Science fiction movies exploring population control use a variety of dystopian methods to limit or manage human numbers, ranging from strict state reproduction laws and age limits to extreme measures like violent culling and class-based resource denial.
These standout science fiction films tackle population control in very different ways:
What Happened to Monday (2017): Set in a near-future overpopulated world, the government strictly enforces a "One Child Policy." A set of identical septuplets must conceal their existence and share a single identity to avoid being put into cryogenic "long sleep" by the authorities.
Logan's Run (1976): A classic where society enforces a strict age-based cap. Citizens are tracked and must willingly participate in a ritual called "Carousel" at age 30, which is presented as a rebirth but is actually used to systematically terminate older citizens and prevent resource depletion.
Soylent Green (1973): Set in an overcrowded, environmentally ruined 2022 New York, society is plagued by institutional collapse and extreme food shortages. The government uses the food supply as a means of managing and utilizing the population.
Z.P.G. (Zero Population Growth) (1972): Driven by severe overpopulation and pollution, the World Federation Council outlaws childbirth for 30 years. The movie follows the desperate struggles of a couple trying to hide and raise an illegal baby.
The Purge Series (2013-2021): The government introduces an annual 12-hour period where all crimes, including murder, are legalized. As users on Quora discuss, this event functions as a highly controversial and brutal method of social engineering and population control aimed at the poor and lower classes.
The Thinning (2016): A YouTube Premium film about a futuristic American high school where students must take a standardized aptitude test. Those who fail are executed by the government to control the population.
Code 46 (2003): In a heavily surveilled and restricted future, the government controls both population size and genetic diversity through "Code 46," which restricts reproductive rights and interbreeding between genetically similar individuals.