Recently, we wrote about genius movie and TV moments that were actually mistakes the filmmakers decided to keep in, and now we’re back for even more! With a little help from the BuzzFeed Community, here are 19 more iconic mistakes that turned out to be pure gold.
1.
In a Season 4 episode of The Big Bang Theory, Sheldon throws up the pages of his roommate agreement after Leonard reveals he and Penny have broken up again. One of the pieces of paper hilariously sticks to his head as he asks Leonard if he even thinks of others, and the audience laughs — this was a complete accident, but actor Jim Parsons was able to keep a straight face. (Though you can see him smile in the bloopers).
2.
In The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring, Pippin’s scream when the firework goes off was a genuine reaction from Billy Boyd. He got scared at the flash of light and the firework being pulled up by a piece of string and let out a hilarious noise of surprise that was perfect for his character.
3.
And this symbolic moment in The Two Towers, when the flag of Rohan flies off its post as Eowyn watches, was also unscripted. It was extremely windy on set, and the flag tore off — but it was so perfect for Eowyn’s emotions that it was kept in.
4.
According to the DVD commentary for Being John Malkovich, some extras snuck beer onto the set in one scene, resulting in one extra throwing a can at Malvovich and yelling for him to “think fast!” Malkovich went with it and screamed in pain — his over-the-top reaction kept the scene in the film.
5.
Jim Carrey apparently was truly asking the filmmakers to feed him a line in this scene from A Series of Unfortunate Events. The line was kept in because it fit Olaf’s theatrical character and emphasized his lack of genuine empathy.
6.
Gary was not meant to break the tea set in this Veep scene. He accidentally backed into it. According to costar Anna Chlumsky, “Our director yelled, ‘Keep going, keep going,’ so they just kept running with it and, as their characters, had to hide the china, put it behind a curtain. Some of the most beautiful Laurel and Hardy-inspired comedy came out of that. And we were all in the room just behind the camera trying so hard not to laugh. It was just one of those convivial, everyone’s in this together, we’re going to support this moment and just the openness to spontaneity. It was just exactly what we all sign up for every season.”
7.
One funny Friends episode involves Chandler answering a wrong number call and pretending to be “Bob,” who the woman at the other end is looking for. At the end of the episode, the woman calls again, and Joey lunges for the phone. However, Matt LeBlanc disastrously tripped in his desperation to get to the phone. It was so funny that they kept it in.
8.
We can’t 100% confirm this one, but it seems that Homer’s misspelling of “smart” in this Simpsons episode may have been an accident by voice actor Dan Castellaneta. However, it perfectly fits Homer’s character.
9.
Popular legend also states that the hilarious moment where the camel spits on Bob Hope in Road to Morocco was unintentional. Costar Bing Crosby’s laughter and response were real.
10.
Billy West didn’t understand the line “No, I’m…doesn’t” in Futurama. He thought it was a typo and asked for clarification but got none, so he said it a little confused. It ended up being perfect for the line where Fry clearly misspeaks. Once he saw the episode, West said he finally understood the joke.
11.
In what would become an iconic moment, a stormtrooper extra clearly hit his head in this scene from Star Wars: A New Hope. Fans loved the silly moment, and it seems it was intentionally left in, as there’s a sound effect to accompany it. The actor who claimed to be the stormtrooper, Laurie Goode, said he was distracted by an upset stomach and figured he wasn’t in the frame when the bump occurred or that a different take would be used.
12.
Malfoy’s famous “I didn’t know you could read” line from Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets was actually not in the script. Felton had improvised it because he forgot his line, and director Chris Columbus liked it so much that he kept it in.
13.
In Captain America: Civil War, Tony telling Peter to move his leg was actually Robert Downey Jr. telling Tom Holland to move so that he could sit, as his leg was blocking the spot Downey Jr. was supposed to sit in. It was a funny, awkward moment that fit perfectly and was kept in.
14.
When Norman first comes upon Marion’s body in Psycho, he jumps back, knocking a photo off the wall. This was accidental — Anthony Perkins actually managed to convince the usually extremely meticulous director, Alfred Hitchcock, to keep it in and even shoot an insert (in this case, a close-up shot of the photo on the floor) to emphasize it. The small moment served to reinforce Norman’s shock.
15.
In Wet Hot American Summer: 10 Years Later, Coop was not supposed to fall while running after Ginny. Michael Showalter slipped on the mud accidentally, but it was hilarious, so it was kept in.
16.
Eva Marie Saint was not meant to drop her glove on On the Waterfront. Marlon Brando went with it, picking it up, fiddling with it, then putting it on. It was a cute, flirtatious moment that made it into the final cut.
17.
James Stewart was not meant to cry in this praying scene from It’s a Wonderful Life. He was overcome with emotion while filming: “As I said those words, I felt the loneliness, the hopelessness of people who had nowhere to turn, and my eyes filled with tears. I broke down sobbing,” Stewart later said. It had been his first role after returning from war. His tears made the moment even more heartfelt and genuine.
18.
In Little House on the Prairie, Carrie was played by twins. While shooting the opening sequence, one twin was switched for the other, and her mother accidentally put her shoes on the wrong feet. She fell while running down the hill, and the director thought it was too funny to reshoot, so he kept it in. This would become an iconic part of the opening credits, perfectly demonstrating poor Carrie’s hapless nature.
19.
Finally, this isn’t any one scene, but it’s still an unintentional issue that ended up being genius. In Jaws, the shark was originally meant to be seen much more often, but the animatronic failed to look real enough (or work properly), resulting in the shark rarely actually being seen in the film. This ended up being perfect — by utilizing the fear of the unknown, the filmmakers built up even more dread than actually seeing the shark would have done.
