When Leave the World Behind arrives on Netflix next month, Mr. Robot fans might notice a reference to the Rami Malek hacker series. According to the film’s director and Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail, those suspicions are correct.
In Leave the World Behind, Mahershala Ali arrives at Julia Roberts and Ethan Hawke’s vacation home with warnings of mysterious cyberattack. At one point, Ali’s character references an “almost apocalyptic hack” that took place in New Jersey years ago. Mr. Robot fans will no doubt recall that a toxic waste scandal in New Jersey was a major plot point for the series, and Esmail has confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that the hack Ali mentions is one and the same.
“I would say actually that all of the things I’ve worked on, Mr. Robot, Homecoming, Comet, and Leave the World Behind are kind of all in the same universe,” Esmail said before dropping a coy response to whether there are other Mr. Robot references hidden in the film. “You’ll have to watch it again and see.”
Here’s the official synopsis:
In this apocalyptic thriller from award-winning writer and director Sam Esmail (Mr. Robot), Amanda (Academy Award winner Julia Roberts) and her husband Clay (Academy Award nominee Ethan Hawke), rent a luxurious home for the weekend with their kids, Archie (Charlie Evans) and Rose (Farrah Mackenzie). Their vacation is soon upended when two strangers — G.H. (Academy Award winner Mahershala Ali) and his daughter Ruth (Myha’la Herrold) — arrive in the night, bearing news of a mysterious cyberattack and seeking refuge in the house they claim is theirs. The two families reckon with a looming disaster that grows more terrifying by the minute, forcing everyone to come to terms with their places in a collapsing world.
Leave the World Behind is now playing in select theaters before streaming on Netflix on December 8.