7. WALL-E (WALL-E)
One of the first things people started saying about Andrew Stanton's superb film WALL-E even before it came out was how familiar the titular robot protagonist looked. Many online commentators noted his visual resemblance to Johnny-5 from the 1980s Short Circuit movie series, given that both machines run on treads, have a similar body shape, and have eyes that resemble binoculars. It seems as clear as day that this was the inspiration, though Stanton vociferously refutes the claim that he stole anything; he notes that his primary inspiration was Pixar's own lamp design, and, aptly so, a pair of binoculars. Stanton admits that he has seen Short Circuit
once, and notes that he may have subconsciously lifted something from it, but that there was no concerted attempt made to do so, and that the basis for the character is largely original. The character designs just seem far too similar to me - how can it
not be a rip-off?