Are Today’s Aliens More Human Than Ever? Exploring Modern UFO Myths and Cultural Shifts
Source: From ‘Bugonia’ to ‘Pluribus’: Why today’s aliens aren’t like they used to be (2025-11-21)
In recent years, our collective fascination with extraterrestrial life has evolved from classic sci-fi tales to complex reflections of human society and psychology. As of November 2025, the portrayal of aliens in popular culture reveals more about our own loneliness, distrust, and desire for connection than about actual life beyond Earth. The excerpt from EL PAÍS highlights how modern narratives—ranging from viral conspiracy theories to satirical films—serve as mirrors of contemporary human experience. For instance, the viral frenzy over the asteroid ATLAS, mistaken for an alien spacecraft, underscores our tendency to see extraterrestrial signs amid cosmic phenomena, driven by collective anxiety and curiosity. Meanwhile, fictional stories like Yorgos Lanthimos’ *Bugonia* and Vince Gilligan’s *Pluribus* use alien themes to critique political alienation and societal disconnection, rather than to depict real extraterrestrial encounters. These narratives are increasingly layered with psychological and social commentary, reflecting a world where alien encounters symbolize human fears, hopes, and loneliness. Recent developments in the portrayal of extraterrestrials and UFO phenomena include the following facts: 1. The Chilean ATLAS observatory detected the third interstellar object in history, sparking global speculation about alien contact, yet it was later confirmed to be a natural cosmic event, illustrating how scientific discoveries can ignite mass hysteria or curiosity. 2. The viral conspiracy about an alien spacecraft approaching Earth demonstrates how social media amplifies misinformation, with false alarms often leading to collective delusions rather than genuine extraterrestrial sightings. 3. The film *Bugonia* by Yorgos Lanthimos, a satire about extraterrestrials, uses alien themes to explore political alienation, distrust in institutions, and societal disconnection, reflecting contemporary anxieties. 4. The series *Pluribus*, created by Vince Gilligan, features a character immune to a global happiness virus, symbolizing individual resilience amid societal conformity and collective emotional manipulation. 5. Recent studies indicate that public interest in UFOs and extraterrestrial life remains high, with over 60% of Americans believing in some form of alien existence, yet most prefer these stories as metaphors for human issues rather than literal encounters. 6. Advances in astrophysics and space exploration, including the upcoming launch of the James Webb Space Telescope’s next phase, aim to detect biosignatures on exoplanets, potentially revolutionizing our understanding of extraterrestrial life. 7. The cultural shift towards viewing aliens as reflections of human psychology has led to a surge in sci-fi narratives that focus on internal human conflicts, rather than external alien threats, emphasizing themes of loneliness, connection, and societal critique. 8. Governments worldwide, including the U.S. and China, are increasingly transparent about UFO investigations, acknowledging unexplained phenomena, which fuels both scientific inquiry and public intrigue. 9. The rise of AI-generated content and virtual reality has enabled more immersive and personalized alien stories, blurring the lines between fiction and reality, and deepening our engagement with extraterrestrial themes. 10. Experts suggest that the persistent fascination with aliens and UFOs may serve as a psychological projection of human fears about the future, environmental crises, and societal fragmentation, making modern alien stories more about ourselves than about extraterrestrial beings. As our understanding of the universe expands, so does our reflection of human fears and hopes through the lens of alien narratives. Today’s stories are less about discovering actual extraterrestrial life and more about exploring what it means to be human in a complex, often alienating world. Whether through scientific discoveries, viral conspiracies, or satirical art, the modern portrayal of aliens continues to serve as a mirror for our collective psyche, revealing as much about ourselves as about the cosmos we seek to understand.