The multiverse, once a concept brimming with boundless narrative potential, has become a predictable trope in Hollywood, despite massive investments from studios like Marvel. In contrast, the 2022 indie hit Everything Everywhere All at Once, directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, is celebrated for its masterful handling of the idea, proving that infinite realities can serve a deeply personal story on a fraction of the budget. The film, which is set to move from Netflix to Tubi in July, uses the multiverse not as a spectacle, but as a tool to explore a single family's trauma.
"I don’t care about multiverse movies," Kwan stated in an interview with Fast Company, highlighting a core philosophy behind their approach. "Once the multiverse is introduced, nothing matters — there is no choice, and a character’s nothing without his choices." This sentiment underscores the film's divergence from typical blockbuster fare. While Evelyn Wang (Michelle Yeoh) discovers she can access alternate selves, the narrative steers away from cosmic stakes, focusing instead on regret, grief, and nihilism as explored through bizarre realities that reveal character truths.
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This intimate focus contrasts sharply with Marvel's more franchise-driven multiverse approach, which often leans on CGI spectacle and cameo-baiting to tease future content. The Daniels, with their background in low-budget filmmaking, achieved a visually spectacular result for under $25 million. Production designer Jason Kisvarday emphasized grounding the multiversal chaos in the mundane, utilizing a disused office building and a real Los Angeles laundromat, scuffed up to appear lived-in. This tactical approach, as cinematographer Larkin Seiple described it, was a "messy but fun way to make something very stupid but very beautiful."
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Instead of expanding the universe, The Daniels used infinite realities to amplify the intimacy of one family's struggles. The film's central conflict, embodied by the nihilistic "Everything Bagel," revolves around Evelyn's choice between despair and compassion. This core question—how to make individual choices matter in the face of infinite possibilities—is where Everything Everywhere All at Once offers a more resonant answer than many of its blockbuster counterparts.