Cool teen Chloë Grace Moretz stars as a cool, alien-fighting teen in the upcoming post-apocalyptic thriller The 5th Wave, based on the first book in a YA trilogy, naturally. Moretz plays Cassie, who suits up to defend Earth from The Others—the creative name given to an invading alien force in the universe of 5th Wave. Cassie is just 16 years old when The Others arrive and implement their very strategic and carefully mapped-out five-step plan for terrestrial destruction. According to the first trailer for The 5th Wave, here are the five steps of alien invasion and takeover:
- First Wave: Darkness
Basically, the aliens just turn the power off. You’ve seen it before: rolling blackouts can be seen from space, planes fall out of the sky, et cetera. - Second Wave: Destruction
“Then, they took our cities, laying everything to waste,” Cassie explains over footage that shows what looks like alien-induced natural disasters. - Third Wave: Infection
Airborne disease! Close-up of a flock of birds! - Fourth Wave: Invasion
Phew, this plan is starting to seem a little long-winded. Shouldn’t the unstoppable air-borne disease taken care of things? It looks like there are still some human survivors though, so the aliens take to the streets to round them up. They take a cue from Cylons, Terminators, and pretty much any anti-human force ever and figure out a way to appear as humans. “How are we supposed to fight The Others if we don’t know what they are?” a young, naive soldier asks. Exactly, friend. Exactly.
The Fourth Wave still doesn’t get the job done though, but that doesn’t faze the aliens. They have a plan and they’re sticking to it. Enter: The Fifth Wave, which doesn’t get a fancy name like the others in the trailer, but promises to wipe out the last of humanity, unless 16-year-old Cassie can stop it from happening. Oh, and there’s also a love story. The 5th Wave co-stars Maika Monroe, Liev Schreiber, and Ron Livingston and is directed by J. Blakeson, who previously directed The Disappearance Of Alice Creed. The 5th Wave opens on January 15, 2016.