Editing Short Circuit (1986 film)

{{Short description|1986 film by John Badham}}
{{Redirect|Short Circuit 1||Short circuit (disambiguation)}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox film
| name           = Short Circuit
| image          = Short Circuit (1986 film poster).jpg
| caption        = Theatrical release poster
| director       = [[John Badham]]
| writer         = {{Plainlist|
* [[S. S. Wilson]]
* [[Brent Maddock]]
}}
| producer       = {{Plainlist|
* [[David Foster (film producer)|David Foster]]
* [[Lawrence Turman]]
}}
| starring       = {{Plainlist|
* [[Ally Sheedy]]
* [[Steve Guttenberg]]
* [[Fisher Stevens]]
* [[Austin Pendleton]]
* [[G. W. Bailey]]
}}
| cinematography = [[Nick McLean]]
| editing        = [[Frank Morriss]]
| music          = [[David Shire]]
| studio         = {{Plainlist|
* [[Producers Sales Organization]]
* The Turman-Foster Company
}}
| distributor    = [[TriStar Pictures|Tri-Star Pictures]]
| released       = {{Film date|1986|05|09}}
| runtime        = 98 minutes
| country        = United States
| language       = English
| budget         = $15 million<ref>{{cite web|url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/57472|title=SHORT CIRCUIT (1986)|website=[[AFI Catalog of Feature Films]]|access-date=September 7, 2023|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221207110450/https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/57472|archive-date=December 7, 2022}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=McNary|first=Dave|date=November 13, 2020|title='Short Circuit' Latinx Remake in Development at Spyglass Media|url=https://variety.com/2020/film/news/short-circuit-latinx-remake-spyglass-1234831398/|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|access-date=September 7, 2023}}</ref>
| gross          = $40.7 million<ref name="boxofficemojo">{{cite Box Office Mojo|id=0091949|title=Short Circuit|access-date=September 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230203021426/https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0091949/|archive-date=February 3, 2023|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite The Numbers|id=Short-Circuit|title=Short Circuit|access-date=September 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230523025718/https://www.the-numbers.com/movie/Short-Circuit|archive-date=May 23, 2023|url-status=live}}</ref>
}}
'''''Short Circuit''''' is a 1986 American [[science fiction comedy]] film directed by [[John Badham]] and written by [[S. S. Wilson]] and [[Brent Maddock]]. The film centers on an experimental [[military robot]] that is struck by lightning and gains a [[Artificial intelligence|human-like intelligence]], prompting it to escape its facility to learn more about the world. It stars [[Ally Sheedy]], [[Steve Guttenberg]], [[Fisher Stevens]], [[Austin Pendleton]], and [[G. W. Bailey]]; [[Tim Blaney]] is the voice of the robot Number 5.

''Short Circuit'' was theatrically released in the United States and Canada on May 9, 1986, by [[TriStar Pictures|Tri-Star Pictures]]. Despite receiving mixed reviews from critics, the film was a box office success, grossing $40.7 million against a $15 million budget. It earned three nominations, including [[Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film|Best Science Fiction Film]], at the [[14th Saturn Awards]]. The film's sequel, titled ''[[Short Circuit 2]]'', was directed by [[Kenneth Johnson (filmmaker)|Kenneth Johnson]] and was theatrically released on July 6, 1988.

==Plot==
<!-- Per WP:FILMPLOT, plots are required to be between 400-700 words. -->
NOVA Laboratory robotics experts Newton Crosby and Ben Jabituya have developed a robotic soldier called S.A.I.N.T. (Strategic Artificially Intelligent Nuclear Transport) for the U.S. military to use in [[Cold War]] operations, though they would rather seek peaceful applications of the robots. After a live demonstration for the military, one of the units, S.A.I.N.T. Number 5, is struck by lightning arcing through the lab's power grid. That scrambles the robot's programming and makes it [[Sentience|sentient]], resulting in its escape from the NOVA facility.

The robot finds itself in [[Astoria, Oregon]] and is found by Stephanie Speck, an animal caregiver, who mistakes him for an alien. She takes the robot into her home, where she provides him with "input" in the form of visual and verbal stimuli, allowing the robot to improve its language skills. Stephanie continues to help the curious Number 5 robot learn about the world. She eventually discovers that Number 5 was built by NOVA, and contacts them about the lost robot. Nova's CEO, Dr. Howard Marner, orders Crosby and Ben to recover Number 5, so they can disassemble and rebuild him. While waiting for NOVA to arrive, Number 5 learns about death when he accidentally crushes a [[grasshopper]] and concludes that if NOVA disassembles him, he will die, and escapes in Stephanie's food truck. However, NOVA uses a tracking device on Number 5 to corner and deactivate him for return to the facility. During transport, Number 5 reactivates himself, removes the tracking device and flees back to Stephanie.  NOVA meanwhile, offer a $25,000 bounty on the return of Number 5, which in turn attracts the unwanted attention of Stephanie's abusive ex-boyfriend Frank, who turns up at her house to try and capture Number 5, but he quickly defeats Frank and dismantles his car.  Knowing that Frank will alert NOVA and the authorities, Stephanie and Number 5 go on the run in search of Crosby, to convince him of Number 5's sentience.

Due to Number 5's unusual behavior, Crosby tries to convince Howard that something has changed with Number 5's programming and that they should take care not to damage it in their recovery efforts so that he can examine them later. Howard instead sends their egomaniac security chief Captain Skroeder, who has an innate distrust of the robots, and S.A.I.N.T. prototypes 1, 2, and 3 to capture Number 5 by force, ignoring Crosby's concerns. Number 5 outwits the other robots and reprograms their personalities to act like [[The Three Stooges]], allowing him to escape. Number 5 kidnaps Crosby, takes him to Stephanie, and convinces Crosby of his sentience. They find that Skroeder has called in the [[United States Army]] to capture Number 5, and on his orders, restrain Crosby and Stephanie so he can open fire. To protect his friends, Number 5 leads the Army away and appears to be destroyed by a helicopter missile. Stephanie is devastated as Skroeder's men scrounge the remains of Number 5 as trophies, prompting Crosby to resign from NOVA and drive away with Stephanie in the NOVA van. Howard is enraged over the loss of his research and the $11 million monetary loss and fires Skroeder on the spot for insubordination.

Crosby and Stephanie are surprised to discover that Number 5 had hidden under the van, having assembled a decoy of himself from spare parts to mislead the military. Crosby suggests taking Number 5 to a secluded ranch in [[Montana]], where there will be much "input" for the robot, and Stephanie agrees to come with them. As they drive off, Number 5 asserts that his name should now be "Johnny 5" based on the El DeBarge song "[[Who's Johnny]]" which had been playing on the van's radio.

==Cast==
* [[Tim Blaney]] as voice of Number 5, later nicknamed "Johnny 5"
* [[Ally Sheedy]] as Stephanie Speck, who befriends Number 5
* [[Steve Guttenberg]] as Newton Crosby, Ph.D., the designer of the prototypes
* [[Fisher Stevens]] as Ben Jabituya, Crosby's assistant
* [[Austin Pendleton]] as Dr. Howard Marner, President of Nova Robotics
* [[G. W. Bailey]] as Captain Skroeder, Nova's Chief of Security
* [[Brian McNamara]] as Frank, Stephanie's abusive ex-boyfriend
* Marvin J. McIntyre as Duke, one of Nova's security officers
* John Garber as Otis, one of Nova's security officers
* [[Penny Santon]] as Mrs. Cepeda, Stephanie's housekeeper
* [[Vernon Weddle]] as General Washburne
* [[Barbara Tarbuck]] as Senator Mills
* [[John Badham]] as a cameraman (uncredited)
* [[Jack Angel]] as the voice of Number 1 (uncredited)
* [[Cam Clarke]] as the voice of Number 2 (uncredited)
* [[Don Messick]] as the voice of Number 3 (uncredited)
* Seth Peters as the voice of Number 4 (uncredited)

==Production==
[[File:Johnny5 03.jpg|thumb|The original Number 5 robot from the film]]
This film was conceived after the producers distributed an educational video about a robot to various colleges. Studying other films with a prominent robot cast (like the ''[[Star Wars]]'' series) for inspiration, they decided to question human reactions to a 'living' robot, on the premise that no one would initially believe its sentience. According to the DVD commentary, Number 5 was the most expensive part of the film, requiring several different versions to be made for different sequences. Almost everything else in the film was relatively inexpensive, allowing them to allocate as much money as they needed for the robot character. 

The inspiration for the design of number 5 came from [[Douglas Trumbull]]'s "[[Showscan]]" short entitled "LETS GO" which featured a robot named PAL that was designed by Eric Allard, [[Steven Spielberg]] saw the short and informed Badham to contact Allard for the robot construction in the film<ref>{{cite web | url=https://cyberneticzoo.com/robots/1985-pal-a-k-a-h-e-n-r-i-viii-the-robot-douglas-trumbull-american/ | title=1985 - "PAL" (A.k.a. "H.E.N.R.I. VIII") the Robot - Douglas Trumbull (American) | date=September 14, 2012 }}</ref>

Number 5 was designed by [[Syd Mead]], the "visual futurist" famous for his work on ''[[Blade Runner]]'' and ''[[Tron]]''. although Mead's design was greatly influenced by the sketches of Allard, the Robotics Supervisor credited for "realizing" the robots. Director [[John Badham]] named Allard "the most valuable player" on the film. Most of the arm movements of Number 5 were controlled by a "telemetry suit", carried on the [[puppeteer]]'s upper torso. Each joint in the suit had a separate sensor, allowing the puppeteer's arm and hand movements to be transferred directly to the machine. He was also voiced in real-time by his puppeteer, the director believing that it provided for more realistic interaction between the robot and the other actors than putting in his voice in post-production, although a few of his lines were re-dubbed later.

During Stephanie's impromptu news interview, Badham makes a cameo appearance as the news cameraman. The sequence in the film depicting Number 5 watching the movie ''[[Saturday Night Fever]]'' (and imitating [[John Travolta]]'s dance moves) is an [[in-joke]], as Badham also directed ''Saturday Night Fever''.

[[Fisher Stevens]] said that when he was originally hired to play Ben Jabituya, the character was not intended to be Indian. Stevens was fired and replaced by [[Bronson Pinchot]] at one point, but then Pinchot left to do the sitcom ''[[Perfect Strangers (TV series)|Perfect Strangers]]'', and Stevens was rehired.<ref>{{cite news|last= Rabin|first= Nathan|author-link= Nathan Rabin|title= Fisher Stevens|work= A.V. Club|date=August 19, 2009|url= https://www.avclub.com/article/fisher-stevens-31894|access-date=March 2, 2014}}</ref> To portray the role he had to grow a beard, dye his hair black, darken his skin with makeup, turn his blue eyes brown with contact lenses, speak with an East Indian accent and "walk hunched over like a [[cricket]] player".<ref>Weinstein, Steve (August 2, 1988). [https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1988-08-02-ca-6876-story.html "Shooting Stars: 'Short Circuit's' Stevens No Foreigner to Ethnic Roles"]. ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''. Retrieved 2014-04-30.</ref> In 2015, [[Aziz Ansari]] had a cordial discussion with Stevens over the role, with Ansari saying he did not view Stevens as a bad guy or someone who played Ben as a tired stereotype, and Stevens saying (with Ansari's agreement) that a present-day version of the role would be played by an actor who had an Indian or a South Asian background.<ref>{{cite news|last=Ansari |first=Aziz |title=Aziz Ansari on Acting, Race and Hollywood |work=[[New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/15/arts/television/aziz-ansari-on-acting-race-and-hollywood.html |date=November 15, 2015 |access-date=February 7, 2021}}</ref>

In 2009, [[Austin Pendleton]], who had gone to college with Badham, stated "some stuff was cut out of my part in [''Short Circuit'']. And also the two leading roles were cast with really talented, attractive people who were not right for the parts. [The] script was just 'heartbreakingly' beautiful to read. And now it's a nice little slightly bland kids' movie. Nothing exactly wrong with it. Those two people who are in the leads are good, very likable, easy-to-work-with people, and have done some good work; they just weren't those people that were written in the script. And I said to John when it was about to open, 'Why did you cast them?' And he said, 'That was what the studio insisted on'. And it sort of ended the discussion. I said, 'Okay'. The film kind of works, but again, it was going to have been quite a beautiful film". According to Pendleton, the role Guttenberg ended up playing "...was a person who could not relate to other human beings, so he poured all that into the creation of the robot. Well, Steve, he's a lovely guy, and I think he's talented. I think he has a real sharp—especially in those days when they were hiring him all the time—he had a wonderful kind of charisma. Very easy, but utterly social. He's just so very engaging and open with people. He's wonderful to be on a movie with. He's just a real colleague. But he's just that way with people. He does not bring onscreen with him the problem that the character in that movie has. So you hear that he's shy and everything, but it's more like a convention than anything else. The perfect person for the role, 20 years earlier, would have been [[Dustin Hoffman]]. That thing that Dustin brought to ''[[The Graduate]]'' that a more affable actor would not have."<ref>{{cite news|last= Rabin|first= Nathan|author-link= Nathan Rabin|title= Austin Pendleton|work= A.V. Club|date=July 29, 2009|url= https://www.avclub.com/article/austin-pendleton-31009|access-date=November 16, 2015}}</ref>

Guttenberg and Bailey had previously worked together on the ''[[Police Academy (franchise)|Police Academy]]'' series of films.

==Soundtrack==
Although no soundtrack album was released at the time, [[El DeBarge]] had a chart hit with the single "[[Who's Johnny|Who's Johnny (Theme from ''Short Circuit'')]]".<ref>{{cite book |title= Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=150}}</ref> Released in 1986 on the [[Motown Records|Gordy]] label, the single was used for the film and reached number three on the [[Billboard Hot 100|''Billboard'' Hot 100]] and number one on the [[Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs|Hot R&B Singles chart]].<ref>{{cite book |title= Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004|last=Whitburn |first=Joel |author-link=Joel Whitburn |year=2004 |publisher=Record Research |page=150}}</ref> In 2008, [[Varèse Sarabande]] released [[David Shire]]'s score as part of their [[Varèse Sarabande#CD Club|CD Club]] series of limited edition releases. The DeBarge song was not included or mentioned in the liner notes. The last three tracks are [[source music]].

{{Track listing
| headline        = Short Circuit [Original Motion Picture Soundtrack]
| total_length    = 43:09
| title1          = Main Title
| length1         = 2:13
| title2          = The Quickening/[[Bridge|Off The Bridge]]
| length2         = 2:44
| title3          = Discovering Number 5/Sunrise
| length3         = 4:32
| title4          = [[Grasshopper]]/Joy(less) Ride
| length4         = 4:43
| title5          = The Attack/Coming To
| length5         = 3:47
| title6          = [[Roadblock|Road Block]]/[[Bathtub]]/Robot Battle
| length6         = 2:42
| title7          = Getaway/Hello, Bozos
| length7         = 2:41
| title8          = Night Scene/Joke Triumph
| length8         = 4:17
| title9          = Danger, Nova/Escape Attempt/Aftermath
| length9         = 3:48
| title10         = Finale/End Title: "Come And Follow Me" – [[Max Carl]] and [[Marcella Detroit|Marcy Levy]]
| length10        = 5:04
| title11         = Source Music: Rock
| length11        = 3:39
| title12         = Source Music: Bar
| length12        = 1:51
| title13         = Source Music: [[The Three Stooges]]
| length13        = 1:08
}}

===Personnel===
* [[Max Carl]] - vocals, keyboards (track 10)
* [[Marcella Detroit|Marcy Levy]] - vocals (track 10)

==Reception==
===Critical response===
{{Rotten Tomatoes prose|62|5.4|39|Amiable and good-natured but also shallow and predictable, ''Short Circuit'' is hardly as deep or emotionally resonant as ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial|E.T.]]'' — though Johnny Five makes for a charming robot protagonist.|ref=yes|access-date=July 27, 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230321114223/https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/1018891-short_circuit|archive-date=March 21, 2023|url-status=live}} {{Metacritic film prose|50|12|ref=yes|access-date=September 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207145115/https://www.metacritic.com/movie/short-circuit|archive-date=February 7, 2023|url-status=live}} Audiences polled by [[CinemaScore]] gave the film an average grade of "A–" on an A+ to F scale.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.cinemascore.com/|title=Find CinemaScore|publisher=[[CinemaScore]]|format=Type "Short Circuit" in the search box|access-date=September 7, 2023|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230905201259/https://www.cinemascore.com/|archive-date=September 5, 2023}}</ref>

[[Vincent Canby]] of ''[[The New York Times]]'' described ''Short Circuit'' as "a cheerful, inoffensive fantasy in which such attractive live actors as Steve Guttenberg and Ally Sheedy play second fiddle to machinery" and wrote that "the movie, which has the clean, well-scrubbed look of an old [[Walt Disney Pictures|Disney]] comedy, is nicely acted."<ref>{{cite news|last=Canby|first=Vincent|date=May 9, 1986|title=SCREEN: 'SHORT CIRCUIT'|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/05/09/movies/screen-short-circuit.html|url-status=live|work=[[The New York Times]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207150643/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/05/09/movies/screen-short-circuit.html|archive-date=February 7, 2023|access-date=September 7, 2023}}</ref> A reviewer for ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' called the film "a hip, sexless sci-fi sendup" and praised the writers for "some terrific dialog that would have been a lot less disarming if not for the winsome robot and Sheedy's affection for it."<ref>{{cite news|date=December 31, 1985|title=Short Circuit|url=https://variety.com/1985/film/reviews/short-circuit-1200426805/|url-status=live|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230207150140/https://variety.com/1985/film/reviews/short-circuit-1200426805/|archive-date=February 7, 2023|access-date=September 7, 2023}}</ref> The ''[[Sun-Sentinel]]'' gave ''Short Circuit'' a good review, saying: "Number Five is the real star of this energetic film. Sheedy, Guttenberg and company are just supporting players".<ref>{{cite web|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1986-05-13/features/8601280937_1_number-five-short-circuit-robot|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110718102950/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1986-05-13/features/8601280937_1_number-five-short-circuit-robot|url-status=dead|archive-date=July 18, 2011|title='Short Circuit' Humming With Freewheeling Fun|publisher=Articles.sun-sentinel.com|access-date=November 10, 2014}}</ref> [[Roger Ebert]], writing in the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'', rated ''Short Circuit'' 1.5 out of 4 stars and called it "too cute for its own good".<ref>{{cite news |date= May 9, 1986 |last= Ebert |first= Roger |author-link= Roger Ebert |title= Short Circuit |work= [[Chicago Sun-Times]] |url= https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/short-circuit-1986 |access-date= January 21, 2019}}</ref> Colin Greenland reviewed ''Short Circuit'' for issue 85 of ''[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]]'' and stated that "there ''are'' good jokes, but the picture's so bland they hardly count".<ref name="WD85">{{cite journal | last =Greenland | first =Colin | title =2020 Vision | journal =[[White Dwarf (magazine)|White Dwarf]] | issue =85 | pages =6 | publisher =[[Games Workshop]] | date = December 1987}}</ref>

===Box office===
''Short Circuit'' debuted at No. 1 in the US box office with a studio-reported weekend gross of $5.3 million,<ref name="boxofficemojo"/><ref>{{cite news|title= Short Circuit A Box-office Live Wire|work= Sun Sentinel|url= http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1986-05-14/features/8601290218_1_short-circuit-jo-jo-dancer-blue-city|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120528052738/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1986-05-14/features/8601290218_1_short-circuit-jo-jo-dancer-blue-city|url-status= dead|archive-date= May 28, 2012|access-date=November 8, 2010}}</ref> although independent sources suggested that the gross was inflated and more likely between $4.5 and $4.725 million.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Daily Variety]]|date=May 13, 1986|page=3|title='Circuit's' Live B.O. Wire May Have A Short|last=Greenberg|first=James}}</ref> It grossed a domestic total of $40.7 million, ranking it 21st for 1986 in the United States; it performed slightly better than other hits of that year, such as ''[[Pretty in Pink]]'', ''[[The Fly (1986 film)|The Fly]]'', ''[[Three Amigos]]'', ''[[Little Shop of Horrors (film)|Little Shop Of Horrors]]'', and ''[[About Last Night (1986 film)|About Last Night]]''.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/yearly/chart/?yr=1986&p=.htm|title=1986 DOMESTIC GROSSES|publisher=Boxofficemojo.com|access-date=November 10, 2014}}</ref> By 1987, ''Short Circuit'' had grossed {{US$|100 million|long=no}} in worldwide theatrical and ancillary revenues (not including merchandise).<ref>{{cite news |title=The Paducah Sun |url=https://www.newspapers.com/newspage/426849930/ |access-date=June 8, 2020 |date=November 22, 1987 |page=71}}</ref> The film was reportedly the top home video rental of 1987.<ref>{{cite news |date= July 6, 1988 |last= Steinmetz |first= Johanna |title= 'CIRCUIT' GOES AFTER RENTAL VIDEO MARKET |work= [[Chicago Tribune]] |url= https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1988-07-06-8801130025-story.html |access-date= July 29, 2022}}</ref>

===Accolades===
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! scope="col"| Year
! scope="col"| Award
! scope="col"| Category
! scope="col"| Recipient(s)
! scope="col"| Result
! scope="col"| {{refh}}
|-
| rowspan="4"| 1987
| rowspan="3"| [[14th Saturn Awards|Saturn Awards]]
| [[Saturn Award for Best Science Fiction Film|Best Science Fiction Film]]
| ''Short Circuit''
| {{nom}}
| rowspan="4"| <ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091949/awards/|title=Awards for ''Short Circuit''|publisher=[[IMDb]]|access-date=September 6, 2023}}</ref>
|-
| [[Saturn Award for Best Director|Best Director]]
| [[John Badham]]
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[Saturn Award for Best Special Effects|Best Special Effects]]
| [[Syd Mead]] <br> Eric Allard
| {{nom}}
|-
| [[BMI Film & TV Awards]]
| BMI Film Music
| [[David Shire]]
| {{won}}
|-
|}

===Whitewashing criticism===
In the years after its release, the film has drawn criticism for casting Stevens, a Jewish actor, to play the Indian character Ben, in [[racial brownface|brownface]] makeup.  American comedian [[Aziz Ansari]] has cited the casting as an example of [[whitewashing in film|whitewashing in Hollywood]].<ref>{{cite news|author=[[Aziz Ansari]]|date=November 10, 2015|title=Aziz Ansari on Acting, Race and Hollywood|work=[[The New York Times]]|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/15/arts/television/aziz-ansari-on-acting-race-and-hollywood.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|author=Oktay Ege Kozak|date=February 28, 2019|title=A Tour of Cinematic Blackface, Brownface and Yellowface in the 1980s|publisher=[[Paste Magazine]]|url=https://www.pastemagazine.com/movies/a-tour-of-cinematic-blackface-brownface-and-yellow/}}</ref> Both Badham and Stevens expressed regret for the decision. In a 2021 interview, Stevens said, "It definitely haunts me. I still think it's a really good movie, but I would never do that part again. The world was a different place in 1986, obviously".<ref>{{cite web |last1=Alter |first1=Ethan |title=Fisher Stevens regrets his controversial 'Short Circuit' role: 'It definitely haunts me' |url=https://sports.yahoo.com/fisher-stevens-regrets-controversial-short-circuit-role-191051910.html |website=Yahoo |date=May 10, 2021 |access-date=May 10, 2021}}</ref> In another interview that same year, Badham said that the character had been written as American. Inspired by a scene in ''[[Beverly Hills Cop]]'' (1984) in which a French shop assistant is rude to his American customers, Badham made the switch, finding humor in the "culture mismatch". He added that had the character been originally conceived as Indian, an Indian or Indian-American actor would have been cast, and said, "That was an oversight on our part, but we never intended to make fun of the character of Ben".<ref>{{Cite web|last=Bland|first= Simon|date=May 31, 2021|title=How we made Short Circuit, by Steve Guttenberg and John Badham|url=http://www.theguardian.com/film/2021/may/31/how-we-made-short-circuit-by-steve-guttenberg-and-john-badham|access-date=May 31, 2021|website=the Guardian|language=en}}</ref>

==Franchise==
===1987 video game===
{{main|Short Circuit (video game)}}
A [[Short Circuit (video game)|1987 video game based on the 1986 film of the same name]] was published and developed by [[Ocean Software]] for [[ZX Spectrum]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.worldofspectrum.org/infoseekid.cgi?id=0004469|title=Short Circuit|publisher=Worldofspectrum.org|access-date=November 10, 2014}}</ref> [[Commodore 64]]<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lemon64.com/?game_id=2304 |title=Lemon – Commodore 64, C64 Games, Reviews & Music! |publisher=Lemon64.com |access-date=June 4, 2009}}</ref> and [[Amstrad CPC]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cpc-power.com/index.php?page=detail&num=1931 |title=Short Circuit by Ocean Software for the Amstrad CPC |publisher=Cpc-power.com |access-date=July 18, 2015}}</ref>

===1988 sequel===
{{main|Short Circuit 2}}
A sequel, titled ''[[Short Circuit 2]]'', was directed by [[Kenneth Johnson (filmmaker)|Kenneth Johnson]] and was theatrically released on July 6, 1988. There was a script for a possible third film, where Johnny 5 went to college, that was written in 1989 and rewritten in 1990 but was found unsatisfactory by the producers, and the project was scrapped and canceled. Johnny 5 answered questions in character in a videotaped interview with [[Bobbie Wygant]], a reporter based in [[Dallas]], to promote ''Short Circuit 2''.<ref name="BobbieWygant">{{cite AV media|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=agQn4Rz1MsY |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211221/agQn4Rz1MsY |archive-date=December 21, 2021|title=Johnny Number 5 for "Short Circuit 2" 1986 - Bobbie Wygant Archive|date=June 10, 2020|access-date=April 8, 2021|via=YouTube|url-status=live}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

===1991 TV short film===
A 1991 24-minute educational TV short film, titled ''Auto Theft: Hot Cars, Cold Facts'', takes place after ''[[Short Circuit 2]]''. The TV short film stars Gina Revarra as Lisa, John Hugh as Officer Dave, Donald Bishop as Howard and Russell Turner (the TV short film's director, producer and co-editor) as the voice of Johnny 5.

===Planned remake===
On April 4, 2008, ''[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]'' reported that [[Dimension Films]] had acquired the rights to remake the original film. [[Dan Milano]] had been hired to write the script, and David Foster to produce it. Foster said that the robot's appearance would not change.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://variety.com/2008/film/markets-festivals/short-circuit-s-johnny-5-still-alive-1117983475/ |title='Short Circuit's' Johnny 5 still alive|date=April 4, 2008|publisher=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |access-date= December 12, 2018}}</ref> Later in October 2009, reports circulated that [[Steve Carr]] would direct the remake and that the film's plot would involve a boy from a broken family befriending the Number 5 robot.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.totalfilm.com/news/steve-carr-directing-short-circuit-reboot|title=Steve Carr directing Short Circuit reboot|publisher=Totalfilm.com|access-date=November 10, 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://variety.com/2009/film/markets-festivals/short-circuit-gets-robot-touch-1118004494/ |title='Short Circuit' gets 'Robot' touch – Entertainment News, Film News, Media |publisher=Variety |date= June 3, 2009|access-date=June 4, 2009}}</ref> Carr left the project on August 4, 2011, and [[Tim Hill (filmmaker)|Tim Hill]] was reportedly hired to direct.<ref>{{cite news|last=Fleming|first=Mike Jr.|title=Director Tim Hill Hops To Dimension's 'Short Circuit' Reboot|url=https://deadline.com/2011/08/director-tim-hill-hops-to-dimensions-short-circuit-reboot-152217/|access-date=December 16, 2011|newspaper=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|date=August 4, 2011}}</ref> On November 13, 2020, it was announced that [[Spyglass Media Group]] is set to remake the 1986 film, with Project X Entertainment's [[James Vanderbilt]], Paul Neinstein, and William Sherak producing and Rehab Entertainment's [[John W. Hyde]] returning as executive producer alongside Terissa Kelton. The company hired the writing team of Eduardo Cisneros and Jason Shuman to put a [[Latin Americans|Latin]] twist on the screenplay for the film.<ref>{{cite news|last=Fleming|first=Mike Jr.|date=November 13, 2020|title='Short Circuit' Remake To Get Latinx Jolt From Spyglass Media Group|url=https://deadline.com/2020/11/short-circuit-remake-spyglass-media-group-latinx-jolt-1234615264/|url-status=live|work=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407083558/https://deadline.com/2020/11/short-circuit-remake-spyglass-media-group-latinx-jolt-1234615264/amp/|archive-date=April 7, 2023|access-date=September 7, 2023}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote|Short Circuit}}
* {{IMDb title|0091949}}

{{John Badham}}
{{Sony franchises}}

[[Category:Short Circuit (1986 film)| ]]
[[Category:1986 films]]
[[Category:1986 comedy films]]
[[Category:1986 science fiction films]]
[[Category:1980s American films]]
[[Category:1980s English-language films]]
[[Category:1980s adventure comedy films]]
[[Category:1980s science fiction adventure films]]
[[Category:1980s science fiction comedy films]]
[[Category:American adventure comedy films]]
[[Category:American science fiction adventure films]]
[[Category:American science fiction comedy films]]
[[Category:American robot films]]
[[Category:Cold War films]]
[[Category:Cultural depictions of The Three Stooges]]
[[Category:Films about artificial intelligence]]
[[Category:Films about technological impact]]
[[Category:Films directed by John Badham]]
[[Category:Films produced by Lawrence Turman]]
[[Category:Puppet films]]
[[Category:Films set in Astoria, Oregon]]
[[Category:Films shot in Astoria, Oregon]]
[[Category:Films shot in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:Films set in Portland, Oregon]]
[[Category:Films shot in Oregon]]
[[Category:Films set in Oregon]]
[[Category:Military science fiction films]]
[[Category:TriStar Pictures films]]
[[Category:Films scored by David Shire]]
[[Category:Whitewashing in film]]
[[Category:English-language science fiction comedy films]]
[[Category:English-language science fiction adventure films]]
[[Category:English-language adventure comedy films]]