Surprising Secrets From Science-Fiction Films
While everyone has their favorite genre of film, we can’t help but have a soft spot for science fiction. It doesn’t matter if the movies are good, bad, or just plain bizarre. Something about these films puts us at ease. A lot of it probably has to do with the bright lights, special effects, and occasional glimpses into humanity’s bleak future.
The genre has always been full of directors, producers, and actors trying to make these unbelievable worlds real. And sometimes the small details and behind-the-scenes secrets from these spacey movies end up shocking us.
Keep reading for some surprising secrets from famous science-fiction films!
Alien
Alien is an amazing beginning to one of the world’s most well-known sci-fi series. The original film has so many incredible characters, settings, and everything you’d want out of a space thriller. Sigourney Weaver leads us through what can only be described as a hellscape in space, all while being hunted by a lube-covered monster with a magnum-sized mouth.
While making the xenomorph for the film, the crew got very creative when it came to making this creature look extremely other-worldly. They decided to use lubricant for the slime! They also bought and utilized condoms to make the mouth even more terrifying (and much safer too).
Blade Runner
Blade Runner is like watching a riddle being told, solved, then twisted into something deeply philosophical. Plus, it has Harrison Ford. While he may have been a star (out of many) in the film, our favorite character only slithered around for a few scenes. Remember the replicant Zhora? She played a pretty key role for a second there.
She also had a companion that seemed comfortable with her! The snake that’s sharing the scene with her knew the actor quite well. How so? That snake was actress Joanna Cassidy’s pet! Does this mean the snake gets acting credits too? Since they were/are part of her family, did they get paid as well?
Ex Machina
Ex Machina is an interesting and “scientific” take on a pretty classic tale. It attempts to showcase that we’re still trying to understand what defines life and sentience when it comes to advanced machinery. To help blur the lines between technology and philosophy (and a bit of religion) even further, the characters are modern takes on some famous names!
Ava, Nathan, and Caleb are all based on famous biblical figures! Ava is a form of Eve. Nathan was a prophet and even Caleb appeared in the Bible (as a spy for Moses). The characters also have similar character arcs as their inspiration from the Old Testament!
Inception
Watching Inception is still a bit of a trip, even ten years after it premiered. What blows our minds is the fact that a lot of the topsy-turvy scenes were done in real-time. The crew was even able to rotate an entire hallway just for a specific scene! It’s neat to see that they were could showcase how everyone was able to defy gravity.
It even looked pretty realistic with everything flying around. One thing that didn’t slip out of place was Ariadne’s hair! How’d they manage to maintain zero-gravity yet keep her hair out of her eyes? It involved a fancy technique called: putting it all up in a bun!
Interstellar
Some actors can commit to a role and deliver a stellar performance. Anne Hathaway took it one step further and delivered an Interstellar performance! While filming the infamous water planet scene, Hathaway began to feel odd. Her toes were tingling and she was beginning to feel off. What could have caused it? Was it the bleak recesses of “space” finally closing in on her?
Not quite. She had begun to feel the effects of hypothermia! Like a trooper though, she stayed on the set until they got the shot! Then it was probably immediately time to head to the ER (or towards an electric blanket and some cocoa).
Gravity
Speaking of floating through space and possibly losing your sanity and health, Gravity is a great film. It has an artistic flair that drew us in, and then a depressingly stressful tale that kept us on the edge of our seats. Plus, combining the talents of George Clooney and Sandra Bullock was the icing on the cake.
However, that pairing almost didn’t happen. Originally, the filmmakers wanted Angelina Jolie to fill the starring role! She even got as far as signing on to do the film. However, something else came up and she had to drop from the project.
The Martian
Can vegetables grow in space? Thanks to the miracles of modern science, humans have been able to grow herbs out there. Who says that we won’t eventually be able to grow an entire produce section from the comfort of our asteroid home one day? Before we get there, there has to be a middle ground. Thankfully, The Martian showed us that anything is possible.
Unfortunately, that film is 100% fictional (although based on a book). Since we weren’t able to abandon Matt Damon on Mars for real, everyone played pretend. They also pretended to grow potatoes in space. How? An entire potato field was planted on the studio lot!
Avatar
Avatar is a slow-burning film series that capitalized on modern technology and blew us all away…over a decade ago. You just can’t rush James Cameron’s process. Part of creating such a deep and involved plot was making up an entirely new language (because making movies isn’t hard enough). Since the language was going to be used at length, the actors had to learn the entire thing!
Some people were better at mastering a made-up alien language than others. Sam Worthington admitted that learning the Na’vi language was a piece of cake. Well, it was easier than learning the American accent at least! According to the interview, mastering a North American accent was a bit of a tongue-twister for the Australian superstar.
Back to the Future
One of the most iconic things about Back to the Future is the car. Yes, watching Christopher Lloyd zip around the timeline is fun, but you need a ship to do that. Since this film came out in the 80s, they needed a recognizable car. Cue the Delorean, America’s favorite butterfly-doored vehicle that never took off. Instead of zipping down America’s highways, it helped transport Michael J. Fox through time for all sorts of misadventures.
Not only is the series a must-see for everyone, but it also caused a major interest and love for the car. Even the creator, John Delorean, was so impressed he sent the writers a letter of thanks. He was thrilled his car was used to create such a fantastic film!
Total Recall
Watching Arnold Schwarzenegger do just about anything is worth any amount of money. Before his introduction into the wild world of politics, the Terminator was a world-famous actor! When he wasn’t playing a murderous robot-killing robot, he was in another sci-fi epic called Total Recall. This movie is a trippy special-effects-filled film full of horror and Schwarzenegger doing what he does best.
However, someone else stole the spotlight! Sharon Stone delivered such a strong performance and worked hard to make sure it was perfect. Her skills even caught Schwazenegger’s eye. He even gave her the nickname “The Female Terminator”. She also got inducted into the Stuntwoman Association for her work performing nearly all of her own stunts!
Planet of the Apes
Despite all of its horror, Planet of the Apes has some great storytelling. What drew us into the film wasn’t just the great writing. A huge part of it was the ridiculously intricate makeup work! The prosthetics and makeup were so arduous to apply that the final result sometimes appeared masklike.
To avoid the characters appearing expressionless, Roddy McDowall helped guide people and showed them how to act while under so many inches of paint and glue. People became so good at it that they began having some fun with their new faces. McDowall would occasionally drive around with it just to scare people!
Invasion of the Body Snatchers
Invasion of the Body Snatchers straddles the line between horror and sci-fi in a disturbingly great way. It’s a classic film that still delivers chills every time we see it! Its fictional premise didn’t stop some pretty scary things from happening during the shooting process. Donald Sutherland sustained some injuries while making the film. While shooting a scene, a VW bug collided with the actor!
It was such an intimate crash that Sutherland was able to hear the driver scream out how scared they were to hit him in particular! They recognized the actor and were extra upset about the accident. They should be upset for hitting anyone, but Sutherland caused them to panic even more.
Terminator
When you’ve been acting in Hollywood for long enough, some not-so-common things become second nature. After spending hours upon hours in the makeup chair an actor may just forget they’re wearing anything at all. Day in and day out wearing prosthetics can help an actor feel like they have a second skin. When Arnold Schwarzenegger was filming Terminator, he was often in some sort of half-face makeup.
One day, he went off the set to get some food. People’s heads began to turn and he wasn’t sure why. As it turns out, they weren’t exactly starstruck. Instead, they were terrified because the actor had makeup on that made him look like a murderous cyborg from another timeline!
Robocop
Robocop is a movie where the police think they need to cyberize someone to create a nearly unstoppable killing machine for whatever reason. For the time, the costumes and effects were cutting-edge. To create the Robocop form, Peter Weller was practically sealed up inside a giant metal suit. Because that’s not healthy, the actor lost over three pounds (1.3kg) of weight a day due to dehydration alone!
Since that would (probably) eventually kill him, some changes had to be made. Eventually, the movie magic folks had to install an air conditioner into the suit just to keep him alive! That must’ve been a huge relief for Weller.
The Fifth Element
The Fifth Element is one of the best science fiction movies ever made. It’s campy, visually impressive, and has an unbeatable cast. During the movie, we learn that Milla Jovovich knows a language that’s been “dead” for millennia. What sounds like gibberish to everyone else was a real language! Developed by the director, Jovovich learned the actual “divine language” we hear in the film.
There were even complete grammatical rules made up out of nowhere. Since she’s already adept at language acquisition (she fluently speaks FOUR languages), it was easy for her to pick up the four-hundred words that were created out of nothing! By the time the filming wrapped, Jovovich and Luc Besson (director/writer/alien linguist) were having full conversations in the vernacular of the divine aliens!
Contact
Contact attempted to show the world a blueprint for manipulating radios, rings, and weird science to reestablish the first meeting with another species in a different world. What it lacks in scientific fact it more than makes up for with the hope that one day this could really happen (without the cancer and terrifying government cover-up). While it’s clearly fiction (for now), the filmmakers want to attempt and add some realistic elements.
One of the choices was to include a suicide pill in the film. According to filmmakers, early astronauts carried one on them in case they were unable to return to Earth and wanted to take their fate into their own hands. However, despite how morbid and somewhat believable that could be, an actual astronaut (Jim Lovell) said it wasn’t true at all…or is it?
Her
Her is a pretty great movie. Nearly everything Spike Jonze creates has some great moments and provocative decisions. When it comes to Her, the big twist didn’t happen during filming. A last-minute casting decision resulted in Samantha’s lines having to be completely redone! Was there a falling out with the original actress? Nope. Jonze just got a feeling that something wasn’t right.
Thanks to his decision, Scarlett Johansson was called to re-record every single one of Samantha’s lines! It may sound underhanded, but the original actress Samantha Morton, was all for it. Jonze got her blessing to go ahead and basically erase her presence from the film just to fix a gut feeling he had.
Pacific Rim
Pacific Rim is the giant monster versus giant machine movie we all wanted and never realized we needed. The plot is basic enough for us to be able to focus on what was really important: two giant beings fighting. With all the special effects and rock music, we were in movie heaven. Plus, all of the different Kaiju were super fun to watch.
Speaking of, how did they come up with that name? Well, in Japanese, Kaiju translates to “strange beast”. If you put all the different Kaiju under a bright light then they do live up to their name. Now someone please tell us what Jaeger translates to.
Independence Day
Independence Day is a great way to turn the Fourth of July into Will Smith day! Despite it looking real, no aliens blew up the White House back in the 90s. However, we’re pretty sure Will Smith piloted an alien spacecraft to do something heroic. That’s kind of his MO for a lot of his movies, so it makes sense. However, to make the film a bit more “believable”, the crew got the US military involved!
With their permission, the movie was able to film on actual military bases and get consultations from soldiers. Of course, they should have read the script first. When the military learned that Area 51 was being mentioned, they quickly dropped their involvement in the movie. Seems suspicious? We sure think so!
Tron
When was the last time you logged on to do some light cycle racing on the Grid? Even though we revisited it in 2010, the original 1982 Tron movie still holds up to this day. Back in the 80s, the visual effects employed in the film were past the cutting-edge. Nobody knew computers could be used in such a creative way!
Even the Academy of Motion Pictures didn’t believe it. They were so blown away that they blocked the film from being eligible to win an Oscar for its effects. Why? According to the Academy, using computers to create special effects was cheating! It was just too convenient for people to accept as a quality filmmaking tool.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Watching William Shatner battle the fearsome KHAAAAAAAAAAAAAN is cinematic gold. Star Trek II is everything we love about Star Trek with the added twist of being a decent sequel. Even the horrifying reality that Spock may not appear again was kind of worth it. The original plan was for Leonard Nimoy to bow out of the entire series after the film. He just felt like it was time to move on to other projects.
As filming went on, Nimoy realized he was having more fun than usual. The entire filming process was such a delight that Nimoy decided to stay with the franchise a little bit longer! Maybe if movies were more fun to film we’d have actors reprise more roles.
War of the Worlds
Trying to raise a family while staying on top of your ridiculously successful movie career is difficult to achieve. Few can do it and even fewer can do it well. Mirando Otto was faced with this conundrum when it came time for her to star in War of the Worlds. Given that she was pregnant at the time, she was concerned that she wouldn’t be able to keep up with filming.
Instead of letting her bow out and lose the spot, Steven Spielberg had a different idea. He managed to rewrite the movie and incorporate Otto’s pregnancy INTO the script! He really didn’t want to replace her!
Donnie Darko
We’re not biased or anything, but Donnie Darko is one of the best movies ever made. It’s a fantastically weird combination of science fiction, subtle horror, and a twisted lesson in time travel. Fans around the world are still confused about what actually went down in that movie. If you’re confused about a giant bunny rabbit manipulating a teenager into controlling water and stabbing a statue, you’re not alone.
Even after they wrapped filming, some of the stars still had no clue what the movie was about. Both Seth Rogen (yep, go rewatch it) and Jake Gyllenhaal admitted that aside from knowing their lines, they knew nothing else about the story. It was a bit too out there for them to wrap their heads around.
Galaxy Quest
When you’re good at your job, other professionals in your field can look up to you and your infinite wisdom (or just bask in your greatness). While filming for Galaxy Quest, Tim Allen had a rough couple of days. It had nothing to do with the script or the scenes. He was having a hard time focusing because he was cast with one of his idols: Sigourney Weaver.
Allen is a HUGE Alien fan. In fact, he even brought some of his collection to the set for Weaver to sign. Since she has a sense of humor, she signed the stuff, but wrote that Allen had stolen them from her! Despite it being a cute little joke, Allen wasn’t too pleased with the signature she gave him.
Frankenstein
Despite the focus being on a classic movie monster, Frankenstein is considered a science fiction flick! Even back in the 1930s, when the film industry was even shadier than it is today, a few child actors were treated with grace. Marilyn Harris, the adorable tyke that gets chucked into a lake by Frankenstein’s monster, was integral to the plot.
However, people on set were worried she’d be too scared to act with someone as terrifying as Boris Karloff in makeup. Instead, the exact opposite happened! On her first day of shooting with him, Harris skipped up to Karloff and asked him to ride with her to the lake. They bonded the whole way there!
Predator
If the xenomorphs from Alien scared you, maybe Predator is more your speed. These bounty hunters love a good sport killing and choose to hunt their prey on Earth (for whatever reason). Naturally, innocent people end up getting in the way and hilarity/terror ensues. The occasional xenomorph appears, but these films are all about the Predators.
They’re equally as horrifying as the creatures from the main series’. To ensure they were just as scary looking, the crew used similar movie magic on the Predator outfit as they did the xenomorphs. Glow stick juice (please don’t drink it) and lubricant were mixed together, and this weird concoction helped create the Predator’s blood!
The Fly
They often say you should never work with children or wild animals to get things done right. That saying probably exists because both are unpredictable and can develop superhuman strength at a moment’s notice. During filming for The Fly, Typhoon the baboon had an off day. Due to some strobe lights going off (and the fact that a baboon is a wild animal and not an actor) Typhoon had a bit of a breakdown.
The lights were so scary that he managed to rip off the door to the set piece they were locked in! The only reason he didn’t cause more damage was that Jeff Goldblum was on the set. Typhoon bonded with Goldblum (because he’s amazing and beautiful) because of the actor’s lanky height and physical presence.
District 9
District 9 is a science-fiction retelling of the atrocities humans commit against others. It’s a depressingly realistic movie with some great visual effects and a fascinating story. Of course, while the aliens in the film are metaphors (and not really from space), some of the more graphic “props” were from our planet. The animal pelts, bones, and innards we saw weren’t made in a lab.
Those were real animal carcasses! What makes it scarier is that they were already on set when the crew arrived. All of those small buildings and shacks hid a bunch of the bodies during filming. Sometimes the world is a horror movie without even trying to be.
Eternals
There’s nothing better than an actor who’s willing to reveal his most embarrassing behind-the-scenes stories for the fans to enjoy. Actor Kumail Nanjiani had no problem exposing the costume malfunction that took him almost a month to figure out. He spent four weeks drinking no water or coffee before filming because he was too scared to take off the entire costume in the bathroom.
Doing this helped him avoid reassembling the costume over and over again, but it turns out all he had to do was turn his pants around! Now he’s free to drink all the coffee he wants without any awkward bathroom mishaps.
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind is one of those odd films that strikes a chord that can’t quite be heard in any other movie. It tackles some big topics like love, moving on, forgiveness, and other heavy-handed things like that. It also features Jim Carrey in one of his best roles EVER. The troubled but evident love between Clementine and Joel can be felt from the very beginning.
Part of what makes their relationship feel so real is the commitment both stars showed to their roles. Apparently, both characters had chemistry on screen as well as off. A lot of Carrey and Kate Winslet’s dialogue wasn’t part of the script! Much of it was made up between the two actors while bonding over part loves and other fun stuff when the cameras were off!
The Matrix
If you were offered the red or blue pill which one would you take? Most of us would like to think we’d take the red one and leave The Matrix. In reality, if some stranger kidnapped us and offered us drugs we’d be a bit more hesitant. That didn’t stop Neo, and Trinity before him, from jumping down the rabbit hole. The actor who plays Trinity, Carrie-Anne Moss, ended up jumping in feet first.
After she sustained an injury during filming, she decided to just keep going. It’s doubtful she would have been recast, but just in case, she powered through the entire film with a bad ankle. Maybe Trinity is The One after all? She’s resilient enough for the job!
Dune
Filmed back in 1984, Dune had its cast members wear something a little out of the ordinary. Most audiences don’t think about what the costumes are actually made of, and in this case that information wasn’t even shared with the people who wore them. The Guild members were seen wearing black suits that were actually made using old body bags!
They were pulled out of an old firehouse, and if that’s not enough to creep you out, they were used countless times. Imagine how the cast must have felt when they completed shooting and heard the news. There’s having a tight budget and then there’s this. Yikes!
The Thing
This blend of horror and science fiction may not have been well-received when it premiered, but over the years it’s attained legendary status. In fact, it’s a rare example of a remake being heaps better than the original. The paranoia and mistrust among the team only served to give the film more tension and suspense.
Our hero of sorts can be easily identified by his thick beard and mane of long hair, plus he’s Kurt Russell. There’s no one else with an all-American face like that. While he pulled off the look perfectly, it did take him longer than most people to grow hair out. A year well spent if you ask us!
The Mist
Claustrophobia, mob mentality, and horrible, mysterious monsters all wrapped into one. This King adaptation unsurprisingly takes place in Maine, where it would appear some kind of apocalypse is taking place. No one really knows what’s going on, but our protagonist David Drayton is determined to get his family out safely. At one point he drives into the mist and, well, if you’ve seen the movie you know what happens.
This ending was polarizing for many. Some thought it was a brilliant twist ending, while others thought it was lame and unsatisfying. Spoilers ahead! David kills his friends and family, as they believe they’re beyond hope. Once the deed is done David discovers help was moments away.
Doctor Strange
Putting on a costume can help transform an actor into a character. Of course, talented performers need nothing but raw skill to become other people, but the outfit definitely helps. Especially if we’re talking about one as elaborate as the one of Doctor Strange. It looks incredibly impressive without any context. Just imagine seeing something like that in real life.
You wouldn’t have to wonder if you happened to frequent this particular comic book store. We can picture every customer, mouths agape and eyes wide as they stared at this iconic hero. Cumberbatch should’ve carried on his entire day like that; getting groceries and going for a haircut. It would’ve been awesome.
Ghostbusters
If there’s something strange in the neighborhood, who you gonna call? That’s right, the authorities. If you live in New York City you could probably get away with just ringing up The Ghostbusters. The world’s famous spirit collection service is a titan in the movie industry. The characters are relatable, the effects are great, and Slimer is Slimer. And everyone has their favorite Ghostbuster.
Ours is Dr. Spengler. Those glasses and his quiet yet confident nature make him beyond likable. He’s also ridiculously smart. When he’s not inventing something or busting ghosts he’s writing movies! The actor who played Egon was also a writer for the film! He felt that only he could bring the character to life. You know what? He was right.
Star Wars: The Phantom Menace
Not everyone is blessed with minor gigantism. Okay, medically speaking, it might not be much of a blessing at all. In the Wizarding and Star Wars worlds though, you’re fine. You’re actually more than fine. You’re a financial liability blessed with incredible acting skills. Also, nobody would dare kidnap your daughter. Liam Neeson doesn’t need to arrive on set. The set needs to arrive around Liam Neeson. He’s the new Chuck Norris.
The sets on The Phantom Menace weren’t built for tall actors. Liam Neeson, being 6’4” (1.93m) is a tall actor. He’s taller than any alien in The Phantom Menace’s part of the galaxy. Could you imagine being so tall the entirety of space has to upgrade itself to suit your majesty?
Her
Can artificial intelligence be taught what love is? Maybe. We’re not sure. What we are sure of is that Her is a pretty interesting film. Spike Jonze led an all-star cast through a pretty trippy film and nearly everyone came out the other end better for it. Unfortunately, one of the major stars was left on the cutting room floor in the process. The AI was voiced by actor Samantha Morton.
However, during editing, Jonze realized something didn’t fit. He then went and cast Scarlett Johansson to re-record all of Morton’s lines (and shoot new scenes) at the last minute! While Morton is still credited as a producer, it seems kind of robotic to just leave all of her work behind due to a whim.
2001: A Space Odyssey
Most of what we see in theaters is only a fraction of what was filmed. It takes hundreds of hours of film to get enough footage that’s watchable for a two or three-hour movie. That’s a TON of missing shots that could completely change how we see some of our favorite flicks. 2001: A Space Odyssey isn’t just one of Stanley Kubrick’s weirdest and most memorable films.
It’s also a pretty short one topping out at barely two hours and a handful of minutes. Despite this head-scratcher of a film not being the longest, some answers were probably left in the editing room. Hundreds of hours of footage were shot for the movie!
Men In Black
Steven Spielberg is considered one of the greatest directors (and producers) of our time. He’s helped bring a countless list of amazing projects to the big screen and we’re all better because of it. Oddly enough, some of our favorite cult classics and childhood favorites are part of Spielberg’s grand movies. Speaking of, who knew that he was an executive producer on Men In Black?
The answer is probably everyone (since his name is in the opening credits). One person who wasn’t buying it at all was the film’s star: Will Smith! Back in 1997, when the film was being made, Spielberg himself called Smith to discuss the movie! It took a while for Smith to even believe Spielberg had called him on the phone.
The Crow
The Crow is one of those movies that will forever live in infamy. Say what you will about the story, vision, or final cut, it’s an interesting movie. A lot of the intrigue comes from the fact that the star was accidentally shot and killed during filming. Everyone knows about the accident that ended the life of Brandon Lee. What most don’t know is the other actor involved also suffered some trauma.
Even after the case was closed, Michael Massee (who was holding the gun in the first place) refused to watch the movie. He also stopped acting for a year following the incident. Once he passed in 2016, it was revealed that he never watched the film.