Inception (2010)
The Incredible Hulk (2008)
The Improvisation: General ‘Thunderbolt’ Ross (William Hurt) is getting loaded in a murky bar when in comes Iron Man himself (Robert Downey Jr.). “I hear you have an unusual problem,” he says. “What if I told you we were putting a team together…”
What Was In The Script: Not a single line, apparently. “We improv’d that,” admits Hurt. “The entire scene had no lines written down. We did improv for that entire scene.”
X-Men: First Class (2011)
The Improvisation: “Go fuck yourself,” growls Wolverine (Hugh Jackman) during his cameo in the X prequel. He’s the first character in any of the X flicks to drop an F-bomb.
What Was In The Script: “Fuck off” was the line in the script. But after trying that seven times over, Jackman let rip with something a little more graphic.
Like Crazy (2011)
The Improvisation: Jacob (Anton Yelchin) has flown to London to spend some time with love of his life Anna (Felicity Jones). Except then they get into a massive argument in the kitchen, which seems to seal their fate.
What Was In The Script: Pretty much nothing. Jones told The Telegraph that the entire script was improvised based on director Drake Doremus' experiences in a long distance relationship.
The Hangover (2009)
The Improvisation: Zack Galifianakis makes a baby do completely unspeakable things to itself.
What Was In The Script: Well, not that, that’s for sure. “The one improv that will haunt me for the rest of my life, is the [ scene where I ] make the baby [ unknowingly mimic a sexual act ],” says Galifianakis.
“So that was improvised not with a real baby obviously, but a doll. I was like, ‘Todd [ Phillips ], look at this.’ And Todd, the director, was like, ‘Oh, we have to put that in the movie.’”
Humpday (2009)
The Improvisation: Ben (Mark Duplass) and Monica (Lynn Shelton) are in bed together. As they half-heartedly attempt to get jiggy with it, they admit they’re both “so tired”…
What Was In The Script: The script, according to director Shelton, was merely a patchwork of scene ideas that were then given life by the actors.
Being John Malkovich (1999)
The Improvisation: “Hey, Malkovich, think fast!” yells a guy out of his car window as he hurls something at the wayward actor.
What Was In The Script: That iconic line was the result of a particularly enthusiastic extra, who was merely told to throw something at Malkovich. Instead, he hurled that line as well.
Mars Attacks! (1996)
The Improvisation: Voice actor Frank Welker lent the Martians in Tim Burton's space invasion-er their own very unique language – a series of high-pitched barks.
What Was In The Script: No dialogue whatsoever was written for the Martians, meaning everything that Welker did was entirely improvised.
Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)
The Improvisation: “I need a vacation,” states a beaten-up T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger), looking like he really does.
What Was In The Script: According to James Cameron’s commentary on the T2 DVD, Arnie improvised the line, basing it on a line of description from the script that said the Terminator ‘looks like he needs a vacation’.
Shaun Of The Dead (2004)
The Improvisation: Ed (Nick Frost) attempts to cheer buddy Shaun (Simon Pegg) up at the pub by regaling him with stories about the regulars there – including describing a woman who looks like an ex-pornstar.
What Was In The Script: Merely a meeting in the pub, apparently. Pegg’s giggly responses to Frost’s improvising are all the real deal.
