How well do you remember Michael Bay's "The Island"?

By: Torrance Grey
Estimated Completion Time
5 min
How well do you remember Michael Bay's "The Island"?
Image: TMDB

About This Quiz

This 2005 film tantalized us with moral questions about cloning and biotechnology ... as well as thrilling us with Bay's signature high-speed chases and gun battles! Are you ready to go back to the Island? Find out with our quiz!
Who played the lead in "The Island," Lincoln Six Echo?
Orlando Bloom
Colin Farrell
Ewan McGregor
McGregor, of course, is well-known for his role in the middle trilogy of "Star Wars" films. He also anchored the quirky movie, "The Men Who Stare at Goats."
Tom Cruise
Who played Lincoln's best friend, Jordan Two Delta?
Bridget Fonda
Scarlett Johansson
Johansson puts her trademark lips-parted expression of puzzlement to good use as a clone discovering the real world for the first time. And she got to kiss Ewan McGregor, which can't have been tough work.
Reese Witherspoon
Shawnee Smith
Clones are not called "clones." What are they called instead?
gens
insurance policies
product
both #2 and #3
Around the facility, those in the know refer to them as "product." To the sponsors, though, they are called "insurance policies."

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What is the term for people who have clones made?
clients
originators
templates
sponsors
In the film, we see a group of sponsors being given a sales pitch. They are assured that their clones never achieve consciousness or suffer, which is not true.
Where is Lincoln, at the beginning of his bad dream?
on the Island
on a boat
Jordan is on the boat too, looking impossibly romantic in flowing white clothes. The dream turns into a nightmare when strange men pull Lincoln and Jordan overboard and try to drown them.
in his childhood home
in a prison
What color do all the clones wear?
black
dark blue
pale blue
white
Lincoln complains about this in an early scene. "It's impossible to keep clean!" he rants.

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Who played James "Mac" McCord, Lincoln's friend down in the engineering section?
Steve Buscemi
Buscemi was singled out by critics as a highlight of the film. He plays a "real" human who befriends Lincoln against the rules, sharing alcohol with him on breaks from work.
Jim Carrey
Jude Law
Kal Penn
The clones are told the outside world isn't safe to inhabit. What is the supposed reason?
contamination
What kind of "contamination" is never made clear. Nor is it explained how the fictitious "island" stayed exempt. But the clones aren't taught to question authority, so it works out.
excessive pollution in the air from fossil fuel
radiation from a nuclear war
radiation from holes in the ozone layer
What is the name of the scientist-CEO and his company?
Cain
Riddle
Merrick
Dr. Merrick wears all black, as a mad scientist should. He's also surprisingly hands-on with the clones, listening to Lincoln describe his nightmare and then performing his synaptic-scan implant himself.
Moreau

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Usually, clones "go to the Island" when their organs are needed. For what other reason do they go?
troublemaking clones are chosen to get them out of the way
they go when they are wanted as a sex partner for a wealthy person on the outside
they go when they are too old to be useful for organ transplants
women go when they have a baby
The two main reasons rich people need clones are for organ transplants or as surrogate mothers. The organ transplants aren't just for life-or-death reasons. They can include skin grafts for cosmetic reasons, like facelifts.
Who played Starkweather Two Delta, the NFL player's clone?
Michael Clarke Duncan
Michael Clarke Duncan died, sadly, in 2012, after suffering a heart attack. His girlfriend at the time was Omarosa Manigault-Stallworth, the outspoken and controversial reality TV star.
Djimon Hounsou
Chiwetel Ejiofor
Jamie Foxx
Where is Merrick Biotech's underground facility located?
Arizona
Except for its lack of personal freedoms, the facility is actually quite pleasant . It's clean and modern, with glowing lights, gyms and juice bars. If Deepak Chopra and Steve Jobs collaborated on a living facility, it'd look a lot like this.
California
Nevada
New Mexico

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What does Lincoln find inside the facility that makes him question whether the outside world is contaminated?
an oak leaf
a purple orchid
a flying insect
Lincoln traps what looks like a moth in an empty matchbox and carries it back to his room. We have to ask: since he isn't sure the outside world isn't contaminated, should he really be bringing the moth right into his own living quarters?
a copy of People magazine
When Lincoln and Jordan escape the facility, who helps them at first?
Sarah Jordan
Tom Lincoln
James McCord
McCord pays a high price for his assistance -- he's shot by mercenaries. But then he crashes through three shelves of liquor bottles, so maybe he was happy at the very end.
Jamil Starkweather
What does Jordan's sponsor, Sarah Jordan, do for a living?
she's an Olympic fencer
she's a tech entrepreneur
she's a model
The ad in which Jordan sees her own face is from a campaign Johansson did. Likewise, some of the photos of "Tom Lincoln" in his house are from McGregor's real life.
nothing -- she's an idle heiress

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What does Sarah Jordan need from her clone, and why?
a new liver, because of excessive drinking
a new heart, because of a fatal defect
new skin, so she can keep modeling
multiple organs, because she was in a car crash
A technician at Merrick later tells Jordan that they're going to take out both kidneys and her lungs. Jordan, of course, has other ideas.
How does Lincoln learn that the Island isn't real?
his nervous, smart friend Jones Two Echo figures it out, via a complicated equation
he witnesses the euthanization of Lima One Alpha
he witnesses Starkweather's attempt to escape from organ-harvest surgery
both #2 and #3
Lincoln goes wandering after a bad dream, ending up in the medical wing of the facility. Afterward, he rushes to save Jordan, who has just won the lottery and thinks she is going to the Island.
Where is Albert Laurent, the head mercenary, from?
Burkina Faso
The actor, Djimon Hounsou, is from Benin, not Burkina Faso. Laurent's nationality becomes relevant late in the film, when he shows Merrick a brand on his palm that resembles the one given to "product." It's a sign that he's about to switch sides.
France
Morocco
Nigeria

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Merrick says that the clones are educated to the level of what?
a twelve-year-old
a fifteen-year-old
The clones are presumably as smart as their individual sponsors. They know almost nothing about the outside world, however, which is a drawback for Lincoln and Jordan when they first escape.
a college freshman
a well-trained gun dog
Who, according to Merrick, has a $120 billion investment in his company?
the Defense Department
The connection between the DoD and Merrick isn't really made clear. Perhaps he's planning to grow perfect soldiers for the U.S. Military?
the NFL
Humana hospitals
the world's richest man
At what bar do Lincoln and Jordan track down Mac?
the Aces and Spades
The bar provides a lot of the movie's light-hearted material, as Lincoln and Jordan try and fail to fit in. When told Mac is "in the can," Lincoln says, amazed, "He's in a can?"
the Foxhole
the Your Place Lounge
the Sportsman

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What do Lincoln and Sarah see in the train station that enthralls them?
a bar
children
They'll see the photo and a video of Sarah a bit later, in LA. That will also be their first exposure to kissing, as Jordan and a male model do so in the video.
a couple kissing
a giant photograph of Sarah Jordan
What is different about the Amtrak trains of 2019?
they no longer serve alcohol onboard
they get places on time
they're free because of government subsidies
they're mag-lev trains
There's a good bit of mag-lev and "hover" tech in "The Island," much of it in L.A. This means we only have two years, roughly, to make this vision of the future real.
Jordan sees herself in an advertisement for which designer?
Calvin Klein
The advertisement is a real one that Johansson did for Calvin Klein. She has also modeled for L'Oreal and Louis Vuitton.
Norma Kamali
Donna Karan
it was a perfume ad, for Chanel No. 5

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How does Lincoln know where to find his sponsor, Tom Lincoln?
he sees an episode of MTV's "Cribs"
he gets the address from directory assistance
he sees the address when the police run "his" name through the computer
An LAPD officer runs Tom Lincoln's address after Lincoln asks them to do so. The police are pretty obliging toward a man they suspect of murder! (Lincoln has been framed for Mac's killing at the train station).
his genetic memories lead him to the house
What does Tom Lincoln do for a living?
he's a film director
he's a media magnate
he designs boats and motorcycles
We learn in the film that Lincoln has somehow absorbed his sponsor's memories. This allows him to jump on a hover-bike and master its controls within seconds. (Well, that and plot convenience!)
he's in alternative energy
Where does Sarah Jordan live?
Los Angeles
Miami
New York
Though she and Lincoln go to L.A., Jordan does try to call her sponsor. A little boy answers, telling Jordan that his mother is in the hospital. Which she is, because of the car crash.
Dallas

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Where is Tom Lincoln from?
Canada
England
Scotland
Lincoln learns to imitate Tom's Scottish accent right away, which Tom says "is creeping me out." Just wait, Tom -- soon your clone's gift for accents is going to be much worse luck.
Wales
What does Lincoln release onto the freeway, that causes a spectacular multi-car crash?
barrels of spring water
live sheep
PVC pipes
train wheels
For childlike beings who have never witnessed violence beyond virtual-reality sparring, Lincoln and Jordan both take to it really well. They wield guns, wrenches and nail guns in their fight for freedom.
What kind of car does Tom Lincoln drive?
a Cadillac
The Cadillac in question is a "Cien," Spanish for "100." The concept car was built especially to mark Cadillac's 100th anniversary and it was never mass-produced.
a Ferrari
a Porsche
a Bugatti Veyron

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When Tom realizes that Lincoln has never had sex, what does he say?
"You haven't missed much, pal."
"Then you don't mind if I hit that (Jordan)?"
"I'm not going to spoil the surprise."
Lincoln and Jordan do figure out sex, a short time later. Reportedly, Johansson was comfortable with nudity in the sex scene, but director Bay said no.
"You've lived in hell."
How does Lincoln get the mercenaries to shoot Tom instead of himself?
he threatens to sue if they don't kill his malfunctioning clone
he snaps the ID bracelet onto Tom's wrist
We're supposed to believe that, although the mercenaries are riveted to the spectacle of the two Tom Lincolns, one of them holding the other at gunpoint, nobody notices this maneuver on Lincoln's part. Okay, whatever!
he reveals personal details about Tom's life, which he knows through his genetic memories
he doesn't; he just ducks behind Tom at the right time
How does Lincoln get back into the Merrick facility?
Laurent, having switched sides, smuggles him in
he allows himself to be caught and returned
he pretends to be Tom Lincoln
It's Jordan who allows herself to be caught, by using Mack's flagged credit card to buy ice cream. She's playing on a swingset when Laurent comes for her.
he just goes back to the silo and slips inside

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What is it about Jordan that causes Laurent to switch sides?
her childlike nature
her beauty
her tears
the brand on her wrist
Laurent has a similar brand on his palm. He got it after his father was killed in a civil war. He tells Merrick it signified that he was "less than human," just as the clones are.
Whitman, Merrick's PR director, was played by Kim Coates. For what cable series is he better known?
Suits
Ray Donovan
Sons of Anarchy
Coates played the troubled "Tig" Trager on the show. Ron Perlman reportedly called him "pound for pound" the best actor he'd ever worked with.
True Blood
Why was there a lawsuit against the makers of "The Island"?
Johansson wasn't paid her share of the net profits
a cameraman was seriously injured while filming the train-wheels-crash scene
they were accused of plagiarizing 1979's "The Clonus Horror"
It's unsurprising that a copyright-infringement suit would arise from "The Island" -- clones being grown and harvested for organs is an idea that's inspired more than one writer. That might be why British writer Marshall Smith, unlike the director of "The Clonus Horror," didn't think it worthwhile to bring a suit.
they were accused of plagiarizing Michael Marshall Smith's novel, "Spares"

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You Got:
/36
TMDB