I agree that the spotlight effect (or main character syndrome in slang) plays in. We tend to expect our life to be extra special somehow.
It’s also just fun to imagine exhilarating things. We’re still dumb animals who have fun riding endorphins, whether it’s skydiving or horror movies. Makes sense that myths about paranormal entities, natural disasters, end times, etc. are recurring in so many cultures. Same reason the Walking Dead is popular. It’s exciting to imagine!
The most alive I’ve ever felt has been being shot at, running from cops/security, and throwing myself into a dog fight to save my dog who was attacked. Even when being driven to the ER, I was riding such a high. I got messed up, but I won, and damn did that feel good and powerful. He was a big dog. In a sorta twisted way, I kinda eagerly await life’s unexpected events because of the adrenaline high and sustained retrospective excitement for a while.
What’s more exciting than imaging the end of the word as our species knows it? That’s the biggest factor in the answer to the question imo.