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Although a plumbing disaster in your own home is anything but funny, on-screen depictions of overflowing toilets, suds-filled floors, and uncontrollable faucets never fail to get a laugh. From Lucy and Ethel fighting over a broken washing machine to Uncle Eddie emptying the RV toilet on Christmas morning, plumbing gags have entertained audiences for decades. Here are five of the most hilarious and memorable plumbing mishaps from the big screen.
1. Ernest Goes to School (1994)
In the sixth installment of the “Ernest” series, Jim Varney’s iconic character works as a school janitor trying to earn a diploma. He demonstrates how to fix a leaking faucet by covering it with duct tape, which leads to the pipes backing up and the faucet blowing off the wall. This scene showcases the physical comedy that Varney is famous for as Ernest fights back a rushing tide of water in the locker room.
2. Bridesmaids (2011)
The plumbing mishap in this gal pal comedy is a lack of available facilities in a bridal shop. The bridesmaids and bride-to-be suffer from severe food poisoning while shopping for dresses. When they rush to the bathroom only to be met with a single toilet, the ladies must improvise. What follows is a hilarious scene that involves one bridesmaid letting everything go in the sink while two others vomit on each other and the bride doesn’t quite make it during a dash to a bathroom across the street.
3. Along Came Polly (2004)
In an iconic scene from this romantic comedy, Reuben (Ben Stiller) experiences a bout of irritable bowel syndrome and a lack of toilet paper while on a date with his former classmate, Polly (Jennifer Aniston). He panics and uses an embroidered towel, which he then flushes down the toilet, clogging it. Polly walks in on him with his pants around his ankles desperately trying to unclog the overflowing toilet with a loofah. If only he had some plumbing supplies on hand.
4. The Money Pit (1986)
This classic comedy about a couple trying to renovate a hopeless house combines an electrical disaster with a plumbing mishap. New homeowner Walter (Tom Hanks) flips a switch in the kitchen that unexpectedly sets off a series of electrical fires that take out a blender and a television set before launching a turkey out of the oven. After putting out the fires, Walter goes upstairs to take a relaxing bath only for the tub to fall through the floor under the weight of two buckets of water.
5. Dumb and Dumber (1994)
After unknowingly drinking coffee spiked with laxatives by his friend Lloyd (Jim Carrey), Harry (Jeff Daniels) runs for the bathroom at the home of his crush, Mary Swanson (Lauren Holly). Harry answers the call of nature and is subsequently informed that the toilet doesn’t flush. While he attempts to remedy the situation by picking up the toilet and dumping it out the window, Lloyd takes advantage of the opportunity to make a move on Mary.
No matter what type of plumbing mishaps you face, it’s safe to say it’s funnier on the screen than it is in real life.
