The 12 Most Handy Ventilation Shafts in Films

      Ventilator shafts appear quite frequently in Hollywood films. Let's discuss this with 12 notable examples.

      **IT! The Terror From Beyond Space (1958)**

      United Artists – Credit: C/O

      With the most entertaining title of any film, IT! The Terror From Beyond Space seems to be the first movie to introduce the handy air shaft concept.

      When an unknown entity invades the first manned mission to Mars, a courageous team member chooses to explore the air shaft, whether you call it a ventilation shaft or duct.

      The film handles the shaft with the proper seriousness, acknowledging the unsettling nature of crawling through one.

      **Dr. No (1962)**

      United Artists – Credit: C/O

      Dr. No, the inaugural James Bond film, is one among many that employs the trusty air shaft trick to navigate 007 in and out of peril.

      We find the network of tunnels that Mr. Bond (Sean Connery) uses to escape captivity a bit puzzling — he initially accesses them by breaking through a conveniently placed grate in his cell, yet suddenly water starts to pour in.

      We assume the first grate was for ventilation, connecting to other enigmatic tunnels.

      **Alien (1979)**

      20th Century Studios – Credit: C/O

      Similar to IT! The Terror From Beyond Space, the sci-fi classic Alien follows an expedition that comes under attack by an unknown entity. This film also features a horrifying air shaft segment.

      In one of Ridley Scott's most spine-chilling scenes, Dallas (Tom Skerritt), captain of the Nostromo, searches through the vents with only a flashlight and blowtorch.

      **Die Hard (1988)**

      20th Century Fox – Credit: C/O

      “Come out to the coast, we’ll get together, have a few laughs,” says John McClane (Bruce Willis) while navigating a narrow air shaft that saves him from falling down an elevator shaft.

      Notably, in this scene, the air shaft is not as convenient as it may seem — it certainly preserves McClane’s life, but it's also exceedingly cramped.

      “Now I know what a TV dinner feels like,” McClane humorously comments.

      **Sneakers (1992)**

      Universal – Credit: C/O

      Sneakers plays with the air shaft cliché — Carl (River Phoenix) maneuvers through an elevator shaft, ventilation ducts, and various crawlspaces to position himself perfectly to crash through ceiling tiles and thwart a villain at just the right moment.

      “That’s not easy, what I just did!” he proclaims.

      **Mission: Impossible (1996)**

      Paramount – Credit: C/O

      In one of the most thrilling sequences from any Mission: Impossible film — or any film for that matter — Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) is lowered from a ventilation shaft into a CIA computer room at Langley to steal the NOC list.

      Writers David Koepp and Robert Towne, along with director Brian DePalma, introduce various intriguing elements to the familiar ventilation shaft scenario, such as Cruise’s nerve-wracking descent, a rat, and the idea that the slightest temperature change — or even a drop of sweat — could jeopardize the mission.

      The ventilation shaft scene is later revisited in the latest Mission: Impossible film, Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning, revealing that the Langley break-in had significant consequences for a character.

      **Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999)**

      Lucasfilm – Credit: C/O

      When Qui-Gon Jinn and Obi-Wan Kenobi infiltrate the Trade Federation battleship Saak’ak, they swiftly evade a squad of battle droids and, unsurprisingly, head into the ventilation shaft.

      “Sir! They’ve gone up the ventilation shaft!” announces Neimoidian communications officer Tey How, giving rise to numerous memes and ridicule.

      No, that isn’t a depiction of a ventilation shaft. That’s Tey How just prior to the iconic line. We're trying to make it more engaging.

      **Toy Story 2 (1999)**

      Pixar – Credit: C/O

      HVAC professionals often complain about accuracy in ventilation shaft scenes, claiming a person wouldn’t realistically fit in one, or that it would collapse.

      Finally, one film gets it right: Buzz Lightyear and his crew of toys are perfectly sized to dart through the vents.

      It’s one of the most gripping moments in the Toy Story franchise, but it also humorously twists the air duct trope.

      **Not Another Teen Movie (2000)**

      Sony Pictures Releasing – Credit: C/O

      In a humorous take on the ventilation shaft trope, Not Another Teen Movie features a hilarious scene where two boys conveniently climb into one to spy on girls.

      Things don’t go as planned, resulting in one of the grossest scenes in an already quite outrageous film.

      Interestingly, the ventilation shaft scene in Not Another Teen Movie could be viewed as a tribute to the similar scene in The