Constellation’s Hidden Reference To A Famous Conspiracy Theory Explains The Lapse In Jo’s Memory

In episode 4, Apple TV+’s Constellation drops a subtle reference to a famous conspiracy theory, which seems to explain all the lapses in Jo’s memory. Constellation‘s opening arc adopts a Gravity-esque narrative, where its main character, Jo, races against time to make crucial repairs to the International Space Station before returning to Earth. However, the show’s primary storyline unfolds when Jo is back home, strangely surprised by how unfamiliar her surroundings and familial relationships seem.

As Constellation progresses, Jo, like the people around her, assumes that prolonged space travel took a toll on her mental health. However, the more she explores the world around her and attempts to seek the answers to the mysterious discrepancies in her memory, the more she realizes that her reality is not what it seems. While many aspects of what is happening to Jo remain shrouded, Constellation‘s episode 4’s conspiracy theory nod provides some answers.

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Constellation’s Nod To An 89-Year-Old Thought Experiment Hints At Its Central Theme

In its first 4 episodes, Constellation drops several references to an 89-year-old thought experiment, which seemingly gives away its central theme.

Constellation Seems To Reference The Mandela Effect In Episode 4

In Constellation episode 4’s opening moments, Jo makes a joke about Nelson Mandela, and Alice claims she does not know who that is. This comes off as a subtle reference to the Mandela effect, which is a phenomenon where a person seems to remember something differently from how it actually happened. While there are many explanations for the Mandela effect, including gaps in human memory or repeated exposure to misconstrued information, one conspiracy theory suggests that the Mandela effect results from people tapping into memories from an alternate universe.

The Mandela Effect Explains The Distortions In Jo’s Memory

As highlighted in Constellation‘s first four episodes, Jo safely returns home despite being involved in a dangerous accident at the International Space Station. However, things take a strange turn for Jo after returning home because many things around her are not as she remembers them. For instance, while she recalls that the color of her car was red before she left for space, she finds a blue one in front of her home. In another scene from Constellation‘s episode 4, Jo initially tells her therapist she found a piano in her home but does not know how to play it.

However, moments later, after she lays her fingers on the piano, she finds herself playing it effortlessly while being able to read musical notes. Scenes like these establish that Jo is somewhere in a liminal space between two worlds, where memories from her two parallel lives are starting to converge. In other words, Constellation‘s Jo is experiencing the Mandela effect, where she is not only realizing that her memories are inconsistent but also able to access the memories of her alternate self.

Constellation

Constellation is a sci-fi psychological thriller written and created by Peter Harness for Apple TV+. After facing a crisis in space, Astronaut Jo returns to Earth only to discover nothing is quite the same – and that her sanity may be slowly slipping from her grasp.

Cast

Noomi Rapace , Jonathan Banks , James D’Arcy , Lenn Kudrjawizki , William Catlett , barbara sukowa , Carole Weyers

Release Date

February 21, 2024

Seasons

1

Streaming Service(s)

Apple TV+

Writers

Peter Harness

Directors

michelle maclaren

Showrunner

Peter Harness

Creator(s)

Peter Harness