Random '90s Movies Fan Theories (20 items)

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  (#1) Sid From The Original 'Toy Story' Grows Up To Be The Garbage Person In 'Toy Story 3' (And Becomes A Hero!)

  Sid (Erik von Detten) is a horrifying villain in the original Toy Story, but one fan theory posits that he turned over a new leaf. According to Redditor /u/londongarbageman, Sid grows up to become the sanitation worker in Toy Story 3. This transition starts when Sid realizes his toys are alive, which horrifies him because he spent most of his childhood mutilating them. Sid takes it upon himself to make sure this never happens again. He decides to rescue toys that people have thrown away and fix broken ones. This is why he becomes a sanitation worker - the one field with access to the living beings (i.e., broken toys) people consider trash.

  If all that fails to back up the theory, Sid and the man on the garbage truck wear the same t-shirt. Coincidence?
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  (#2) Forrest Gump

  • Film (1994)

  Throughout Forrest Gump, it seems like the title character remains stuck in his own world. What if this wasn't the case? Redditor /u/HeroOfOA believes Forrest (Tom Hanks) purposely tells a story that relates to each person he's talking with - and a decent amount of evidence exists to back up the theory.

  In the beginning, Forrest talks to a Black waitress about how he was named after a KKK leader who made mistakes. He references segregation in his early years. After that, he chats with a woman who looks slightly older than Jenny. He tells her about Jenny's college dorm and about saving her from a strip club. Next, he moves onto an elderly man, who's probably old enough to have served in Vietnam. He talks to him about combat and losing his best friend during the war. Lastly, he speaks to a woman, around the same age as his mother, about how difficult it was when his mom died. She bursts into tears.

  If true, maybe Forrest was a far better storyteller than we ever imagined.
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  (#3) The Matrix

  • Film (1999)

  The red pill or the blue pill - which one would you take? This Matrix-in-a-Matrix fan theory sort of proves that neither really matters because none allow access to the real world. The "real world" - gained by taking the red pill and escaping the program - is just another level of the Matrix simulation. It's an illusion to make it seem like you can escape - and that you possess the choice to do so.

  There is some proof the red pill may be a farce. Neo (Keanu Reeves) uses his powers when he's supposedly outside of the Matrix. This would be impossible in the real world. Additionally, Agent Smith (Hugo Weaving) can control Bane even after he leaves the simulation. How? Because he never actually left.
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  (#4) Scream

  • Film (1996)

  At the end of Scream, we're told two killers exist - Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) and Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard). A Reddit fan theory isn't buying the fact that they acted alone, though. According to user /u/Zionhyome, Deputy Dewey (David Arquette) may be the real mastermind.

  Dewey remains highly suspicious. He's seemingly always around and has been close to the killer, without ever really getting attacked. The only times he gets assaulted are when he's in view of another character, conveniently covering his tracks. Yet somehow, he's always absent during the showdown.

  Lots of evidence exists for a third killer in the original film, which may be Dewey. When Casey finds Steve tied to a chair, he looks to his left and his right, indicating Billy and Stu are hiding on both sides of the house. So who rings the doorbell? Also, who stalks Sidney while both killers are present at the video store with Randy?
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  (#5) Ned Ryerson

  • Fictional Character

  Groundhog Day is as brilliant as it is frustrating. Waking up to the same day over and over gets hard to watch - but maybe that's the point. Perhaps the repeated time loop was Phil Conners's (Bill Murray) personal Hell and Ned Ryerson (Stephen Tobolowsky), the insurance salesman, was actually the Devil.

  A fan theory by Redditor /u/SuperConductiveRabbi alleges Ned is the Devil, and has it out for Phil. Firstly, Phil and Ned don't really get along. The moment after Phil first encounters (and insults) Ned, he immediately steps into a puddle. Ned laughs and shoots off a snide remark (almost like he was responsible). On the last day of the time loop, Phil finally purchases an insurance policy from Ned, and then he's mysteriously free? Yeah, okay.

  The theory also notices one parallel: buying a ton of life insurance is as close as you can get to selling your soul. The Devil would certainly approve.
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  (#6) The Fifth Element

  • Film (1997)

  When a future-cop asks Korben Dallas (Bruce Willis) if he's "classified as human," the erstwhile cab driver replies, "Negative. I am a meat popsicle." This sounds like a sarcastic answer, especially as delivered by Willis, who can always be counted upon to land a one-liner. If he's answering honestly, though, Dallas might be a whole lot older than his appearance suggests.

  The implication of "meat popsicle" may be that Dallas has spent time cryogenically frozen. The character has a lengthy military history, so /u/vicrally filled in some gaps, asserting that Dallas was awake for deployments, but cryogenically frozen when in transit across vast interstellar distances or even simply between military engagements. His associate Finger mentions having sat next to Dallas on "a thousand missions," so if soldiers are frozen between missions, Dallas could have been kicking around for decades or even centuries longer than expected.

  And if cryogenic freezing is a military practice in The Fifth Element, it pays off nicely when Dallas hides General Monro (Brion James) in his refigerator.
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  (#7) Terminator 2: Judgment Day

  • Film (1991)

  With its tangled time travel mythology, the Terminator franchise has inspired plenty of convoluted fan theories, but this one is deceptively simple: the T-1000 (Robert Patrick) develops desires and emotions of its own, despite being designed specifically to terminate with a minimum of fuss and no feelings at all.

  That's exactly how the T-1000 operates early in Terminator 2, efficiently killing anyone and everyone who presents even a minor obstacle or opportunity on its quest, including police officers and passersby. As that quest continues, though, the robot's terminations become less and less efficient. By the time it reaches the psychiatric facility housing Sarah Connor (Linda Hamilton), the T-1000 is slowly, almost sadistically, running his finger through a guard's eye. This sadistic streak is fully in evidence during T2's climax, as the liquid metal villain tortures Sarah. As /u/Azumarill99 points out, the shapeshifting robot could easily have impersonated Sarah to accomplish his goal, yet it instead chooses a crueler, less efficient route, presumably just to take pleasure in her pain.
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  (#8) The Sixth Sense

  • Film (1999)

  Cole (Haley Joel Osment) isn't the only one who can see dead people in The Sixth Sense. According to a Reddit fan theory by /u/strudelbaker95, Anna (Olivia Williams) may have the gift, as well. Anna experiences a cold chill when spirits are around, and in the beginning scene, she freezes like she notices something present. The theory states Anna can see Malcolm (Bruce Willis) the whole time, but knows he's gone. She ignores him, hoping it will prevent her from hurting more (she's already on Zoloft while trying to cope with the loss).

  Anna does acknowledge Malcolm once in the film, while she's in the restaurant on their anniversary. She looks directly at him and speaks, but the movie leads us to believe she's just talking to herself.
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  (#9) The Big Lebowski

  • Film (1998)

  One Reddit fan theory about The Big Lebowski remains so popular the Coen Brothers actually addressed it. Though it's tough to know where the theory originated, Redditor /u/CommissionerValchek outlines the popular discourse.

  According to the theory, Donny (Steve Buscemi) only exists in Walter's (John Goodman) head. The Dude (Jeff Bridges) hardly interacts with Donny during the film, and insists Walter is remembering a friend who died in the Vietnam War. To take things further, one Redditor claimed Donny might have existed at one point. He really was a friend of Walter's that died in Vietnam. Walter was able to take some of his ashes, and The Dude felt bad enough to indulge him.

  Most of us probably just thought The Dude was being The Dude when he spoke about Donny, but Steve Buscemi also bought into the theory. The actor admitted that Donny was a figment of Walter's imagination during a Big Lebowski reunion, but John Goodman told him to shut up (naturally).
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  (#10) Marla Singer

  • Fictional Character

  The first rule of Fight Club is don't talk about Fight Club. The first twist of Fight Club is that Tyler (Brad Pitt) is a figment of The Narrator's (Edward Norton) imagination. Sorry for the spoiler, but over 15 years is the limit on that. The second twist may be that Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter) doesn't exist, either.

  A fan theory by Redditor /u/JewishGun proposes that Marla Singer is a manifestation of guilt. As The Narrator says:

  Her lie reflected my lie... and suddenly, I felt nothing... I couldn't cry. So once again, I couldn't sleep.

  She is the one person in the film capable of making The Narrator's life better. She has feelings and can be hurt. She is guilty. Is The Narrator really talking to himself the entire time?

  More evidence lies in the fact that hardly anyone addresses Marla throughout the film, aside from minor characters, like the waiter in the restaurant - but who knows, he could have been playing along.
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  (#11) Pulp Fiction

  • Film (1994)

  Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction won a Golden Globe, an Academy Award, two BAFTA awards, and two MTV Movie Awards. This much-talked-about movie left a lot of things up for debate, like what the heck was in Marsellus Wallace's (Ving Rhames) briefcase. A fan theory by Redditor /u/Citizen386 suggests that, perhaps, the briefcase is filled with God.

  According to the theory, Vincent (John Travolta) only has bad things happen to him when he isn't in the presence of the briefcase. Still, he views the contents, but never accepts them, and "those who deny God usually suffer consequences." The theory also states that Jules (Samuel L. Jackson) may be the true shepherd because he never looks into the briefcase, but unconditionally accepts the contents. He refuses to give up the briefcase once he takes possession, and Jules walks away at the end unscathed after he shows its contents to robbers in the diner.

  Citizen386 states the actors claimed in various interviews that Tarantino told them the briefcase contained whatever they wanted it to hold. It's common for people to say God is whatever you want him to be, because he's everywhere. This theory is no square (or rectangle).
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  (#12) Titanic

  • Film (1997)

  Titanic is one of the greatest love stories of all time. But Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) may not be the romantic pauper portrayed throughout the film. According to a Facebook fan theory, Jack is actually a time traveler who only comes on the ship to save Rose from committing suicide - and altering the space-time continuum.

  Rose (Kate Winslet) was pretty unhappy with her life of riches. If she grew overwhelmed by sadness and jumped to her death on the ship, the captain would have probably stopped to find her. If the Titanic stopped, it might have never hit the iceberg. This is a mega problem (at least if you buy into the butterfly effect).

  The evidence lies in the fact that Jack appears wildly out of place in the era and mentions things that won't exist until years after the ship sinks. He seemingly possesses no currency from the period, gambling to get a ticket. He mentions fishing at Lake Wissota, but it wasn't created until 1917 - a whopping five years after the Titanic sank. Jack also tells Rose he'll take her on the roller coaster at the Santa Monica Pier, which wasn't built until 1916. Everything - from his haircut to his rucksack - doesn't fit in the time.
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  (#13) Jurassic Park

  • Film (1993)

  Jurassic Park was undeniably filled with fantastical science. Remember how the entirety of the theme park rested on DNA found inside the belly of mosquitos that got trapped in amber for millions of years? While wildly old amber with bits of bug or feathers in it does exist in real life, the old DNA would be of no use. It would degrade so much that if anything could be extracted, the mosquito's DNA would have wholly mixed with the dinosaur's DNA.

  According to a fan theory by Redditor /u/Brownra04, that's exactly why Jurassic Park never had any dinosaur DNA. Instead, the entire park is a lie. It's a front to get John Hammond (Richard Attenborough) massive amounts of funding and cover up the fact that InGen is doing some pretty gnarly genetic experimentation.

  The dinosaurs are lab-created by genetically modifying reptiles, birds, and amphibians to suit what the public thinks a dinosaur should resemble. Since the film's release in 1993, science has disproved many ideas about how dinosaurs looked. If they were created from actual dinosaur DNA, that wouldn't be the case. Also, Hammond describes his past, having first delved into entertaining by creating a circus - and what are circuses filled with? Tricks!
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  (#14) Aladdin

  • Film (1992)

  Most people assume Aladdin takes place in the past - maybe it's the Genie (Robin Williams), the outfits, or the magic carpet rides - or the fact no one walks around with a cell phone. According to one fan theory posted on Disney Theories, though, the movie actually takes place in the distant future - the year 10,300, to be exact.

  There's plenty of evidence to prove Aladdin occurs in a post-apocalyptic futuristic world. The Genie mentions Aladdin's (Scott Weinger) clothes are "so third century," but was locked in the lamp for 10,000 years. So, that would make it at least 10,300 CE. In addition, the Genie makes loads of contemporary pop-culture references. But what about modern tech?

  Cars absolutely existed at one point in Agrabah. The Aladdin video game for Sega Genesis contains buried modern stop signs in the background. A few fans even argue the magic carpet is actually futuristic hover technology.
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  (#15) The Shawshank Redemption

  • Film (1994)

  Emotionally, The Shawshank Redemption hinges on the assumption that Andy Dufresne (Tim Robbins) is as innocent as he claims and did not, in fact, murder his wife and the golf instructor with whom she was having an affair. Andy is a supremely reaasonable and controlled man, after all, a man with vast wellsprings of wisdom, hope, and compassion, all of which help him through his years in the titular prison. But what if that was all an elabroate smokescreen, and Andy is really guilty of killling two people in cold blood?

  That's the premise with which a former Redditor begins, and the whole theory suggests that Andy is not only a murderer, but a horrifyingly calculating and manipulative mastermind artfully and mercilessly positioning everyone around him to faciliate his eventual escape. His practical brilliance is on display throughout the film, and Red (Morgan Freeman) notes that Andy's an intensely skilled chess player. When Red, the narrator, acknowledges that, to him, the game is "a total f***ing mystery," he's effectively admitting he's an unreliable narrator, one susceptible to his new friend's machinations. The entire movie, then, is Andy playing one long chess game, moving prisoners and guards across the board over years and years.

  Even Tommy's (Gil Bellows) claims of jailhouse tales exononerating Andy could have been planted in his mind by the mentor figure teaching him to read. It's even possible Andy is behind the schemes supposedly cooked up by Warden Norton (Bob Gunton), since Red relies on secondhand stories from Andy. 
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  (#16) 'Clueless' Did Have A Sequel - It's 'Legally Blonde'

  Clueless is beloved because of its fashion, wonderful catchphrases ("as if"), and for introducing the world to the charming Brittany Murphy. The film sadly never got a sequel - or at least, no one noticed when it finally did. According to this fan theory from Decider, the sequel to Clueless was Legally Blonde.

  Cher (Alicia Silverstone) is a 16-year-old sophomore in Clueless, which came out in 1995. She's poised to graduate high school in 1997 and college in 2001, the same year Elle Woods (Reese Witherspoon) graduates from university in Legally Blonde. Cher doesn't just look like Elle Woods, they also share the same interests. Cher slays in debate class; her father is a lawyer (and she frequently helps him with his cases); and you can't deny her unique taste in fashion. The girls possess an eerily similar style and a passion for debate and law. Stranger things have happened.
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  (#17) Kevin From 'Home Alone' Grew Up To Be The Killer From 'Saw'

  Kevin (Macaulay Culkin) from Home Alone is a charming and wonderful character - but he's also completely twisted. One fan theory from Redditor /u/Jordoom proposes the idea that Kevin McAllister grew up to be the serial killer in the Saw franchise. Could Kevin possibly be Jigsaw? Maybe.

  When Kevin is forgotten at home, he crafts insane, needlessly harmful traps to purposely injure people. He does a whole lot more than dissuade the Wet Bandits from breaking into the house. He literally burns the top of one of their scalps long enough to probably cause bone damage. And a lot of Kevin's traps are similar to the Rube Goldberg-esque games that Jigsaw rigs.

  In both Home Alone 2 and the original, Kevin uses recordings to play around with people's emotions - whether it's the pizza guy he scares away with a TV film, or the hotel staff he torments with recordings of his uncle. Jigsaw also uses recordings in his murderous games. It's safe to say Kevin could've started off small, only to grow up to become a full-fledged criminal mastermind.
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  (#18) Seven

  • Film (1995)

  What's in the box? Apparently not Gwyneth Paltrow's head. What's in the box in Se7en could hold the key to the real killer - who might not be John Doe (Kevin Spacey), like we're led to believe. One fan theory via Redditor /u/doclestrange holds that Somerset (Morgan Freeman) was the real killer.

  Somerset has a ton of detective experience, making it likely he could lead the investigation (and plant evidence on someone else). Somerset has an array of Christmas tree air fresheners on his desk, and the Sloth victim is surrounded by air fresheners when he's found. The detective is also shown fleeing a crime scene covered in blood. While we don't see the head at the end, the fan theory alleges the box is empty, and Somerset fakes being disgusted. He lets Mills's (Brad Pitt) imagination run with the idea of it being his wife's head.

  The box isn't bloody at all, and a human head thrown inside a cardboard box would certainly bleed through a bit.
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  (#19) The Sandlot

  • Film (1993)

  Throughout The Sandlot, Benny "The Jet" Rodriguez (Mike Vitar) seems like a nice kid, the sort of kid who goes out of his way to help out not just his friends, but even random newbies in the neighborhood. There's a chance, however, that this nice kid isn't motivated by kindness, but by egomania. That's the conclusion reached by /u/PM_ME_YOUR_PANINIS, who put forth the idea that Benny orchestrated the movie's primary drama to cement his status as a local legend.

  The theory is built on the idea that Benny had an opportunity to see that the ball Scotty Smalls (Tom Guiry) stole from his stepfather was signed by Babe Ruth, but put the autographed ball in play despite that. Knowing Kenny (Brandon Quintin Adams) had been hitting home runs all summer, Benny was counting on the ball ending up in Mr. Myrtle's backyard, forcing a confrontation with Myrtle's dog, the infamous Beast. By forcing a confrontation and besting the Beast, which he ultimately does thanks to his own pluck and PF Flyers, Benny aims to let the whole town to know he's the fastest, bravest kid around. The only surprise for Benny, then, is that the day's home run was hit by Smalls rather than Kenny.
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  (#20) Jeff Daniels Plays The Same Guy In 'Speed' And 'Dumb & Dumber'

  What if the protagonists of Dumb and Dumber weren't always a little slow? Well, what if one of them wasn't always slow? That's the idea behind a bit of theorizing from /u/ShamPooPoo69, who postulates that Dumb and Dumber takes place in the same universe as Speed, the action film that hit theaters just a few months before the comedy in 1994.

  Jeff Daniels stars in Dumb and Dumber as Harry Dunne, of course, but he also plays a supporting role in Speed as Harry Temple, an LAPD cop who is killed in an explosive trap. According to this theory, though, Temple wasn't killed, but instead suffered brain damage, leading him to quit the force, move to Rhode Island, and meet up with his old friend Lloyd Christmas (Jim Carrey) to live out his life as an imbecilic dog groomer.

  The 2003 prequel Dumb and Dumberer: When Harry Met Lloyd presents a complication explained away by the notion that Harry is a schizophrenic, but isn't it easier to simply pretend Dumb and Dumberer never happened?

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