there is something special in a good movie. I don’t necessarily mean a critically acclaimed movie, though sure, those are good ones, I mean any movie that you personally enjoy, whether you’re into rom-coms, horror movies, watches, or animated features. but what is that something special? maybe that’s the way a good movie can take you. it takes you to another universe, consuming your mind so completely that you completely forget about the anxieties of daily life for an hour, two or three. Or, perhaps it is simply the narrative, since as humans we are predisposed to prefer narrative communication.
Whatever that special something is, the bottom line is simple: we love movies. We love them so much that in 2017, the average Netflix user watched 60 movies on the streaming platform. sixty movies in a year, not counting anything they saw in theaters or watched outside of netflix. that’s a lot of film. We spend so much time consuming these stories that, for many of us, they become important parts of our lives. movies inspire us; They teach us lessons about life. so it’s only natural that they are the inspiration behind many tattoos, here too we share 15 of our favorite movie tattoos.
1. jurassic park
When Jurassic Park hit theaters in 1993, it was an instant hit. In fact, it became the highest-grossing film of that year and, at the time, the highest-grossing film in history (until 1997, when Titanic broke its record). now, 27 years later, it continues to stand the test of time. you’d think the special effects in an early ’90s dinosaur movie would age poorly, but they’re still pretty impressive. so to show his love for the classic movie this client opted to get a tattoo by italian artist mattia aka mambo tattooist of the iconic brand name jeep wrangler from the movie the car used to navigate the park (and speed away from hungry, carnivorous dinosaurs).
2. harry potter
The phrase in the tattoo above is a magical incantation known as the Patronus Amulet, a powerful defensive amulet from the Harry Potter series that can only be conjured by remembering your happiest memories. And the cute text piece combines the familiar lightning-inspired Harry Potter font with classic images from the movies like the Sorting Hat, Golden Snitch, and Time-Turner. Done by Seyoon Kim, an artist based in Switzerland, this is basically the perfect tattoo for a die-hard Potterhead (but if you don’t like this one, don’t worry, we’ve got a whole gallery of other Harry Potter tattoos too).
3. beetle juice
tim burton is known for his iconic black comedy films including edward scissorhands, the nightmare before christmas, corpse bride and of course 1988’s beetlejuice. the latest of these is a film that quickly established itself as a classic cult: there are beetlejuice-inspired events, there was a tv spin-off, heck, there’s even a broadway musical based on the movie. To celebrate the supernatural comedy, in which a recently deceased couple haunts the inhabitants of their former home, this client got a cool traditional American tattoo on the calf of its central character, the ghost that gives the film its name, from the artist headquartered in montreal. elysia reads
4. forest gump
last weekend tom hanks won a lifetime achievement award for his long and illustrious acting career. He has starred in many iconic films over his 40-year film career, including the title role in 1994’s Forrest Gump. The bench shown above is central to the film: Forrest sits on it and tells his life story. fill in strangers waiting at a bus stop. So it makes sense that this fan decided to tattoo a still of Forrest sitting on the bench (the same one still used on promotional posters for the film) to commemorate his love for the film. The black and gray realism piece, which includes lots of fantastic details in white ink, was done by yeono, a South Korean tattoo artist.
5. the silence of the lambs
if you like thrillers and suspense, maybe a tattoo inspired by the silence of the lambs is more to your liking. this traditional american style version of the mask that hannibal lecter is forced to wear throughout the film (because he is a cannibalistic killer, the police force him to cover his mouth when he is around other people) was made by renae tedesco, apprentice of anchod arts tattoo in australia.
6. she
joaquin phoenix is arguably one of the most talented actors of his generation; he is also a bit of a mystery. The Los Angeles Times described him as “one of Hollywood’s most puzzling leading men: brilliant or erratic, ‘difficult’ or misunderstood, depending on who you ask.” and his brilliant mystery has led him to nail down performances in many critically acclaimed movies, including 2019’s prankster, for which he just won a golden globe, and 2013’s her. this sketch-style tattoo of doha, an artist Based in Seoul, he’s a unique take on her Phoenix character, a man named Theodore Twombly who falls in love with his phone’s artificially intelligent operating system.
7. pulp fiction
In ratings of Quentin Tarantino’s films, most critics and entertainment publications (including Variety, Esquire, and Vulture) agree that Pulp Fiction is his best work to date. There are endless memorable scenes and quotable lines in the movie, but one of the best is when Mia Wallace and Vincent Vega (played by Uma Thurman and John Travolta) compete in a dance competition. This color realism piece by Tel Aviv-based artist Eden Kozo is a stunning depiction of the dancing couple, and might just be one of our favorite movie tattoos on this list.
8. y.t. the alien
e.t. The Alien is another movie that, for a time (until the release of Jurassic Park, in fact), was the highest grossing movie of all time. It’s hard not to love the story of a strange little alien who gets stranded on Earth and befriends a young boy, Elliot, who helps the alien escape government captivity and ultimately return home. But one day, while Elliot is away, his sister Gertie (played by Draw Barrymore) gets her hands on E.T. and dresses him in the cute outfit, complete with a wig, hat, and scarf, shown in this bicep tattoo by Toronto-based artist Sabrina Parolin.
9. beauty and the beast
what’s more classic than a disney tattoo? This awesome beauty and the beast inspired design was made by Duda Lozano from Brazil who is one of the most popular embroidery style tattoo artists on Instagram. Embroidery tattoos are relatively new, but they’re quickly becoming so popular that we predicted they’ll be one of the top tattoo trends of 2020.
10. the truman show
French artist, yny, is a master of minimalist and cubist tattoos. The style of the tattoo is inspired by the work of artists such as Picasso, whose designs were largely drawn from geometric outlines and cubes. Here, the tattoo artist uses minimal black lines and blocks of bright color to depict the final scene of the Truman Show, the 1998 film starring Jim Carrey. the abstract nature of the design makes it one of the more unique movie tattoos on this list.
11. leon: the professional
Natalie Portman’s feature film debut, Léon: The Professional, is a cult classic. After her character, Mathilda, comes home to find that her entire family has been killed while she was out shopping, she vows to avenge her deaths. With the help of Leon, a hit man who trains her as her protégé, she does exactly that. At just 12 years old, Mathilda is incredibly badass, which is perhaps the charm of her character, portrayed in this blackwork portrait tattoo by Polish artist Iza Marczyk.
12. casino
When it comes to mob movies, the dream team of director and actor has always been martin scorsese and robert deniro. They have collaborated on 10 films over their careers, including Casino, the 1995 Las Vegas casino crime drama. Although I have never seen the film, GQ gave it a fairly favorable review, calling it “a dazzling period piece.” …that captures Vegas better than any movie before or since.” While it may not be Marty’s best gangster movie of all time, it is his best epic.” To pay tribute to his awesomeness, this fan got a massive color realism tattoo of scenes from the movie, done by Inal Bersekov (she’s done a bunch of Drake tattoos too).
13. fight club
It is widely known that the first rule of fight club is “don’t talk about fight club”. therefore, we will not talk about it here, in order not to reveal spoilers. Instead, we’ll ogle at this stunning movie-inspired watercolor tattoo by Norwegian artist and Leap Ink studio co-owner Evie Lee.
14. little miss sun
I had to include a Little Miss Sunshine inspired design in our movie tattoo gallery because, well, it’s one of my all-time favorite movies. It’s about family love and dysfunction, but it also touches on a wide range of extremely difficult topics, from self-harm and unattainable beauty standards, to bankruptcy and death, in an honest yet comedic way. It is a movie that makes you feel all the feelings. Another fun fact about the movie is that the family van needs to be pushed to start, which is exactly what is shown in this minimal forearm tattoo of Juan Pablo, artist-in-residence at Fury Art Studio in Santiago, Chile.
15. Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Here’s a fun fact: The release of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom was the catalyst for the creation of the film’s pg-13 rating. When the film was released in 1984, it was rated PG [Parental Guidance], but many parents were upset because they thought the film was too gory (it includes a rather gruesome heart-extraction scene) for such a lenient rating. but after pg, the next, and highest, rating was r [viewers under 17 require parental accompaniment], which felt too harsh for the film. So Indiana Jones manager Steven Spielberg proposed a new rating: PG-13. shortly after the film’s release, the new classification was implemented.
However, this person clearly didn’t care about the blood. His tattoo portrays Indiana Jones and her sidekick in Temple of Doom, an 11-year-old boy named Short Round. The fun, cartoony piece was done by Wan, a tattoo artist from South Korea who has designed many other movie tattoos, including pieces inspired by Star Wars, Halloween, The Matrix, and The Big Lebowski.
If you liked our gallery of 15 movie tattoos inspired by the best of the big screen, be sure to check out these 13 star wars tattoo designs.
