10 Moments That Literally Stopped Movies

And now for an entirely different celluloid break. In the theatrical release and later home video versions of Gremlins 2: The New Batch, the film is literally stopped mid-action as the Gremlins run loose in Clamp Center.

A scene ends abruptly as the celluloid melts, the Gremlins having hijacked our own viewing of the film by invading the projectionist booth, where they make shadow puppets against the screen and play an adult movie reel.

Hilariously, director Joe Dante keeps the gag going, with an usher at the cinema in question flagging down Hulk Hogan, who is also trying to watch Gremlins 2, and inviting him to convince the "Gremsters" to play the rest of the film, lest he let Hulkamnia run wild all over them.

The VHS version of the scene is totally different, with the Gremlins instead intercepting the viewer's VCR, switching between channels until finally settling on the John Wayne film Chisum. The film is cleverly re-edited to have Wayne shoot the Gremlins and convince them to continue playing Gremlins 2.

While more outwardly satirical than most entries on this list, stopping a major motion picture for two whole minutes for an effectively throwaway - if hilarious - gag about movies themselves sure is bold.

Dante only agreed to return for the sequel if he had carte blanche to do whatever he wanted, and while Gremlins 2 as a result wasn't much of a commercial success, it has endured as a much-loved cult classic meta-sequel.