Why Don’t Look Up’s Ending Isn’t Satire, According to Ron Perlman

Ron Perlman recently spoke about Don’t Look Up’s ending and how the film’s finale isn’t satire despite it being a satirical film. Don’t Look Up landed on Netflix on Christmas Eve of 2021 and brought a lot of attention due to the film’s subject matter and social message. The approaching meteor that the film focuses on symbolizes the real-life threat of climate change. The film portrays how the issue is constantly being dismissed by the public, the media, and the world’s influential leaders. The film’s social message relates to director Adam McKay’s fears concerning the Earth’s current climate change situation.

Don’t Look Up’s compelling story scored the film four Oscar nominations last month for the upcoming 2022 Academy Awards. The film has been nominated for Best Picture, Best Original Score, Best Original Screenplay, and Best Film Editing. But for all the plaudits the film received, its success has brought along some doubters, particularly those who believe that the Netflix film is arguably the weakest pick compared to the other nominees like Dune and West Side Story. McKay has called out the backlash, saying those who disliked the film most likely didn’t fully understand the actual message.

Ron Perlman recently spoke to The Hollywood Reporter about Don’t Look Up’s ending. The reporter talked to Perlman about the “very moving” final scene, saying that it makes the audience reflect about “who you would spend your final moments with.” She then asks, “How did the ending make you feel in this movie” with Perlman following up by saying that the ending was “authentic”:

“I thought the ending was just so simple. For the sentiment that it was capturing, it was so unsentimental and so authentic and real and American, God I think Adam McKay, I think he made two movies a satire which is the first 80% of it and then the last 20% where we’re really just like in Frank-Capra-land you know and it’s just so heartfelt and beautiful.”

The film’s ending is the most emotional scene out of the entire movie. As Perlman said, the film’s initial satirical tone took a huge turn when the impending threat of the meteor got real and entered the Earth’s atmosphere. Despite the bleak ending of the world collapsing, it was sweet to see Dr. Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio) turn back to his family, dying with them instead of dying alone, which was suggested by Isherwell’s (Mark Rylance) algorithm earlier in the film. The heavy scene showed that in the most difficult of times, Mindy, who was so indulged in his new celebrity life, turned to his family in his last final moments to make him feel comfortable about their inevitable deaths.

Despite the film’s criticism, with Perlman even responding to the film’s haters as well, many can agree that the final scene at the dinner table was one of the best in Don’t Look Up’s runtime. The film’s very real subject matter hit home to many of the audience, but it was sweet to see the beautiful scene at the end, showing the real human connection in a film full of ignorant characters. Don’t Look Up is a film that divides many opinions, but ultimately it sends a real message to its Netflix audience.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter