What's your favorite fan theory and why?

That Jack Skellington is actually the spirit of Death. That’s why no one in Halloween town is more scary than he is but if you notice he’s not malicious about it. That also explains why Boogie is so jealous of him. Even though a child’s first fear is powerful the fear of Death itself trumps everything.
— Indignant_Latina

How I Met Your Mother: Barney wasn't nearly the womanizing jerk he appears to be; Ted, telling the story, is making him seem like more of an ass so his kids will be okay with Ted pursuing Robin.
— Johnson1940

gatsby calls nick old sport because he forgot his name and its too late to ask
— laineylerman

That Michael Scott on The Office is actually highly intelligent, but acts like an idiot both because it amuses him and because it allows the other Dunder-Mifflin employees to feel united in being annoyed/sometimes amused by him. There's little moments sprinkled throughout the show of Michael showing a strange level of intelligence, such as the Michael Scott Paper Company negotiation with David Wallace and when he gives Oscar the doll. It also explains him doing things that are in an extreme level of stupid, e.g. him driving a car into a lake. He's just genuinely amused at how stupid they believe him to be (Oscar's doll is also relevant here). And a big a reason that the Scranton branch is able to survive is because as different as all of the employees are, they bond together through dealing with Michael. I personally don't think this theory is true, but I do love thinking about it. Edit: added a word
— darkhumourveil

Courage the Cowardly dog. Everything happens through the eyes of poor, frightened Courage. All the strange people that he doesn't know showing up, he scares them off and saves his family... is actually him barking at random people walking down the street.
— Emma770

The entire Star Wars film saga completely revolves around R2-D2, who is not just a droid, but a high ranking rebellion super spy.
— ar3u5

J. Jonah Jameson knows that Peter Parker is Spider-Man. He's has enough experience in the press to know that the photographs Peter sends him were taken from angles and positions that would be impossible otherwise. However, he runs a smear campaign on Spider-Man as his way of keeping Peter from becoming complacent.
— Burritozi11a

That Bob Vance of Vance Refrigeration knew that since the documentary of The Office was being filmed and would be aired on television, that if he repeated the name of his business over and over while being filmed, it would garner his refrigeration company a ton of free advertising. I always thought this was pretty smart.
— Mogwai1313

That Leonardo DiCaprio's character uses the D.E.N.N.I.S system to win over the girl in Titanic. Favorite for obvious reasons.
— JauntyAngle

The aliens in Arrival were 3rd stage Guild Navigators from Dune. 1) they fold space time to travel space ships 2) the spice has mutated their bodies into floating sacs 3) in which they float and continually ingest more spice 4) expanded consciousness allows communication via telepathy 5) can see multiple possible timelines at once, and 6) they meddle with humans to achieve the Guild's future goals
— LabyrinthConvention

Star Wars is actually about R2 and 3PO witnessing the folly of man. They outlive everyone and are the only ones from episode I who are still alive. They are in Episodes I-VIII and RO in some way, but they never really drive the action or plot despite having some adventures. They've watched galactic governments fall, rise, and repeat, and they've seen good men turned evil by power and bad men turned good by love. Both always seem to be on the 'good' side, but R2 is always the optimist willing to be a bigger part in things while 3PO is always the pessimist who sees the worst in everything.
— exsanguinator1

I always liked the fan theory that Joker from The Dark Knight was a disillusioned veteran that suffered some form of PTSD due to a mix of whatever he had seen in the service and the callousness of the American public once he got out. It explains his tactical knowledge, proficiency with a lot of big guns, and ability to craft explosives. It also explains his line listing "a truck load of soldiers... blow up" as a horrible thing that everyone accepts. And, of course, you can love this fan theory or leave it because the Joker doesn't *have* an origin story.
— pm_me_n0Od

The Matrix is the sequel to the Terminator series after the machines have won. I like it because we assume we'd win, but in reality there's no such thing as plot armor.
— Biofreak42069

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