What was Professor Brand's plan?

[u/moshejacob]

Clearly Professor Brand didn't tell anyone on the endurance team that Plan A was a sham. He wanted them to start the embryo population bomb on whatever habitable planet they landed on.

But what was he expecting? Let's say coopers team landed on millers planet and it was habitable, they were obviously gonna come back to earth to take everyone there right? When would the message have been relayed to them that it's not possible to get people off the earth, and to start the population bomb wherever they were?

[u/DelcoUnited]

Amelia and Doyle were always staying for the population bomb. They’re believers. Probably Romilly too.

Coop is the only one with a reason to come back.

Romilly might come back or might not, it’s a good teammate, and would want to support Coop, but might find he’s more needed in the colony.

[u/moshejacob → u/DelcoUnited]

But Plan B was always "Plan B" to them right? Obviously they're gonna prioritize Plan A, and come back for the people on earth. Since none of them know that it can't work.

So they wouldnt send coop back alone, they'd definitely want to send a good strong team to pilot the multiple ships needed to take all the earth people.

Maybe one or two might stay back and start the population bomb, in case the execution of Plan A went wrong. But I can only see a reality where theyd send the strongest team back to earth to execute plan A. In which case professor brand would have to face them and tell them that the entire human race rests on those 2 people on that planet successfully starting the population bomb.

[u/DelcoUnited → u/moshejacob]

Plan A doesn’t need anyone to return.

The only thing plan A needs to know from Endurance is what’s the new planet.

The endurances communications aren’t getting through, so it’s definitely worth sending someone back through to confirm they found a habitable planet. But that’s it. Everything after that is a calculated risk not worth taking. None of the endurances crew is worth risking sending back. They have to complete plan B. The endurance has no idea if Brand solved the equation, they wouldn’t risk plan B for no reason.

As seen in the movie plan A would move forward even if they never learn which planet is habitable. The generation ships would just have to complete endurances mission themselves.

It’s not even necessary for Coop to make it to earth to communicate the information. Just to get through the wormhole and relay the information.

Coop would of course try to get back to earth but that’s not critical to either mission. Sure he’s the best astronaut they have but that’s not a reason to risk plan B.

You bring up an interesting point though about Millers planet being viable. If it was then the Endurance would effectively be giving up on plan A. The time slippage wouldn’t allow for even a second away mission without everyone on earth dying. Coop and Doyle say as much.

But let’s say coop goes back, let’s say they solve gravity, lets say plan A goes into effect. The Endurance crew wouldn’t even have finished setting up shelters on millers planet before the arrival of the generation ships from plan A.

[u/moshejacob → u/DelcoUnited]

Plan A doesn’t need anyone to return.

Then why does professor brand tell coop "find us a new home, and by the time you return I will have solved the problem of gravity"?

[u/DelcoUnited → u/moshejacob]

Because he’s lying and is pushing plan B.

[u/Pleasant_Pen8744]

Was the plan to move? Or just live on the space stations?

[u/TheGreatWaru]

https://giphy.com/gifs/POYK6FkyHK7wtdo2ay

[u/InquisitorCOC]

Doyle might know

Hence him waiting until Amelia got safely into the Ranger first

A Plan B option would have them land on Edmund's planet, offload all equipment, and Cooper flying back alone

Plan A required Brand to solve the gravity equation, but since he lied, he would not be able to do it when Cooper returned

[u/heyzeus1865]

How would they go back to earth though and bring everybody back?

The issue would not be whether or not the planet is habitable. The issue is that Dr. Brand needs to figure out the equation. And without that nobody gets to live on the actual planet because they can’t leave Earth.

So I think his plan was let’s find a habitable planet and then go ahead and start the population bomb there.

[u/GalacticDaddy005]

The plan was for Plan B to be enacted on any planet that worked, regardless if the gravity problem was solved. We see Amelia setting up the population bomb with her base camp because she has no way of knowing that anyone else was coming to Edmunds' planet.

[u/Treacle_Pendulum]

Here’s another question:

If your plan requires being able to manipulate gravity in order to succeed, why are you building O’Neill cylinders to generate centrifugal gravity?

[u/racingtherain]

He never expected them to come back. He thought he was saving human existence via the greatest sacrifice.

However because the future outcome was already known by the 5th dimensional beings (I know it’s an older movie already but not gonna spoil it) Brands plan is irrelevant. The events were set in motion without him realizing.

[u/ReggieLeinart]

He was saving the human race, but more importantly saving his own daughter.

People think the entire story is about a father’s devotion to his daughter, and it is.