Set Year: 2013

During the 1990s, Kevin Costner became one of Hollywood’s most bankable leading men. That came to a screeching halt with The Postman, which still stands as one of Costner’s costliest bombs.

Directed by Costner, the post-apocalyptic future past actioner follows a nameless drifter who dons a postal worker’s uniform and delivers the mail to a nearby town, bluffing that the U.S. government has been reinstated in hopes they will feed him. This sets off a chain reaction, giving people hope as they remember the old world, but it also attracts the unwanted attention of a tyrannical warlord.

Costner imbues The Postman with an ultra-saccharine tone that doesn’t jive with its surreal premise. It’s nice to see a post-apocalyptic film preaching a positive message, and Costner brings a Western grit to the “future” 2013 setting. The film does comment on how communication is essential to a thriving democracy, represented by Costner’s postman hero. And in this age of misinformation, thanks to social media, that message needs to be sealed, stamped, and delivered.

Back to the Future Part II (1989)

Future Set Year: 2015

It took four years, but director Robert Zemeckis finally delivered a sequel to his mega-hit Back to the Future. The follow-up picks up right where the 1985 original ended with Doc Brown, Marty, and his girlfriend Jennifer traveling 30 years into the future in hopes of saving their kids. Back to the Future Part II features a labyrinth storyline that can be hard to follow, as the film jaunts back to 1955, ending on a cliffhanger resolved in Part III.

Zemeckis recreates the goofy charms of his 1985 classic, particularly in the sequel’s first half set in 2015. While we don’t have floating hoverboards (yet) or flying DeLoreans, the film does nail the sequel/remake craze in our current cinema landscape. With 2015 now in the rearview mirror, it’s impressive how much the filmmakers got right, like older Marty watching multiple channels on his giant screen TV or the 80s-themed pop-up café his younger counterpart visits.

Back to the Future Part II even explores alternate timelines when our heroes visit a dystopian 1985 run by the movie’s villain, Biff, a hotel-casino magnate who resembles a particular former president.

The Running Man (1987)

Future Set Year: 2017

In the pantheon of 80s Arnold Schwarzenegger's action hits, The Running Man remains an odd, future-past film. Based on the Stephen King novel, the loose adaption reworks the story as a muscular star vehicle for Schwarzenegger, who was at the height of fame. None other than Richard Dawson, the famous and semi-creepy host of the game show The Family Feud, even gives a meta performance. Here, he plays the amoral and corrupt host of the reality show that fuels the plot.

Set in a 2017 fascist America, Schwarzenegger plays Ben Richards, a falsely convicted policeman forced to participate in the reality TV Show The Running Man. In this American Gladiator-style show, runners and convicts must battle celebrity killers and each other for their freedom. The film plays like a proto-version of The Hunger Games, filled with over-the-top action set pieces and Schwarzenegger’s double-entendre line deliveries.

But nearly 30 years later, The Running Man predicted the rise of reality television that dominates the airwaves today. The film nails the tone of its game show, with cheesy latex-clad dancers, Richard Dawson ogling the female guests, and hunter-killers code-named Sub-Zero and Captain Freedom. The sci-fi actioner also touches on how an authoritarian government can use entertainment, particularly reality television, to control the populace.

Rollerball (1975)

Future Set Year: 2018

Director Norman Jewison built an eclectic career in the 1970s, going from the classic musical Fiddler on the Roof to the rock opera Jesus Christ Superstar, closing out that run with the dystopian sports thriller Rollerball. In 2018, mega-corporations replaced countries, and in place of wars, the corporate factions played the violent skating game “Rollerball.” One player, Jonathan E., grows in popularity and starts questioning the corrupt tactics of his greedy company overlords.

Starring James Caan during his post-The Godfather leading man era, Rollerball plays like a typical sports drama but with a dystopian undercurrent. The game resembles a violent hockey match played on roller skates, with Jewison filming the sequences with creative camerawork. Despite the 70’s disco gloss, the film explores the merging of sports under corporate control. It’s a predictive message as both the NFL and MLB have become mega corporations, raking in an obscene amount of money year after year.

Blade Runner (1982)

Future Set Year: 2019

Ridley Scott’s groundbreaking cyberpunk film noir defined and influenced nearly all future set films since its release in 1982. Harrison Ford stars as Rick Deckard, a “blade runner,” hunting four rogue replicants attempting to infiltrate the Tyrell corporation. When Deckard falls in love with Rachael, an experimental replicant with implanted memories, the cynical investigator questions the nature of his humanity.

From its Orwellian vision of a future 2019 with towering skyscrapers and rain-soaked streets resembling a Humphrey Bogart feature, Blade Runner set the tone for the emerging cyberpunk genre. Yet the film’s storyline is deeply human, particularly the plight of the Replicant androids, who want to extend their short 4-year lifespan.

Ironically, of all the future-past films, Blade Runner’s 2019 Los Angeles bears little resemblance to the eventual reality. When 2019 came and went, there were no flying cars, pyramid-sized buildings, or human-looking androids. In fact, the film’s timeline tracks closer to 2119, as the future tech featured in the movie seems decades away, not to mention the idea of “off-world” colonies set on distant planets.

The Island (2005)

Future Set Year: 2019

Director Michael Bay took his patented, headache-inducing action stylings into the cyberpunk realm with The Island. This was an outlier for the filmmaker, as Bay tamps down his high-octane kinetics to tell a cerebral story with a thought-provoking storyline. The film stars Ewan McGregor and Scarlett Johansson as two escaped clones looking for their human “sponsors” as they are hunted by the nefarious Bio-Tech corporation that wants their product back. But these naïve clones don’t realize that they are living insurance policies for the one-percenters, on standby to extend the life of the wealthy elite.

The Island shows a lot of promise in the first hour, where Bay crafts an intriguing mystery that explores the moral implications of human cloning. The director also mixes up his visual style, inspired by the look of THX -1138 and Logan’s Run. But the director can’t help himself when the action-filled second half kicks in, returning to his over-the-top pyrotechnics, creating a jarring switch in tone. Particularly during a tense sequence where McGregor’s clone meets his shady human “sponsor.”

In a refreshing twist, The Island presents a 2019 Los Angeles not as a nightmare dystopia but as a sleek, hi-tech utopia with hanging metro lines and floating hoverbikes. While the debate over human cloning has subsided in recent years, the film does touch on the stem cell research controversy and, in a gruesome sequence, the harvesting of human body parts.

Johnny Mnemonic (1995)

Future Set Year: 2021

As one of the architects of the cyberpunk genre, science fiction writer William Gibson, in general, has steered clear of Hollywood. But his short story “Johnny Mnemonic” did receive the big-budget screen treatment in 1995, starring Keanu Reeves. Set in 2021, the film follows data courier Johnny, who transports highly classified files for the mega-corporations using a special brain implant. When Johnny accepts one last job, delivering 320 gigabytes of world-altering data from the Pharmacom corporation, he finds himself running from Yakuza agents and a crazed religious cyborg.

Despite a film filled with many of Gibson’s unique flourishes, Johnny Mnemonic died quickly at the box office. The blame falls on first-time director Robert Longo, who failed to create an immersive world with flat, uninvolving action sequences. Over the years, Johnny Mnemonic has grown into a cult classic, particularly for Gibson enthusiasts, as this was the rare Hollywood adaption of his work.

While there’s much to admire in Gibson’s imaginative novel, his vision of a techno-drenched future in 2021 bears little resemblance to the real thing. This future past film failed to predict the power of the internet and how a rapidly interconnected world would reshape society. But there’s an analog charm to the outdated tech presented in the movie. And poor Johnny, his data courier days would be over during the wi-fi boom of the early 2000s.

Soylent Green (1973)

Future Set Year: 2022

The underrated sci-fi gem Soylent Green turns 50 this year, but its vision of an overcrowded Earth devouring itself has become quite visionary. Starring Charlton Heston, the plot follows Detective Thorn investigating the death of a wealthy board member of Soylent Industries. The all-powerful Soylent corporation provides nourishment and food to the heavily polluted and overcrowded planet, yet several powerful politicians pressure Thorn to end the investigation. Soon, Thorn uncovers a vast conspiracy manufactured by Soylent, as it seems its food products aren’t as wholesome and nutritious as they claim.

The film features Heston’s meme-worthy final line, “Soylent Green is…” well, we won’t give it away. Sadly, thanks to the presence of Heston, Soylent Green gets compared to the actor’s more popular Planet of the Apes. Both have twist endings with iconic final lines, but Apes managed to pierce the pop culture landscape. Yet Soylent Green has some solid and fascinating ideas despite its “future past” status.

Soylent Green has aged remarkably well, as the production features a minimalistic tone with the drab, grey clothing evoking communist-era Russia during the Cold War. While the dire snapshot of an overcrowded and heavily polluted planet seemed far-fetched 50 years ago, the planet passed the 8 billion population mark last year. So many of the predictions made in Soylent Green may not have come to pass but merely delayed.