Top 10 Things Everyone Gets Wrong About Famous Movies

Brandon Lee was the star of “The Crow,” playing the protagonist Eric Draven, and died during filming. During a scene that called for a gun to be fired, a dummy bullet was left in the firearm and was not properly removed, as the gun specialist had gone home. When the gun went off, Lee was shot for real, and died later in the hospital. However, despite popular belief, the take in which he was fatally wounded was not used in the final cut of the film and was in fact destroyed after being used in evidence in the investigation into the accidental death.

#9: Jason Voorhees Is the Killer “Friday the 13th” (1980)

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Jason Voorhees is the famed killer of the “Friday the 13th” franchise, but he wasn’t always. In the first installment, it’s actually Jason’s mother Pamela that murders teenagers, taking her revenge not only on the two camp counselors whose negligence led to her son’s apparent death, but also on counselors decades later too. It wasn’t until the second film that Jason himself became the primary antagonist, and he didn’t even acquire his iconic hockey mask until the third film. It just goes to show you that while a property can become associated with one thing, it’s not always representative of the whole.

It’s a common misconception that the second film in the original “Indiana Jones” trilogy is a sequel. After all, that’s generally how trilogies work, with one following the next. However, like the pulp adventure serials that inspired them, “Indiana Jones” doesn’t follow a strict overarching narrative. “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom” is actually a prequel, taking place the year prior to “Raiders of the Lost Ark.” Apparently, writer George Lucas didn’t want Nazis to be the villains and made the film take place prior to “Raiders” to avoid the hero running into them twice in a row, though the third Reich would return in the third film.

#7: Tim Burton Directed It “The Nightmare Before Christmas” (1993)

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Top 10 Things Movies Always Get Wrong

Given that it’s often titled as “Tim Burton’s ‘The Nightmare Before Christmas,’” the general public can be forgiven for assuming that Burton was in the director’s chair. Given Burton’s track record of whimsical, yet creepy movies, it seems right up his alley. While Burton did create the story and characters, and co-produced, the screenplay and direction were handled by others. Burton’s name was likely attached for marketing reasons, since he did provide the seed of the film’s idea and was already a big name by that point - both in the industry and with cinemagoers. The actual director however, was Henry Selick, who went on to direct “James and the Giant Peach” and “Coraline”.

In the early 1970s, comedian, actor and director Jerry Lewis directed and starred in a movie about a clown imprisoned by the Nazis during WWII. Lewis was reportedly embarrassed with the end result, which is often cited as the reason for the film’s lack of release. However, in reality, “The Day the Clown Cried” was tied up in legal issues once it was completed, with the rights being retained by the screenwriter, Joan O’Brien, which delayed and ultimately halted its release. That being said, Lewis’ embarrassment may have played a part in its continued lack of exposure. In 2015, a copy was finally given to the Library of Congress, but even they cannot screen it until 2024.

#5: “Luke, I Am Your Father” “Star Wars: Episode V – The Empire Strikes Back” (1980)

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You’d think it’d be hard for people to get something so famous about a franchise like “Star Wars” so wrong, but if you search your feelings, you’ll know it to be true. Despite being one of the most oft-quoted lines in film history, the phrase “Luke, I am your father” is never actually said by Darth Vader. The actual line is “No, I am your father.” The line has, through misquoting and paraphrasing in pop culture, become so prevalent that people mistakenly believe it’s actually present in “The Empire Strikes Back.” This line, along with “Play it again Sam,” from “Casablanca,” are just two of the many famously oft-misquoted lines from film still in circulation.

As bright and colorful as this classic film is, “The Wizard of Oz” has some pretty dark rumors associated with it. Perhaps the most chilling is the belief by some viewers that one of the actors who portrayed the Munchkins in the movie can be seen hanging themselves in the background of one of the scenes, with their shadow supposedly visible through one of the backgrounds. While this may be an odd story, the truth is even weirder. Several large birds, such as cranes and emus were allowed to roam the set to give Oz a more authentic outdoorsy feeling, and the shadow is actually one of these avian accoutrements.

Clint Eastwood’s character (or characters) in the “Dollars Trilogy” goes by and is referred to by several names, including Joe, Manco, and Blondie. Outside of the films he is referred to as “the man with no name” but this moniker was actually created by the films’ American distributor United Artists, rather than director Sergio Leone. The nickname was invented to better sell the films as a trilogy. Though his gradual acquisition of his iconic outfit in The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly seems to point to him being the same man, Leone’s lack of endorsement could indicate that Eastwood’s character is actually intended to be several characters.

Part of what made this seminal slasher flick feel so real, apart from the documentary style camera work, was the tagline that it was based on a true story. While this isn’t quite false advertisement, it’s not entirely true either. Writer and director Tobe Hooper actually drew inspiration from real life serial killer Ed Gein, whose grisly murders may have involved anything from cannibalism to grave robbing. Hooper was also inspired by a shop display of chainsaws that once caught his eye. So, although he drew on actual events, none of them were close to resembling the cannibalistic, chainsaw-wielding family depicted in the film. Sorry. Still a scary movie though!

#1: “S-E-X” in the Sky “The Lion King” (1994)

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Top 10 Things Only Adults Notice in The Lion King

Can you feel the love tonight? Midway through this Disney classic, Simba the lion flops down on a cliff side and knocks up a cloud of dust. When played back very slowly, the dust appears to form the vague outline of the letters “S-E-X.” Religious organizations have used this as an example of Disney’s apparent lack of morality and the supposed message has been the subject of playground rumor for decades. However, the generally accepted explanation is that the letters are actually “S-F-X,” a common abbreviation for special effects, and were inserted by someone from that particular department who worked on “The Lion King.”