Top 10 Most Popular Conspiracy Theories of 2023

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We’re going to need more red string. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at conspiracy theories that dominated sections of the internet and evidence boards in 2023.

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00:00 And no one will say that, but I don't know how you can reach that conclusion.
00:04 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're looking at conspiracy theories that dominated sections
00:09 of the internet and evidence boards in 2023.
00:13 True or false, we're going to need more red string.
00:17 I think this phenomenon is the only one that gives us the opportunity to come together.
00:23 Number 10.
00:24 The world ends on September 23rd.
00:27 December 21st, 2012 came and went with the world still running.
00:31 The sky is not on fire.
00:33 We're not falling into a black hole.
00:35 We're not colliding with Planet X.
00:37 In fact, it's raining and snowing for God's sake.
00:40 Since then, conspiracy theorists have been trying to reboot the rapture with September
00:44 23rd.
00:45 Rooted in the 1970s, one theory suggests that the Earth will collide with the rogue planet
00:51 Nibiru, aka Planet X, on this date.
00:55 After missing the mark in 2003, the theory made a comeback on September 23rd, 2017.
01:01 But NASA senior scientist David Morrison debunked the apocalyptic claim.
01:06 The planet is famous in conspiracy circles, but NASA astronomers say it doesn't exist.
01:12 After that, doomsday was pushed back to April 23rd, 2018.
01:16 Conspiracy theorists returned on September 23rd in 2023.
01:21 Although this was less about the Nibiru hypothesis and more about the date's prominence with
01:25 projects like Little Shop of Horrors, Sleepy Hollow, Knowing, and Tomorrowland.
01:47 A Taco Bell commercial was even referenced.
01:49 Fitting, since, given the outcome, this was the fast food of conspiracy theories.
01:55 Number 9.
01:56 Yevgeny Purgoshin faked his own death.
01:59 Leader of the pro-Russian private military company, Wagner Group, Yevgeny Purgoshin supported
02:04 Vladimir Putin until he launched a rebellion in 2023.
02:08 It didn't pan out well for Purgoshin, who died in a plane crash with several others
02:30 precisely two months after calling off the rebellion.
02:45 And this is the part where we dramatically ask, "Or did he?"
02:49 Within a week of the crash, rumors started circulating that Purgoshin staged his demise.
02:54 Although the DNA evidence indicates otherwise, conspiracy theorists believe that Purgoshin
02:58 either had a body double take his place or that he was on a second jet.
03:03 While there's little backing up those far-fetched theories, there may be a real conspiracy surrounding
03:08 Purgoshin's death with evidence suggesting that his plane was sabotaged.
03:17 Number 8.
03:18 Godzilla egg washes up in Japan.
03:26 A mysterious orb seemingly made from iron is discovered on the beach.
03:33 If this is anywhere else in the world, you'd probably assume it's a random piece of debris.
03:37 Since it was found in Hamamatsu, though, there can only be one logical explanation.
03:42 It's nesting season for Godzilla.
03:50 Social media leaped at the opportunity to present the rusty sphere as a giant reptile
03:55 egg.
03:56 Some theories connected the orb to Dragon Ball's and Michael Crichton's sphere.
04:00 The most practical theory was that it might be a bomb.
04:03 Using x-rays, the authorities deduced that the orb was empty, so no explosives or unborn
04:08 Godzooki inside.
04:20 They have yet to figure out where the ball came from, however.
04:23 Until then, Godzilla believers aren't taking any chances.
04:26 Number 7.
04:28 Burning Man – Cannibalism Edition Burning Man 2023 unfortunately coincided
04:33 with hazardous floods, but it could have been worse.
04:44 As Burning Man attendees found themselves all wet, an online rumor started spreading
04:48 like wildfire, warning of an Ebola outbreak.
04:51 This snowballed into another rumor claiming that people were being quarantined at Burning
04:55 Man in addition to being stranded because of the floods.
05:10 With limited food supplies, people resorted to cannibalism.
05:21 As ridiculous as this all sounds, readers had to second guess themselves when they noticed
05:25 that a few headlines were linked to sources like NPR, Forbes, CNN, and the CDC.
05:32 Of course, those images were all doctored.
05:34 Marjorie Taylor Greene got in one more conspiracy theory though, saying that the mud at Burning
05:39 Man brainwashed people into believing in climate change.
05:54 Number 6.
05:56 Sound of Freedom – A QAnon Production Centered on sex trafficking, Sound of Freedom
06:01 became the surprise hit of the summer.
06:03 It was also among the year's most controversial releases with critics arguing that it endorsed
06:08 QAnon.
06:17 Although director Alejandro Monteverde denies this, star Jim Caviezel championed a false
06:22 QAnon theory while promoting the film at the Health and Freedom Conference.
06:30 Tim Ballard, who Caviezel portrays, has been accused of supporting QAnon as well.
06:41 It's been debated about how many people actually watch the film given its pay-it-forward
06:48 model, which allows people to buy and donate tickets.
06:51 Angel Studios, nonetheless, says that most ticket buyers were everyday people.
06:56 The studio shot down yet another theory that AMC was cancelling and sabotaging screenings,
07:01 when in reality, the chain was adding more theaters.
07:04 Number 5.
07:05 Tupac – Resurrected Conspiracy 27 years after rapper Tupac Shakur's murder,
07:11 Las Vegas police arrested gangster Dwayne Davis.
07:14 Charged with first-degree murder, Davis is suspected to be the last survivor connected
07:18 to Shakur's death.
07:24 This break in the case revived a popular theory that Shakur's shooter was Orlando "Baby
07:33 Lane" Anderson, Davis' nephew.
07:36 Hours before Shakur was gunned down, he got into a fight with Anderson in the MGM Grand
07:40 Lobby.
07:41 Anderson died during an unrelated shootout in 1998.
07:44 Even as the authorities moved away from Anderson, many still saw him as the prime suspect.
07:54 Davis has pleaded not guilty, although on more than one occasion, he's identified
08:04 Anderson as the shooter.
08:05 While certain details remain murky, the theory that Anderson was involved is becoming more
08:10 and more likely.
08:19 Number 4.
08:20 15-Minute Cities The term 15-minute city pertains to urban
08:24 areas with all of the bare essentials within close proximity.
08:39 Whether you're walking to school or biking to the store, everything can be reached in
08:43 roughly 15 minutes.
08:44 The concept is designed to improve lives, but in 2023, conspiracy theorists painted
08:50 15-minute cities as an elaborate government plot to suppress residents and control the
08:54 population.
08:55 Since cars aren't required in 15-minute cities, it's also been theorized that they
08:59 are the first steps in banning fossil fuel vehicles.
09:09 Dystopia, ghettos, and urban incarceration are just some of the phrases that people have
09:14 used to describe 15-minute cities, despite not having much to go on beyond speculation.
09:20 Nevertheless, believers have threatened people like Carlos Moreno, who helped conceive 15-minute
09:25 cities.
09:26 The 15-minute city idea answers the question of saving time by turning it on its head,
09:35 by suggesting a different pace of life.
09:39 Number 3.
09:41 The Assassination of Donald Trump Most of the people who've threatened Donald
09:45 Trump have been civilians, but could an impending assassination attempt go all the way to the
09:50 top?
09:51 No, but that doesn't stop Tucker Carlson from declaring that we're speeding towards
10:01 Trump's assassination in 2023.
10:05 With Trump likely to receive the 2024 Republican nomination and possibly another presidential
10:10 victory, Carlson implied both parties have decided that Trump is too threatening to keep
10:14 around.
10:25 Famed conspiracy regurgitator Alex Jones echoed Carlson, saying that the so-called "deep
10:31 state" establishment will either poison Trump and make it look like a heart attack,
10:35 or they'll blow up his plane.
10:41 We'd ask, based on what evidence?
10:44 But it's Tucker Carlson and Alex Jones.
10:46 Silly things like facts have never deterred them before.
10:50 Number 2.
10:51 Alien Bodies From Mexico Seeing is believing.
10:55 Those who've spent their lives watching the stars were ready to believe when journalist
10:59 Jaime Maussan addressed Mexico's Congress, presenting two tiny, mummified bodies resembling
11:05 aliens.
11:06 Maussan claimed the bodies were discovered six years earlier in Peru, although the beings
11:11 themselves may be nearly a thousand years old.
11:25 What's more, one of the supposed aliens had eggs inside her.
11:29 It's unclear how the bodies got from Peru to Mexico, but Maussan asserts that he's done
11:33 absolutely nothing illegal.
11:35 Many have questioned the beings' origins, as well as Maussan's credibility.
11:58 Some experts think the beings were manipulated using real mummy parts.
12:02 Others theorize that they resemble actual Nazca mummies from Peru.
12:15 We're waiting for the men in black to give their verdict.
12:43 Number 1.
12:46 The Putin Trap, aka Double-Double Putin in Trouble, aka Weekend at Vladdy's, aka Don't
12:53 Tell Mother Russia The President's Dead.
12:56 2022 saw more than a few rumors that Russian President Vladimir Putin had cancer, among
13:02 other life-threatening illnesses.
13:04 Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky went a step further in January 2023, questioning
13:09 if Putin was even alive.
13:24 Zelensky didn't rule out the possibility that Putin was dead and had been replaced
13:28 with a look-alike.
13:29 Putin has denied using doubles in the past, and the Kremlin backed this up in October
13:34 2023.
13:35 That same month, Russian political scientist Valery Solovy announced that Putin had died
13:41 with a doppelganger assuming his place.
13:54 The whole Putin and the popper theory may be a tough pill for some to swallow.
13:58 Still, the next time Putin makes a speech, we'll be on the lookout for little details,
14:02 especially when he goes topless.
14:15 Which 2023 conspiracy theory do you think is crazy enough to be true?
14:36 Let us know in the comments!
14:42 Thanks for watching!