Skip to content

Comment

It's a decade old, but The Leftovers is still painfully resonant today

The Leftovers follows those left behind after 140 million people vanish, unaccountably, in The Departure. The parallels with the covid-19 pandemic are obvious in this jewel of a TV show, says Bethan Ackerley

By Bethan Ackerley

12 June 2024

Television Programme: The Leftovers with Justin Theroux as Kevin Garvey and Carrie Coon as Nora Durst. TL_202_042915_VR_-37.jpg The Leftovers Series 2 — Nora Durst (Carrie Coon) and Kevin Garvey (Justin Theroux)
Van Redin/HBO

The Leftovers
Damon Lindelof and Tom Perrotta
HBO

IT IS a strange time to watch The Leftovers, which premiered on HBO 10 years ago this month. The series opens three years after the Sudden Departure, when about 140 million people (close to 2 per cent of Earth’s population) just disappeared. Those left are still grappling with why and how to move on from such loss.

In the real world, it has been about three years since the last covid-19 lockdown lifted in the UK and many other countries. This…

Sign up to our weekly newsletter

Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox! We'll also keep you up to date with New Scientist events and special offers.

Sign up

View introductory offers

No commitment, cancel anytime*

Offer ends 2nd of July 2024.

*Cancel anytime within 14 days of payment to receive a refund on unserved issues.

Inclusive of applicable taxes (VAT)

or

Existing subscribers

Sign in to your account

More from New Scientist

Explore the latest news, articles and features

Exhibition view, THE END OF AGING - by Michael Schindhelm, ?Surgery Room?, Kulturstiftung Basel H. Geiger, 2024

Comment

Immersive new exhibition explores the pitfalls of defying old age

Culture

Subscriber-only

Hunt for the Oldest DNA press picture. Eske Willerslev on fieldwork, Ilulissat Icefjord, Greenland

Comment

Documentary explores a geneticist's motivation to understand the past

Culture

Subscriber-only

The Cannon Hall Muscat Grape. Plate 24. Watercolour on paper. Signed lower left Mrs Withers Delt. Painter to Her Majesty. 44.4 cm. x 35.2 cm., slotted onto page. c.1825.

Comment

New Scientist recommends Now You See Us at the Tate Britain

Culture

Subscriber-only

Nicki Minaj???s iconic Barbie pendant???which boasts 54.47 carats of diamonds on 18-karat gold and bright Barbie-pink enamel???was made by Ashna Mehta in 2022 and is the most recent commissioned by Minaj, whose first Barbie pendant dates to 2009.

Comment

New Scientist recommends Ice Cold: An exhibition of hip-hop jewelry

Culture

Subscriber-only

1

The truth about social media and screen time's impact on young people

2

We finally know why some people seem immune to catching covid-19

3

Overheated trees are contributing to urban air pollution

4

Driverless cars are mostly safer than humans – but worse at turns

5

Stunning JWST image proves we were right about how young stars form

6

Pluto and the largest moon of Neptune might be siblings

7

Walking helps keep people free of lower back pain for longer

8

Microphone made of atom-thick graphene could be used in smartphones

9

Why excessive positivity is bad for your health and mental well-being

10

Is an old NASA probe about to redraw the frontier of the solar system?