The 2007 film "I Am Legend" is a sci-fi action movie where scientist Robert Neville (played by Smith) believes he may be the sole survivor in a plague that kills most people and transforms. All Rights Reserved. 'The Mandalorian' Set up the Season 3 Finale And the Future of Star Wars, 'Breaking Bad's Skinny Pete Makes Surprise 'The Mandalorian' Appearance, Fans Praise Drew Barrymore's Intimate Interview Style: "F*** Therapy, I Wanna Be a Guest on 'The Drew Barrymore Show'", Jennifer Garner Left Speechless After Drew Barrymore's Multiple Surprises: "I'm So Freaked out About What You're Gonna Do to Me Next", Drew Barrymore Says Its Possible Her Scream Character Survived Ghostfaces Brutal Murder: Im Pretty Sure a C-Section is Comparable. Not one of them has turned into a mutant zombie thats allergic to the sun or tried to eat Will Smith. I Am Legend? Discover short videos related to i am legend failed vaccine on TikTok. Its. I Am Legend is not the only film used by activists to spread misinformation about Covid and vaccines. Its. As of this writing, 166.7 million Americans have been fully vaccinated . The main character Robert Neville was not a real person. In a New York Times report on an optical business thats struggling to encourage its employees to get vaccinated, one of the workers reportedly cited a social media post on the vaccine in I Am Legend as a reason to abstain from the shot: One employee said she was concerned because she thought a vaccine had caused the characters in the film I Am Legend to turn into zombies. In the film, it was doctors efforts to weaponize the measles virus to fight cancer that went haywire, killed billions, and turned some people into vampiric ghouls. Goldsman tweeted a succinct response to the misinformation inspired by the film: Oh. The movie "I Am Legend" is based on a book of the same name by Richard Matheson that was published in . "One employee said she was concerned because she thought a vaccine had caused the characters in the film I Am Legend to turn into zombies," the report said. Reuters declared the idea as 'false', noting: 'The virus in "I am Legend" was a genetically engineered measles virus created to cure cancer, not a vaccination.'. Neville talks to mannequins on the regular. Krippin says during this interview scene: In this case the measles virus which has been engineered at a genetic level to be helpful rather than harmful. God. 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The YouTubers who exposed an anti-vax plot, Misinformation on Facebook killing people - Biden, Unvaccinated dad-of-three speaks of Covid ordeal, Teen died saving sister's life in Alabama shooting, China surveillance giant denies Pentagon spy claim, Putin visits occupied Kherson region, Kremlin says, Jeremy Bowen: Israel's unclear road ahead, When a biryani flies hundreds of miles to reach Indians, We'll find you and we won't let you live a teams fight to exist, Khartoum fighting hits neighbourhoods - maps and witnesses, How LinkedIn is changing and why some are not happy, Who didn't make the coronation guest list? As Vera Bergengruen, a Washington correspondent for Time, pointed out in the following tweet, it wasnt even a vaccine that zombified society in I Am Legend: Instead, it was a genetically-altered measles virus that caused problems in the movie, the fictional movie. The 2007 movie I Am Legend, starring Will Smith, was a fictional movie. And the zombies come from a failed vaccine, a Facebook user wrote. My. Snopes also dismissed . However, as an expert virologist he should understand the basics of vaccine development and realise he has wasted three years of resources on something medically impossible. They also embrace the new-found power the Krippin Virus has given them. Neville builds a virology lab in his basement and uses his own blood as the base ingredient for what he hopes will be a cure for Krippin Virus. Thats not how vaccine development works and, as a virologist, Neville should know this. Responding to the article, Akiva Goldsman, 59, who co-wrote the screenplay based on a 1954 novel of the same name, tweeted: "Oh. I made that up. Columnist | Follow. Another meme claims the film was set in 2021, which would correspond to the pandemic and the global vaccination rollout - despite the fact the plot was actually set in 2012. I Am Legend is a 2007 American post-apocalyptic action thriller film [4] [5] loosely based on the 1954 novel of the same name by Richard Matheson. Dr. Krippin had genetically edited the measles virus in order to change its effects from damaging to beneficial, spreading a cure for cancer through the bodies of patients. A vaccine also did not cause the outbreak in the film. The mutant vampires in I Am Legend became mutant vampires because they were exposed to a genetically re-engineered strain of the measles virus in order to cure cancer (courtesy of Emma Thompsons ambitious doctor). They were designed to turn Dirk Benedict into a snake all along. Your membership is the foundation of our sustainability and resilience. God. To some extent, those films make sense. As of this writing, 166.7 million Americans have been fully vaccinated, according to the CDC. You cant develop a cure using the blood of someone whos naturally immune to that disease because of a genetic mutation. This is where the problem lies. Social media users have been sharing content online that claims characters in the movie I Am Legend starring actor Will Smith turned into zombies because of a vaccine. 17,658, This story has been shared 16,147 times. The idea that I Am Legend kicked off with a vaccine turning people into zombieswhen it was actually the measles virus reengineered in an attempt to cure cancerwas prevalent enough last year . But Chinas response to the anti-China theories gave birth to a more convoluted conspiracy, turning the blame back onto the United States. When a globally respected news organisation has to use its precious resources to explain the plot of a disappointing Christmas movie from a decade and a half ago, you sense the battle has already been lost. August 12, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. EDT. 14 Apr 2023 21:07:23 How many people are infected? Still, though, the I Am Legend theory regained momentum this week when the New York Times ran a story about anti-vaxxers, claiming that an employee at an eyewear store had refused the vaccine because she thought a vaccine had caused the characters in the film I Am Legend to turn into zombies. The entire film focuses on Robert Neville trying to find a cure, or at least a vaccine. But there are three big problems with that assertion. As Health Plans Address Social Determinants, UnitedHealth Group To Make 2.5 Million Home Visits This Year, Englands Nurses To Strike Again After Rejecting Pay Deal. 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This material may not be reproduced without permission. My. 'I Am Legend' vaccine guidance is just the beginning of bad fictional advice! Teen TikToker Says Fart Led To Uterus Coming Out Her Vagina, Your Doctor Consulting ChatGPT Isnt An Intelligent Choice (Yet): Study, diarrhea that you suffered from pounding raw cake batter, A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) website. The first wave of conspiracy theories linked to the outbreak claimed that the virus was created as a biological weapon by China, or that the pathogen escaped from a Chinese lab. Its a movie. Throughout the movie, he tries to find other humans, as well as a cure to end the plague. It's. Is 'Drunk, Driving, and 17' on Lifetime Based on a True Story? Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian instigated the return of attacks in March, tweeting a reply to a video by the US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Watch popular content from the following creators: Jay Ls(@jaylsjr), Mad_Indian(@m.a.d_indian), Samuel Kirkpatrick(@pokepocket), Midknight_14(@midknight_14), Tyra Gardner(@tyragardner977), Lexi(@daughterofzion317), Danny Fernandez(@itsdanny.11), daddynorm2(@daddynorm2 . In the movie version, humanity has a little more responsibility for causing the plague. After all, who would want to become a flesh-eating zombie? He was played by an actor named Will Smith, you know, the guy who got jiggy with it. Smith, whose virologist character spends much of the film fending off infected mutants and searching for a cure to the would-be cure, has not commented on the I Am Legend hubbub. subscribe to our print edition, ad-free app or electronic newspaper replica here. Vaccines do not factor into the plot. It could make it even more difficult to get a job or a date and cause other folks to mute you on Zoom. When did patient zero begin in US? The Poynter Institute Menu. It wasn't a virus, then. People opposed to vaccines have circulated that claim about the movies plot widely on social media. The film has been a vessel for anti-vaccine sentiment since the first Covid-19 vaccines were authorized in 2020. In World War Z, for example, the zombies are created with a virus and the hero has to find a vaccine. Both works are set in the near future, but neither version takes place in 2021. Claims that something similar would happen to people receiving Covid jabs have been circulating on social media. "Oh. (Also, Legend was, and this cannot be stressed enough, a Will Smith action vehicle, and not real life.) Donate State Editions California Florida Illinois Iowa Its a movie. Countless reports conducted in the last year show that vaccination against Covid-19 is the best defense against severe illness or death from the disease. My. If anti-vaxxers can convince themselves that some half-remembered Will Smith film from 2007 can act as a watertight scientific explanation for not wanting to get jabbed, then they can basically use that rationale on any film. Tens of thousands of people have shared and and commented on baseless posts about the movie. This Twitter post cannot be displayed in your browser. Their arguments are unforgivable for any number of reasons, not least that it sort of makes me want to watch I Am Legend again. "I'm Out, Motherf*cker!" One of the screenwriters of the 2007 movie I Am Legend has taken to Twitter to remind anti-vaxxers that his film is not, in fact, a COVID documentary. Please try again. I made that up. For the record, I Am Legend is clearly a work of fiction. One meme claims in the film vaccinations cause humans to turn into zombies, both misrepresenting the plot and the fictional nature of the film. This isnt necessarily a new development. Here's how Screenrant described the origins of the Krippin Virus in "I Am Legend": A news interview with Dr. Krippin in I Am Legend's opening lays out the origins of the Krippin virus. 2,244, This story has been shared 1,274 times. Not. As Fentanyl Deaths In Youth Rise, Will Digital Health Solutions Find Quicker Adaptation? The BBC is not responsible for the content of external sites. The post was shared more than 300 times. Akiva Goldsman, who co-wrote the screenplay for the 2007 film starring Will Smith, clarified that I Am Legend is pure fantasy after an unnamed source in a recent New York Times report said they feared vaccination because of the events of the film. Real.". Some are claiming that in the 2007 movie "I Am Legend," vaccines led to a zombie apocalypse, so you [+] should beware of the Covid-19 vaccine. Maybe that line at Starbucks nine years ago was longer than you thought? Oh, and theres a third problem. The movie is about vampires not zombies and the outbreak was not caused by a vaccine. The body reacts as if this was a real infection, producing antibodies to fight. Misinformation on social media is nothing new, but you may be surprised to learn that many of the strange claims online could be connected to a family member of JFKs. But the Internet is a hell of a drug. Warner Brothers. Real. I made that up. But still, the damage had been done. As a result, anti-vaxxers are stating on social media that they are vegan to avoid vaccination should certain workplaces make them compulsory. 1,050, This story has been shared 938 times. Did 'Succession' Just Confirm Shiv is Pregnant? His tweet came after the New York Times reported that an employee of an eyewear store in the Bronx said she would rather lose her job than get the jab, because she thought a vaccine had caused the characters in the film I Am Legend to turn into zombies. The remaining people transform into Darkseekers - pale-skinned creatures with a savage lust for flesh, enhanced strength and speed, and no apparent higher brain function. They were caused by a genetically modified virus called the Krippin Virus that was meant to be a cure for cancer. What Is Gain Of Function Research, And Why Should It Be Banned? 1% (about 12 million people on the planet) are immune to the virus. Read more about our fact-checking work here . Unfortunately, they then start to experience rabies-like symptoms, going berserk and biting anyone within reach, spreading the virus through blood-saliva contact. The movie opens with a scene of Dr. Alice Krippin, who created the virus to cure cancer, discussing her work. Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles. Themovie was set in 2012 and a measles virus caused a vampire outbreak, according to a filmscript and description. To view this content choose accept and continue. However, there is one glaring mistake when it comes to the vaccine solution offered in the film. The claim: The movie 'I Am Legend' was set in 2021 and focuses on a zombie apocalypse caused by a vaccine Posts are circulating online claiming that the 2007 post-apocalyptic movie "I Am. In reality, if Neville wants to create a cure for Krippin Virus he should start with Darkseeker blood and work to develop a weakened form of the virus that could be used as an immunological trigger. Then if you replace that man with a cop, that picture changes. I dub thee vampiris. The claim appeared in a Facebook post (archived here) where it was published on March 21, 2021, with the caption "ENJOY YALL DAY." The text pasted onto the photo opened: JUST WANTED TO REMIND YOU ALL THAT IN THE MOVIE I AM LEGEND 'THE YEAR WAS 2021, AND PEOPLE TURNED INTO ZOMBIES BECAUSE OF THE WRONG VACCINES. 10:06 AM EDT, Tue August 10, 2021, Screenwriter Akiva Goldsman, pictured in 2016, reacted to vaccine misinformation inspired by "I Am Legend.". What do I Am Legend, JFKs nephew and pretending to be vegan have in common? This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Therefore, you, assuming that you follow what fictional movies may tell you, should not get the Covid-19 vaccine. Add zombies into the mix, and were completely in the realm of science fiction here. One of the writers of "I Am Legend" is weighing in on vaccine hesitancy, and he wants to make one thing very clear: the virus he used as . How far down does this rabbit hole go? Because this is the world we live in now, the screenwriter who produced the script for the film I Am Legend had to take time out of his day to address the rumor spreading around anti-vaxxer. Initially it seems that the virus is a success, with more than 10,000 cancer patients cured. Interestingly, Darkseekers terrifying features are rooted in basic biology. Coming towards the tail end of his turn as the worlds biggest movie star, the film saw a lone Smith struggling to survive in a post-apocalyptic New York that had been ravaged by mutant vampires (that look more like zombies). A transcript of the movie is visible here . Were talking about a basically impossible scientific feat, just going off of the premise of curing cancer with measles. A number of anti-vaxxers in the UK have declared themselves vegan on social media in a bid to avoid any potential compulsory vaccinations. One of the writers of the sci-fi film I Am Legend has clarified its fictional nature amid rumours Covid-19 vaccines would turn people into zombies. Smiths character fends off humans who turn into vampire-like mutants, not zombies, according to the description. But it seems those who base their fear of vaccines on the film have misunderstood its plot. Akiva Goldsman responded to anti-vaccine misinformation that cites the fictional feature starring Smith as evidence for not receiving the shots. Despite the militarys best efforts to contain the virus, it breaks out of the Manhattan-based laboratory and mutates into a lethal, airborne strain that spreads across the planet. 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