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Don’t Look Up garnered a lot of attention for its star-studded cast. Writer/director Adam McKay left a mid-credits and a post-credits scene for audiences who stuck around after the credits finished rolling for his newest comedy. Here’s a look at what happened in these quick scenes at the end of Don’t Look Up that complete the story.

[Spoiler alert: This article contains spoilers from Don’t Look Up.]

The real story of ‘Don’t Look Up’

'Don't Look Up' post-credits featuring Meryl Streep as President Janie Orlean standing behind a podium with the American flag behind her
Meryl Streep as President Janie Orlean | Niko Tavernise/Netflix

The Don’t Look Up marketing describes the plot as a real story that just hasn’t happened yet. Ph.D. candidate Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence) discovers a comet while working with Dr. Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio). However, the comet is hurtling toward Earth with a near 100% likelihood of impact. President Janie Orlean (Meryl Streep) and her Chief of Staff and her son, Jason (Jonah Hill) refuse to hear them out.

Randall and Kate head on a media tour to try and inform the world about their sure destruction. However, it’s more difficult than they think to convince the population to simply listen to scientists and look up at the sky. Don’t Look Up isn’t a real story, but it’s a satire on the climate crisis turning into a political debate. However, it also fits like a glove onto the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic discussion, which also turned political.

‘Don’t Look Up’ has a mid-credits and post-credits scene

Don’t Look Up has two post-credits scenes. The first appears mid-credits after the graphics section of the credits. President Orlean left Earth along with specific social elites before the apocalyptic comet hit the planet in a spacecraft, including the extremely wealthy Peter Isherwell (Mark Rylance). Lifetimes pass as the ship searches for the closest planet that’s most hospitable for humankind to live on.

President Orlean, Peter, among others exit the craft naked after awaking from a deep sleep. They find themselves on a colorful planet. Peter discovers that there’s more oxygen on this planet, so they might feel a tad dizzy. His technology’s prediction earlier in the film that an exotic-sounding creature would kill President Orlean holds true. She approaches the creature before it lunges at her, bites her in the face, and proceeds to pounce and eat her. More of the creatures appear and surround the humans before cutting to black. The last of humankind is in danger.

Don’t Look Up has a second post-credit scene that appears at the very end of the credits. Earth is in total ruin, but some rubble begins to shake as someone emerges from beneath it. Jason crawls out still alive in an apocalyptic landscape, who is still waiting for his mom to return. He takes out his phone to record a video before the film cuts to black one final time.

A post-apocalyptic world

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Don’t Look Up initially ends with Earth’s destruction. Randall and Kate’s final dinner ends in their deaths, among many others around the world. However, McKay’s ending hints that humankind isn’t totally extinct. However, the survivors now live in an apocalyptic world and there’s no telling how that will turn out. Other movies would hint that the lawless lands would turn into primal human nature. There’s no telling exactly where McKay would take things next.

Don’t Look Up is now playing in limited theaters and will be available streaming on Netflix starting Dec. 24.

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