Top 10 Movie Production Urban Legends

The ancients enjoyed watching vicious forms of entertainment, like chariot racing, where the possibility of death was extremely high. This danger didn’t subside in modern times according to this urban legend, which claims that a stuntman actually died during the iconic chariot race scene in “Ben-Hur,” and the scene was left in the film against the wishes of the stuntman’s widow. This legend may have been spawned from the 1925 silent film “Ben-Hur: A Tale of the Christ” when a stuntman did die during the filming of the chariot scene.

What is it with Disney and subliminal messaging? After “The Little Mermaid” was released on VHS, controversy arose when it was noticed that a castle spire on the cover bore an unmistakable resemblance to a penis. The artist who designed the cover didn’t work for Disney, however, and the particular illustration of the castle also appeared in other theatrical promotional materials. It wasn’t intentional – castle spires just happen to conjure up phallic imagery. Just to be safe though, the object was removed from the cover when the film was re-released.

What’s scarier than three men raising a baby? Ghosts…maybe. In “Three Men and a Baby,” a mysterious figure, said to be the ghost of a boy who committed suicide with a shotgun in the same house where the film was being shot, can be seen in the background behind the curtains. This creepy legend was dismissed when it was discovered that the figure was actually a cardboard cut-out of Ted Danson’s character, and was used as a prop for a storyline that was eventually cut out of the movie.

Disney earns another spot on our list with its 1992 hit “Aladdin.” While visiting Jasmine on her balcony, Aladdin is attacked by her tiger. He then says a line that people claim was “Good teenagers, take off your clothes.” Disney was criticized for promoting teenage promiscuity, but the film’s directors disputed the claim, saying that line was never said and wouldn’t have made the final cut if it was. The line is actually: “Good tiger, take off and go.” We’ll let you decide which one you think is correct.

Movies are supposed to create the illusion of reality, but what happens if we can’t figure out what is real and what is fake? According to this urban legend, the 1999 horror hit “The Blair Witch Project” was actual found footage from three student filmmakers who were doing a project on the Blair Witch legend. Artisan Entertainment, the film’s distributor, used it to their advantage by promoting that the film was actually a documentary. The three student filmmakers turned out to be young actors, who are still alive and well.

Who could forget when James Bond discovered Jill Masterson’s lifeless body on the bed, painted in gold? It was rumored at the time that actress Shirley Eaton actually died while filming that scene, because the paint covered and clogged all of her pores, preventing her from breathing. While we now know that the body does not breathe through the skin, the filmmakers took precautions while filming. Eaton wasn’t completely naked in the scene, and a six-inch square of skin on her abdomen was left unpainted.

It’s a lot of work portraying the most powerful man in the world, especially when there’s a curse involved. According to this urban legend, the role of Superman is cursed. The most notable victims are George Reeves, who starred in “Adventures of Superman” on television and died of a gunshot wound to his head, the circumstances of which are still disputed, and Christopher Reeve, who starred in four theatrical films before he was paralyzed in a 1995 horseback riding accident and died nine years later at 52.

This urban legend claims that Stanley Kubrick filmed the fake Apollo 11 moon landing in 1969, and confessed to it in “The Shining.” This idea is expanded on in detail in the critically acclaimed documentary “Room 237.” Some clues include Danny Torrance’s sweater with the Apollo 11 space shuttle on it, the Overlook Hotel’s carpet pattern resembling the Apollo launching pad, and Kubrick changing the haunted hotel room number from 217 in the novel to 237, which supposedly coincides with the 237,000 miles between Earth and the Moon.

While many horror film franchises are said to be cursed, the “Poltergeist” trilogy is by far the most famous. Four cast members died in the half a dozen years between the releases of the 3 films, including 22-year-old Dominique Dunne, who played Dana Freeling, and 12-year-old Heather O’Rourke, who played Carol Anne Freeling. Dunne was murdered by her ex-boyfriend while O’Rourke died during acute bowel obstruction surgery. The fact that real skeletons were used as props added to the urban legend’s survival.

Before we unveil our number one pick, here are a few honorable mentions:
- The Exorcist Curse
“The Exorcist” franchise (1973-)
- Topless Woman
“The Rescuers” (1977)
- Steven Spielberg as “Ghost” Director
“Poltergeist” (1982)
- Dusty “S-E-X” in the Sky
“The Lion King” (1994)
- Hoverboards Exist
“Back to the Future Part II” (1989)

The alleged munchkin suicide in the 1939 classic “The Wizard of Oz” is one of the most famous urban legends of all-time. As Dorothy, the Tin Man, and the Scarecrow head down the Yellow Brick Road, you can see what looks like a figure hanging by the neck in the background. Legend has it that a Munchkin actor killed himself after he was rejected by a Munchkin actress. While it certainly looks like a person hanging from a rope behind a prop tree, it is actually a large exotic bird that was rented for the scene.

Do you agree with our list? What is your favorite movie production urban legend? For more compelling Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.