10 Horror Movies You Didn't Realise Stupidly Broke Their Own Rules
4. The Thing's Imperfect Mimicry - The Thing (2011)
The Rule
Both the original 1982 John Carpenter The Thing and this 2011 prequel make it crystal clear that the extraterrestrial creature is able to perfectly impersonate a human being, both in terms of their physical appearance and their knowledge.
The Breaker
The prequel introduces the wrinkle that the Thing cannot however replicate metal material, and at the end of the movie protagonist Kate (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) tells Carter (Joel Edgerton) she knew he was human earlier on because his ear piercing was in tact.
But Carter then points to the wrong ear, confirming to Kate that he is indeed the Thing, prompting her to torch him and get the hell out of dodge.
And while the Thing would indeed be unable to replicate Carter's earring, it would still possess his knowledge of which ear he had pierced and be able to point to the correct one. Stupid.