Could we ever reach iconic status with anything modern?

T

t-boy

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I was just watching stuff like Ghostbusters and the Back to the Future movies, and these movies are reached a really high status in pop culture for America. They're iconic, and while they MAY not be around as long as Mickey Mouse in the far future, they're definitely going to be here for a long time.

But those movies were only 3 decades ago, it seems like if those exact same movies were released now, they would be called blockbusters and get great reviews, but they would never reach the iconic status they have now. Any ideas or theories as to why that is? Is the internet to blame? People aren't less active with fandoms and crazes, but they do get passed around a lot like trends.

Even stuff like Avatar and The Dark Knight, while they will be mentioned for another 5+ years or so, will never be as remembered as stuff like, "You built a TIME MACHINE out of a DeLorean?!"

EDIT: I think the most recent iconic thing we've had might be Spongebob for television, and... I'm unsure about theater.
 
I felt if I had used Lion King or Beauty and the Beast, it would have been too broad and too narrow at the same time. Pretty much all the iconic animated stuff from the 90's is from Disney, with the only breaking mold being Toy Story (in terms of household name) and POSSIBLY Shrek. He's known, but who knows how long he'll stay known.

I suppose it mostly applies to live-action, but I figured anything could be included. But if it needs to be moved to the Entertainment section, then can a mod please determine so or not?

EDIT: OH GOD WHAT HAPPENED DID I IMAGINE THAT POST AAAAAAAHHHH.
 
Sorry, I deleted it because I didn't think it added anything to the discussion. To answer you question, I can only think of Spongebob at this point.
 
I think The Incredibles became iconic for it's super family.

Powerpuff Girls with invincible little kids.

Stewie Griffin for a megalomaniacal sexually confused baby.

And those are the first ones that come to my mind.
 
The only movies I could think of are Fight Club, The Matrix, and Lord of the Rings...I know theres a lot of movies that are better but I think those ones have a pretty big fanbase.

As for tv....Well Family Guy is really popular.

But this is the kind of question people really cant answer.
 
I think Avatar will without a doubt remain iconic for decades to come. Pretty much everyone alive today has heard of it and i dont think that 40 years from now we will simply have forgotten about it.
 
I don't remember that phrase :p
"Why so serious?" or "Water. Earth. Fire. Air. My grandmother used to tell me stories about the old days. The time of peace..." on the other hand...
 
This drips of nostalgia bias. However, maybe I'm showing my own with what I'm about to say.

I believe 20 years from now, people will still be talking about Dragon Ball Z and Sailor Moon, though each of those shows are reaching their 20s as well.

Avatar The Last Airbender will stand the test of time as well, I believe. Also, we already have an example of a show that is talked about long after it has ended: Invader Zim.
 
I'm confused. Wouldn't the iconic show or film have to be broadly known? I'm not sure that being popular in a cult sense or amongst a certain niche would count. Look at Pokemon. You can talk about Pokemon around just about anyone and they'll at least know about the original 151 but go and talk to someone about the last airbender Aang and they'll most likely give you a puzzled look and ask you what it is. And don't dare say Avatar first or their minds will go straight to the James Cameron flick.
 
The James Cameron flick or The Last Airbender (show)? If the former, then... well, I don't think anyone's forgotten Titanic over the past 14 years, and despite being dethroned from its spot, I don't think they will forget it just yet...



I agree on the former, that might stay for awhile. I was going to say "THIS. IS. SPARTA!!!" but that seems a bit niche.

I don't know if Avatar: The Last Airbender is really "iconic", since most of my real life don't know what it is (I work at a movie theater, and some of them heard of it when The Last Airbender movie came out, but even some who do know what the movie is still don't know it was a show first).
 
I was talking about the movie. And yeah, that's exactly my point: movies that big dont become forgotten until the generations that saw them when they came out die of.
 
True, I was in elementary school when Titanic came out, and I honestly could not stop hearing about it. It didn't interest me back then, though I remember singing "My Heart Will Go On" for chorus class. Today, everyone is STILL talking about Titanic, even before Avatar was hyped/my friends had heard of its arrival (though it may help that I mentioned The Dark Knight placing 2nd to it domestically). Titanic is still mentioned as one of the top date movies or something like that, though it's doubtful many will see Avatar as a date movie.
 
Yeah, after some thought, I'd retract my statement about The Dark Knight because the "Why so serious?" phrase has become, and probably will be as popular as "Who ya gonna call?". I was debating whether or not it would be fair since the Dark Knight is Batman, who's been around for a long time, but most people recognize that phrase from the movie, and remember that Joker appearance the most out of any of them. Even re-shaping how the Joker is today because of that portrayal.

I'm still not sure about Avatar, I feel like people in the future will only recognize it because of how big it became/how much money it made, not necessarily because it's iconic in the same light as like, Jurassic Park or something. I don't think it'll be as remembered for being revolutionary either, like Who Framed Roger Rabbit. I say revolutionary because many people bring up that point about Avatar having reshaped CGI technology or facial movements and etc. It feels like we're already done a lot of special effects and impressive CGI, and Avatar just did it the most, but that's it.

I imagine it being more like Finding Nemo, where it'll be popular for awhile, but people will continue to recognize the Ghostbusters theme or the Matrix slow-mo parody. I guess it's mostly thanks to people revamping it every now and then to remind the general public about stuff like TMNT or Jurassic Park, by releasing a new cartoon, a sequel, a game, stuff like that. It ends up perking some interest or causing parents to see it, remember it from their childhood, and want to introduce it to their kids. I'm not so sure Pixar movies outside of Toy Story and Avatar would have that same power (Even Shrek got a ton of sequels, but will be fairly forgotten in a decade or so. Only the original will be in memory for longer than the rest.)

I was thinking of another point, would a new Disney movie have the same sustaining power as The Lion King or Beauty and the Beast? I feel like, 20 years from now, people will still be referring to those movies, but you will get very few comments about Princess and the Frog. I think it's too early to tell with Tangled, it made a hefty profit, but I don't think it made as many lasting impressions as The Lion King.

EDIT: Oh yeah, and Kill Bill has become pretty familiar among crowds with the music and yellow jacket, as well as the title "Kill Bill". Would "Iconic due to parody" still count? Matrix is popular because of that, as well as the THIS IS SPARTA thing.
 
How about Halo? I know the story and minor characters are probably already obscure/forgotten, but twenty years down the road, people will still recognize the Master Chief. He'll wind up as Xbox's big, memorable character. Atari had Pac-Man, Nintendo had Mario, Sega had Sonic....Xbox had the Chief.
 
I think all the Pixar movies will have some degree of staying power.

Spongebob's certainly reached iconic status. Harry Potter as well, at least on the literary level; the movies will be remembered mainly for their association with the much more successful book series. I don't know if people will care about the Pirates of the Carribean movies in the future, but I'm sure a few generations will look back fondly on the character of Jack Sparrow for a while. The Lord of the Rings trilogy, The Matrix, Kill Bill, Brokeback Mountain, The Dark Knight, and Avatar will certainly all be remembered. Maybe some of the Judd Apatow comedies as well, though those will end up looking more like period pieces as time goes by (Superbad's probably as close as this generation's going to get to a John Hughes-style classic). TV series from the "new golden age" like Sopranos and Mad Men will be as well. On the cult side of things, The Big Lebowski, The Iron Giant, Donnie Darko, Firefly, ZIM, Samurai Jack, and Futurama just haven't died and I'm guessing if they've lasted as long as they have their fans will continue to be supporting them in the future.
 
I would agree with Spongebob becoming iconic in the future. I will limit myself to animated movies and television and put aside those that are live action. Shrek, in my opinion, will be remembered by those who viewed it but I doubt it will achieve iconic status beyond the generation that saw it initially.

I do not see a television cartoon at present that will reach The Simpsons/South Park/Family Guy iconic status (I would definitely think that they will be remembered for many a year and become part of well known animated history) but I have not seen as many as some will have.

As for movies (putting aside those of popular tv shows like The Simpsons Movie that obviously will be affected as regards their popularity and remembrance status by the shows from which they originated) ones like Finding Nemo and Avatar will be remembered by this generation but I would imagine that they will eventually become obscure and less known.

However an important point I think is the diversification of pop culture due to the Internet et cetera, and that the very term 'iconic' may quite well be redefined in near future to a less overall description. As culture becomes less concentrated and more specialised, (for example anime culture, using a well known example), each subculture will of course have its own 'iconic' pieces.

These subcultures will evolve over time and retain many of these pieces and many qualities despite their forced adaption, but I do not see as many films or series reaching an overall, majority iconic status. These are hardly the days of the Bronte sisters or when one visited the local picture house at the weekend to see the latest Hollywood offering.

However, this very difficulty that has arisen that creates a challenge to reaching iconic status will no doubt mean that those chosen few who do reach a broad popularity over many demographics and which are memorable to most of them shall be considered even greater heroes for what they have achieved.

Then again, it is unlikely that Barack Obama will replace George Washington any time soon, or that the latest Airbus design will supersede the Wright Brothers in historic importance. The first, the early, are always the most remembered.
 
Except Felix the Cat for some reason. Beyond the animation fandom, he is relatively obscure despite being such a HUGE celebrity back in the 20's...
 
I believe that for characters to become iconic nowadays, they must have a few things down.

1. They must have very good writing and style that could appeal to a wide variety of people during the beginning and hook big ratings.

2. It must have major company backing as quick as possible (most likely when the early success of this show is apparent.) Merchandise, commercials, etc.

3. The show should show consistent quality all up until a 5th season when it usually is in the public mind.

4. It should last at least +10 years before it cancels.

5. After its cancellation the show should still be continually promoted by the company, through games, crossovers, merchandise, etc.

If people remember the show, and it is still mentioned in popular cutlure 40 years after its cancellation, I'd consider that to be iconic.
 
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