Spoiler alert – Rian Johnson, director of Knives Out, has lifted the curtain on a little known movie secret that iPhones are actually only used for good cops.
In a video interview with Vanity Fair, the Oscar-nominated director of the whodunnit mystery film, Knives Out, revealed that Apple has an agreement with movie directors that iPhones can only appear to be used by innocent, goodie-goodie characters.
Across the over twenty-minute ‘Notes on a Scene’ discussion, Rian Johnson dissects one of the early scenes from Knives Out, pointing out a variety of filming techniques, as well as offering up further insight into characters – those of which are portrayed by a string of A-listers including Daniel Craig, Chris Evans and Jamie Lee Curtis.
About two-minutes 50-seconds in – following a thrilling discussion on ensuring any props showcasing the time are meticulously checked and changed to fit the script’s timeline – a somewhat giggly Rian Johnson begins, “Another funny thing…I don’t know if I should say this or not… It’s very interesting,” acting as the very vision of a self-aware child who knows they’re about to do something naughty.
He continues: “Apple, they let you use iPhones in movies, but – and this is very pivotal, if you’re ever watching a mystery movie – bad guys cannot have iPhones on camera.”
Yep, much to the delight of iPhone users, turns out as a part of Apple’s attempt for their *ahem* immaculate publicity, directors are only allowed to hand over iPhones to sickly sweet, do-gooder types or, you know, innocent parties.
Meanwhile Androids are left for the outcasts and delinquents. Wait until Samsung hears about this…
Amusing it may be, but in revealing this laughable film trivia, Rian Johnson also kind of shoots himself in the foot – and spoils just about any 21st Century set film for audiences that include a smartphone as a prop.
After this admission, Rian Johnson continues, “Every single filmmaker who has a bad guy in their movie that’s supposed to be a secret wants to murder me right now.”
Yep, along with just about every film-goer particularly precious about not being spoiled. Cat is out of the bag, folks.
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Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
