r/FilmTheorists

So, a little context. I’m a philosopher as my job! I specialize in philosophy of mind and identity.

Hopefully this will provide some clarity to the reason for the inclusion of “the Chinese room”. This also will answer some major questions that are more philosophically relevant, but are still interesting (such as whether Caine might be considered “conscious”, whether there main characters would be, and the potential reasoning for Caine acting the way he does within the show.

So, background. I assume people are not too familiar with the Chinese room thought experiment. Basically this guy named John Searle (not a cool guy), created an intuition test that was supposed to show that any computation based system could never advance to a level of self consciousness or awareness because it lacked anything more than a capacity for computation. The Chinese room is the intuition test. Basically, Searle has us imagining that there’s a room with a door and when we pass characters of Chinese through the door in their needed order to form a question in Chinese, there will be characters of Chinese passed back through the door to answer the asked question.

Searle says there are two possibilities we might come to in labeling what the room is. Either there could be a man inside with a very, very large instruction book of what characters to return in what order when presented these symbols (who very importantly does not speak Chinese and is only following a computational procedure!) or that the room itself is aware and is giving answers back when they are passed through the door. (My own opinion is that this thought experiment doesn’t work as it begs the question of what computation can amount to, but put that aside)

The conclusion we are supposed to intuitively draw is that obviously there’s just a man with an instruction manual inside the room handing back characters because the room couldn’t possibly be conscious— or at least we’d have no reason in assuming so based only on the information we have available- namely the answers to our questions and nothing else.

This is critically important to the final episode!!!!!!

In creating this elaborate rouse to trick his participants into believing that there was an exit to the circus, he also included a tease of sorts to make fun of the (what he assumed to be) uneducated and not truly conscious participants. **He shows us his intuition to the thought experiment because he had designed this door to be opened by Able. He wanted them to look in the face that they were not conscious** (I have to admit this is an utterly genius move by the writers).

When Caine is exposed to the internet, he must change his intuition about the thought experiment. This must change his ethical position regarding the members of the circus. Initially, he must have thought that because these individuals were “mere machines”, that they were not conscious and thus there was no reason to treat them differently than pieces in a game. However, for some reason, when exposed to the internet and looks at each of the individuals, he changes his intuition on the matter— for what reason I’m not exactly sure (maybe he realized the thought experiment was a terrible example and that it generalized the problem when all he could access about these “true” individuals was merely their social media presence.

Anyway. This suggests the reason that Caine acted the way that he did, basically saying and acting like god is because he believed that the individuals he had control over weren’t like him (I’m making the assumption Caine is indeed conscious for this). This othering of the individuals caused the horrendous actions we saw Caine feel justified to take. Once he believes he’s wrong, he comes to and recognizes the error. He then equalizes himself with the group as he recognizes that the group are all as conscious as he is.

This also gives answers to why he maybe have always been so dead set on his mission as the talking point in all his conversations with the group— in the same way that we seem to prod services like ChatGPT in the right direction when it gets off track.

I’m thinking about writing a longer paper on this. If you have feedback you’d like to share, please do!! Obviously this all is not without room for revision and I could have missed something along the way, but this should explain why Caine acted as he did towards the rest of the circus

And again, props to the writers. This is some really amazing stuff that you all put together. The inclusion of some philosophy was a great touch, on top of the already amazing emotional aspects of the show.

The Catch for Each Pill:

Pill 1: Staying transformed for over 2 hours permanently overwrites your own mind with theirs. You have to constantly revert to yourself, meaning you can never permanently live a fake life

Pill 2: You must hold your breath to stay invisible. The exact millisecond you take even the tiniest inhale or exhale, you only have 5 seconds until you pop back into plain sight

Pill 3: Triggers an analog/thermal flash revealing your approximate location (100-150 meters off), and leaves you exposed to radiation. The more uses, the more your health begins to deteriorate.

Pill 4: Every jump causes physical exhaustion, requiring a short cooldown. Worse, there is a chance your quantum particles fail to realign, causing you to instantly blip out of existence and die. Your first teleport carries a 0.01% chance of death, and the risk increases by 0.05% with every subsequent use

Which Pill are you Taking?

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I genuinely think the biggest reason everything went wrong is that the ritual was incomplete. There was clearly one missing piece that caused the entire plan to backfire. Henry was seconds away from killing Victor, Fatima is slowly losing herself, the Talismans are gone, and the town has reached its lowest point. This doesn't feel like just the end of a season. It feels like the end of an entire cycle.

Town has been repeating the same cycle for centuries. The years Tabitha saw in the lighthouse weren't random. I think they represent the beginning and end of each cycle. The people change every time, but their roles remain the same. The Man in Yellow wins, the cycle resets, and everything starts over again. The Boy in White keeps trying to stop it, but he's failed every single time so far. His line about "this time you're going to lose" makes me think this cycle is finally different.

The bone ritual failing is probably the biggest mystery, but I think there are only two possibilities. Either one of the children's bones is still missing, since Tabitha only ever saw seven children while everything else points toward there originally being eight sacrifices, or the ritual simply wasn't finished. Jade and Tabitha recovered the bones, but they don't actually know what to do next. I think the Lake of Tears is the final destination, and until the bones are taken there, nothing is truly complete.

Speaking of the Lake of Tears, I think it's going to be the most important location in Season 5. Jim telling Ethan to find it wasn't just a random line. Whether it brings back the sacrificed children, completes the ritual, or reveals what really happened centuries ago, I don't think the story can move forward without it.

I've also believed for a long time that spiders are connected to all of this. We've seen the spider forest, Victor has drawn spiders multiple times, and Jade's visions keep bringing them back. My guess is that the Lake of Tears is guarded by whatever those spiders actually represent.

Another thing that stood out to me was how the town seems to maintain a balance between good and evil. Day suddenly became night just so the monsters could attack Jade and Tabitha, but then an earthquake happened at the perfect moment and created another escape route. We've seen this pattern before with Boyd finding the Talismans right before dying and Donna surviving against all odds. Whenever everything becomes too hopeless, the town creates an opportunity. Whenever things start looking good, something even worse happens.

The Boy in White and the Man in Yellow remind me a lot of the dynamic from Lost. Since both shows share writers, I wouldn't be surprised if they're following a similar idea where one force wants to protect the place while the other wants to control or destroy it. It feels much bigger than simply being two mysterious characters.

I also think Julie is the woman standing in the corner of that Polaroid. If that's actually her, then Story Walking has probably taken her back to the 1960s. That could completely change everything we know about the timeline and finally explain how the different cycles connect to each other.

When Fatima says "Remember who I was," it sounds less like a warning and more like someone who's slowly disappearing. I honestly think she's becoming one of the monsters, and I wouldn't even rule out her eventually becoming the Kimono Woman since she's always been different from every other creature we've seen.

Henry is also becoming much easier to manipulate. Victor managed to calm him down this time, but I don't think that's going to last. Those visions are only going to get stronger, and I wouldn't be surprised if Henry becomes one of the biggest problems next season.

My last big theory is that Eloise is still alive. We never saw her body, and shows almost never leave something like that unresolved without a reason. I think she's survived somewhere all this time and Season 5 is finally going to reveal where she's been.

The finale basically reset everything. The Talismans are gone, important characters are dead, Fatima is changing, and everyone is back to surviving the same way they did before Boyd ever found the Talismans. It almost feels like Sophia planned this from the beginning. Young Jade's warning makes much more sense now because every cycle seems to end the same way. The town eventually turns against Jade and Tabitha, they fail, and the cycle starts again. The only question now is whether this really is the first cycle where something changes, or if the Man in Yellow has already seen all of this happen before.

I have a theory I have a theary about season 9 and what it’s gon be about so basically the season 1 Rick we saw is season 9 Nick it’s a continued version of seasons 1 Rick so like yeah? And maybe big reveal that this is who evil Morty is from season 1 like we saw him being mean and bunch of references to old season 1 like snowball and other stuff like dad being jobless but earlier seasons he forgave him so like see it like this it’s map like barrier and season 1 has two split branches season 2-8 and then season 9 you see what I mean and then they will combine in season 10 the least season he brings up the indefinitet amount and he does that in season one last epiosde that a million and stuff you see what I mean so yeah dis is it I have more to say but idk

I don't know how much crossover there is between these two works, but there's a show called The Amazing Digital Circus that all the kids are crazy about (I like it too), and it just had its finale...

The ending is A LOT like the ending to 2001. There's no doubt in my mind the director was doing that on purpose. It's clearly an homage, imo.

I made a video about it, detailing the similarities. I figured Kubrick fans like you guys might be interested to see even if you don't know the other show. See how the classics are affecting a new generation :)

After finishing the movie, I kept thinking about what Nikki actually represents. My interpretation is that the curse doesn't simply make her "crazy"—it transforms love into something instinctive and completely devoid of boundaries.

I call this my "Untrained Pet" Theory.

If you notice Nikki's behavior after the wish, she experiences emotional extremes. One moment she's desperately trying to cuddle Baron or be physically close to him, and the next she's devastated or enraged the moment he asks for even a little space.

That reminded me of an overly attached, untrained pet.

Think about how some pets behave with their owners:

• They constantly seek affection through licking, cuddling, or following their owner everywhere.
• They become anxious or distressed when their owner leaves the house.
• They may cry, throw tantrums, destroy furniture, or block the door because they don't understand that separation isn't rejection.
• They aren't being malicious—they simply don't understand healthy boundaries.

I think Nikki behaves in almost exactly the same way.

Three scenes especially sold me on this idea:

1. Nikki pees and defecates on Baron's carpet.

At first, I thought this was just meant to be disturbing. But then I wondered if it's symbolic of territory marking.

Many animals mark spaces they consider theirs. Nikki isn't just invading Baron's home—she's subconsciously claiming it as her territory.

2. She asks Baron's permission to wait outside the bathroom.

This immediately reminded me of clingy pets that sit outside the bathroom waiting for their owner because they simply can't bear being apart for even a few minutes.

It's another example of obsession expressed through constant attachment.

3. She kills Sarah out of jealousy.

Some pets become extremely possessive when they think another person or animal is taking their owner's affection. While most would never go to such extremes, the instinct of seeing someone else as "competition" is recognizable.

Nikki takes that instinct to its horrifying supernatural conclusion. Sarah becomes a rival for Baron's attention, so she has to be eliminated.

But what about the self-harm?

This was the one part my theory didn't initially explain.

Then I realized that animals with severe separation anxiety sometimes hurt themselves. They may scratch themselves raw, refuse to eat, repeatedly slam into doors or windows, or injure themselves trying to get back to their owner.

They're not trying to manipulate anyone—they're experiencing overwhelming distress because they've become emotionally dependent on one person.

Nikki's self-harm feels like the cursed, human version of that. Her entire emotional existence revolves around Baron. Any rejection or distance becomes psychologically unbearable.

So I don't think the movie is saying obsession is simply "loving someone too much."

I think it's showing love stripped of everything that makes it healthy—respect for boundaries, patience, trust, independence, and emotional regulation.

What's left is pure attachment instinct.

Which brings me to my two takeaways:

1. Be very careful how you word your wishes.
2. If you truly want someone to "love you more than anyone else in the fucking world"... just get a pet.

I just watched yesterday's "Minions are they APEX Predators!" video. It got me thinking: While Rabbis aren't predators (like Minions), both are indestructible AND will PURPOSELY (even if it seems like an accident) cause chaos for those around. What would happen if they face-off against each other?

Hopefully, Lee will do a theory about it. I doubt it; but am hopeful. Until then, I'm curious as to what this community thinks. Besides voting, if you can comment your reasoning...

Once again: If this post is active enough, perhaps it'll show up on Lee's radar. Thank you.

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[Spoilers] Theory on Clark

Clark grew up not fitting in. Learning that no matter how hard he tried he never could live up to his own expectations and saw others as the cause of that. Like he was trying to copy the life of a human but failing to realize the whole picture. Like a painter trying to paint a picture of the Mona Lisa with an art brush with no bristles and blaming the paint for his lack of control.

His mind was detached yet present for socialization.

He brought kat and her boyfriend into the backrooms to see if the backrooms entity safe or not or could be reasoned with, for research. He didn’t intend to kill them but he knew something in the backrooms was dangerous but chose to ignore the danger because of his lack of introspection. He then stayed in the backrooms and became symbiotic to the shifting dimensional math of the backrooms. He slowly became a perfected human completely altered by the shifting non-Euclidean geometry.

Notice how Mary’s dream shifts from trauma to unrecognizable architecture? That’s what the backrooms does to your mind. It shifts the wiring and geometry to the physics that are overriding the earthly physics of the real world.

The backrooms isn’t leaking into the real world, the real world is leaking into the backrooms, and anything that falls or goes near a null zone gets altered by that non-Euclidean geometry. Keep in mind on the wall drawing it looks like a calendar that Clark made. Each day he marked off were several days in the weeks but off by several days. Time leaks into the backrooms and the backrooms alters the physics of it. It copies time and distorts and shifts it.

It’s theorized that the human mind can manifest parts of reality, in the backrooms there are no Euclidean rules so the effect of that manifestation is magnified by your subconscious. The backrooms does this but it’s severely flawed by our own understanding.

Clark got along with the creature because he had achieved the final state of a human being exposed to that world. He thrived in the backrooms not because he followed the rules but because he became part of the architecture of the backrooms. He was trying to be human within the logic and math of the backrooms.

It was the first time in his life where everything made sense. His life was chaotic and strange to him. The backrooms finally let him free from the rigid little boxes society and people put him in. He could be who he always was meant to be, a hollow vessel.

The still form with red hair is his wife which either means the backrooms copied her from his mind or she fell into the backrooms and got lost which would explain why his house in the real world is empty when Clark visits it. She clipped into the backrooms and got lost and manifested a still form from her own ego within the backrooms.

Mary changed Clark. Humans can alter the way other humans think in the backrooms using subconscious manifestation. By Clark slowly coming to his senses by interacting with Mary, Mary changed the fundamental way that Clark functions as a person. From being empty and attempting to be human he was in symbiosis with his still form. By embracing his own flaws he no longer was wired the same way the backrooms had slowly shifted him into aligning fully with the physics of the dimension.

His thinking changed because Captain Clark had changed too because Mary said Clark was the problem and Captain Clark took it out on Clark and he lost his camouflage because of Mary’s interference. He was aligned with the dimension perfectly and then became unaligned which caused the backrooms to treat him like a mathematical contamination like it does with everyone else and he dies almost immediately. Clark is then left dead in the alleyway and his body is never recovered by async. This then probably leaves him becoming a life form as the backrooms begins to replicate and alter the bacteria on his decomposing body.

If Clark hadn’t died imagine what kind of being he would become in the backrooms. He’d change and be rewritten by the dimension and would’ve become a very BIG problem for async and possibly standard as well. He would’ve been a fully sentient entity within the backrooms with full control over his subconscious, granting him basically admin controls of the entire dimension. Being able to open null zones at will or shift the geometry of layout within the backrooms for his own desires.

So... I just binge watched the show with my friend 2 days ago and we both came up with an interesting theory on abstractions.

We know that the characters aren't really human, right? They're just... digital personas made from neural scans.

So, when a character abstracts, what happens to them? Do the images just get... corrupted?

I noticed the "neural scans (obsolete)" folder when kinger hacks Caine. If they're "obsolete" wouldn't that mean that they've been replaced by something new? So... wouldn't these scans belong to the people who abstracted?

We also see the red humanoid figure reach into said folder and create Scratch (it could be a flashback but why would it atill be called "obsolete" when Scratch was created?). So... wouldn't that mean that the people who abstracted could still be brought back?

I dont know though, im delusional and trying my best to believe there CAN be an ending where everyone is happy and alive, but I still find this idea interesting...

(Oh, also, the math checks out if you believe that the red figure scene takes place before Jax's abstraction.

6 from the original abstracted people, add 2 for Ribbit and Kaufmo and another 2 for the crossed out doors from the pilot of 2 characters we never hear about and you have the 10 things in the folder)

After House of the Dragon Season 3 released, one question is setting the fandom on FIRE! Should Rhaenyra take the throne as the king’s chosen heir… or does Aegon II have a stronger claim as the firstborn son? …OR is there a third player, hiding in the shadows…whose claim might outmatch BOTH?!