What Inspired Andy Weir To Write 'The Egg'?

I’ve always been fascinated by the backstory of 'The Egg,' partly because Andy Weir’s ideas hit this sweet spot between sci-fi and existential philosophy. The story feels like a conversation starter about life’s biggest questions, and that’s no accident. Weir has mentioned in interviews that the concept came from a late-night thought experiment—what if every person who ever lived was just *you*, reborn over and over across time? It’s a riff on the idea of reincarnation but with a twist that flips empathy on its head. He wanted to explore how perspective changes everything. If you *knew* the rude stranger cutting you off in traffic was technically *you* in another life, would it make you kinder? The story’s simplicity is its genius. No fancy tech, no sprawling universe—just a god-like figure dropping a bombshell on a dead guy. It’s pure, unfiltered Weir: taking big ideas and sanding them down to something you could scribble on a napkin.

The inspiration also ties to his love for thought experiments. Weir’s a self-taught science nerd who geeked out over concepts like the Fermi Paradox long before 'The Martian' made him famous. 'The Egg' feels like his playground for testing how tiny shifts in perspective can redefine morality. He’s admitted the story was partly a response to religious debates he’d seen online—especially the 'what happens after we die' rabbit holes. Instead of picking sides, he crafted a parable that sidesteps dogma entirely. What if the afterlife wasn’t about punishment or reward but about *growth*? The story’s viral success proves how hungry people are for that kind of narrative. It doesn’t preach; it whispers, 'Hey, what if *this* is the answer?' And suddenly, you’re staring at your own reflection in everyone else. That’s the kind of inspiration that doesn’t just come from books—it comes from watching humanity argue in comment sections and thinking, 'There’s gotta be a better way.'