Top 20 4th Wall Breaks in Movies
#20: It Must Be Some Kind Of…
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“Hot Tub Time Machine” (2010) We all know the feeling when a character says the name of the movie or TV show they’re in. “Hot Tub Time Machine” had a little fun with that. In this ridiculous premise, four friends realize they’ve accidentally gone back to the year 1986 after partying in, you guessed it, a hot tub. During the moment of realization, Craig Robinson’s Nick says the film’s title and gives a deadpan look directly into the camera. Of course there would be a line referencing the silly title. But to pair it with a 4th wall break that calls attention to movies saying their own names? Simple, but genius.
#19: Bath Scene
“One Week” (1920) 4th wall breaks have been in cinema longer than many may realize. Although it wasn’t the first to do so, this Buster Keaton film features one of the earliest and more memorable instances. In the scene, co-star Sybil Seely’s character takes a bath and drops her soap on the floor. As she gives a knowing smile to the camera, a hand covers the lens so we can’t see her reach out of the tub. It was a pretty racy joke by 1920s or even today’s standards. However, it’s so cheeky that we also can’t help but laugh. Buster Keaton was truly a pioneer of visual gags, stunts, and even the 4th wall break.
#18: Fighting With the Narrator
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“George of the Jungle” (1997) Adapting an incredibly silly cartoon into live-action can be tough. Fortunately, this adaptation was willing to be just as ridiculous as the source material. The plot follows a Tarzan spoof named George of the Jungle as he tries to protect his home from evildoers. Throughout the movie, the witty narrator has a lot of fun making fun of the movie’s villains. In one scene, he takes shots at two poachers who find themselves in a tight spot. One of them gets fed up and starts arguing with the narrator. Hearing the omniscient voice have fun with the gag by changing the speed and sound of his voice made the joke more charming.
#17: The Daily Regimen
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“The Wolf of Wall Street” (2013) Chronicling the real-life rise and fall of stockbroker Jordan Belfort, “The Wolf of Wall Street” offers a lot of insights into his wild life. The lead character takes particular pride in his dangerous diet. As Belfort leaves his extravagant house, he lists all the substances he takes on a regular basis before mentioning his personal favorite object: money. It isn’t just Belfort bragging about himself. In fact, he’s actually selling the audience on this lifestyle and the power that comes with it. Considering the rest of the movie shows just how incredible a salesman he is, this scene is a great set-up.
#16: Hater Meets Creator
“Annie Hall” (1977) Do you ever wish you could pull out the creator of something to win an argument online? Because we do all the time. But even in the pre-internet days, it would’ve been a godsend. “Annie Hall” taps into that satisfaction. As Alvy and Annie stand in a movie line, an obnoxious patron behind them begins to loudly state his opinions. Alvy gets so annoyed that he complains to us, and surprisingly, the pretentious filmgoer hears him. The man tries to tell Alvy that he’s entitled to his opinions on the ground that he teaches a class on media theorist Marshall McLuhan. Hilariously, Alvy then pulls McLuhan into the shot to tell him he’s wrong.
#15: Hulk to the Rescue
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“Gremlins 2: The New Batch” (1990) For this sequel, the filmmakers yet again let a pack of vicious gremlins loose on an unsuspecting community. But how do you top the mayhem of the original? With a massive fourth wall break, of course! During their rampage, the film itself messes up and it’s revealed that they broke into the audience’s theater and tampered with the projector. After a mother and employee complain, the theater’s manager enlists the help of world-famous wrestler, Hulk Hogan. All it takes is some light threatening to get things back on track. With an apology from the man himself and a promise that it won’t happen again, “Gremlins 2” proceeds.
#14: Who’d Pay to See That?
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“Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back” (2001) After finding out a movie based on the comic they star in is being made, the eponymous Jay and Silent Bob track down the creator for a paycheck. He explains that the rise in popularity in comic book movies has led to studios buying up every property. The entire scene is littered with nods toward Hollywood filmmaking and toxic fandom. Additionally, Affleck also comments on his real-life self. However, the biggest 4th wall break comes when discussing the low-brow humor of their comic. After asking who’d pay to see such a thing, they all give a look into the camera. It’s a great joke at the audience’s expense.
#13: The Literal Wall
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“Blazing Saddles” (1974) “Blazing Saddles” is full of wonderful, comedic action bits. But there’s absolutely no topping the final one. During the climax, a massive brawl breaks out between the villains and the citizens of Rock Ridge. However, it then cuts to the set of a musical mid-production. Audiences may have been wondering what was happening. In an impressive display of taking things literally, the chaotic fight breaks through a literal wall, spilling out into the other set. The bit goes on for a while, going from the Warner Bros. lot to the famous Chinese Theatre in Hollywood. We have to respect the commitment to this hilarious bit.
#12: Into the Camera
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“Trading Places” (1983) While the 4th wall break in this classic comedy is small, it never fails to elicit a chuckle. After two wealthy commodity brokers start arguing over nature vs. nurture, they decide to perform an experiment. They agree to force two men from opposite backgrounds to switch places and see how it affects them.. While Eddie Murphy’s Billy Valentine is taking the place of one of their wealthy employees, the two teach him about commodities in an extremely condescending manner. The comedian can’t help but give a perfectly timed look into the camera when they really treat him as a simpleton. It was a smart way to let the audience know that he’s extremely clever.
#11: How to Wrap Things Up
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“Kiss Kiss Bang Bang” (2005) Robert Downey Jr.’s Harry mainly narrates this Christmas murder mystery. However, there are a few instances in which he addresses the audience directly. The most memorable comes at the very end. With the story wrapped up, Harry sits in front of a camera and struggles with how to end the movie. He’s then rudely interrupted by Val Kilmer’s Perry, whom Harry now works for. It seems Perry also understands he’s in a movie, making jokes about us validating our parking and apologizing to mid-Westerners for swearing so much. Even a few more seconds with these two is comedic gold. But it was also a clever way to end a movie that was already exceptionally cleverly written.
#10: Courtroom Scene
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“Goodfellas” (1990) From the moment Henry Hill tells us he always wanted to be a gangster, we hang on his every word. Throughout this crime classic, Ray Liotta’s narration carries us through life in the mob. But it becomes more of a confessional as he turns informant against them. This change is represented visually during his trial. As the scene goes on, the overhead narration turns into a 4th wall break where Henry addresses the camera. He walks around the courtroom as if he’s giving a presentation. The final scene shows him living in a suburban neighborhood, with a slight smirk to the camera as he laments his average life.
#9: Countdown List Within a Countdown List
“High Fidelity” (2000) Like many of us here at Watchmojo, Rob Gordon spends his time making countdown lists. While many made with his friends and co-workers are music-based, the ones he constructs with us are based on his love life. Rob lists his all-time Top 5 biggest heartbreaks after another failed relationship and spends the movie taking us through each one of them. Upon the realization that he’s just lost his greatest love, he lists the Top 5 things he misses about her. It’s a unique structure for a movie overall. But it also gives the viewer a keen understanding of Rob as a character. John Cusack’s charismatic performance also helps.
#8: Celebrity Cameos
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“The Big Short” (2015) Since it focuses on specific details about a major mid 2000s US financial crisis, “The Big Short” uses a lot of complex terminology that the average viewer might not understand. The filmmakers apparently saw this coming and implemented the most creative way they could think of to explain things. Whenever a complicated topic comes up, it cuts to a celebrity who explains the topic in a way the viewer can understand. At one point, Selena Gomez plays Blackjack with economist Richard Thaler to explain synthetic CDOs. This is also how we get to see Anthony Bourdain use a fish analogy to explain collateralized debt obligation. But one of the most memorable scenes sees Margot Robbie educate audiences while taking a bath.
#7: A Little Bit About Tyler Durden
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“Fight Club” (1999) Although Edward Norton narrates “Fight Club,” one key scene has him speak directly to the camera. And that is to tell us about the day-to-day life of enigmatic future antagonist, Tyler Durden. One of Tyler’s jobs as a projectionist allows him to splice racy frames into family friendly films. He points out cue marks, which he calls cigarette burns, the signal for projectionists to switch a film reel. This clever moment ties to other blink and you’ll miss them moments within the film. More interestingly, before actually meeting him, there are several images of Tyler “spliced” in throughout the film. And like the movie says, “Nobody knows that they saw it, but they did.”
#6: Choose Your Own Ending
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“Wayne’s World” (1992) “Wayne’s World” has plenty of creative 4th wall breaks. The product placement scene is nothing short of genius. But nothing in the movie is as astounding and absurd as its endings. Yes, plural. After the heroes pull off their crucial broadcast, everything goes horribly wrong. Garth even dies! Naturally, it’s an incredibly dissatisfying conclusion, and the duo appears to turn back time for a do-over. Next is the silly Scooby-Doo conclusion, in which Old Man Withers is unmasked as the real villain. Finally, it’s the mega happy ending in which everything is resolved and everyone, including the villain, gets their happy ending. It’s a great joke that lets them find the conclusion they wanted.
#5: Get On With It
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“Monty Python and the Holy Grail” (1975) 4th wall breaks are generously sprinkled throughout this comedic gem. But the “get on with it” bit remains one of our favorites. After Sir Galahad enters a castle in search of the grail, he’s told by Dingo that it isn’t there. What would normally be a completely average scene is made so much better by a well-placed 4th wall break. Upon completing the interaction, Dingo turns to the camera to ask if this scene should’ve been cut. She’s then told by numerous characters from different settings, some of which the movie hadn’t introduced yet, to get on with it. Even God speaks from the clouds to tell her to get a move on.
#4: Be Kind, Please Rewind
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“Funny Games” (2007) In both versions of one of the most unique home invasion thrillers ever made, a vacationing family is tormented by two seemingly polite young men. The villainous Paul is acutely aware he is in a movie and even asks the audience their thoughts on what they’re watching. And by the time we reach the climax, the antagonist makes it very clear that the family never stood any chance of winning. After the other assailant, Peter, is shot by the mother, Paul frantically searches for the TV remote. He then rewinds the scene to stop her from grabbing the gun that takes Peter out. In the end, they had always stacked their twisted game in their favor.
#3: Never Question Bueller
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“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” (1986) Ferris Bueller is one of the most iconic characters to break the 4th wall in cinema history. He also perfected the post-credits scene long before superhero movies made it a mainstay. While we love hearing all his asides throughout the movie, his opening presentation is the most impressive scene. Through a series of well-laid steps, Ferris tells all the kids watching how to perfectly fake an illness so that you can stay home from school. We can only imagine how many high schoolers tried similar methods. The cherry on top is seeing him elaborately set up his bedroom to help keep up the ruse.
#2: 16 Walls
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“Deadpool” (2016) It simply wouldn’t be a list of 4th wall breaks without the Merc With a Mouth. Both movies are overflowing with breaks that range from subtle to over the top, like a glorious post-credits sequence in “Deadpool 2”. One incredibly clever line from the first movie comes when Deadpool introduces his roommate, Al. He talks to the camera in both the present and past. Wade happily declares that the number of breaks happening here adds up to something spectacular. While we’re not 100 percent about that math, it’s a great joke regardless. We can see why Wade couldn’t resist calling attention to the memorable achievement.
#1: The Latest in VHS Technology
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“Spaceballs” (1987) It seems many Mel Brooks characters are aware they’re in a movie (Xref). That certainly didn’t change in “Spaceballs”. After losing track of the heroes’ location, the villainous Dark Helmet relies on his underling for help. The solution is simple. They just have to look at a VHS copy of “Spaceballs.” Not only are they able to use the tape to get crucial information, but they also fast forward to the very scene they’re in. The extremely meta moment leads to a comical and philosophical debate about how time works there. Thanks to this 4th wall breaking vhs, “Spaceballs” created a gag that still makes us laugh “now now” just as much as it did then.
