Headsets in Hollywood
Ready Player One is the biggest movie ever made about VR—but it’s not the first.
Everett Collection
Everett Collection03Lawnmower Man (1992)
This “adaptation” of a Stephen King short story (King sued to have his name taken off the posters) follows a VR researcher (Pierce Brosnan) using the technology to unlock the hidden potential of a dimwitted gardener (Jeff Fahey). The gear is real, courtesy of pioneering company VPL—but everything else is laughable (in a good way).
Wild Palms04Wild Palms (1993)
Once upon a time Oliver Stone was so bullish on VR he adapted an early-’90s *Details* comic strip into a splashy, soapy five-day “event series” in which VR plays a prominent role. ABC was all in, but viewers weren’t.
Universal Pictures05Murder She Wrote ("A Virtual Murder," 1993)
Yes, Angela Lansbury rocked a headset in order to solve a crime at a VR games company. Yes, you need to watch it. No, it’s not currently streaming. And now you know what the *true* crime is.
Everett Collection06VR Troopers (1994-96)
Haim Saban—the father of *Mighty Morphin Power Rangers*—co-developed this sibling series, which imagined VR as its own separate dimension where EXTREME TEENS who know KARATE could do battle against SOME DUDE NAMED GRIMLORD. It lasted for two seasons, which was about two seasons longer than it should have.
Starz07Mad About You ("Virtual Reality," 1994)
In one very special episode of the popular NBC sitcom, Paul (Paul Reiser) considers investing in a VR company run by an actual child—but while he’s trying out the technology, virtual infidelities happen. And virtual hilarity ensues.
Everett Collection08Johnny Mnemonic (1995)
The mid-’90s craze arguably reached its peak with this adaptation of a William Gibson short story, in which Keanu Reeves enacts the greatest VR hacking scene of all time—wearing the most badass headset of all time.
Everett Collection09The Thirteenth Floor (1999)
The cultural appetite for VR had all but dried up by the time this one came out. Starring Craig Bierko as a man accused of killing his VR-developer mentor, it veers back and forth from the present day to a VR version of late-’30s LA—and makes exactly as much sense as you might think.
Contributing editor Peter Rubin writes about pop culture, sports technology, and AR/VR for WIRED. His book Future Presence: How Virtual Reality Is Changing Human Connection, Intimacy, and the Limits of Ordinary Life was published in April 2018. ... Read more
