10 Behind-The-Scenes Screw-Ups That Created Iconic Movie Moments

Creating iconic cinema when failure strikes.

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Warner Bros.

Films are a tricky business. By their very nature, productions are large, sprawling and require all the cogs to turn in the right way at the right speed to make a unified whole. Much like a complex piece of music, if it goes right, you'll never know of everything going on under the surface. However, if something is a hair-trigger out of place, the whole mighty edifice comes crashing down. Faults always stick out like sore thumbs wherever they manifest themselves and in something like films €“ which requires such exacting standards €“ any screw-up can be used as a stick with which to beat the entire production.

Yet occasionally, a magnificent thing can happen €“ in the filmic equivalent of turning a frown upside down, a behind-the-scenes mistake can be turned into a strength. It doesn't happen often, but in the hands of certain actors, writers or directors, potential film or scene-breaking details are remodeled into something altogether more iconic. All it requires is a little creativity, some spur-of-the-moment genius or sheer dumb luck, but sometimes a weakness can be reversed in unforeseen and often hilarious ways.

As I've already acknowledged, it doesn't happen all the time, but it does happen more often than you might think...

Contributor
Contributor

Durham University graduate and qualified sports journalist. Very good at sitting down and watching things. Can multi-task this with playing computer games. Football Manager addict who has taken Shrewsbury Town to the summit of the Premier League. You can follow me at @Ed_OwenUK, if you like ramblings about Newcastle United and A Place in the Sun. If you don't, I don't know what I can do for you.