Often the inciting incident is initiated by the antagonist (who technically isn’t an antagonist yet since the protagonist isn’t yet a protagonist). Something about the incitement seems nefarious since it represents a disruption. Still, the audience perceives this disruptive plan as a necessary evil.

The soon-to-be-protagonist lives in a comfortable stasis, which is actually a stifling death-in-life (Pleasantville, Moonstruck, Hot Tub Time Machine, Groundhog Day, Casablanca…). Often, the protagonist doesn’t initially know about the scheme or how it will disrupt the norm, but the audience expects that the scheme will eventually prod the protagonist into committing to a course of action (usually at the end of Act 1) that will (potentially) lead to a new life / salvation from the death-grip of stasis.