10 Famous Movie Props That Sold For Ridiculous Prices

6. Jack Torrance's Axe (The Shining)

Batman Price Tag
Warner Bros.

Sale Price: $217,000

By far the most iconic scene in The Shining, the moment when a deranged Jack Torrance hacks through the door of a bathroom and proclaims "Heeeere's Johnny!" has been endlessly parodied, referenced, and replicated over the last four decades.

But there's only one person on Earth who can truly, authentically recreate that scene, should they feel inclined to do so - the person who bought the actual axe used by Jack Nicholson in the film.

Expected to fetch a price somewhere in the region of $51,000 - $76,000 (£40,000 - £60,000), the weapon destroyed that estimate and ended up selling for a whopping $217,000 (£170,000). Yep - that's over $200,000 for an axe. An ordinary axe. Granted, it was held by Nicholson and used in one of the most famous movies of all time, but it does seem a little ridiculous to pay that much for some metal and wood.

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Danny has been with WhatCulture for almost nine years, and is currently Doctor Who Editor and WhoCulture Channel Manager, overseeing all of WhatCulture's Whoniverse coverage. He has been writing and video editing for 10+ years, and first got a taste for content creation after making his own Doctor Who trailers and uploading them to YouTube (they're admittedly a bit rusty by today's standards). If you need someone to recite every Doctor Who episode in order or to tell you about the making of 1988's Remembrance of the Daleks, Danny is the person to ask.