Help me find the world that's "In a world..."

January 22, 2008 2:05 PM

CuriosityFilter: We all know that movie trailers that begin "In a world..." became so common that those three words became an in-joke thanks to Don LaFontaine. I know many spoof movies (like the Scary Movie series) have spoof-type trailers that start out with the voiceover, "In a world...". How many trailers actually have used that voiceover snippet in the beginning un-ironically, and what is the most famous one?

Super bonus: What is the ratio to un-ironic trailers to spoof trailers that have picked up this meme? Are there other voiceover talents that have also used this phrase besides Don LaFontaine? I tried poking around his site, google and Wiki to no avail.

posted by Unicorn on the cob to media & arts (12 comments total)

Not an answer (I'm still thinking) but some backstory for others, from the Guardian.
posted by rokusan at 2:19 PM on January 22

Meet the Master.
posted by Bookhouse at 2:22 PM on January 22

Arrgh. Sorry for not reading the More Inside first.
posted by Bookhouse at 2:23 PM on January 22

There was a movie about an young Indian (South Asian) dancer girl that came out recently that didn't have a voiceover in the trailer, but the text on the screen unironically started off with "In a world ...." I don't remember the title of it though.
posted by LionIndex at 2:30 PM on January 22

in addition to don lafontaine you should check out hal douglas' work. there is some dispute as to who first said "in a world..." but hal really made it famous.
posted by phil at 2:41 PM on January 22

I'm not sure, but I always use the old standby "their forbidden love" whenever they play the clips of the token romantic relationship... That's gotta be at least as cliche as "in a world"
posted by joecacti at 3:04 PM on January 22

Perhaps the finest satirical take on this phenomenon.
posted by EarBucket at 4:03 PM on January 22 [3 favorites]

I watched old trailer on YouTube for a half-hour before, and I couldn't find any. Lots of cheesey voiceovers from the early 90's, but none with "In a world". Very disappointing.
posted by smackfu at 4:09 PM on January 22

(5 movie trailer voiceover guys in a limo)
posted by milkrate at 4:25 PM on January 22 [3 favorites]

Love this question! The "In a world" has become so cheesy and ubiquitous that I've gotten into the habit of beating the voiceover guy to the punch whenever I see a new trailer that I just KNOW is going to drop those three little words.

It's funny too to notice the trailers that now try to avoid this (and the ways they circumvent it), but you know that if it wasn't a meme, they actually would start with "In a world".

Here's a start: "Where did 'In a World' come from?"
And here's a short list of "In a world's", but it doesn't name the movies they relate to (I bet you could google the whole sentence though).
posted by iamkimiam at 5:05 PM on January 22

Wow, who knew there was an actual RIVALRY over who created the "in a world" meme? Hal vs. Don, it's on! Great info everybody, I just love trivia and the cheesier the better.
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 7:27 PM on January 22

Earbucket, that link was pure comedy gold. Thanks!
posted by Unicorn on the cob at 7:31 PM on January 22