Original artwork, not a still
I have come here to chew bubblegum and kick ass, and I'm all out of bubblegum.
— They Live · 1988
Behind the line
What it means
Our interpretation.
It is the perfect action-hero boast: funny because it sounds like a wrestler's promo, and sharp because it is said in a film about a society sold obedience. Nada is out of bubblegum because he has run out of patience as well as of anything else the world had to offer. It remains the first thing people quote from the film, and the template for countless 'out of X' variations.
Context reviewed
In context
Spoilers for They LiveShow the scene
In John Carpenter's They Live (1988), the drifter Nada has put on a pair of sunglasses that reveal the aliens posing as the wealthy and powerful, and the commands hidden in every advert. After an encounter with two alien police officers at a supermarket, he takes their guns and walks into a Los Angeles bank, where he can see that the customers and staff are aliens. He announces himself with this line and opens fire. Wikipedia calls it the film's most famous line and says Roddy Piper improvised it on set.
Sources (2)
- Wikipedia: They LivePlotReference checked
- Springfield! Springfield!: They Live transcripttranscriptReference checked
Context reviewed