World Trade Center in popular culture

Post-9/11

* On November 2, 2001, Citizen Toxie: The Toxic Avenger IV premiered in New York City. During the following months after September 11 nearly all movies made in New York had the towers removed either by editing the footage out or digitally removing them from the frame. Lloyd Kaufman relates, in his book Make Your Own Damn Movie, that he felt audiences would be able to see the Twin Towers in film without being distressed. The opening narration features the Twin Towers prominently and it is reported[who?] that the audience cheered.
* Released in September 2002, "Igby Goes Down" is also one of the last films to show the twin towers. Establishing shots with the towers in prominent view were removed intentionally, however, remaining in the final cut of the film are two brief, street-level shots from SoHo showing part of one tower in the background.
* In Spider-Man (2002), the towers receive a few discreet cameos throughout the movie. The film's original trailer showed a web spun by Spider-Man between the two towers and was withdrawn after the attacks, although the towers did appear briefly in Spider-man's eyes, and towards the end of the movie when he climbed up the American International Building.
* The 2002 Spike Lee film 25th Hour directly incorporates the ruins of the Twin Towers. The opening credits are shown over views of the Tribute in Light, and one scene takes place at the apartment of Frank Slaughtery, which overlooks the site.
* The end segments of the movie Vanilla Sky feature the Twin Towers still standing in the panoramic city background. This is plausible as the ending scene to this movie, it is revealed, is created from the lead character's memory. If he remembers the Twin Towers to still be standing, then they would still appear in the skyline.
* The first 9/11 dramatization, 2002's Stairwell: Trapped in the World Trade Center, showed a number of different shots of the towers. The footage was shot in 1999 and was originally going to be used in a movie about the 1993 bombing. The movie, titled Hellevator, was shelved after the September 11 attacks.