The point of the science fiction genre is to follow a fictional story that weaves in elements of true or theoretical science. The allure of this is that it seems to symbolize the future, especially for humanity. There’s no doubt that one creative concept that will always intrigue people is storylines that examine a potential fate of our species, which is why so many books, shows, and films that focus on this exist. When these plots can achieve a certain level of accuracy or likelihood they begin to feel more realistic to the viewer, and thus, the audience is more likely to connect to them with more focus, as if their stories could actually reflect the future.
A science fiction topic that is commonly used, and is most successful when it uses story details that cater to a more realistic approach, is that of interplanetary travel. When stories exploring this concept follow the accessible, established science and research that currently exists about space travel and exploring foreign planets, they feel more believable. However, if these storylines lack important realities of science that people are familiar with, it stands out and takes the viewer out of the story, proving that consistency is just as important as accuracy.
One detail that many interplanetary sci-fi storylines tend to neglect is the likelihood of foreign viruses and bacteria. As history has proven, even a move across the globe can bring havoc in the form of problematic germs and sickness that attack unexposed immune systems in masses, quickly killing off entire peoples. If a foreign planet is host to alien plant or animal life, it is almost certain to contain microbes that are equally unknown to the human immune system.
Despite the consciousness around the spread of infectious disease being much more relevant in recent years, this awareness is not commonly displayed in stories. It only makes sense that coming from a planet where just existing within society could spread sickness, that traveling among other planets could do the same. Because of this current focus on how easily bacteria and viruses can spread, it may occur to audience members if the detail is lacking from a story, and it could alter their suspended belief.
While there’s no way to contain every potential detail of a theoretical science fiction concept, such a current detail seems to call for more focus and could likely even strengthen the story. Nonetheless, there are a number of sci-fi pieces that focus on interplanetary travel and don’t have this seemingly essential element in the storyline. There are several popular films that are guilty of this, like Interstellar for example, which was considerably successful.
Of course, there are also a few films that do incorporate this element. Some use it as a significant event or problem in the plot; others simply add details to acknowledge its existence. War of the Worlds, for example, uses it as a plot point, while Arrival simply nods to it. Sci-fi stories that subtly acknowledge the concern of viruses or germs accomplish the goal of nodding to the concept, but miss out on using it as an element to drive the story. The possibility of becoming ill in the midst of adventure is an undeniably great story opportunity, whether it’s at the root of the story, or it’s simply an obstacle along the way.
Many cinema fans may recognize that as a movie — or any story, for that matter — escalates, the amount of conflict increases as it builds toward the conclusion. This is especially true in genres with more serious tones, such as science fiction. Because of this, the conflict potential that’s automatically available through acknowledging foreign bacteria and viruses is reason enough to include it in any story that follows interplanetary exploration. On the other hand, the grandness of this conflict could be considered too substantial to tackle in an already full plot line. In some narratives, the concept of foreign infections is simply not relevant, and would detract from the central story that the creator is trying to tell.
The most significant reason for sci-fi stories to include the existence of foreign germs in their storylines is to make them more believable and realistic. In part, that is because our existence on Earth has taught us that germs are everywhere, and we should know about them for our health. However, it also seems to line up with what knowledge we have access to about other planets. Considering planets in our solar system, the existence of similar life such as lichens and endospores suggests that similar or worse bacteria also exists on other planets. Just like Europeans infecting Native American tribes when they colonized the western hemisphere centuries ago, unexposed immune systems that come into contact with foreign germs could pay the price on a new planet.
All of that said, this is based on current and past content. Given all that the Earth’s population has been through in the last few years, bacteria and viruses are likely to remain a factor at the forefront of all minds, including the minds of writers. Though many pre-existing films set in space may have declined the opportunity to shine a light on the postulation of interplanetary contamination, there is plenty of room for it in the future. As sci-fi stories like Stranger Things, Westworld, and Disney’s Star Wars films have proven, audiences are still more than interested in science fiction storylines, which means that creators will continue to make them. As long as the genre has a market and as long as the idea hasn’t been written, it remains waiting to be done.