The Weirdest Conspiracy Theories That People Actually Believe

Conspiracy theories are not a new concept, but they've taken on a new life thanks to the internet. In 2020, we saw more than our fair share of misinformation online—some rooted in historical details, others in fear. Here, we're taking a look at the craziest theories people have believed over the years, from an Earth within Earth to Prince Charles living as a closeted vampire.

The flag moving in the wind, no stars in the sky whatsoever, the misaligned shadows—these have all been points made in the conspiracy theory that Neil Armstrong didn't take the first "leap for mankind" on the moon in 1969. For years, conspiracists have argued that NASA staged the landing and that the secret has been protected by the CIA ever since.

There are a number of conspiracy theories about President Kennedy's death, but one of the most popular is that the government was behind the assassination. Many Americans don't believe Lee Harvey Oswald acted alone, and biographer Philip Shenon claims that even Bobby Kennedy thought the CIA was responsible for his brother's death at first.

[How You've Been Conditioned to Love Conspiracy Theories]

Some people think that the virus is a hoax that was engineered by the media and global elite to control the population. While a die-hard believer likely won't believe us (a.k.a. the media), we're just going to emphasize right here and right now that COVID-19 is very much a real and deadly virus.

The European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) is at the heart of a lot of crazy conspiracy theories, including people who believe that when CERN discovered the Higgs Boson in 2012, they inadvertently created a black hole and Earth was sucked into it. These people think that the world ended in 2012, but we haven't realized it yet.

People have long discussed the conspiracy that Walt Disney used cryogenics technology to freeze himself when he died—even though the Disney family refutes the claims. However, a new theory is that The Walt Disney Company created Frozen as a way to hack Google's search algorithm and distract consumers from information about the late Walt Disney's possible frozen procedure.

The Illuminati leads to a conspiracy rabbit hole that we're not going to delve too far into—except when it comes to the Denver International Airport. Many Illuminati believers are convinced it's the secret group's headquarters. The airport has embraced the rumors by poking fun at it, but that hasn't stopped people from believing secret tunnels and lizard lairs lurk beneath the building.

In 2014, scientists released new unknown findings about the Earth's core, and let's just say conspiracy theorists took it and ran with it. After learning that we don't know much at all about the surface of the Earth, or what lies beneath its layers, the hollow Earth theory gained traction—some believers even think there's an Earth inside of Earth.

The Flat Earth Society has spread across the globe in recent years, with more and more people believing that the world is flat and stationary, rather than a rotating orb as science would lead them to believe.

Why? Well, the Prince of Wales is related to Vlad the Impaler, the inspiration for Bram Stoker's Dracula, and many royals in Charles's bloodline were known to have the disease Porphyria, which is an iron deficiency that causes people to be sensitive to sunlight.

Bigfoot, Sasquatch, call it what you will, but many people are convinced the elusive creature exists. For years people have tried to track it down, resulting in videos and images often emerging of a tall, hairy animal walking upright.

Rumors began circulating in the 1950s that the Nazis had a secret base in Antarctica that housed advanced technology, like UFOs. However, since then no evidence has been discovered to suggest that it's true and Cambridge researcher Colin Summerhayes wrote a 21-page paper disputing the theory.

No, really. People think we're living in a real-life simulation. The theory is supported by crazy coincidences and happenings that occur during a "glitch in the matrix"—this could be anything from recognizing the same "background character" to losing track of time.

That's right, some people think the moon doesn't exist. This conspiracy theory has gained particular traction with flat-Earthers, and they think the moon is simply a projection.

This tragic accident has been the topic of many conspiracy theories over the years, including that it was another one of the company's ocean liners—the Olympic—that crashed into the iceberg, not the Titanic. But one sad fact remains: A ship did sink and approximately 1,500 passengers were killed.

After the success of Apollo 17 in 1972, America stopped sending astronauts to the moon. NASA claimed they had logged all the research they needed and government funding was reduced. But a movie about a fictional Apollo 18 came out, and now some believe the mission was real and ended tragically when the astronauts had a run-in with aliens.

The belief in zombies can be traced back to ancient Greece, when they buried their dead with stones on top of them so they couldn't return from the grave. Even today, some people prepare for the zombie apocalypse—just in case.

With extreme weather conditions occurring across the United States in 2021, TikTokers stoked the fires on a Bill Gates conspiracy theory that he was creating fake snow that burns instead of melts. Spoiler alert: He wasn't.

The Betz mystery sphere has baffled the public since it was found by a couple in Florida in 1974. Conspiracy theorists are convinced it's alien material, while others, such as the military, say it's a manmade object.

Amelia Earhart has been shrouded in mystery ever since her aircraft disappeared in 1937. While it's widely believed she ran out of fuel and crashed into the ocean, some think she landed by mistake on a deserted island and was eventually eaten by the three-foot-long coconut crabs that inhabited the shores.

Elusive in its nature, the Loch Ness Monster reportedly continues to live in the Scottish Loch Ness Lake and has captivated the public for thousands of years.

Ready for another by-product of 2020 and the global pandemic? The internet swarmed with misinformation that the wireless service was responsible for diseases like cancer and even COVID-19. The spread of this theory even led to the destruction of some 5G towers, as people believed the powerful connection would kill them.

A study recently discovered that the northern hemisphere was experiencing a "moderate to severe" magnetic storm on the night of the ship's collision. Similar solar flares are known to cause power outages on Earth and could have affected the ship's radar and radio rescue signals.

Many conspiracy theorists are wary of a space object that has become known as the Black Knight satellite. While experts at NASA insist it's just space junk, some believe it's an ancient alien space ship.

Call them the original conspiracy theorists, but sailors have claimed that mystical women dubbed "sirens" would lure them to the rocks and cause shipwrecks back in the day.

When news of an undiscovered planet in the solar system was revealed, many were fascinated and excited. However, some thought that Planet X housed a theoretical world called Nibiru that would lead to an apocalypse on April 23, 2018. Looks like we made it, people.

Some believe that Queen Elizabeth I died as a child and, to prevent the end of the royal line, she was replaced with a young boy. This theory is said to explain why the ruler remained chaste throughout her reign.

When the COVID-19 vaccine rolled out, there was a plethora of conspiracy theories regarding the medication. The most extreme being that the vaccine contained a microscopic 5G chip. The theorists even began circulating a supposed diagram of the chip, which ended up being the electric circuit of a guitar pedal.

There's nothing like a government poison conspiracy. Many people have hopped on board with theorists who claim an airplane's exhaust trail, caused by low temperatures in high altitudes, is actually "chemtrails" or chemicals the government is trying to secretly spray us with.

Much like Bigfoot, the Abominable Snowman has long been a mythological creature that the public has tried to find for thousands of years. The lure of the conspiracy? Large foot tracks found in the snow of a two-legged, human-like animal.

5G Truthers circulated news that Faraday cages around internet routers help prevent radiation from 5G—and online sales soared. The real kicker? These cages block any and all electromagnetic radiation, including WiFi signals.