Deus ex Machina

Deus ex machina is a plot device that resolves a story's problems with an unexpected and unlikely solution. The term comes from Latin and literally means "god from the machine". How it originated Deus ex machina originated in ancient Greek and Roman theater. A crane called a mechane would lower an actor playing a god or goddess onto the stage to resolve the plot. Euripides was a playwright who often used this device. How it's used today Deus ex machina is still used in fiction and drama today. For example, in War of the Worlds, aliens attacking Earth are killed by bacteria. In Monty Python and the Holy Grail, the heroes escape from an animated monster because the animator died.