The Day The Earth Stood Still - Legacy

Legacy

In 1995, The Day the Earth Stood Still was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant". The film also received recognition from the American Film Institute. In 2001, it was ranked number 82 on 100 Years…100 Thrills, a list of America's most heart-pounding films. It placed number 67 on a similar list 100 Years…100 Cheers, a list of America's most inspiring films. In June 2008, the American Film Institute revealed its "Ten top Ten" — the best ten films in ten "classic" American film genres — after polling over 1,500 people from the creative community. The Day the Earth Stood Still was acknowledged as the fifth best film in the science fiction genre. The film was also on the ballot for AFI's other lists including 100 Years…100 Movies, the tenth anniversary list, 100 Years…100 Heroes and Villains for Klaatu in the heroes category, 100 Years…100 Movie Quotes for the famous line "Gort! Klaatu barada nikto!", and AFI's 100 Years of Film Scores. In 2004, the film was selected by The New York Times as one of The Best 1000 Movies Ever Made.

Lou Cannon and Colin Powell believed the film inspired Ronald Reagan to discuss uniting against an alien invasion when meeting Mikhail Gorbachev in 1985. Two years later, Reagan told the United Nations, "I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from outside this world".