The sci-fi genre has explored a number of interesting technological advancements over the years that have moved to reality as science catches up to the fiction, which can be seen in the major developments in robotics technology that has followed decades of cinematic robotic innovations that began with Forbidden Planet‘s Robby the Robot in 1951.
However, sci-fi fans are hoping that the real robotics industry will stick to producing some of the many adorably cute robots that have appeared on the big screen over the years instead of the deadly killer robots that sit at the other extreme of the genre. Here are a few examples of the safer, adorable robots from sci-fi movies that aren’t from the droid-heavy Star Wars franchise.
10 Johnny 5 – Short Circuit (1986)
1986’s Short Circuit introduced sci-fi fans to Johnny 5, who was one of a series of prototype robots known as S.A.I.N.T.s (Strategic Artificially Intelligent Nuclear Transport) that was struck by lightning and gained sentience.
The robot escaped and began to experience human culture in Oregon where he eventually took on the name Johnny 5 and met friends while he fought for freedom. While the design of the robot was anything but huggable, the humanity contained within Johnny 5’s expressive eyes would be replicated in later adorable robot designs on the big screen.
9 Bumblebee (2018)
While the live-action Bumblebee first appeared in Michael Bay’s 2007 Transformers adaptation that launched the hit franchise and first made fans fall in love with the adorable robot in disguise, it was 2018’s Bumblebee from director Travis Knight that really gave the character the chance to shine on his own.
The film explored Bumblebee’s earliest days on Earth before the first Transformers film and features the character at his most adorable stage as he makes a new friend and learns Earth’s customs while dealing with Decepticons that threaten his mission.
8 V.I.N.CENT & B.O.B. – The Black Hole (1979)
Disney entered darker territory for the usually family-friendly studio with 1979’s The Black Hole, a sci-fi story about an exploration spaceship crew returning to Earth that discovers another ship that has been trapped near a Black Hole for 20 years.
V.I.N.CENT (Vital Information Necessary CENTralized) worked on the exploration ship that befriended the trapped ship’s B.O.B (BiO-sanitation Batallion), who had been beaten and abused by his crew of zombified robots and their traumatized leader. V.I.N.CENT and B.O.B were clunky but cute and were voiced by Roddy McDowall and Slim Pickens, respectively, in uncredited roles.
7 Robot – Robot & Frank (2012)
Frank Langella starred alongside the titular Robot in 2012’s Robot & Frank, which took place in the near future and followed an aged ex-thief struggling with dementia whose son gifts him with a therapeutic robot companion.
Frank eventually warms up to the machine when he learns he can commit small crimes with the robot that he uses to pull off one last score. The robot’s design is simple and friendly and humanoid with an expressive digital face that will make sci-fi fans want a robot friend of their very own.
6 Marvin The Paranoid Android – The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy (2005)
The depressed and paranoid android known as Marvin (voiced by Alan Rickman) may not seem instantly adorable in 2005’s The Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy given his sullen attitude over the fact that he has an incredibly brilliant brain but is only ever given mundane, boring tasks.
However, the fantastic design of Marvin for the film adaptation of Douglas Adams’ iconic sci-fi novels gave the character a bulbous, shuffling body and oversized head with a sad but still cute expression locked on his face, making him Marvin the Adorable Android.
5 ’80s Robot – The Muppets (2011)
Despite its name, ’80s Robot didn’t actually appear in the world of The Muppets until the 2011 movie that first introduced the character, though the franchise had seen a number of robots and creations from Dr. Bunson Honewdew over the years.
’80s Robot homaged a number of classic robot tropes while serving as a cute addition to Kermit’s team in The Muppets, and his boxy low-tech design and subtle facial expressions only added to his adorability, leading to a couple of follow-up appearances that left fans wanting more.
4 Weebo – Flubber (1997)
Robin Williams starred as Professor Brainard in 1997’s Flubber, which was a remake of Disney’s The Absent-Minded Professor which followed the titular scientist’s invention of a unique new perpetual motion energy source that was named Flubber/”Flying Rubber.”
Another invention of Brainard’s was the advanced robotic artificial intelligence known as Weebo that he created as his floating lab assistant who gained sentience and fell in love with her creator. Weebo communicated using a monitor screen and pop culture references, and while she died during the film, she lived on as the upgraded Weebette.
3 Fix-It Family – Batteries Not Included (1987)
1987’s *batteries not included (which featured the screenwriting debut of The Incredibles’ Brad Bird) introduced a pair of robotic aliens that became known as the Fix-It’s after they arrived in a New York apartment building and began to repair the various broken machines in the building and cafe ran by the residents.
The Fix-It’s eventually give birth to three smaller robotic aliens that upped the level of cuteness, especially when they begin working in the kitchen alongside the elderly couple that runs the small restaurant, though they are forced to help defend the apartment block from shady property developers.
2 Baymax – Big Hero 6 (2014)
Marvel introduced a unique take on the comic team known as Big Hero 6 in 2014 in an adaptation from Walt Disney Animation Studios that gave the team a modern high-tech take that reimagined the comic version of Baymax, who was a robotic bodyguard who could take on the form of a dragon-like monster.
The animated movie’s version of Baymax was a robotic health care provider made for extreme huggability that Hiro later modified to become a superhero alongside his friends in Big Hero 6, though he never lost his adorability even when armored up.
1 WALL-E (2008)
The tiny hard-working futuristic robot WALL-E that was first introduced in his self-titled movie in 2008 was so incredibly adorable that fans had no problems with almost half a movie of no dialogue, especially after WALL-E’s new friend EVE arrived on the abandoned Earth to document his discovery of organic life.
The design of WALL-E modeled itself on a number of familiar robot creations that came before, though the movie robot reached new levels of adorability due to the excellent Pixar animation that filled every movement and reaction of WALL-E with emotion.
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