Blockbuster Bids: 8 Movie Props That Sold for Millions

Most expensive movie props

Cheapism / forbidden planet (1956) by James Vaughan (CC BY-NC-SA) / Marilyn Monroe - Seven Year Itch by David Erickson (CC BY) / Amazon

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Most expensive movie props
Cheapism / forbidden planet (1956) by James Vaughan (CC BY-NC-SA) / Marilyn Monroe - Seven Year Itch by David Erickson (CC BY) / Amazon

Lights, Camera, Auction

There are collectors, and then there are collectors. A lot of the time, iconic movie props end up getting auctioned off, and as long as you’re a millionaire, they’re easy to acquire. Want Marilyn Monroe’s famous white dress? How about an actual R2-D2? Take a look at these eight notable movie props, each of which sold for more than a million bucks.

Sean Connery as James Bond
Bettmann / Getty

1. The Aston Martin From ’Goldfinger’ (1964) and ‘Thunderball’ (1965)

Sold for: $6.4 million


Despite the fact that this particular model, the DB5, never actually appeared in the movie (it was for advertising only), somebody still paid over six million bucks for it at a Sotheby's auction. 


Worth it? The gadgets all work, so, yes, absolutely. 

forbidden planet (1956)
forbidden planet (1956) by James Vaughan (CC BY-NC-SA)

2. Robby the Robot From ‘Forbidden Planet’ (1956)

Sold for: $5.4 million


Way back when Leslie Nielsen was a serious actor, "Forbidden Planet" was the most famous B-movie of its time. People still love this movie, clearly. Enough to pay over five million dollars for Robby the Robot, at least.

Marilyn Monroe - Seven Year Itch
Marilyn Monroe - Seven Year Itch by David Erickson (CC BY)

3. The Dress From ‘The Seven Year Itch’ (1955)

Sold for: $4.6 million


All you need to hear is "white dress" and you know exactly the one. Monroe's dress billowing up over the subway grate has to be one of the most memorable movie images in history, and for the low, low price of  $4.6 million, one lucky buyer was able to keep that history.


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Maltese Falcon
Amazon

4. The Maltese Falcon From ‘The Maltese Falcon’ (1941)

Sold for: $4 million


Vegas hotel mogul Steve Wynn paid this price, but that's not all. This iconic bird also came with a $585k buyer's premium. All in all, almost five milly. Wow.


Related: Iconic Movie Props That Went Missing

Casablanca
IMDB
the cowardly lion
the cowardly lion by James Vaughan (CC BY-NC-SA)

6. The Cowardly Lion Costume From ‘The Wizard of Oz’ (1939)

Sold for: $3 million


A collector laid down a whole lot of money for this costume, but seeing as it's from one of the most iconic movies in the history of cinema, I suppose that's reasonable. It would be irresistible not to try it on, though.

R2-D2
R2-D2 by Steven Miller (CC BY)

7. R2-D2 from ‘Star Wars’ (1977)

Sold for: $2.7 million


Who doesn’t want a little R2 around the house? I sure do. You could take him to the dog park and stuff. And when people tell you how real it looks, you can say simply, “it is.”

Saturday Night Fever
Amazon

8. The Dance Floor From ‘Saturday Night Fever’ (1977)

Sold for: $1.2 million


The light-up floor that once lived in an actual Brooklyn dance club is legendary, and it makes sense it would go for the price of an entire home. Stepping on this thing would make me feel majorly guilty.