Don't Look Up ending explained: Does the comet hit Earth?

After Kate Dibiasky (Jennifer Lawrence) discovers a comet is on its way to Earth, her professor Dr Randall Mindy (Leonardo DiCaprio) discovers it will wipe out most of life on Earth unless action is taken.

Teaming up with NASA scientist Dr Teddy Oglethorpe (Rob Morgan), the trio approach the embattled US President Janie Orlean (Meryl Streep) and find her not very keen to tackle the crisis.

Heading out on a media blitz to try and convince the planet to wake up to their imminent doom, Randall and Kate find a wave of apathy, division, and self-serving greed in response to the apocalypse.

Will they succeed in preventing armageddon?

And what does it all mean?

RadioTimes.com have you covered with an explainer on the ending and meaning behind Don’t Look Up.

In the meantime, here is what you need to know about the end credits scenes for the film and we also have our full Don’t Look Up cast guide.

**Spoiler warning for Don’t Look Up**

Don't Look Up ending explained

Does the comet collide with Earth in Don’t Look Up?

In short, yes.

Comet Dibiasky collides with Earth despite the efforts of the Just Look Up campaign to push world leaders into combating the apocalyptic disaster.

However, the efforts of tech giant BASH to split up the comet and utilise its minerals for profit fail and the efforts of other nations to divert the comet’s path also fail.

In the end, the “planet-killer” comet hits Earth and causes cataclysmic devastation.

Who dies in Don’t Look Up?

Well, just about everyone in the cast really.

The majority of lead characters including Dr Randall Mindy, Kate Dibiasky, Dr Teddy Oglethrope, Yule (Timothee Chalamet) and others are all killed when the comet hits Earth.

The only survivor shown on Earth is the President’s son and Chief of Staff, Jason Orlean (Jonah Hill).

Meanwhile, President Orlean herself is eaten and killed by an alien creature named a Bronteroc when the mega-rich survivors land on a habitable alien world 22,740 years later.

The fate of the remaining super-rich survivors as they are naked and surrounded by Bronterocs does not look good but we don’t see the deaths of tech billionaire and BASH CEO Peter Isherwell (Mark Rylance) or the others.

What is the final scene of Don’t Look Up?

The film ends at the home of Dr Mindy after he has reconciled with his wife June (Melanie Lynskey) and sits to eat a meal with his family, Kate, her new love Yule, and Dr Oglethorpe.

The group makes small talk after a prayer from Yule and some hold hands before the impact of the comet rips through the house and kills them.

We see some shots of the devastated planet as a spaceship for the rich and powerful is seen departing Earth.

However, two scenes follow in the end credits.

Are there any end credits scenes in Don’t Look Up?

The first end credits scene picks up 22,740 years later when the rich Americans who departed Earth arrive on an alien world and depart the ship naked.

President Orlean is eaten and killed by an alien animal known as a Bronteroc, just as the BASH algorithm predicted.

Further Bronterocs approach the other rich humans but their fates are unknown.

The second end credits scene comes post-credits and sees rubble and devastation on planet Earth as Jason Orlean emerges as a survivor in the rubble and when he sees no one there with him, he begins posting on social media.

What is the meaning behind Don’t Look Up?

Don’t Look Up is, of course, a not-so-subtle allegory for the inaction, political discourse and apathy towards our impending climate disaster.

Despite replacing the climate crisis with the approaching asteroid, the response of politicians, the media and subsequent divisions is all very much rooted in satirical truths surrounding the climate crisis and even the Covid-19 pandemic.

Director-writer Adam McKay told the Los Angeles Times: "The scientific community has been trying to make this connection about how all of our actions are going to affect everybody — and then here you have this once-in-a-century virus, and everyone is staying home.

"You constantly hear the practicalities of why you can’t stop the fossil fuel economy but boy did we make a lot of change awfully fast when it came to COVID. Eventually, a lot of it fell apart but I thought it was a good sign that when we’re properly scared, some big old change can come our way."

Jennifer Lawrence added to the publication that she is "frustrated" like many who can see the impact of climate change but feels "helpless" trying to fight it.

Our very own Don’t Look Up review notes: “It is, of course, a rather heavy-handed metaphor for global warming, and the lack of sufficient action taken by governments in the face of impending climate collapse.

“We follow various broadly sketched characters, from Meryl Streep’s vain, polling-obsessed President to Mark Rylance’s bizarre, self-aggrandising tech billionaire, and watch their all too predictable responses to the disastrous news.

“The result is a somewhat overstuffed film that has all the sledgehammer subtlety you’d expect from an apocalyptic satire about a world-ending comet, but it does manage to deliver some good laughs – and enjoyable performances – along the way.”

Don’t Look Up is available now on Netflix.

If you’re looking for something else to watch, check out our TV Guide or visit our dedicated Movies hub.