When new movies come into the world, they no longer belong to the studios — they belong
to all of us. And that means we can speculate about all kinds of hidden messages and unsaid
meanings lurking behind the events on-screen. Here are some of the most unusual and mind-blowing
fan theories that have ever been discussed online. After hearing them, you probably won't
be able to see these movies in the same way again....because you'll be wearing a tinfoil
hat.
Heath Ledger's Joker is a war veteran
Heath Ledger's performance as the Joker in 2008's The Dark Knight is difficult to forget,
having earned him a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. But there might be more
to his backstory than we realize: one of the most popular fan theories suggests the Joker
is an Iraq War veteran.
It explains his facial scarring and his tortured psyche, plus his ability to put tactical plans
into operation and his familiarity with explosives and firearms. What's more, he mentions his
disgust at people's lack of attention for "a truckload of soldiers" getting blown up
in one conversation with Harvey Dent. Is the Joker a victim of PTSD? Or just an evil genius
with a clown fetish? Let's just say both and move on.
Hogwarts is all in Harry Potter's head
Saying a movie (or in this case a series of eight movies) is all inside someone's head
is a bit of a cop-out. And you could apply that theory to just about every film ever
made — but stick with us, here. The Harry Potter films lend themselves to this theory
more than most, because the titular character starts off alone, friendless, oppressed…and
locked inside a cupboard under the stairs.
With that in mind, why wouldn't he want to invent a magical alternate reality where he's
actually the most important person in the world? Hogwarts, Hermione, Dumbledore: is
everything a figment of Harry's imagination, designed to help him cope with his suffering
at the hands of the Dursleys? That would certainly explain why no one at Hogwarts called Child
Protective Services on the Durselys. Y'know, since they made him live in a closet.
James Bond is a codename, not a person
Quite how the world of James Bond works isn't particularly clear, because it seems as though
we're expected to assume all these adventures are happening to the same guy, even as the
years pass by around him. George Lazenby's famous quip beyond the fourth wall ("This
never happened to the other fella") has been the only nod the filmmakers have made to the
fact that James Bond keeps regenerating Doctor Who-style.
What about this: what if James Bond isn't an actual spy at all, but rather a codename
passed down from agent to agent? It seems to work for M and Q, so why wouldn't it work
for James Bond himself? It's a compelling argument when you start to think about it.
Learning to like the same kind of martini must be covered during orientation.
Childs is The Thing
At the end of John Carpenter's 1982 classic The Thing, McReady - played by Kurt Russell - and Childs
- played by Keith David - sit opposite each other in the snow, waiting for death, with neither of them
knowing whether the other is, in fact, the shape-shifting alien they've been hunting
all along.
Or maybe they do know: one fan theory (of many) suggests that the drink McReady offers
to Childs is actually one of the Molotov cocktails used earlier in the movie. Since Childs doesn't
react to chugging down the gasoline, this proves he's The Thing—and it adds an even
bleaker perspective onto the end of what is already a pretty dark movie.
Doc Brown is suicidal
In Back to the Future, we see Dr. Emmett Brown standing in the path of a speeding DeLorean,
his life only saved by the fact it jumps back in time as he watches. Could it be that the
Doc's primary goal was to get himself killed, and that's why he's been so focused in his
experiments?
Sure, there are easier ways to check out and shuffle off the mortal coil, but it actually
gives the film a warmer glow in the end: Doc, a man who was previously an aging outsider
descending into madness with no family and few friends, discovers there is a reason to
live after all. And that reason is potentially destroying the universe by driving a DeLorean-shaped
hole in the space-time continuum.
Pixar's shared universe
On the surface, the Pixar movies might not seem to have much in common beyond a studio
logo and cutting-edge CGI. But if you stop to think about it — really, really think about
it — the idea that every single one of these characters inhabits the same universe starts
to make a lot of sense. It's all summed up in "The Pixar Theory," a widely read essay
posted by Jon Negroni, that arranges every Pixar movie in chronological order and argues
for the existence of a time loop created by Boo in Monsters Inc. — who's also the witch
in Brave. It probably sounds kind of crazy out of context, but once you dive down this
rabbit hole, there's no going back. Next thing you know, someone will tell you that the dinosaurs
in Jurassic Park aren't really dinosaurs. Oh, wait.
Jurassic Park's dinosaurs aren't real
Okay, the Jurassic Park dinosaurs are cool, but they differ from real-life dinos in a
number of ways, some of which have been explained away by the Park's overlord, John Hammond,
who said he arranged to have the extinct creatures' DNA spliced with genetic material from frogs.
But what if Hammond was performing a different kind of experiment — specifically, what if
there wasn't ever any dinosaur DNA involved, and the whole thing was just a cover for a
Dr. Moreau - style lab set-up to create elaborate fakes? Same blockbuster thrills, but with
an added sinister undertone — especially when you consider that the crazy old freak invited
his grandchildren to his island of genetic horrors. Sending a card with cash in it is
always a good gift option, Grampa.
Alien and Firefly take place in the same universe
Joss Whedon didn't have the greatest time writing Alien: Resurrection, and the end product
definitely doesn't rank among the best-loved entries in the series. But he wasn't totally
ready to wash his hands of the franchise after the project ended, as proven by a cool blink-and-you'll-miss-it
moment in the pilot episode of his space Western, Firefly. During the show, main character Malcolm
"Mal" Reynolds shoots down an enemy ship, and in the gun's viewfinder, you can glimpse
the logo of the Weyland-Yutani company — the same conglomerate that causes so many problems
in the Alien movies. Firefly took place years after the events in the Alien trilogy were
set, so it would have been relatively easy (in
theory) for Whedon to keep tying them together over time—if only Firefly had lasted more
than 14 episodes and one movie.
E.T. is a Jedi
In E.T., there's a cool little nod to Star Wars during the trick-or-treating scene, when
our long-necked alien buddy bumps into a kid dressed as Yoda and seems to recognize him.
Decades later, E.T. got his own brief shout-out during the Star Wars prequels, when the little
guy (and a few of his cousins) make a cameo during one of those interminable Galactic
Senate meetings. The Star Wars saga takes place long, long ago in a galaxy far, far
away, so who's to say E.T. didn't really know Yoda — and was actually a Jedi using the Force
to make Elliott's bike fly? On the other hand, most Jedi don't typically run around naked,
so...maybe not.
The Rock is a secret James Bond movie
As countless spy movies have shown us, it isn't uncommon for the government to cut its
assets loose when they've outlived their usefulness. That fate seems to befall James Mason, Sean
Connery's character in The Rock. He's described as a highly trained ex-intelligence officer
who ended up being locked away and officially ceasing to exist. Of course, since he's played
by Connery, James Mason looks and sounds a lot like James Bond. Casting coincidence,
or brilliant bit of B-movie storytelling? And, does that make Nicolas Cage Ms. Moneypenny,
or what?
Now, before we go, here's a bonus: two fan theories that actually turned out to be true.
Quentin Tarantino's cinematic universes
Quentin Tarantino's movies are so richly detailed, and have such a distinctive style, that they
can feel like a world unto themselves. And according to one impressively complex theory,
that's exactly what they are. The ways in which Tarantino's films intertwine with one
another are far too numerous to get into here, but suffice it to say there are lots of connections
between the characters. Dedicated fans couldn't help but notice and formulate a theory that
all the connections are more than sly nods and Easter eggs. Best of all: Tarantino himself
has confirmed that they're right.
According to Tarantino, he actually views his creations as inhabiting two universes — one
in the "real world," and a fictional one inside it. As he's put it, when the characters in
Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction go to the movies, they're watching Kill Bill and From
Dusk Till Dawn. So does that mean that Django could've ended up as one of the Hateful Eight
if he'd stumbled into the right haberdashery?
Of course, that’s not the only director who confirmed a fan theory. This next one
proves that if you just have a little faith, you'll be rewarded...
RoboCop is Jesus
A righteous man is cut down by evildoers in the prime of his life, only to rise again
and embark on a mission to cleanse the world of sin. Sounds like our old pal Jesus, right?
Only it's also — if you turn your head and squint a little — the story of RoboCop. Diehard
fans have pointed out a number of similarities between the '80s action classic and the New
Testament, including a shot that actually makes it look a little like RoboCop is walking
on water. According to director Paul Verhoeven, the correlations are no accident
Now that you know, the only appropriate way to celebrate
Easter Sunday is with a customary viewing of RoboCop over ham, chocolate eggs, and jars
of strained carrots. Peace be with you!
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