Fans believe that Vince Gilligan’s Pluribus could be drawing its inspiration from the 1973 movie, Soylent Green. While this isn’t the first theory to surface online, it certainly has the strongest possibility of being true.
Here are the details on how the movie could be inspiring the show.
What is the meaning of Soylent Green in relation to Pluribus?
Pluribus’s latest episode, titled “Got Milk,” has unraveled tons of theories surrounding the mysterious alien species and Carol, the lead character’s, discovery of milk cartons.
For context, Carol discovered that the recycling bins across the city are filled with empty milk cartons. This leads her to believe that the Others, the alien hive mind entity, is consuming milk to survive. However, with a little investigation, she discovers that they are consuming an unknown liquid substance, stored in little milk cartons. In the ending moments, Carol is at a cold storage facility where she discovers something that horrifies her. What is the terrifying thing that she finds? Viewers will have to wait till the next episode to find that out.
Meanwhile, theories surrounding the episode suggest that Carol has stumbled upon human bodies or remains that Others could be using as a source of nutrition. Now, fans have drawn parallels between this storyline and the 1973 dystopian sci-fi movie, Soylent Green.
The story of Soylent Green is set in the dystopian future of 2022, where, due to overpopulation, the planet has a limited supply of clean water and natural food. As a result, the general public consumes processed food called Soylent Yellow and Soylent Red, produced by the Soylent Corporation. Later, the corporation introduces Soylent Green, a more nutritious and flavorful wafer made from plankton.
After the murder of one of the company’s executives, NYPD Detective Robert Thorn investigates the case. However, his investigation leads him to the discovery that the company has been using human remains to produce Soylent Green.
In Pluribus, the second episode showcased Others loading corpses into a dairy truck, though their purpose remained unclear. When considering all the clues—the trucks, the factory, the cartons, and cold storage units—it becomes more plausible that they are using remains to source their food. Carol also found bags of white powder that, when mixed with water, turn into a unique, mysterious liquid. This powder, in theory, could actually be a form of human remains.
If this theory proves true, then the show could be heading into a much darker direction than what the first half of the season has been. For now, viewers have to wait till the next episode to learn what Carol truly discovered under the tarp in the storage vault.
