10 Biggest Movie Plot Twists of the 2010s

Good plot twists are incredibly challenging to pull off, as a startling last-minute change to a story can demonstrably change a film’s quality. While there’s power in changing the audience’s expectations at the last moment, a plot twist in and of itself has no value unless it significantly changes the film for the better. The best plot twists are those that make the film even more rewatchable upon subsequent viewings.

Making a truly shocking plot twist has become even more challenging in the last decade, as social media is often quick to spoil moments that should have been kept a secret. Additionally, trailers that reveal too much footage from the finished film may help insightful audiences deduce what a twist might be ahead of actually seeing it in theaters. Nonetheless, here are the ten biggest plot twists of the 2010s.

10 ‘Shutter Island’ (2010)

Directed by Martin Scorsese

Shutter Island is one of the few horror films in Martin Scorsese’s impressive canon and has made significant changes compared to the novel that it is based on. The film centers on U.S. Marshall Teddy Daniels (Leonardo DiCaprio) as he investigates a series of mysterious circumstances at a secretive mental facility. However, Shutter Island reveals that Daniels is in fact a patient in the facility and that he was the one responsible for the death of his family.

Shutter Island’s ending does a great job of explaining how the logic of the film works. Daniel’s partner (Mark Ruffalo) was there to help him cope with the truth by letting him explore his fantasy of being a law enforcement officer; tragically, this does not end up triggering a revelation on Daniel’s part, as he is still unwilling to admit the horrific truth of what he did.

9 ‘The Cabin in the Woods’ (2012)

Directed by Drew Goddard

The Cabin in the Woods is a brilliant horror satire because it stars out in the same way that any “splatter film” would. After a bunch of coincidences revolving around the deaths of several main characters begin to look a little too suspicious, it’s revealed that all the “horror” elements in The Cabin in the Woods are being orchestrated by an underground facility that identifies tropes in splatter films. This results in some shocking moments of violence involving Chris Hemsworth that are just as upsetting as they are funny.

The Cabin in the Woods is a brilliant horror film that’s made for horror fans, as it recognizes the cliches that have become so common in the genre. The twist finds a funny way to explain why the plot feels so familiar, making it impossible to look at any other horror film set in the woods the same way again.

8 ‘Gone Girl’ (2014)

Directed by David Fincher

Gone Girl is an inverse of the whodunit genre that forces the viewer to question which character is really in charge. After the woman, Amy Dunne (Rosamund Pike), goes missing under mysterious circumstances, suspicion falls on her hapless husband, Nick (Ben Affleck). While Nick continues to look more suspicious as the evidence mounts up against him, it’s revealed that Amy staged her own disappearance in order to frame her husband. This is revealed in the infamous “Cool Girl” monologue that Pike delivers perfectly.

Gone Girl’s twist works as an effective satire of media narratives, as Amy is able to divert attention from her real intentions by planting incidents that make her look sympathetic. Readers of the original novel of the same name by Gillian Flynn may have known that this seismic twist was coming, but anyone who hadn’t caught up with the original source material was in for a serious shock when Amy’s plan was revealed.

7 ‘Arrival’ (2016)

Directed by Denis Villeneuve

Arrival is a profound meditation on the notion of interspecies communication that uses time travel and flashbacks in a way that actually benefits the filmmaking of Denis Villenueve. The film centers on the brilliant linguist Louise Banks (Amy Adams), who is tasked with communicating with an alien spaceship alongside the physicist Ian Donnelly (Jeremy Renner). Although an opening montage seems to suggest that she has lost a child, Arrival reveals at the end that Louise chooses to become pregnant with Ian, knowing that they will only have a little bit of time together.

The twist makes Arrival very rewatchable, as it syncs up the two timelines and explains how the aliens communicate. It’s also a profoundly beautiful moment of human empathy and compassion that is made even more powerful thanks to the incredible score and Adams’ starkly emotional performance.

6 ‘Get Out’ (2017)

Directed by Jordan Peele

Get Out isn’t just a terrifically twisted horror thriller with strong allusions to Rosemary’s Baby and Funny Games, but a powerful condemnation of the notion of a “post-racial” version of America in the aftermath of Barack Obama’s Presidency. The film focuses on the photographer Chris (Daniel Kaluuya), who discovers that there is a conspiracy to kidnap black men and let elderly white people inhabit their bodies. The most shocking reveal occurs when Chris discovers that his girlfriend (Alison Williams) is complicit in the conspiracy.

While the revelation is revealed through video footage that bears a striking resemblance to The Twilight Zone, Get Out is a deeply metaphorical film about the reality of race relations in the United States. Peele suggests that those who claim to be liberal in their police may secretly harbor a resistance towards viewing people of color as their equals.

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5 ‘Split’ (2017)

Directed by M. Night Shyamalan

M. Night Shyamalan is known for making shocking plot twists, but Split managed to tie in one of his previous films to create a connected universe. After Kevin Wendell Crumb (James McAvoy) unleashed his alter ego as “The Hoard,” Bruce Willis appeared in a cameo appearance as David Dunn, the hero he had played in Unbreakable. This suggested that the two films existed within a shared continuity where superheroes exist in reality. The appearance by Willis took audiences by surprise, as it had been assumed that a sequel to Unbreakabale had been shelved by Shyamalan.

The last-minute twist in Split set up the crossover film Glass, which featured Crumb and Dunn facing off with the sinister supervillain Elijah Price (Samuel L. Jackson), whose alternate ego is “Mr. Glass.” Unfortunately, Glass had a more underwhelming plot twist that suggested Shyamalan didn’t have as much foresight as it had initially seemed.

4 ‘Star Wars: The Last Jedi’ (2017)

Directed by Rian Johnson

Star Wars: The Last Jedi isn’t just the best Star Wars movie since The Empire Strikes Back, but a profound meditation on the battle between good and evil that is central to mythological storytelling. Although the previous film Star Wars: The Force Awakens hinted that its protagonist may be related to one of the core franchise bloodlines, The Last Jedi revealed that Rey (Daisy Ridley) was born to “nobodies” who abandoned her. This inspires her to briefly team up with Kylo Ren (Adam Driver) in order to take down the evil Sith Lord Supreme Leader Snoke (Andy Serkis).

While this was a bold way to differentiate Rey from the other heroes in the Star Wars franchise, the twist was ruined by the terrible sequel, Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, which revealed that she was in fact the granddaughter of Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid).

3 ‘Tully’ (2018)

Directed by Jason Reitman

Tully is a very sensitive take on the pressures of maternity and may be the last film that audiences would expect to have a jaw-dropping plot twist. The majority of the film focuses on the struggling mother Marlo (Charlize Theron), who is given assistance in caring for her children by the nanny Tully (Mackenzie Davis). After getting into a serious car accident, Marlo realizes that Tully was an imaginary person who she created to imagine feeling young again. Marlo’s husband (Ron Livingston) is completely shocked by the revelation.

Tully’s twist helps explain why Marlo felt reconnected with her youth and how it inspired her to become more impassioned about raising her children. The prospect of a Fight Club-style twist in a fairly standard dramedy was surprising, but Tully is an underrated gem that is well worth a second look for fans of director Jason Reitman.

2 ‘Once Upon a Time in Hollywood’ (2019)

Directed by Quentin Tarantino

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood isn’t the first time that Quentin Tarantino has played around with history, but it did involve much more real people than any of his previous films. Audiences went in expecting Tarantino to tell the real story about how actress Sharon Tate (Margot Robbie) and her friends were murdered by the Manson family. However, Tarantino changed history and allowed Tate to live, as the Manson family killers ended up getting into a violent brawl with the actor Rick Dalton (Leonardo DiCaprio) and stuntman Cliff Booth (Brad Pitt).

Once Upon a Time in Hollywood is one of Tarantino’s most profound films, as it celebrates the excess of Hollywood’s golden era. While the real Tate may not have lived past the tragic night in the summer of 1969, Tarantino’s twist gives her a much happier fairy tale ending.

1 ‘Parasite’ (2019)

Directed by Bong Joon-ho

Few films have critiqued the class differences in modern society better than Bong Joon-ho’s Academy Award-winning masterpiece Parasite. While much of the film focuses on a family of hustlers’ attempts to infiltrate their wealthy client’s home, it’s revealed that a man has been living underneath the rich mansion for years. Although it’s an existence he’s had to keep a secret, being that close to wealth is the most that some can afford if they want to have any form of prosperity.

Parasite’s twist shows the profound evils of capitalism, as people’s livelihoods are determined by what they own. Bong grounds the story in a very realistic depiction of the economics of modern-day South Korea, but the film’s message about the difference between “haves” and “have-nots” is one that applies to any setting, country, or time period.

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