Arka Mukhopadhyay
If there was an app predicting your time of death, would you still download it? With writer-director Justin Dec at the helm, the 2019 horror-thriller movie ‘Countdown’ manifests the discords of the digital era with an uncanny ambiance. Courtney finds the app while looking for another and shows it to Evan, her boyfriend. Courtney has only a few hours to live, and while Evan thinks of the app as some prank, it takes Courtney’s life. Evan gets into an accident, ends up in a hospital, and shows the app to Quinn, a trainee nurse. Things go haywire, and a twist ending keeps the viewers rooting for more. However, you may wonder if there is a mid-credit sequence. If so, we have you insured. SPOILERS AHEAD.
Countdown Mid-Credit Scene: Is Doc Dead or Alive? Why Does Doc’s Countdown Change?
Doc comes off as a suave tech-geek who has the answer to every tech-related problem. He runs a shop called Doc’s Wireless which is quite busy when Quinn visits him. She goes to his shop after wreaking her old phone in an attempt to get rid of that godforsaken app. When she asks for a new phone, new SIM card, and new service, it sure looks suspicious, but Doc does not mind. On top of it, he even suggests jail-breaking the phone so that Quinn can install illegal apps on her phone.
However, the irony entails that Quinn has had enough of these apps. Therefore, she does not agree to hack and takes the phone however it comes. The Doc is happy to help, and all he asks for is a good review on Yelp. To Quinn’s dismay, the Countdown app installs itself on her new phone as she steps out of the shop. Yelling does not help, and Quinn almost accepts her fate when the rearview cam reveals a ghostly figure behind her car. She turns to find the space empty and bumps straight into the Lexus parked by her side.
The car owner is super unhappy, but Matt comes to the rescue. As it happens, Matt has a timer of his own, and he also sees strange things after installing the app. After a tour to Father John’s abode, they head back to Doc’s, who has just pulled down the shutter. He is already running late on a date with a Tinder match, and he does not get a date every day. However, Quinn and Matt lure him back to the shop, using a few credit cards. Quinn’s credit card has a lot of room, and Doc takes up the job, considering how he can take his date to a fancy place with the money.
Even if the app has a curse in its kernel, it’s nothing that computer whiz Doc cannot break into. Doc finds it odd that the app is 60GB in size. That amount of space can hold several seasons of ‘Game of Thrones.’ He hacks into the code to find a Latin inscription and all the dates the app has generated. In the list, Quinn uncovers the name of Jordan and urges Doc to change her date too. Doc does everything in his power within the 15 minutes. Matt and Quinn call it a night with their new lease of life. But the following morning, the timer comes back to its previous assessment.
Many things happen, and even after evading death, Quinn cannot get rid of the app. But Doc is a self-proclaimed Marvel fan, and it’s only fair that he gets a mid-credit sequence. After some music, the film cuts to the scene where the Doc and his date are having a grand dinner with Quinn’s credit card. The restaurant is almost empty, and the woman is bored to death. She excuses herself to the loo, and Doc finds his countdown changing. Seemingly, it is a punishment for Doc messing with the app’s source code. The lights go out, and something drags Doc out of his chair and into darkness. With the final scare, we believe that Doc dies at the moment.
Read More: Countdown Ending, Explained
