10 Clever Tricks You Didn’t Realise Movies Played On You

2. Tom Cruise's Eyes Wide Shut New York Stroll Was Done On A Treadmill

Eyes Wide Shut Tom Cruise
Warner Bros.

Stanley Kubrick's final film - released four months after his passing in March 1999 at the age of 70 - Eyes Wide Shut is viewed by many as one of the many great movies on the director's extensive, impressive résumé.

By the time the picture finally started production, Kubrick had long become a resident of England. Not just that, but he'd become a resident of England who very much did not enjoy the notion of travelling due to having a fear of flying.

Given how Eyes Wide Shut takes place in and around New York City, rather than head to the Big Apple, Kubrick instead had the streets of NYC recreated on a London soundstage. When it comes to one particular scene, though, a rather surprising, rather old school trick was utilised.

The scene in question involves Tom Cruise's Bill Harford walking on a New York sidewalk. To accomplish this, Kubrick revisited the classic concept of rear projection. As such, the streets of New York were projected onto a big screen, and Cruise was positioned on a treadmill in front of said screen.

Due to the timing of the lights and camera movement matching so seamlessly with the walking motion of Cruise, the final result is pretty darn flawless. So much so, you would have zero idea that Cruise a) wasn't in New York, and b) was actually just strolling along on a treadmill as footage played behind him.

Senior Writer
Senior Writer

Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer and Presenter, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main day job, his role as lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund and Eli Roth to Kevin Smith and the Russo Brothers, to Kevin Conroy and Frank Miller, to Bret Hart and Sting, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, and Brian Flynn, to many, many more. Where his beloved Wrexham AFC is concerned, Andrew is a long-standing season ticket holder and an FSA Award-winner for his time co-hosting the Fearless in Devotion podcast.