MovieChat Forums > The Thing (1982) Discussion > An Alien Experiment Gone Wrong?

An Alien Experiment Gone Wrong?

posted 3 years ago by scannerdarkly (1400)
9 replies | jump to latest

Sometimes I like to imagine that the Thing is some kind of Aliens experiment into genetic manipulation and cell reproduction. Like some alien species was attempting to create donor cells that can "become any cell" they need it to be...but its goes horribly wrong! The cells absorbed an alien and gained its first sentience when replicating the brain cells. Then all heck broke loose! It eventually becomes this apocalyptic being that travels to other planets and takes all lifeforms. Becoming the most powerful organic being to roam the cosmos!

Theres no evidence in the movie to support my theory, since no answer is given on where this Thing came from, whether a lab or a natural evolved species from another world. But Its fun to consider.

https://youtu.be/cHf3aitzSCE

[–] tph890 (490) 3 years ago

That’s cool! As valid a theory as any.
I always thought of The Thing as some kind of super-intelligent massive organism with the ability to divide itself into multiple parts but with a hive mind, and The Thing that lands on Earth is just a piece of the original host organism, like a scout of sorts.

[–] GreenGoblinsOck8 (7993) 3 years ago

Ugh! That makes it even more terrifying! If there are more of them they may come back and go to a warmer part on Earth that has more organisms around! Earth is screwed!

[–] Lord Rake (4536) 3 years ago

The Thing was influenced by Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness where a shapeshifting creature is created by aliens to do their work and eventually the creatures revolt and take over.

[–] kuatorises (7467) 3 years ago

You think a thing was piloting the ship? I always figured the ship crashed in the middle of an attack; meaning the things were in the process of attacking the "people" whose ship it was.

I have no idea if it was created or is a natural occurrence, but I do think it's a virus/disease and it's first/original form is just cells in blood. It's not some animal with a "real/true" form. At it's most basic level, it's a virus.

[–] Hummusboy1 (573) 3 years ago

I think what’s scary to know is that the story at Outpost 31 is essentially the same story that has happened anytime The Thing breaks out. One Thing sneaks in and begins slowly assimilating a few others, people eventually start to notice, and everyone kills themselves in the process of trying to kill The Thing. The Thing always gets away, though. Really terrifying thought, and it’s possible the aliens on the ship experienced the same thing.

[–] Drooch (5333) 3 years ago

Does the Thing always get away? I thought MacReady killed it…

[–] sati_84 (467) 3 years ago

Nice theory, I like this :-)

[–] Octo (217) 3 years ago

Doesn't the prequel go into this a little bit? There was a "Pilot alien" that was cut from the movie but there's still some info out there. https://thething.fandom.com/wiki/Pilot_Alien

[–] ExTechOp (2770) 3 years ago

Cool theory, nothing to add except that you reminded me of Orson Scott Card's "Mortal Gods"

In that story, aliens were seaweed creatures who retained all their ancestral memories (making them effectively immortal). More importantly, they were the ultimate end-state of all intelligent life in the galaxy, except humans. Every intelligent race everywhere else but earth evolved into the same seaweed creatures.

So they all come to earth to "worship" humans because they think our finite lives make us beautiful.

Point being, maybe The Thing is the logical final step in life's evolution: adaptable, only as intelligent as it needs to be to survive and propagate, and absolutely ruthless in pursuit of its end goal: to turn all life into The Thing.