Things to Come (1936)

Directed by William Cameron Menzies and written by H.G. Wells himself, Things to Come is a landmark British science fiction film that boldly imagines humanity’s future across a century of war, plague, and technological rebirth. Based loosely on Wells’ 1933 book The Shape of Things to Come, the film was produced by Alexander Korda and released in 1936—just as the world teetered on the brink of another global conflict.

Plot Overview
The story begins in the fictional city of Everytown, where war breaks out in 1940 and continues for decades, plunging civilization into ruin. A plague known as the “wandering sickness” wipes out half of humanity. By 1970, a warlord known as The Boss rules the remnants of Everytown. But hope arrives when John Cabal, a pilot from a technocratic group called Wings Over the World, lands in the city and promises a new era of peace and progress. The film leaps forward to the year 2036, where humanity prepares to launch the first manned space flight—sparking philosophical debates about the cost of progress and the fear of the unknown.

Cast Highlights

• Raymond Massey as John Cabal / Oswald Cabal
• Edward Chapman as Pippa Passworthy / Raymond Passworthy
• Ralph Richardson as The Boss
• Margaretta Scott, Cedric Hardwicke, and Ann Todd in supporting roles

Behind-the-Scenes Trivia

• H.G. Wells personally supervised the production and famously criticized Fritz Lang’s Metropolis, instructing the crew to do “the opposite” of what Lang had done
• The newspaper shown when the war ends is dated September 21, 1966—Wells’ 100th birthday
• Ralph Richardson modeled his character after Benito Mussolini, giving The Boss a fascist edge
• The film’s production design by Menzies was groundbreaking, influencing sci-fi aesthetics for decades
• Critics noted that Wells’ screenplay downplayed class struggle, despite his socialist leanings—a point of irony given that his novel had been criticized for emphasizing it too much