The Thinning: New World Order (2018) Timeline Explained – Every Event in Order

Laina initially declines Redding's offer to support his campaign, but eight months later she publicly backs him. This appears to be part of Ms. Cole and Jack's plan to get close to Redding and gather evidence against the Thinning conspiracy. Laina uses her position as a Redding supporter to infiltrate Georgina Preston's computer and access the campaign files that expose the truth.

• laina michaels
• redding
• support
• conspiracy

TXPak is a company that supplies military rations capable of supporting 100,000 people per year. Kellan's discovery reveals that Assuru Global doesn't run a genuine campus manufacturing operation, instead, they insource these rations. This proves the labor camps aren't educational facilities but slave operations producing goods for profit, exposing a major layer of the conspiracy.

• txpak
• kellan woods
• assuru global
• labor camp
• ration

Agent Morris betrays Laina because she and her men are secretly working with Assuru Global. Morris was tasked with silencing anyone who uncovered the truth about the Thinning and the labor camps. After Kellan is killed by Morris's team, she tries to eliminate Laina as the final loose end to protect the conspiracy.

• morris
• assuru
• betrayal
• agent morris
• kellan

Blake and Ellie rally the Worthy students to betray the regime by removing their GPS trackers. They orchestrate a mass escape into the Texas desert while BNC helicopters film the exodus. When Mason King pursues them, Ellie kills him in defense, allowing Blake and Ellie to finally escape to safety.

• blake redding
• ellie harper
• escape
• labor camp
• worthy
• maso

Laina successfully delivers the drive containing evidence of the conspiracy to Wendy at BNC News, but the timing works against her. Redding wins the presidential election before the exposure can fully circulate. Georgina Preston then launches a crackdown, arresting all conspirators before the truth can spread widely enough to stop his ascent.

• redding
• election
• president
• expose
• crackdown

Jack initially appears to work with Ms. Cole and Assuru Global security to get close to Redding. After being captured during Laina's data heist, he later returns claiming to work for the FBI. He intercepts Laina's arrest and vows to dismantle Redding and Georgina's control, though his true allegiance remains somewhat ambiguous given the film's ambiguous ending.

• jack
• fbi
• allegiance
• capture
• rescue

Despite exposing the conspiracy through the drive delivered to BNC News, Laina is arrested during Georgina Preston's crackdown on all who conspired against Redding and the Thinning. The arrest happens immediately after Redding wins the election, as the regime moves quickly to silence opposition before the evidence can take effect.

• laina
• arrest
• georgina preston
• crackdown
• exposed

After Kellan uncovers TXPak and the labor camp secret, someone attempts to suffocate him with a bag as he enters his car. He triggers the car alarm and escapes initially. Later, when Laina visits to copy his files, Kellan leaves in his car which then explodes, Morris and her Assuru-aligned team killed him to silence the investigation.

• kellan woods
• death
• morris
• explosion
• assassination

Ellie kills Mason King during the escape attempt because he pursues her and Blake as they flee across the Texas desert. When Mason catches up to them, Ellie defends herself and Blake by killing him, ensuring their escape succeeds and allowing the couple to reach safety.

• ellie harper
• mason king
• kill
• escape
• defense

Ms. Cole arranges to extract Corrine and Joey Michaels out of the country to protect them from the regime, but she is betrayed by a coworker. This betrayal puts Corrine and Joey in danger and forces Laina to continue her investigation without the family safety net she was hoping for.

• corrine michaels
• joey michaels
• betrayal
• ms cole
• extraction

After Kellan is killed and Laina retrieves the drive, the truth emerges that Morris and her men are aligned with Assuru Global. They killed Kellan to silence him and planned to kill Laina as the final loose end, exposing the deep connection between federal law enforcement and the corporation behind the Thinning.

• morris
• assuru connection
• conspiracy
• fbi
• cover-up

Blake deliberately fails the Thinning test in the first film, making the public believe he died. Instead, he's secretly taken to an Assuru Global slave labor facility where Worthy students manufacture products. He reconnects with Ellie Harper and eventually leads the uprising escape, suggesting his failure was either a mistake or a cover that allowed him to survive within the system.

• blake redding
• test failure
• labor camp
• worthy
• ellie