California Institute of Technology - in Media and Popular Culture

In Media and Popular Culture

Caltech has appeared in several works of popular culture, both as itself and in disguised form. As with MIT, a Caltech reference is often used to establish a character's high level of intelligence or a technical background. For example, on television, the four male lead characters of the sitcom The Big Bang Theory are all employed at the Institute. Additionally, Hugh Jackmans' character from the movie Swordfish is a Caltech alum. Caltech is also the inspiration, and frequent film location, for the California Institute of Science of Numb3rs. On film, the Pacific Tech of The War of the Worlds and Real Genius is based on Caltech. In Blast From the Past the father (played by Christopher Walken) is a former Caltech professor. In Head of the Class, Arvid Engen follows in his father's footsteps and attends Caltech after graduating with honors from high school. In nonfiction, two 2007 documentaries examine aspects of Caltech; Curious, its researchers, and Quantum Hoops, its men's basketball team.

Given its Los Angeles-area location, the grounds of the Institute are often host to short scenes in movies and television. The Athenaeum dining club appears in the Beverly Hills Cop series, The X-Files, True Romance, and The West Wing. Other examples include Legally Blonde, The Wedding Planner, Greek, The O.C., Entourage and Mission Impossible. Caltech also appears in the motion picture Tron: Legacy, where the main character's father is an alumnus.