Summary
- T-800: Iconic Terminator became an ally over the franchise, growing in popularity with each release.
- Robby the Robot: Sentient figure from Forbidden Planet, iconic for humor and appearance in sci-fi.
- Gort: Influential in futuristic robot depictions, inspiration behind designs like Thor's Destroyer.
Robots are a staple of the sci-fi genre, with many becoming icons in their own right. Sci-fi is a popular genre that often showcases a look at some imagined world in the distant future or an alternate reality where technology has advanced in one way or another. While the world continues to make rapid breakthroughs with technology such as AI and robots, the worlds presented in sci-fi movies are shifting from ideas into the real world, and some of these iconic robots influence how society progresses with these technologies.
Robots in movies range from malevolent machines that develop sentience, to helpful bots that fulfill their roles to serve and aid humankind. While some became icons because of the terror that they inspired in audiences, others provided a hopeful look at what could be possible with advances in technology that can and often do shape the way that people at the forefront of building machines look to for inspiration. However, each one is also a prominent figure within their film or franchise and made a considerable impact on viewers and future films, which drew inspiration from them.
10 The T-800
The Terminator
The T-800 has undergone a series of changes throughout the complicated timeline of the Terminator franchise. However, over the course of the franchise, the T-800 becomes a close ally to Sarah Connor and her son, John Connor, fighting against the evil corporation that was set to take over the world. The imagery of a naked Schwarzenegger appearing in a bar, and the horrifying battle-damaged robot that appeared in the first movie alone made the T-800 iconic and continued to grow in popularity with each subsequent release.
9 Robby the Robot
Forbidden Planet
Robby the Robot first appeared in film in the 1956 movie, Forbidden Planet, but quickly became an iconic character that has been recreated or reused in other sci-fi projects ever since. The character is a sentient robot, who exercises dry wit and is a supporting cast member in Forbidden Planet and subsequent films. The classic appearance of the robot, combined with its sense of humor and personality, made it a beloved figure in sci-fi who would go on to enjoy a decades-long career in Hollywood and on the small screen.
Related
10 Classic Sci-Fi Movies That Still Need Remakes
Plenty of classic sci-fi films have been adapted in the years since they first appeared, but there are still a few that have yet to be remade at all.
8 Gort
The Day The Earth Stood Still
The Day The Earth Stood Still
Where to Watch
- stream
- rent
- buy
*Availability in US
Directed by Robert Wise, 1951's The Day The Earth Stood Still is a Sci-Fi release based on Harry Bates' 1940 story, Farewell to the Master. The story follows a strange Alien and his robotic protector that land on Earth and wishes to speak to all the leaders of the world.
Gort is another of the earliest robots to be depicted on the big screen when he appeared in The Day The Earth Stood Still in 1951. Gort is a large imposing figure without a distinct face. Leaning into the form of a robot, while giving it a humanoid shape, but keeping it different enough to be uncanny and intimidating. Gort's design specifically has been influential in films and depictions of robots that would appear later, such as the Destroyer robot in Thor (via Fandom).
7 HAL 9000
2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey
2001: A Space Odyssey is one of Stanley Kubrick's most well-known films. A science-fiction epic, the film tells the story of the journey of Discovery One, a spacecraft operated by a group of scientists, astronauts, and a sentient computer, on a mission to Jupiter to investigate a mysterious monolith. Considered one of the greatest films ever made, Kubrick combines sparse dialogue with the heavy use of scoring and ambiguous imagery to create something that eschews conventional filmmaking.
HAL 9000's design is one of the simplest of any robot in the film, but it struck fear into the hearts of many people who watched 2001: A Space Odyssey. HAL has inspired parodies and remakes, partially due to the simplicity of the single red light behind a dark piece of glass, but a disembodied robot voice is also something that has become a big part of sci-fi. With movies like Her, this concept of a robot which is simply a voice and a personality perseveres in Hollywood as one of the most iconic versions of a robot.
6 Roy Batty
Blade Runner
Blade Runner
Where to Watch
- stream
- rent
- buy
Not available
*Availability in US
The original Blade Runner is a sci-fi neo-noir film set in 2019 in a dystopian cyber-punk society. Harrison Ford stars as Rick Deckard as a Blade Runner for the LAPD, tasked with hunting rogue replicants, genetically engineered humans designed to tackle tasks that human beings cannot. When four replicants go rogue and begin killing humans, Deckard is forced out of retirement to hunt them down and stop them - but the truth isn't as simple as it seems. Deckard will have to reckon with the philosophical dilemma of what makes someone human.
Roy Batty may not look like any ordinary robot, but that is part of what makes the Nexus robots of the Blade Runner series so ominous. The Nexus robots advanced to such a point that they became almost indistinguishable from humans, and with AI technology advancing at a rapid pace, more and more movies and shows are playing with this concept. Blade Runner was far ahead of its time and provided a template for these ultra-realistic robots which are now more popular than ever before.
5 Maschinenmensch
Metropolis
One of the earliest depictions of a humanoid type robot in film is the Maschinemenshc, or The Machine Man, from the 1927 film Metropolis, which was one of the first ever sci-fi stories to appear on the screen. The humanoid shape and the genderization of this genderless being have influenced every design of humanoid robots ever created since, for better and for worse. The film is pivotal in bringing sci-fi into the mainstream, and likewise, this depiction of a robot figure, although perhaps more similar to a cyborg, became the template for everything that followed.
Related
10 Best Sci-Fi Movie Villains, Ranked
From Thanos to the Xenomorph, science fiction movies are packed with distinct and memorable villains. Here are the best sci-fi villains of all time.
4 Marvin The Paranoid Android
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy
Marvin is a robot that has been programmed to express emotions, to better connect with its human masters. The problem for Marvin is the fact that his intellect is almost incalculable, while he is simply assigned to mundane and menial tasks, and he has been designed with depression as a feature. As a result, he is sarcastic, sassy, rude, and often unhelpful, due to his feelings incapacitating him. This robot with emotion is another iconic concept in film and ever since the idea was published in the original The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy books.
3 Optimus Prime
Transformers
Transformers
Transformers is a multimedia franchise consisting of movies, TV Shows, video games, and comics.The franchise centers on a race of humanoid robots called the autobots who must protect Earth from the Decepticons. Some of the most popular characters include Megatron, Optimus Prime, and Bumblebee. In 2007, the first live-action movie in the franchise was released starring Shia Labeouf.
Optimus Prime is one of the most prolific robots in TV and film, having first appeared as a toy, before being developed into TV and films, but the transforming leader of the Autobots is one of the most influential robots to appear in media. The idea of a sentient and benevolent robot who fights for humankind and believes wholeheartedly in doing what is right and being good has persisted in many other shows and films. Optimus is also a robot who has inspired multiple generations, which adds to his credibility as one of the most iconic robots of all time.
2 The Gunslinger
Westworld
Westworld is one of the most iconic and influential sci-fi movies of all time, and by extension, the central character, the Gunslinger, is also one of the most iconic robots. The Gunslinger is an android who has been programmed to participate in whatever fantasies, delusions, and adventures that humans should choose to experience in the futuristic theme park, Westworld. However, when it develops sentience, they begin to question the poor treatment of humans towards androids and decide to enact revenge. This idea of a robot that turns on humans and develops consciousness is one of the most prolific in sci-fi.
1 R2-D2, C-3PO, And BB-8
Star Wars
Star Wars
Star Wars is a multimedia franchise that started in 1977 by creator George Lucas. After the release of Star Wars: Episode IV- A New Hope (originally just titled Star Wars), the franchise quickly exploded, spawning multiple sequels, prequels, TV shows, video games, comics, and much more. After Disney acquired the rights to the franchise, they quickly expanded the universe on Disney+, starting with The Mandalorian.
However, not all robots are bad, and Star Wars is one of the few franchises to lean more into the possible utilities and goodness of robots over the potential dangers. Namely, the most iconic robot characters in the franchise are R2-D2, C-3PO, and BB-8. All three are designed to serve humans in various capacities, from being co-pilots to translators and relaying messages. In the world of Star Wars, robots may be subservient, but they are also treated with respect, and this relationship creates something iconic and heartwarming that has inspired other sci-fi stories.
