One of the favourite fan activities is coming up with complex theories that fit the facts. Many of the theories in this list have been confirmed as canon by future releases in the franchises or approved by the creators themselves.
1. Dumbledore is Death
This is a really cool theory that even JK Rowling said is the one she likes the most, which is not much considering the author is turning out to be one of the most obsessive writers of HP fan fiction. Essentially according to the theory, Harry, Snape and Voldy are parallels to the three brothers in the tale, Ignotus, Cadmus and Antioch. Ignotus is the “old friend” of death who has the invisibility cloak – the same invisibility cloak that passed down from father to son, and that Harry finally used. Cadmus and Snape both lose a lover who dies young. Voldy and Antioch are obsessed with increasing their power. Here is the kicker though – according to the theory, Albus Dumbledore is Death. Dumbledore is the reason why Snape and Voldy died, and finally met Harry as an old friend after Harry was killed by Voldy.
2. The Lineage Theory
According to the theory, which has been confirmed by the developers, William J. Blazkowicz, Commander Keen and Doomguy are all different generations in the same family. This is a theory that connects three classic 90s video game series, Commander Keen, Wolfenstein and Doom.
3. Han Solo is a force user
Han Solo is eerily lucky in many situations. He can convince Huttese lords, gets lucky at cards, misses bullets in near range, has impossibly fast reflexes while piloting the Millenium Falcon, and can fire on target while hanging upside down. If he was just wearing a robe, we would have ascribed all of this to his force powers, but just because the series never explicitly mentions this, does not mean that Han Solo is not a force user.
4. Jar Jar is a force user
While Jar Jar might appear to be a bumbling idiot, according to this theory, he too is a latent force user. He clumsily stumbles his way through all kinds of situations against armed enemies and still manages to survive using all kinds of impossible maneuvers, such as taking down enemies to a blaster that has gotten stuck to his legs. According to the theory, this is just another form of fighting that is deliberately designed to look clumsy, like the drunken kung fu master. Also, Jar Jar could be supreme leader Snoke.
5. Snoke is Darth Plagueis
Following the release of The Force Awakens, there was a theory circulating around that Snoke is actually Darth Plagueis the wise, who found a way to defeat death, so to speak. However, the character died without any explanation in The Last Jedi, with the directors noting that there was not enough time to explore his background, which would have derailed the narration of the main story. However, there are ways the theory can still hold true going forward, to the final installment in the Skywalker saga.
6. Bran the Fisher King
This is one of many ASOIAF fan theories and got lost in the noise when it originally came out. However, it turned out to be the most accurate guess of the endgame and correctly predicted that Bran would eventually end up ruling over Westeros. There were not too many dots to connect either, a Google search for Bran King straight up shows a character from Welsh mythology who is virtually identical to Bran. He is disabled and known as the Blessed Crow. Bran the Fisher King theory was originally posted on Westeros.org in 2015, as part of a Bran focused re-read thread.
7. The Pixar Theory
Viewers began noticing similar brands and objects across many Pixar films, leading fans to believe that all the films take place in the same shared universe. Jon Negroni dived deep into this theory and really fleshed it out. In the continuity, the magic from Brave causes animals to develop speech, which then evolve over time, resulting in Ratatouille and Finding Nemo. The villain in the incredibles meanwhile develops AI that explains why the cars in Cars and the toys in Toy Story can talk. All of this leads to an apocalypse where humans are reduced or sent away, and the animals take over the planet. Then Wall E takes place, restoring humans on Earth. Humans, sentients and animals all evolve together into the Monsters of Monsters University. The doors actually travel back in time. Also the kid, Boo is the witch from Brave. Yes, there is a lot to unravel here, but you can do it part by part in the website dedicated to the theory.
8. Pulp Fiction
While there are many theories as to what was inside the suitcase in Pulp Fiction, there are a few correct answers. According to the director, it is whatever the audience imagines it to be. On set, there was a light bulb inside to give the glowing effect. The most interesting theory is that the suitcase had Marsellus Wallace’s soul, which had been sold to the devil. It explains the extreme wealth that Wallace has acquired, as well as the bandage at the back of his forehead, from where the devil apparently removed the soul.
9. The Simpsons are geniuses
It started with the simple hunch that Bart is a supergenius, and is just hiding it. The idea blew up on Reddit with a user coming up with another explanation – everyone in the Simpsons family are geniuses, but Lisa is the only person who embraces it. Homer has a crayon lodged in his brain that keeps his genius tendencies in check. Marge chose a domestic life to be happy. Gramps is senile but the flashbacks show that he was pretty smart in his prime.
10. Elsa and Anna are sisters of Tarzan
This one is a little strange, as it hovers in a space of its own between canon and fan theory. It is the backstory of what happens to the parents of Elsa and Anna from Frozen. In a Reddit AMA, when asked if the King and Queen are really dead, one of the directors, Chris Buck revealed that the King and Queen did not really die in a shipwreck. They washed up on shore, built a treehouse, had a baby boy, and were ultimately eaten by a leopard. That is actually the opening to Tarzan, which goes to show that Elsa and Anna are the elder sisters of Tarzan.
11. Stan Lee is a watcher
A bus driver, a frustrated citizen, a beauty pageant judge, a security guard, a delivery man and a bartender, Stan Lee has played all these roles in MCU cameos, but what if they are all the same person, and just one character? According to the fan theory, Lee is an agent of The Watchers, a race of extraterrestrials who observe the goings on across the multiverse, without interfering. James Gunn threw in a scene where Lee is talking to The Watchers, and Kevin Feige has endorsed the theory as well, making it true.
12. Spiderman is the kid in Iron Man 2
This is another theory that has been confirmed. In Iron Man 2, Tony Stark lands behind a young fan wearing the Iron Man mask, and takes out a baddie. For long, fans have been speculating that the kid is actually Peter Parker. The theory was confirmed by Tom Holland to Huffington Post.
13. Glados is a bound woman
This one is a pretty straightforward theory, that Glados is actually a bound woman. The in game commentary mentions that the designers went for a creative interpretation of Sandro Botticelli’s “The Birth of Venus”, but upside down, and using robots. According to a theory by Steve Bowler though, Glados actually resembles in appearance a gagged and bound woman. Contrary to her claims, she is not actually free. The theory has been elaborated in three subsequent parts, which dives deep into what the designers were trying to convey. This kind of possession of objects seems to be a theme in Portal fan theories, with another theory speculating that the companion cubes actually have people trapped within them.
14. Breaking bad is a prequel to the Walking Dead
There are some objects that appear in both the Walking Dead and Breaking bad, including a red Dodge Challenger with black stripes, Blue Sky, and even a coffee machine. This has led to a fan theory that they share a universe, and that Blue Sky actually led to the Zombie Apocalypse.
15. Matrix in a Matrix
This one was a really popular theory after the release of Reloaded, but kind of fell apart after Revolutions came out. According to the theory, the “reality” that the red pill allows you to come out into, is actually another level of artificial simulation, and that the humans still remain plugged into the Matrix. For example, the machines, Zion, and the human battery farms are all in this Matrix, and are all also simulations. This explains how some of Neo’s powers work in the real world, and also explains how Smith can possess people who are not part of the Matrix.
16. Agent Smith is the Chosen One
This well-argued theory interprets the movies in a really fresh way, and shows how Agent Smith could really be the chosen one all along. Smith can create multiple copies of himself, can reform after dying, and calls the Oracle “mom” just before assimilating her. In an interpretation of the prophecy, it is Smith who ends up having the power to change the Matrix. The end of the war and the destruction of the Matrix could equally be considered a consequence of his actions, as Neo’s.
17. Sherlock Holmes is an ancestor of Spock
This evolved from an easter egg, to a fan theory, to straight up canon over time. Sherlock Holmes and Spock seem to be in the same universe, as Star Trek has a ship named the USS Sherlock Holmes. Spock also quotes a famous ancestor as saying “if you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the solution.”
18. The Great Pokemon War
Fans have explained the lack of a normal adult population in the Pokemon universe as a consequence of a violent and bloody war, where the Pokemon were used in battle. The war is either called the Pokemon war or the Kanto war. A dark interpretation of Pokemon Go is that the game takes place before the war when the training of Pokemon is a new art, and all the Pokemon are still being discovered.
Follow Us
Aditya Madanapalle
Aditya Madanapalle, has studied journalism, multimedia technologies and ancient runes, used to make the covermount DVDs when they were still a thing, but now focuses on the science stories and features. View Full Profile
