AVID:Bumpers in Popular Culture

Bumpers in Popular Culture

This page lists instances where company bumpers have been spoofed or referenced in other media.

All examples listed here should be well-known and notable, otherwise they may be removed from the page.

If you are unsure whether or not something is notable, please start a discussion on the talk page.

For instances of logos being spoofed in other media, click here.

For logos that parody other logos, click here.

Warning Screens

The Golden Girls (1985-92)

The primary plot of the season five episode "Clinton Avenue Memoirs" deals with Sophia (Estelle Getty) heading back to her old apartment in Brooklyn to recapture old memories after she's been diagnosed with memory loss. After Dorothy (Bea Arthur) and Blanche (Rue McClanahan) say they hate what this is doing to Sophia, Rose (Betty White) jokes "I hate watching those FBI warnings at the beginning of rental videos."

Amazon Women on the Moon (1987)

In the "Video Pirates" segment, a group of pirates who like to illegally bootleg VHS tapes (the leader is played by William Marshall) find a treasure trove of VHS tapes and laserdiscs. One of them puts one into a VCR, and it displays the original version of the 1977-2010 20th Century Fox FBI warning (strangely, it's the "video discs" variant of the warning; the image is also in black and white, though that may have been from the in-scene monitor). He then sarcastically says "Ooooh, I'm so scared!", and he and his crew break into laughter.

Spaceballs (1987)

Similar to the Amazon Women on the Moon example above, the 1979 Warner Home Video warning makes a cameo appearance during one scene. While trying to find the location of the movie's protagonists, one of Dark Helmet's (Rick Moranis) officers locates an "instant cassette" (a VHS released to stores while the movie is still in production) of Spaceballs. He pops it in, and when the tape begins, this warning is shown.

The Simpsons (1989-present)

In "Some Enchanted Evening", a yellow FBI warning can be seen while Lucille Botzcowski puts in a Happy Little Elves VHS.

In "The Bart Wants What It Wants", a white FBI warning can be seen at the beginning of an Itchy and Scratchy DVD.

The Simpsons Movie (2007, DVD & Blu-ray)

On the DVD and Blu-ray release of The Simpsons Movie, a parody warning screen from the Environmental Protection Agency could be seen immediately after the real FBI warning screen, explaining the organization's actual objective (as the organization is lampooned extensively in the film proper).

BlobbyVision (1994)

A warning screen plays after the 1991-1997 BBC Video logo where exaggerated warning text is typed out reading "Recording, copying, lending, unauthorised hiring, public showing, scratching, tickling, cuddling, ironing, microwaving, spin or tumble drying, toasting, writing on, sitting on, floating on, trying to surf to Florida on and watching of this video tape cassette is prohibited Sorry! 'Watching' is OK - just don't try anything." In the background is a Mr. Blobby doll that moves about when the text is typing out, in front of a pile of broken blank tapes and another Mr. Blobby figure tangled in tape, with everything under a pink tint. Mr. Blobby is also heard "reading" the text by saying "Blobby!" ad nauseum, before he just laughs at the end.

Men in Black (1997, 2000 and 2002 DVDs)

A spoof of the 1997 revision of the 1991-2000 Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment warning screen is used.

Futurama (1999-2003, 2008-13)

The Volume 3 DVD features a parody of 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment's warning screen, translated into an alien language (a translation guide for which is available on Volume 2).

Invader Zim (2001-2002)

The episode "FBI Warning of Doom" entirely revolves around an eponymous fake FBI warning (which Zim believes to be a real personal threat from the FBI).

De Schippers van de Kameleon (2003)

A parody of the 1995 BAF Video Warning is featured, but the text "beelddrager" is replaced by "boot".

Teen Titans Go! (2013- )

The episode "Kabooms" features a satirical warning screen, with the 1977 DC Comics logo replacing the "O" in "CAUTION".

Antrum: The Deadliest Film Ever Made (2018)

This Canadian horror mockumentary is centered around the fictional story of Antrum, a late 1970s horror film that has garnered a reputation as being cursed after several unfortunate incidents occur among those who have seen it. In keeping with the "cursed film" theme, a strict warning appears for a split-second on the film's official trailer.

Solar Opposites (2020-present)

The episode "A Very Solar Holiday Opposites Special" features a parody of the 1991-1997 Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment FBI warning screen.

Feature Presentation/Coming Attractions

Adult Swim (2001- )

On September 16, 2019, a spoof of the 1999 Buena Vista Home Entertainment Feature Presentation/Coming Soon IDs was posted on Adult Swim's official Twitter account, accompanied by the tweet "In the entertainment industry, consistency is everything."

The JonTron Show (2010-)

In the episode "How to Get REVENGE", the Walt Disney Home Video "Handwriting" bumper is parodied. It maintains the same music and visuals, but with added text and it all being wiped in rather than written, reading "Feature Halloween Presentation". During this, he says "And now, our Feature Halloween-themed Presentation... sort of."

Film Ratings

Sesame Street (1969- ) and its co-productions and dubs (1971- )

The recurring "Cookie's Crumby Pictures" segment is preceded by a parody of the MPAA "Green Band" trailer bumper, with Cookie Monster's hand slapping a fake rating onscreen; the rating varies depending on the sketch it precedes.
The trailer for the iOS app version of the Sesame Street Little Golden Book Another Monster at the End of This Book features another parody of the MPAA "Green Band" trailer bumper, stating that the app is rated "G for Grover" and that "some material may be highly educational for children under 5".

The Simpsons (1989-present)

In "A Test Before Trying", a MPAA green band trailer screen parody is shown at the beginning of the couch gag:

Harry Enfield's Television Programme (1990-1992)

The fourth episode in series 2 parodies the British Board of Film Classification video bumpers with Mike Smash (played by Harry Enfield) replacing Simon Bates, who the character was based on. The green background is lighter, and the 18 rating is on the left screen. Smash tells the viewers about the contents of 18 rated content, including sexual swear words. He lists some words before it cuts to the show's intro. It could be seen on the 1992 VHS Harry Enfield's Television Programme - The Best of Series One.

Sony Wonder Nickelodeon tapes (1993-1994)

At the end of some early Nickelodeon videos released by Sony Wonder, a parody of the MPAA trailer bumper is shown. The background is orange as opposed to green (referencing the then-current Nickelodeon logo), and "The following PREVIEW has been approved for all audiences" fades in, followed by the following satirical phrases:

Ren & Stimpy: "But you're gonna wanna have a kid in the room if you want to understand it."
Doug: "But let's face it, kids are gonna like it a lot more than old geezers."
Rugrats: "Even people who aren't toilet trained!"
Nick SNICKS Friendship: "Due to its strong Nickelodeon content, kid guidance is suggested"
Ren & Stimpy: The Stupidest Stories: "Du-uh. That means you"
Nick SNICKS The Family: "Except for Mrs. Marilyn Sultz of Buffalo, NY who doesn't have a sense of humor anyway"

GoldenEye 007 (1997)

The copyright screen for this Nintendo 64 video game, shown on start-up and after every demo mode, is patterned after the then-current British Board of Film Classification rating card, complete with a "4" rating symbol (indicating that up to four players are supported) that is modeled on the actual "12" and "15" rating symbols.

South Park (1997-)

Three episodes from Season 6 feature different parodies of the MPAA Green Band trailer bumper.

The New Terrance and Phillip Movie Trailer
Free Hat
The Biggest Douche in the Universe

SpongeBob SquarePants (1999- )

In "Don't Look Now", SpongeBob and Patrick go to see a horror movie called Fisherman 4: Attack of the Hook, which is preceded by a parody of the MPAA "Green Band" trailer bumper, stating that the movie is rated "S for Scary".

Family Guy (1999-)

Before a fictional trailer reel on Stewie Griffin: The Untold Story (a recut of the last three episodes of season four), another MPAA green band trailer parody is shown.

Loss Prevention... A Guest Services Approach (1999)

Towards the end of this Disney Store employee training video, another MPAA green band trailer screen parody is shown:

Futurama (1999-2003, 2008-13)

The Volume 3 DVD features parodies of MPAA bumpers from the era. After the commentary notice, a parody warning translated into an alien language (shown above under FBI Warnings) is shown. After the TCFHE logo, a different MPAA parody appears depending on the disc. The spoof rating on disc 4, "L-7," may also double as a possible reference to the name of rock group L7.

The Boondocks (2005-2014, 2021)

"...Or Die Trying" features a parody of the MPAA "Green Band" trailer bumper.

MJR Cinemas (2001-)

The 2001 opening has a parody of the MPA green band trailer card.

Robot Chicken (2005-)

In the episode "President Evil", five trailers open with a parody of the MPAA "Green Band" trailer bumper, complete with a modified MPAA logo and a parodied rating info box.

"1987" features the following three slides:

The Cinema Snob (2007-present)

In his review of Violent S***, the Snob seems baffled at the mention of "hire" in the warning screen that precedes the feature.
In his review of Fatal Games, he comments on the Media Home Entertainment warning screen being "the worst text crawl ever."
In his review of To Catch a Yeti, the 2005-08 Starz Comedy rating bumper is shown at one point. The Snob then questions why the movie is rated TV-PG, since he hates it so much he thinks nobody should watch it.
The reviews of Beyond the Darkness uses break bumpers from the short-lived Tequila & Bonetti (which Brad Jones reviewed in its entirety on another show of his, DVD-R Hell) to transition to and from commercial breaks.
In his review of 365 Days, the Snob cuts to a commercial break with a vintage Cinemax bumper.
The episode "1980 in Film" features several jokes about MPAA bands included before certain trailers.
- Don't Answer the Phone! is represented with a faded print of its trailer, which features a red band. The Snob jokes: "It's a purple band trailer, too, so it's Grimace approved!"
- A green band is shown before the Where the Buffalo Roam trailer, which has the Snob saying "We're getting another warning! It's rated R, but not purple band R!"
- Carny features a fake orange band, which the Snob jokes about as well: "I see there's still some clown makeup here in this orange band trailer!"
- The trailer for Herbie Goes Bananas is sourced from yet another faded print, leading to this joke about the orange tint of the usual green band: "And you'd think the prison scandal movie [Brubaker] would be the one this [June] to have a red band trailer!"
- Before the Prom Night trailer, the Snob references Herbie Goes Bananas again: "Oh, another red band trailer. What machine is Herbie gonna have sex with this time?"
- The Elephant Man, being a black and white movie, has this line: "What's this? A grey band trailer? There must be excessive use of the Depression era!"
In his review of Rock: It's Your Decision, 1980s CBN bumpers are used to transition to commercial breaks.

5 Second Films (2008-)

The short "This Film Is Not Yet Rated" depicts a guy (played by Michael Rousselet) humping the film rating info box on the rating screen, with each hump changing the rating from a "G", to "PG", to "PG-13", to "R", to "NC-17", to "X", and finally to "XX" before he gets shot in the head, whereupon the rating reverts back to "G".

Comedy Bang! Bang! (2012-2016)

The episode "Anna Kendrick Wears A Patterned Blouse & Burgundy Pants" features the following MPAA "Green Band" trailer parody:

The same parody reappears during "Amy Poehler Wears a Black Jacket & Grey Pants," except projected on a movie screen:

Loiter Squad (2012-2014)

An episode features a parody of the MPAA "White Stripe" R rating bumper.

Teen Titans Go! (2013- )

The episode "Kabooms" features a parody of the MPAA trailer bumper, but the background is pink and the text reads "THE NEXT TRAILER HAS BEEN CONSIDERED OKAY FOR SOME AUDIENCES BY THE DC COMICS MOTION PICTURE UNIVERSE".

Universal Kids (2017-)

A 2019 promo for Barney and Friends begins with a parody of the MPAA Green Band trailer, saying that the preview "has been approved for Barney Fans by the Universal Kids Committee", and that it was rated S for Stupendous, as it contains "Brief Scenes of Extreme Happiness and Positivity".

Super Bowl LVIII Halftime Show (2024)

The beginning of this halftime show starring Usher features a parody of the 2013 MPAA bumper: