Article Summary: This article discusses and provides examples of what has come to be termed “screen-match” props and wardrobe, whereby unique details of an original prop can be matched to screencaps in a movie or television show.
“Screen-Match” Examples
There have been some comments on the blog about “Screen-Matched” pieces, so I thought I would share a few examples.
I do not own all of these props any longer, but have saved some photos taken while I had them and did some research…
Here is a close-up of the hero T2 shotgun used by Arnold Schwarzenegger. If you look closely, you can see the grain on the wood matches the screencap.
This is the hero grenade belt used in Hellboy. Interestingly, upon receipt, I was puzzled in that some damage matched what was seen on screen precisely, whereas a few parts didn’t match at all. After having the piece for a few weeks, I finally realized the backing disk and lever behind the dial was on backwards. The piece was also apparently used for special effects, in that the dial easily unscrewed and I was able to flip the reversed pieces around and then all parts matched up exactly. Also, I noticed there was a scene in which one of the villains swings a hammer at it, and the dial assembly comes off, so that made all the construction choices and disassembly feature make sense.
This is the Urn of Osiris from Buffy the Vampire Slayer. In that the piece is hand painted and ceramic, and all strokes and textures and marking match up exactly, I think it is a clear match.
This is one of the hero pistols used by Will Smith in I, Robot. I found this screen-match by coincidence, in watching a scene in which I knew it was used by virtue of a serial number on the piece coupled with other insider info I was given by another collector. Anyway, I happened to screencap and zoom on this scene and saw many marks matched up exactly.
This is the Shoveler’s helmet from Mystery Men, as worn by William H. Macy. If you look closely at the weathering/distressing, the marks match up to those seen in the screencap.
Another Mystery Men piece – the Blue Raja turban worn by Hank Azaria – this piece matches the image on one of the one sheets exactly.
I hope this might inspire some collectors to take a closer look at the films in which their pieces are used – you never know what you might find. I think I’d only been actively seeking a match about 50% of the time in which I’ve found them.
Jason De Bord