18 Shoes From Movies That Were So Iconic, They Were Basically Another Main Character

Some scenes portrayed in movies have become classics in their genre or are now symbols that fans can identify with. No matter their genre, comedy, horror, or science fiction, fashion will always be present. Raise your hand if you’ve ever wished for Marty McFly’s futuristic sneakers like from Back to the Future, or yearned to at least try on Cinderella’s Swarovski crystal slippers.

Bright Side welcomes you to discover fun facts about some of the most iconic shoes we’ve seen on the big screen over the years.

1. The Wizard of Oz: The Ruby Slippers

In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy wears a pair of magical shoes that went down in history as one of cinema’s most legendary pair of shoes. The ruby slippers are covered in more than 2,000 red sequins and are so famous and valuable, they were stolen in 2005 from the Judy Garland Museum. It took authorities 13 years to find them. Experts estimate that these gorgeous and iconic slippers are insured for $1 million.

2. Cinderella: The Glass Slippers

Cinderella’s glass slippers are one of the most remembered shoes from Disney movies. In 2015, when the film’s live-action version was released, Swarovski was the jewelry house chosen to bring the legendary crystal shoes to life.

The slippers were embellished with 1.7 million Swarovski crystals. Nadja Swarovski wanted to make this a perfect art piece and appointed a group of 8 people to accomplish this. After 150 hours of work and 6 designs to consider, the team produced these sculptural pieces totally worthy of their fairytale.

3. Forrest Gump: Forrest’s Nike sneakers

Forrest Gump’s sneakers are one of the most famous pairs of shoes in the world. The Nike Cortez were created for running on a track and the sale of this shoe totaled more than $800,000 in the first year they were released. The sneakers became even more famous when Tom Hanks appeared on the big screen holding them in 1994. They’re now a classic, both on and off the screen.

4. Jojo Rabbit: Rosie Betzler’s shoes

In 2019, director Taika Waititi released the acclaimed film called Jojo Rabbit. Throughout the first part of the story we spot constant references the shoes Jojo’s mother is wearing, played by Scarlett Johansson. These low heels are very important to the plot, so seeing them so many times on the screen makes us remember them instantly when discussing the film.

5. Space Jam: Michael Jordan’s Air Jordans

In 1996, Space Jam starred basketball player Michael Jordan along with the Warner Bros cartoons, the Looney Tunes. Here we see the popular athlete wearing a pair of sneakers that would become a symbol of the film’s success: the Air Jordans. Nike launched a special edition for the 20th anniversary of Space Jam, with recent technology to provide all the comfort of modern sneakers, with the same iconic design.

6. Clueless: Cher’s low white heels

Released in 1995, Clueless was based on the Jane Austen novel: Emma. The movie is a fashionista inspiration on its own, and is filled with outfits many ’90s girls wanted to wear. One memorable scene is the close-up of Cher’s feet, wearing these cute white shoes with a T-strap, also known as Mary Janes, which perfectly sum up Cher’s character and style.

7. Kill Bill: Beatrix’s Onitsuka Tiger sneakers

After watching Kill Bill, we can still picture Uma Thurman rocking those iconic yellow Onitsuka Tiger México 66 sneakers. The sneakers were not designed especially for the movie. Kihachiro Onitsuka was inspired by an octopus’s grip when he created the concave grip system the shoe is famous for. The Japanese team used the design in the 1968 Olympics in Mexico, and a few years later, they became an icon thanks to the Quentin Tarantino film.

8. Jumanji: The Parrish sneakers

Alan Parrish uses a sneakers prototype in his father’s factory in Jumanji, which triggers a bunch of crazy events. The design seen on the screen is very similar to Nike’s Air Max 2 Charles Barkley. If you want to get something similar to those in that scene, look for the Nike version and you can feel like you’re inside the game.

9. The Goonies: Nike Sky Force Hi

Based on Steven Spielberg’s story, The Goonies depicts the adventures of a group of friends dedicated to searching for a lost treasure. And what better way to risk your life while looking for a treasure than doing it in comfortable footwear. These sneakers were called the Nike Sky Force Hi.

10. Get Smart: The shoe phone

In the 2008 movie, Get Smart, Steve Carell plays famous Agent 86, a spy for an intelligence agency. In the movie, we were able to relive the classic moments of the old series where the agent used the famous shoe phone. 86 would take off his high-tech shoe and use it as a highly sophisticated tech device.

11. Kinky boots

The 2005 movie Kinky Boots was based on a true story. A shoe-factory owner who’s in trouble accepts Lola, a drag queen, as a partner to save his business. The story tells how he went from manufacturing boring shoes for men to creating outstanding drag queen shoes.

12. Pretty Woman: Vivian’s ultra-high boots

Julia Roberts jumped to stardom after starring in Pretty Woman beside Richard Gere. In the movie and more specifically in the poster, we see Julia wearing high black leather boots. This pair became the character’s calling card, so if we see someone wearing a similar pair on the street, our brain will probably picture her immediately.

13. La La Land: Sebastian and Mia’s black and white shoes

One of the most emblematic scenes of the musical is the one where Emma Stone and Ryan Gosling walk together in the moonlight. Here they put on black and white tap shoes and perform a highly coordinated choreographed dance. They pretty much leave the audience speechless. No wonder this is the same scene that is printed on the movie’s promotional posters.

14. Aliens: Ripley’s Reeboks

In the ’80s movie, Aliens, confronting all the science-fiction drama and horror, are Ellen Ripley, the only survivor of her crew, and her Reebok sneakers. This model was marketed in 1986 as the Reebok Alien Stompers. 25 years later, the brand decided to put them on sale again on Alien Day, which commemorates the film. You can currently find a new version of these fantastic sneakers, also known as “Bug Stompers,” in Reebok stores.

15. Terminator: Kyle’s Nike Vandals

The Terminator depicts the main character, Kyle Reese, wearing a pair of Nike sneakers. The specific set that Michael Biehn wore on-screen is called the Nike Vandals. After the film was released, fans went crazy looking for them. Now they’re one of the most representative pairs of sneakers in the entire Terminator saga.

16. Legally Blonde: Elle Woods’ pink high-heeled sandals

Reese Witherspoon wears a myriad of pink outfits in Legally Blonde that in no way prevented her character from graduating from Harvard Law School. There’s a specific scene in the movie, though, that’s hard to forget: The one where she wears a pair of shiny pink high-heeled sandals in front of a jury.

17. The Devil Wears Prada: Andy’s Chanel leather boots

When Anne Hathaway’s character arrives at her office with a complete makeover, she walks through the office, leaving her colleagues speechless, wearing high leather boots by Chanel. This was such a remarkable scene in the movie that we still remember it.

18. Back to the Future Part II: Marty McFly’s Nike sneakers

Marty McFly’s auto-lacing sneakers with lights in Back to the Future Part II became so iconic that Nike released a limited edition in 2011, available for the movie’s biggest fans. It was a success, so the company then put them back on the market in 2016. It’s estimated that there are fewer than 1,600 pairs in stock worldwide. This model was the first rechargeable light shoe Nike ever launched.

Which movie-famous shoes would you like to wear? Do you have any interesting stories, involving shoes, to share with us?