What Is 'Project Blue Beam'? Serge Monast's Conspiracy Theory About The Government Orchestrating Fake Alien Invasions Explained

Québécois people might have a reputation for speaking the funniest French dialect, but French Canada has also given rise to one of the world's most prolific – and crackpot – conspiracy theorists.

Meet Serge Monast, a Canadian journalist turned conspiracy theorist who introduced the world to "Project Blue Beam," a theory suggesting that NASA and the UN would orchestrate a global psyop involving holographic religious figures and alien invasions, all to unite humanity under a totalitarian "New World Order."

While Monast's theory was first proposed all the way back in 1994, his ideas have continued to crop up time and time again in the decades since.

From freaky schizo YouTube compilations in the late 2010s to a genuine reignited interest in Monast's ideas in fringe corners of the internet, here's a recap of where "Project Blue Beam" actually originated, and why it's seeing continued chatter in 2024.

Who Is Serge Monast and What Is 'Project Blue Beam'?

Serge Monast was a Canadian journalist, poet and conspiracy theorist with a flair for the dramatic. Hailing from Quebec, Monast gained notoriety in the 1990s for his writings on secret global plots, blending Cold War paranoia with sci-fi imagination.

His pièce de résistance was his 1994 book Project Blue Beam, which put forth a theory that claimed NASA and the UN are plotting to fake an extraterrestrial encounter with holograms and advanced tech to establish a New World Order.

Think glowing Jesus in the sky, aliens descending in peace and world leaders conveniently agreeing to unite humanity under a single authoritarian rule.

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Monast detailed a four-step plan in his theory. First, faking archaeological discoveries to discredit religions. Second, projecting massive holographic deities tailored to cultural expectations. Third, manipulating thought patterns with mind control tech, and finally, staging an apocalyptic event to push humanity into compliance.

Monast’s claims were devoid of hard evidence, but they’ve persisted in conspiracy circles, especially given his mysterious death in 1996 — fueling theories he was purposefully silenced by a shadowy elite.

Was There Any Real-World Plot That May Have Inspired Monast's Project Blue Beam Theory?

A February 26th, 2013, Reddit post to the subreddit /r/todayilearned by Redditor /u/doc_daneeka claimed that the CIA once proposed a solution to remove Fidel Castro from power in Cuba; "spread rumours that he was the Antichrist, then fake the second coming; a US submarine would project an image of Jesus on some clouds near Havana while firing star-shells. A loudspeaker would be the voice of Jesus, urging them to renounce communism."

The linked article cited a November 20, 1975, document^[5] titled "Alleged Assassination Plots Involving Foreign Leaders," written by former CIA Assistant Deputy Director for National Intelligence Programs Thomas A. Parrott. The document reportedly recounted how Major General Edward Geary Lansdale proposed the aforementioned Castro scheme.

It's possible that Monast came across this report and was inspired to spin his tale about world governments using technology far beyond that of 1975 to scare people into compliance.

What Kind Of Internet Presence Has 'Project Blue Beam' Had Over The Past Two Decades?

In the 2010s, the phrase "Project Blue Beam" came to be used as a buzzword to peddle similar conspiracy theories about governments faking a space invasion to consolidate global power.

Several YouTube videos addressing the conspiracy theory cited Serge Monast directly, as seen in a November 7th, 2007, YouTube video by the channel REQUIEMETERNAM, captioned, "ILLUMINATI The Blue Beam Project Top Secret 1," as well as a similar an April 14th, 2009, video by AutoActionCam.

The theory saw a resurgence in the 2020s, especially after an unidentified flying object was shot down over Alaska in February 2023.

Harvard Scientist Robert Duncan Explains ‘Project Blue Beam’ “You can see it by the naked eye and it would leave a radar trace”@KONCRETE pic.twitter.com/Vi4r1zuhcc

— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) February 14, 2023

On March 10th, 2024, MMA fighter Ryan Garcia mentioned the conspiracy theory in a TikTok live filmed from his hospital bed.

Ryan Garcia also known as KingRyan just went live on TikTok while hooked up onto a machine. He goes on to talk to about Project Blue Beam and goes onto say Disney could be apart of a huge trafficking problem. After that, the live ends…“2’000 kids go missing a year at Disney” pic.twitter.com/sNYCiDRAaN

— h (@ramberrto) March 10, 2024

A mere month later, X user @MattWallace888 made a post about Project Blue Beam that read, "Project Blue Beam is a secret project created by agents of the Pentagon and NASA with the goal of creating an artificial Second Coming and establishing a totalitarian world government. The goal being to manipulate/control people through the use of advanced technology and psychological manipulation."

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For the full history of Project Blue Beam be sure to check out Know Your Meme's encyclopedia entry for more information.