Film

In the movie Avatar, humanity invades the planet Pandora to obtain a room-temperature superconductor called "Unobtanium"—literally "un-obtain-ium," the unobtainable material. In real physics, a room-temperature superconductor remains an equally elusive holy grail.

Hollywood used the fake name 'Alan Smithee' whenever a film director refused credit. Over 100 works bore this name from 1969 to 2000. A movie about this pseudonym was made, but its actual director also demanded his name be removed — so it too was released as an Alan Smithee film.

Star Wars, The Lord of the Rings, The Avengers, and countless other films share the same hidden scream. Recorded in 1951 for "Distant Drums," this sound effect—called the "Wilhelm scream"—became an inside joke among sound designers.