Time travel in the sci-fi genre has thrilled audiences for decades. It’s been used for comedic and dramatic purposes, giving heroes and villains alike a chance to change their fate. From iconic machines to mind-bending paradoxes, the best time travel movies and television explore ideas and themes that may not be possible with a conventional timeline.
The plot device lends itself to so many genres, from tragedy to time travel rom-coms. It’s a classic movie convention, and one that’s appeared in several TV shows as well. With its reflections on the human condition and our relationship with the past and future, time travel is also a staple of sci-fi movies. Here are the best examples of time travel sequences across film and television.
10 Back To The Future’s 88 Miles Per Hour Scene
One of the most iconic examples of time travel in film has to be the DeLorean scene in Back to the Future. Created by Doc Brown, the modified DeLorean has to get to 88 miles per hour to travel through time. This gives Back to the Future‘s time travel a physical connection to real-world culture and technology.
Some viewers speculated that “88 miles per hour” resembles the infinity symbol. However, according to behind-the-scenes commentary, the number simply looked cool on the monitor. Either way, the actual DeLorean only went up to 85 MPG. The producers added a 10 mph boost to a dashboard sticker.
9 The TARDIS In Doctor Who
The TARDIS is synonymous with time travel in television. On the outside, Doctor Who’s obsolete police box has stayed the same for over 60 years. However, the changing interiors are an example of how Doctor Who has evolved since the 1960s.
One of the best TARDIS scenes in Doctor Who is during Matt Smith’s tenure. In “The Snowmen”, Clara and the Doctor climb a spiral staircase into the machine. The TARDIS reveal in “The Snowmen” is particularly grand, giving the machine a wonderful blend of utility and beauty. The Doctor’s smugness paired with Clara’s astonishment is also a brilliant dynamic, giving the spectacle a bit of cheeky personality.
8 Bill & Ted Philosophizing With Socrates
Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure plays on tropes in other time travel media. The extreme nature of the time travel through a phone booth gives a comedic edge to Bill and Ted’s interactions with historical figures. One of the best scenes is set in 410 B.C in Greece, when the pair meet Socrates.
Historical Figures In Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure | Cast |
Napoleon Bonaparte | Terry Camilleri |
Billy the Kid | Dan Shor |
Socrates | Tony Steedman |
Sigmund Freud | Rod Loomis |
Genghis Khan | Al Leong |
Joan of Arc | Jane Wiedlin |
Abraham Lincoln | Robert V. Barron |
Ludwig van Beethoven | Clifford David |
Hilariously, Bill already knows how to correctly pronounce Socrates, but Ted tells him to look him up “under Sew-crates”. The real joy comes from watching Socrates gape in awe at the pair, even while audiences know they’re not exactly the sharpest. Watching the boys try to engage with Socratic philosophy is comedy writing that has stood the test of time.
7 Frank The Rabbit Showing Donnie Darko The “Portal”
There are too many cool scenes in Richard Kelly’s time-bending masterpiece Donnie Darko to count, but the most memorable and referenced is surely the cinema scene. Frank and Donnie have a conversation while Gretchen is asleep during The Evil Dead. Frank opens a portal in the screen, revealing how his powers seemingly work.
The clock striking on the cinema screen while the portal opens up gives it the feeling of judgment day.
The chiaroscuro used, along with Michael Andrews’ chills-inducing score, contribute to the scene’s haunting, almost spiritual quality. The clock striking on the cinema screen while the portal opens up gives it the feeling of judgment day. This, along with the cryptic dialogue, contributes to the religion versus science debate around the movie.
6 The Scientist Moving Through Time In The Time Machine
“Thousands Of Years Of Building And Rebuilding, Creating And Recreating So You Can Let It Crumble To Dust.”
A time travel sequence way ahead of its time was in the 1960 movie The Time Machine, based on the book by H.G. Wells. In the sequence, the narrator poetically describes how one accelerated day passes. This features beautiful, colorful time lapses before he pushes the ambition to travel multiple decades.
Written in 1895, H.G. Wells’
The Time Machine
is considered the progenitor of the modern concept of a “time machine.”
Particularly effective is the way time travel in years is visualized. Whereas a day passing is represented by natural imagery, further time travel is represented societally. The clothes on the “never-ageing” mannequin change. The time machine itself is very retrofuturistic and cool, but it is these exterior factors that make the scene so memorable.
5 Phil Waking Up To Yesterday Again In Groundhog Day
Groundhog Day’s time-warp comedy narrative is among the best in the genre. One of the best scenes in Groundhog Day is Phil waking up to yesterday again. The scene follows him from the moment he wakes to his radio alarm, to once again covering the Groundhog Day celebrations.
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Related
5 Great Time Travel Movies That Aren’t Back To The Future
Back To The Future may be considered the definitive time travel movie, but there are plenty of others just as good.
Bill Murray is on top form in this scene, very seriously trying to convince the people around him that something is wrong. The scene has become a pop culture staple, highlighting how off-putting and comical time-travel can be. It’s so iconic that the phrase “Groundhog Day” has become synonymous with repetition and stagnation.
4 Evan Trying To Save Kayleigh In The Butterfly Effect
A movie unafraid to use time travel to explore heavy themes is The Butterfly Effect. One of its best scenes is when Evan uses a journal to travel back to a traumatic event in Kayleigh’s life. Evan attempts to change the past by telling Mr. Miller the impact of his actions, with reality shuddering at his attempts.
Related
10 Sci-Fi Movies That Got Time Travel “Right”
Using everything from black holes to quantum loops, these sci-fi movies tackle time travel with realistic approaches rather than convenient devices.
The shaking and warping of the room in the time travel sequence is simple but effective. The standout feature, however, is Logan Lerman’s acting in the scene. Lerman does a great job of using the mature dialogue of older Evan to intimidate Mr. Miller, highlighting how subtle touches can make time travel more impressive.
3 Homer’s Time Traveling Toaster In The Simpsons
On a lighter note, an episode of The Simpsons approaches the butterfly effect from a completely comedic angle in season 6’s Treehouse of Horror V segment, “Time And Punishment.” Homer inadvertently uses a repaired toaster to travel back to prehistoric times. He remembers advice from Abe not to touch anything, as it could change the future. Despite his best efforts though, Homer keeps doing just that.
Many fans, including some of whom write for
Screen Rant
, consider “Treehouse of Horror V” to be the best of the show’s many Halloween episodes.
The scene satirizes the butterfly effect by having the killing of a single mosquito have disastrous consequences for Homer. The greatest thing about this scene is that Homer narrowly misses a perfect reality where it rains donuts, jumping back in time before he realizes his mistake. This is one of many Treehouse of Horror episodes that prove why the show’s first seven seasons are considered The Simpsons’ golden age.
2 Ben Turns The Wheel In Lost
The setup of the time travel rules in Lost was masterfully written, with the flashbacks of those on the island eventually becoming flash-forwards and flash-sideways. The actual mechanics of the time travel remained a mystery for several seasons. One of the best time travel scenes in the show came with the reveal of Ben turning the wheel.
This helps [
Lost
‘s version of time travel] stand out among its more futuristic contemporaries.
The concept of an ancient time machine, with a simple cog frosted over and ancient engravings on the walls, is unconventional in the sci-fi genre. This helps it stand out among its more futuristic contemporaries. The show also did a great job of conveying that the island had a consciousness of its own, deciding who travels through time and who doesn’t.
1 The Terminator’s Arrival in T2: Judgment Day
A great piece of cinematic history that involves a unique form of time travel is the Terminator’s arrival in Terminator 2: Judgment Day. The sequel builds off the mechanics of the first film. Schwarzenegger certainly makes an entrance in the scene, complete with lightning and a perfect circle of impact in the ground where he appears.
The scene further solidifies the mechanics of time travel in the Terminator franchise, with clothing unable to make the journey with him. Not only does this allow Arnold Schwarzenegger to show off his significant bodybuilding efforts, but it also makes way for the immortal line, “I need your clothes, your boots, and your motorcycle.” It’s a clever way to highlight unique ways of time traveling across the sci-fi genre.
Source:Screen Rant
Marty McFly, a 17-year-old high school student, is accidentally sent 30 years into the past in a time-traveling DeLorean invented by his close friend, the maverick scientist Doc Brown. In 1955, he meets his parents when they were his age, and must step in to make sure they wind up together before he gets back to 1985.
- Director
- Robert Zemeckis
- Release Date
- July 3, 1985
- Cast
- Claudia Wells , Christopher Lloyd , James Tolkan , Thomas F. Wilson , Michael J. Fox , Wendie Jo Sperber , Crispin Glover , Marc McClure , Lea Thompson
An alien from the planet Gallifrey travels through time and space to explore, solve problems and fight injustice while also making friends with human beings. His spaceship, called TARDIS, resembles a police box, but it is much more than it appears to be.
- Cast
- Jodie Whittaker , Christopher Eccleston , David Tennant , Matt Smith , Peter Capaldi , Billie Piper , Karen Gillan , Catherine Tate , Jenna Coleman , Alex Kingston , John Barrowman , Tosin Cole , Arthur Darvill
- Release Date
- March 26, 2005
Starring Keanu Reeves and Alex Winter, Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure follows the titular heroes, two high school students in 1980s California who must go on a time-traveling quest assembling historical figures in order to pass a history test and in doing so ensure a utopian future that they play a large part in. George Carlin stars alongside Reeves and Winter as Rufus.
- Director
- Stephen Herek
- Cast
- Keanu Reeves , Alex Winter , George Carlin , Terry Camilleri , Dan Shor , Tony Steedman
After troubled teen Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal) wakes on a local golf course after a night of sleepwalking, he has a vision of a man in a rabbit suit telling him that the world will end in 28 days. Returning home, Donnie sees that a jet engine has fallen on his bedroom in the night, and begins to feel increasingly detached from reality. Scrambling to make sense of the bizarre and unexplainable events that have altered his life, Donnie finds himself unravelling a tangled web of disaster and fate.
- Director
- Richard Kelly
- Release Date
- October 26, 2001
- Cast
- Jake Gyllenhaal , Holmes Osborne , Maggie Gyllenhaal , Daveigh Chase , Mary McDonnell , James Duval
In Groundhog Day, the arrogant weatherman Phil Connors (Bill Murray) finds himself living the exact same day over and over for what feels like an eternity. To cope with his curse, he learns a variety of skills in the town of Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, and tries to earn the heart of his colleague Rita Hanson (Andie MacDowell) while he adapts to the time loop.
- Release Date
- February 11, 1993
The Butterfly Effect is a time travel sci-fi movie centered around Evan (Ashton Kutcher), a young man who discovers he has the ability to change events from his past by embodying his younger self. The 2004 film explores the titular concept, which states that any small change in a system’s initial conditions results in extremely different results.
- Director
- J. Mackye Gruber , Eric Bress
- Release Date
- January 23, 2004
The Simpsons is a long-running animated TV series created by Matt Groening that satirically follows a working-class family in the misfit city of Springfield. Homer, a bit of a schmoe who works at a nuclear power plant, is the provider for his family, while his wife, Marge, tries to keep sanity and reason in the house to the best of her ability. Bart is a born troublemaker, and Lisa is his super-intelligent sister who finds herself surrounded by people who can’t understand her. Finally, Maggie is the mysterious baby who acts as a deus ex machina when the series calls for it. The show puts the family in several wild situations while constantly tackling socio-political and pop-culture topics set within their world, providing an often sharp critique of the subjects covered in each episode. This series first premiered in 1989 and has been a staple of Fox’s programming schedule ever since!
- Release Date
- December 17, 1989
- Network
- FOX
Lost is a mystery drama series created for TV that follows a group of survivors of a plane crash and tells its story between the past, present, and future via flashbacks. When Oceanic Airlines Flight 815 crashes and lands on a mysterious island in the pacific ocean, the castaways discover their new temporary home may have a mind of its own, as strange supernatural events keep them locked to the island. From an unknown black smoke creature to dangerous islanders, the passengers must work together to survive the island’s seemingly deadly intentions.
- Cast
- Evangeline Lilly , Naveen Andrews , Henry Ian Cusick , Daniel Dae Kim , Harold Perrineau , Dominic Monaghan , Emilie de Ravin , Jorge Garcia , Josh Holloway , Michael Emerson , Terry O’Quinn , Matthew Fox , Ken Leung , Elizabeth Mitchell , Yunjin Kim
- Release Date
- September 22, 2004
Directed by James Cameron, Terminator 2: Judgment Day is a direct sequel to the original Terminator and stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Robert Patrick, and Linda Hamilton. In this installment, John Connor is being hunted by an advanced Skynet prototype from the future. Thankfully, he receives help from a reprogrammed T-800 sent back in time by the resistance to protect him.
- Release Date
- July 3, 1991