Netflix film 'White Noise' predicted the Ohio train derailing, internet left shook

Netflix subscribers have made some strange comparisons between the recent Ohio train derailing incident and a movie. When movies from the past predict current events, it always seems a little surreal. And something similar has happened with Netflix’s White Noise and the Ohio train incident.

On February 3, 2023, reports revealed the derailment of a 50-car train in the small town of East Palestine, Ohio, United States. Apparently, the train was transporting hazardous chemicals including vinyl chloride, butyl acrylate, ethylhexyl acrylate, and ethylene glycol monobutyl ether.

The derailment caused these chemicals to leak, which further led to the evacuation of more than 2,000 residents from nearby buildings due to health concerns. But they’ve now been allowed to return. Surprisingly, this incident made its way onto the screen in 2022's Netflix film, White Noise, much before it took place.

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How Netflix's White Noise predicts the Ohio train derailing

White Noise had a similar plot line to Ohio's recent derailment. (Image via @The_NorthG, @belet_seri/Twitter)

White Noise, starring Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig, debuted on Netflix last year. It is based on Don DeLillo’s 1985 novel of the same name, and its story also features a train crash that releases toxic chemicals into the air, creating a huge cloud.

The synopsis of the film states:

"College professor Jack Gladney (Adam Driver) and his family's comfortable suburban life is upended when a nearby chemical leak causes "The Airborne Toxic Event," releasing a noxious black cloud over the region that forces the Gladney family to evacuate."

Many viewers are now drawing comparisons between "The Airborne Toxic Event" and the current Ohio incident after watching the movie, stating how uncannily similar both the events are.

In an interview with People, Ben Ratner, a resident of East Palestine who also appeared as an extra in White Noise, talked about the parallels between the film and the recent events.

“Talk about art imitating life. This is such a scary situation. And you can just about drive yourself crazy thinking about how uncanny the similarities are between what’s happening now and in that movie.”

Needless to say, the similarities between the film and the real-life event are quite shocking. But even before White Noise, a series called Malcolm in the Middle predicted the recent Ohio train crash.

Malcolm in the Middle’s season 2 episode 24, titled Evacuation aired on May 12, 2001, and featured a similar premise. Hal, played by Bryan Cranston, inadvertently lost his old couch while dumping it, resulting in a train accident. Subsequently, the incident resulted in the spillage of hazardous chemicals, forcing Hal's entire family and neighborhood to be evacuated for safety.

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Other movies predicting real-life incidents

White Noise or Malcolm in the Middle isn’t the first time people have drawn parallels between movies and off-screen events. Apparently, many people saw 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger coincidentally predicting the arrival of Coronavirus.

2011’s Contagion had stark similarities to the COVID pandemic as it featured a disease that started due to bats, led to a pandemic, and eventually vaccines were created for it. Even James Cameron’s Avatar sort of predicted that people will have to wear masks constantly in the future.

So, the latest Netflix movie predicting the Ohio train crash shouldn’t really come as a major surprise to people.