10 Underwhelming Shock Twists That Made Films Worse

Serenity follows a fishing captain called Dill who intends to kill his ex-wife's abusive husband. While this plot is developing, the film keeps jumping to scenes of Dill's son, Patrick, in his bedroom playing with his computer.

Dill and the rest of the characters eventually learn the shocking truth: they aren't human. They are artificial-intelligence beings inside a perfect simulation of reality created by Patrick. Patrick created this video game (somehow) to vent his frustration about his mother's new husband.

Serenity has an intriguing set up, a stellar cast, and great characters. But this twist is so out of left-field, you as the viewer are left blindsided. You think you're watching a mystery thriller and then BAM, it pulls a Matrix and states everything you just saw was in a fake reality.

The funny thing is, this idea could've worked if the movie removed the "smartest child ever created virtual reality" angle. If this entire scenario was created in Patrick's mind as a form of escapism, rather than a computer, the ending could've worked. Heck, if you removed Patrick altogether and the story just focused on Dill trying to kill his ex-wife's husband, it would've been far more coherent.