No bad Apples: iPhone-maker forbids villains from using its devices on screen

Knives Out
(Image credit: Lionsgate)

In a bombshell revelation that may very well spoil all 'whodunnit' films for you going forward, Knives Out director Rian Johnson has revealed that Apple won't allow villains to use iPhones in movies.

In a Knives Out scene breakdown video for Vanity Fair, Johnson revealed some fascinating information regarding Apple's policy when it comes to the use of its products in films – a policy which might make you pay closer attention to a character's choice of handset in all future mystery films.

"I don't know if I should say this or not" the director begins nervously, before stating that the following divulgence "is gonna screw me on the next mystery movie that I write, but forget it, I'll say it – it's very interesting."

“Apple, they let you use iPhones in movies,” says The Last Jedi director, “but – and this is very pivotal if you’re watching a mystery movie – bad guys cannot have iPhones on camera.” 

Johnson then goes on to joke that "every single filmmaker who has a bad guy in a movie that's supposed to be a secret wants to murder me right now!"

Good guys eat apples, bad guys eat oranges

Of course, this kind of practice is far from new – nearly 18 years ago, Wired famously noted that terrorists on the show 24 all used Windows PCs, while its heroes all used Macs. 

At the time, this was presumed to be an example of Apple simply being more aggressive in regards to product placement than its competitors. 

However, Johnson's comments have now explicitly brought the Cupertino company's policy out in the open, turning what was once a long-held theory into a verified fact – more or less.

Stephen Lambrechts
Senior Journalist, Phones and Entertainment

Stephen primarily covers phones and entertainment for TechRadar's Australian team, and has written professionally across the categories of tech, film, television and gaming in both print and online for over a decade. He's obsessed with smartphones, televisions, consoles and gaming PCs, and has a deep-seated desire to consume all forms of media at the highest quality possible. 


He's also likely to talk a person’s ear off at the mere mention of Android, cats, retro sneaker releases, travelling and physical media, such as vinyl and boutique Blu-ray releases. Right now, he's most excited about QD-OLED technology, The Batman and Hellblade 2: Senua's Saga.