From Twisters to pandemics and volcanoes: Disaster movies from the 90s

The 90s were characterized not only by their colorful fashion but also by their disaster movies. The plot of this genre is always the same: something big goes horribly wrong and we see the protagonists try to escape the disaster for the duration of the film. How many do you remember from the 90s?

When NASA discovers that a massive asteroid the size of Texas is heading directly toward the planet, they devise a desperate plan: place a bomb inside the asteroid and detonate it to split the rock into pieces before it hits Earth. To carry out this mission, they recruit Harry Stamper (Bruce Willis), the world's best deep-core driller, along with his team of experts, including A.J. Frost (Ben Affleck) and Rockhound (Steve Buscemi). Liv Tyler (image) plays the role of Harry's daughter and A.J.'s love interest.

This disaster film, directed by Rob Cohen and starring Sylvester Stallone, follows a group of people who are trapped inside an underwater tunnel following a catastrophic explosion.

Bill Paxton and Helen Hunt star in this film, directed by Jan de Bont, which follows storm chasers going after deadly tornadoes through Oklahoma while dealing with personal conflicts and the dangers of extreme weather.

Image: Warner Bros.

Starring Christopher Lambert and Natasha Henstridge, this film shows how a virus spreads and wipes out Eastern Europe, threatening to wipe out humanity altogether. Under the pressure, society breaks down and heads towards apocalyptic conditions.

Image: Dimension, Disney Studios

On July 2nd, gigantic alien spacecraft appear over major cities worldwide and start bombing them in an apparent attempt to destroy and take over the world. As chaos spreads, a group of unlikely heroes rises to defend Earth. Among them are Captain Steven Hiller (Will Smith), a brave fighter pilot; David Levinson (Jeff Goldblum), a brilliant satellite technician who decodes the aliens' communication signal; and President Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman), who leads the global resistance.

Image: 20th Century Studios / Disney

This disaster thriller, directed by Roger Donaldson and starring Pierce Brosnan and Linda Hamilton, follows a small town threatened by a massive volcanic eruption.

The fateful maiden voyage of the RMS Titanic is cut short by an iceberg. While telling the story of a near-impossible romance between Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet's characters, director James Cameron also follows the sinking of the Titanic with precise details. The epic film won eleven Oscars.

Tea Leoni, Morgan Freeman, Elijah Wood, and Robert Duvall star in this disaster movie about a massive comet approaching Earth and threatening. Special mention goes out to Morgan Freeman's portrayal of the U.S. President.

Image: Paramount, Dreamworks

Once again we see Morgan Freeman in a 90s disaster movie, this time with Christian Slater by his side. Inclement rain causes a dam to overflow, and the flood threatens the lives of the people in the small town of Huntingburg, Indiana.

Image: Paramount

The story centers on Jesse Graves (Howie Long), an elite smokejumper -  that is, a firefighter who parachutes into remote areas to combat wildfires. After he is deployed to a national park to fight a fire and save the people trapped in it, Jesse and his team have to deal with a group of violent convicts in the park as well. They have escaped from prison and use the wildfire as cover for their getaway.

Image: 20th Century Studios

Based on a real story, this film shows how a Uruguayan rugby team has to survive in the snowy heights of the Andes after their plane crashes there. Until help comes, the remaining survivors are forced to do anything they can to stay alive.

Image: Paramount

A group of storm chasers develops a cutting-edge device to study tornadoes and improve warning systems, but they struggle to get funding for their project. Their collaboration is put to the ultimate test when a powerful and deadly F5 tornado threatens a nearby town.

Image: Hallmark

Most people remember the drama of the ill-fated Apollo 13 lunar mission in 1970. This film follows the disaster step by step, from its 'Houston, we have a problem' to the safe return of astronauts Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks), Fred Haise (Bill Paxton), and Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon).

A deadly virus, which previously wiped out an African village, resurfaces in the small town of Cedar Creek, California, after an infected monkey is smuggled into the United States. The virus mutates and begins to spread rapidly, causing panic and a rising death toll. Dustin Hoffman is one of the epidemiologists trying to contain the virus and find a vaccine before thousands more die.

Image: Warner Bros.

Starring Anne Heche and Tommy Lee Jones, this film follows the head of Los Angeles' Office of Emergency Management and a seismologist as they discover unusual seismic activity after an earthquake. They find an underground volcano and have to try to evacuate the city's population before it erupts.

Image: 20th Century Studios

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