Buzz
Movies have the potential to alter lives. The awe-inspiring visuals and thrilling moments on the screen can ignite a desire to imitate them. Yet, it’s easy to forget that these cinematic experiences are purely meant for entertainment and spectacle.
As you'll soon realize, too often, attempts to replicate movie moments lead to bizarre outcomes, sometimes even resulting in heartbreak or tragedy.
Let these cautionary stories remind us all, so we don't end up among next year's Darwin Award hopefuls.
10. 'Wedding Crashers' Encouraged People to Poison Their Friends
You might think a film like Wedding Crashers (2005) would only promote bad behavior, but it inspired more than just crashing weddings. After the movie’s release, a new trend began—“Visine-ing” your friends.
The concept originated from a scene where Owen Wilson secretly spikes Bradley Cooper’s drink with Visine eye drops, causing Cooper to get diarrhea—humorous in a movie where toilet humor is king. In this fictional world, Cooper’s punishment fits because he’s competing for the same girl as the hero. What a jerk.
Many people copied the prank. Apparently, plenty of real-life folks are comfortable poisoning their friends, as a wave of Visine-related incidents occurred after the movie hit theaters. But in reality, the prank isn’t funny—Visine poisoning doesn’t just cause diarrhea, it can even lead to a coma.
In 2012, a woman was “Visined” so many times by her stepdaughter that she ended up consuming 15 bottles of the eye drops before doctors figured out what was happening. By that point, she had been hospitalized twice, suffering from symptoms like vomiting, tremors, and rectal bleeding.
In 2011, a medical student with a promising future poisoned her classmate and later boasted about 'Visining' her. The judge, however, believed that those in the medical profession should not harm others, and she subsequently lost her medical study privileges.
One girl may have even paid the ultimate price for it. In 2008, a 22-year-old beauty student poisoned her supervisor with Visine and received just two months of probation. Soon after completing her sentence, she was found dead under mysterious circumstances, though the authorities could never prove it, the idea of revenge remained a strong suspicion.
The takeaway here is simple: 'Visining' someone might seem like an exciting plot in a movie, but in real life, poisoning others is generally frowned upon.
9. The Program Prompted Teens to Seek Dangerous Attention by Getting Hit by Trucks
The Program (1993) is a Disney film that aimed to inspire young people to pursue true athleticism. It delves into the dark, ugly side of college football and the allure of taking shortcuts. The story follows the downward spiral of a rising star, whose life of alcohol, steroids, and drug abuse descends into chaos, marked by violent, erratic behavior.
Kids were motivated by the film, but not in the way Disney had hoped. Instead of aspiring to be football heroes, they were drawn to the erratic and destructive behavior of a drug addict, thinking, 'Wow, that looks cool—I want to be like that!'
One scene particularly resonated. Joe Kane, intoxicated, lies down in the middle of the road, daring cars to run him over in a reckless act of bravado. Somehow, this scene struck a chord, and some viewers thought it was cool. While the film was still showing in theaters, others attempted to replicate the stunt.
Two boys lay on a highway at 1:00 AM, challenging cars to drive over them. They were attempting to prove their toughness, much like Joe Kane. Unlike the movie, they weren’t even drunk; they genuinely thought lying in the road was a good idea. Sadly, they were run over by a pickup truck and died in horrific, painful circumstances.
It was an incredibly foolish decision, but they weren’t the only ones trying it. On the same day, another boy died while attempting the same stunt in a different part of the country. There were also reports of other teenagers across the U.S. attempting it, but they were fortunate enough to survive. The situation got so serious that Disney eventually removed the scene from all future screenings to prevent further incidents.
8. Jurassic Park Sparked The Creation of the Chickenosaurus
Jurassic Park (1993) gave us an awe-inspiring vision—a theme park filled with ancient dinosaurs. The concept was thrilling enough that we'd all flock to it, even with the looming danger of dinosaurs potentially escaping and wreaking havoc. Now, scientists are actively working to bring that vision to life, though in a way that's far more bizarre than we imagined.
Around 20 years after the film's release, a global initiative kicked off to bring Jurassic Park to life. Leading experts from the world’s top universities began collaborating, with guidance from Jack Horner, the dinosaur expert featured in the film. However, the science presented in the movie remains impossible. So, instead, they’ve chosen to genetically alter chickens to resemble dinosaurs.
As mentioned earlier, the plan is to alter chickens to have a snout, teeth, a long tail, and wings that resemble tiny arms. They're seriously pursuing this, having already modified chicken embryos to resemble dinosaur snouts. They even hope to have a chickenosaurus available for public viewing in the next decade.
So, rather than real dinosaurs, we’ll likely end up with deformed chickens that resemble small, feathery monsters with puny arms, clumsily stumbling around in cages, seemingly resigned to their fate.
Horner and his team are hoping their genetically modified chicken will spark children's imaginations, though it's more likely to give them nightmares instead of sweet dreams.
7. Back To The Future Motivated a Man to Drive His Car Into a Wall
In 2015, a Florida man watched the film Back to The Future (1995) and thought, "I can do that." Lacking a solid foundation in science or engineering, he based his plan on a brief glimpse of Doc Brown's flux capacitor, assuming he understood its function—roughly.
He decided to give it a try. He modified his Dodge Challenger and sped down the street at top speed, hoping that hitting 88 miles per hour would send him back in time.
The man who attempted the stunt claims it actually worked. He told the police that a time portal appeared before him, pulling him through history. However, it closed too soon for him to make it through.
When the time portal vanished—or his hallucination faded—he found himself speeding toward a brick wall at 88 miles per hour. His car smashed through the wall, crashed into a shopping mall, and then barreled through another brick wall. Fortunately, the mall was unoccupied and no one was harmed. But yet another daring scientific experiment ended in failure.
The man was taken for medical and psychological evaluation because anyone who believes they can turn a Dodge Challenger into a time machine has to be a little crazy—though remarkably, he emerged unscathed after crashing through an entire shopping mall.
So, did it actually work?
6. Breaking Bad Prompted People to Try Dissolving Each Other in Acid
The TV series Breaking Bad (2008–2013) provided a dramatic guide on how to dispose of a dead body: Place it in a plastic container, submerge it in hydrofluoric acid, and voilà—instant body disposal.
It's no surprise that criminals attempted to imitate this. After the show aired, blue meth started appearing all over. Motivated by the show, desperate murderers tried to dispose of bodies by dumping them in acid vats.
In 2013, a man attempted this with his girlfriend after strangling her to death. A group of French students did the same to a classmate who owed them drug money. They all took the idea straight from the show, even purchasing a plastic vat to avoid a mess that would have been caused by using a bathtub.
However, the real-life results were far from what they expected. It turns out that Walter White is one of the worst chemistry teachers ever. Hydrofluoric acid does almost nothing to a body, except perhaps make it a little softer.
Instead of eliminating the body, these people just left a person sitting in a vat. Eventually, they were all caught when someone wandered into the house, ending their criminal careers.
5. Into the Wild inspired many to venture into the wilderness, with some tragically meeting their end there.
Christopher McCandless once ventured into the wild, rejecting the soul-crushing monotony of city life. He embraced a survivalist lifestyle, living off the land and finding solace in nature.
His journey became the basis for the film Into The Wild (2007), which inspired countless others to follow in his footsteps. However, some may have missed the tragic ending where he perishes.
One of the most heartbreaking stories was that of Dustin Self. Like many before him, he watched the movie in 2013 and felt compelled to abandon modern society and its distractions. Unfortunately, he had no experience with surviving in the wild.
Dustin, a vegetarian who had no experience in the wilderness, devised a survival strategy based solely on scenes he had watched in films. Despite his total lack of outdoor expertise, he believed his plan would work.
He thought he could survive by foraging for berries—an idea that was dubious even under ideal conditions but perilous in the winter when Dustin ventured out.
Dustin got lost when his GPS directed him the wrong way, an ironic twist considering his attempt to escape from technology. His family, noticing his absence, sought help. Tragically, Dustin’s lifeless, frozen body was found beneath a tree. It’s safe to assume the autopsy didn’t find any berries in his stomach.
Dustin had hoped to reinvent himself from a sheltered city dweller to an experienced outdoorsman, but in the end, he did the opposite. Instead of being remembered as a hero, his parents’ media statements painted him as ‘not a survivalist’ and ‘an urban kid,’ with the press mocking his lack of understanding of nature.
4. 'First Blood' Inspired Ryan Gosling To Throw Knives At Children
Rambo is the ultimate action hero, capable of taking down an entire army alone. When *First Blood* (1982) was released, everyone wanted to be Rambo. We would head to the playground, reenacting the movie's scenes and imagining ourselves as heroes living out those epic moments.
But some people—like Ryan Gosling—went a bit overboard.
It turns out that as a kid, actor Ryan Gosling was a huge fan of Rambo. After watching *First Blood*, he truly believed he was John Rambo and that the action never really stopped—it was ongoing around him.
So, Gosling grabbed a set of steak knives, packed them into a Fisher-Price Houdini Magic Kit, and headed to school to live out his fantasy. During recess, he stood tall in the playground, visualizing himself surrounded by enemy forces, and threw steak knives at his classmates.
Gosling himself shared this story. According to him, the only consequence was his suspension and a ban on watching R-rated films. Let's just hope his aim wasn't too sharp.
But who knows? Maybe somewhere out there, a girl is rolling up her sleeve, revealing a scar on her arm, and with a playful glint in her eye, saying, 'You won’t believe how I got this.'
3. *October Sky* Inspired Boys To Steal Train Tracks
In *October Sky* (1999), the protagonist removes spikes from train tracks and sells them to fund his rocket project. It’s a bit dangerous, but it's all for the sake of scientific advancement. Moreover, he picks a track he believes is no longer in use.
In 2006, two men who had watched the movie thought the idea was fantastic, so they decided to steal over 150 spikes. They weren’t trying to build a rocket, though; they just figured some extra cash wouldn’t hurt.
Without concern for the "unused tracks" issue, they ripped the spikes out of a live track. It seems these men were willing to risk a train derailment and the deaths of hundreds just to make a quick profit from scrap metal.
Someone eventually located the missing pieces and halted the entire rail system just in time to prevent disaster. Fortunately, no lives were lost. The culprits were located, arrested, and charged.
Despite the danger they caused, they provided a surprisingly reasonable justification for their actions. Sure, they came close to killing hundreds, but those spikes were worth $3 each.
2. The Citizens of Louisville Attempted To Recreate The Purge
In the film The Purge (2013), a 12-hour annual period called the purge allows people to act on their most violent desires with no legal consequences. Free from accountability, the darkest side of humanity emerges, turning the city into a chaotic bloodbath filled with murder and mayhem.
After watching the movie in 2014, a teenage boy thought, "That’s the kind of world I want to live in." He then tweeted, "Who’s up for starting a Louisville Purge with me?"
It turned out that a lot of people were interested. A flyer started circulating announcing the Louisville Purge would take place on Friday at 8:00 PM, and panic ensued. The police increased their presence, and schools canceled activities.
When Friday night arrived, everyone paused for a moment at 7:59 PM, nervously peering out the windows to see what would happen. As the clock struck 8:00 PM, the Louisville Purge began.
But nothing happened.
It turns out that in real life, people aren’t just waiting to kill anyone they can at the first opportunity. They’re generally decent individuals. While there were rumors of a giraffe being stolen from the zoo, the crime rate remained as low as any other day.
The police did, however, charge individuals for making threats online. In the end, the Louisville Purge turned out to be a peaceful day, with only a few internet troublemakers crying in front of a judge and swearing they'd never harm anyone.
1. Up Inspired a Real-Life 'Cone of Shame'
Motivating students can be tough. Teachers often have to find inspiration from all sorts of places. Some gather ideas from their peers, others from experts, and some even from the antagonists in Pixar films.
In 2012, after showing her class the movie Up (2009), one teacher had an idea. She remembered how the dog Dug was controlled with a "cone of shame"—a cone used by vets to prevent dogs from licking their wounds. Watching Dug transform from a joyful, loving dog into a dejected, pitiful mess, she thought, "That's how I want my students to be!"
She put the idea into practice. She brought in a real-life "cone of shame". Any student who arrived late or spoke out of turn had the cone placed on their head as punishment—a bit like a dunce cap, but with the added bonus of making it nearly impossible for the student to hear or see anything being taught.
However, she ultimately didn’t follow through with it because finding licensed science teachers in America is extremely challenging. The teacher was reassigned to a different school, but she didn’t lose her job or face a salary cut because "she is a certified science teacher, and finding them has been quite difficult," the school explained.
