The Real Reason For The Zombie Boom? Follow The Money

For seventy years, the world barely made zombie films.

Then, right around the turn of the century, that changed, and we haven't stopped since.

The biggest Franchises of all time: The Walking Dead. The Last of Us. Game of Thrones. World War Z. 28 Days Later. Why now? Why all at once?

This isn't a video about horror - it's why millions of people, with no coordination between them, started picturing the exact same thing at the exact same moment in history.

Featuring the behavioural science of George Lakoff, Richard Thaler, Daniel Kahneman and Walter Mischel's famous marshmallow test, plus design ethicist Tristan Harris on "the race to the bottom of the brainstem," and the Facebook founder who went on the record about exactly what these apps were built to do to you.

Stick around to the end. I promised hope, and unlike most zombie films, this one actually has survivors.

I’m Barry Ferns – a comedian whose personal journey through failure, homelessness, and rebuilding led me to explore the socio and behavioural economics of inequality.

This channel digs into how systems of power shape our identity, behaviour, and beliefs, and how we can shift the stories we tell ourselves and each other about poverty, inequality, and who’s to blame.

How to Support Barry’s Economics
Help us stay independent and keep making videos like this.
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/barryseconomics
https://ko-fi.com/barryseconomics
https://www.patreon.com/barryseconomics

Subscribe for future videos: https://www.youtube.com/@barryeconomics
More about me: https://barryferns.co.uk/

You can also follow me on
Tiktok: tiktok.com/@barryseconomics
Instagram: instagram.com/barryseconomics
Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0vgya63dtCFD5tjODr7BEK?si=Bb6ftvByR1-6vG0Q2BTmMg
Twitter: twitter.com/barryseconomics
Substack: https://substack.com/@barryseconomics
BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/barryseconomics.bsky.social
Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/user/barryferns/

If you’re new to this, check out @garyseconomics first – his channel gives the structural and financial perspective. This one adds the lived, social and emotional side.

Support Gary's Wealth Tax Campaign Here: https://buy.stripe.com/dRm4gs9Nl1L6eqWbUydjO00

Want to see the stand-up side of all this?
Find my live comedy and storytelling here:
https://www.youtube.com/@mrbarryferns

To learn more about my comedy club, Angel Comedy, and buy tickets for shows head here: https://www.angelcomedy.co.uk/

#BarrysEconomics #GarysEconomics #Inequality #BehaviouralEconomics #SocialJustice #BarryFerns #ComedyWithDepth

Topics: zombie movies explained · behavioural economics · the attention economy · present bias · social media and the brain · dopamine and the algorithm · doomscrolling · neuroscience of metaphor · short-termism · why we're obsessed with the apocalypse