Factual error: The terrorist with the AK47 is unaware of the fact that a Harrier is hovering just outside the window until he slowly turns and see it there. He does a double take when he sees the Harrier just five metres away! A Harrier is an incredibly loud aircraft; you can hear them from three kilometers away. At that range the floor would shake with the noise and he would have been in no doubt whatever that he had been under attack for some time.
True Lies (1994)
Directed by: James Cameron
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Bill Paxton, Jamie Lee Curtis, Tia Carrere, Eliza Dushku, Tom Arnold, Art Malik
Factual error: Schwarzenegger flies the Harrier without ear protection of any kind. I was fifty metres from one at the Farnborough Air-show, and I can tell you that after landing he (and his daughter) would be both stone deaf. Yes, they are THAT loud. (02:02:00)
Revealing mistake: During the scene where Arnold's character is escaping from the mansion at the beginning of the movie, there is a part where he is running down a snowy hill through trees. At one point during the hill scene, Arnold does a flip head first. When he lands the flip, you can clearly see the stunt double's face as he turns to shoot at more bad guys. (00:13:30)
Trivia: The shots of Jamie Leigh Curtis hanging beneath the helicopter were pick up shots - it was mostly stuntwoman Donna Keegan. Cameron wanted an actual shot of Jamie Leigh Curtis - she had to be convinced to do her own stunt for it, with Cameron offering to hang out of the helicopter with the camera to get the shot. It was filmed on her 35th birthday.
Trivia: In the scene when Arnold has rescued Jamie Lee Curtis from the limo and she is flying over the ocean from Arnold's hand, Curtis is actually the one doing that stunt.
Trivia: In the English version, when Arnold speaks to the chef in the opening sequence, he speaks French. In the French version it would be redundant for him to speak French, so he speaks German and of course it's him speaking. (00:04:50)
Gib: Women. Can't live with 'em. Can't kill 'em.
Albert Gibson: You know what? I'm sick of being in the van. You guys are going to be in the van next time. I've been in the van for 15 years, Harry.
Question: In the scene where Helen tries to shoot the bad guys and drops the gun down the steps and the gun is firing by itself shooting everyone, one of the bad guys has a hold of Harry, Harry says one word to the guy that makes him let him go before they both get shot, what is it Harry says?
Chosen answer: He just exclaims, "Shit!" It's not what he says that makes the henchman let him go, it's that they both realize that if they don't find cover they'll both likely be shot by this random, firing Uzi.
Question: Was this film a box office hit, did it flop or simply break even? I have heard nothing about it being a huge money-maker. And of all James Cameron's films, it seems to have gotten the least mention (the controversial strip tease scene might be one reason). So I was wondering if someone could clarify it once and for all?
Chosen answer: True Lies did well, earning about $379m worldwide from a $100m+ budget, the first movie to have a production budget that high. It was the third highest grossing movie of 1994.
Answer: There was supposed to be a sequel but after 9/11. Middle East Terrorism seemed in poor taste to James Cameron.
Join the mailing list
Separate from membership, this is to get updates about mistakes in recent releases. Addresses are not passed on to any third party, and are used solely for direct communication from this site. You can unsubscribe at any time.
Check out the mistake & trivia books, on Kindle and in paperback.