Ep 163 The Maya and Science Fiction
From The Pink Smoke podcast by The Pink Smoke
January 6, 2026 · 1h 26m
About this episode
The episode explores the influence of Mesoamerican mythology on science fiction and horror with guest Solomon Pakal.
Star Trek episodes, the title credits of Alien, the architecture of Star Wars and Blade Runner, the work of Joseph Campbell, H.P. Lovecraft, Clive Barker and Alejandro Jodorowsky. You'd be surprised how many iconic artworks have been influenced by transformative themes traced back to Mesoamerican mythology and Ancient Maya theology. On this episode, host Martin Kessler is joined by Mesoamerican occultist Solomon Pakal to discuss the Mesoamerican influence on science fiction/fantasy and horror. If you enjoy this chat make sure to hop back to Episode 69, in which Martin goes deep into Apocalypto, Mel Gibson's Mesoamerican action movie. The Pink Smoke on Twitter: x.com/ThePinkSmoke Martin Kessler on Twitter: x.com/MovieKessler Solomon Pakal on Substack: solomonpakal.com
People in this episode
Host: Martin Kessler
Guest: Solomon Pakal
Topics covered
- Mesoamerican mythology
- science fiction
- fantasy
- horror
- iconic artworks
- influence of mythology
Keywords
- Mesoamerican
- science fiction
- horror
- mythology
- Joseph Campbell
- Lovecraft
- Blade Runner
- Star Wars
- Apocalypto
Mentioned in this episode
Books & works: Star Trek, Alien, Star Wars, Blade Runner, Apocalypto
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