Well, it’s finally happening – six months after first announcing his plans to buy the social media juggernaut, Elon Musk has made his acquisition of Twitter official, with tweeters uniformly agreeing that this will no doubt spell doom for the site. Given that Twitter is the internet’s primary way of deconstructing pop culture these days, now seems like the right time to take a look at every movie and TV appearance Musk has ever made.
The following is less of a “what to watch” list and more of a “what not to watch” list as here are the films and episodes of popular TV shows that anyone suffering from Elon over-exposure (which is anyone who’s literally even heard of him) should seek to avoid at all costs. From The Simpsons to the MCU, from South Park to Rick & Morty, Musk has already invaded numerous of our favorite franchises, so I guess it only makes sense that he would take over Twitter, too.
Iron Man 2 (2010)
Musk’s first pop culture cameo remains possibly his most famous. In the MCU’s third-ever entry, the SpaceX founder shows up for a mercifully brief scene in which he converses with Tony Stark (Robert Downey Jr.) and Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) at a gala. He’s depicted as being an old acquaintance, possibly even friend, of the Avenger as Musk pitches Tony on the idea of an “electric jet,” although — brilliantly — Stark doesn’t seem all that interested.
Machete Kills (2013)
Musk’s thankfully minute role in Machete kills is actually one of his best cameos as it doesn’t feel like it’s only there to puff up his own ego but to further the gonzo nature of the action sequel itself. After Mel Gibson’s ubervillain Luther Voz (who was reportedly based on Musk himself) escapes into the stratosphere, Charlie Sheen’s president partners up with Musk to send Danny Trejo’s Machete into space. 10 years later, and we’re still waiting for the promised sci-fi threequel.
The Simpsons (2015)
The Simpsons has had endless fun over the years with skewering its celebrity guest stars, but in one of the absolute worst episodes of its later years, it sadly decided to go easy on Musk. In fact, we can only assume he made a big fat donation to the show as season 26’s “The Musk Who Fell to Earth” is entirely devoted to the guy, with he and Homer striking up an unlikely friendship after Elon crash lands his spacecraft in the Simpson’s backyard. Come on, guys, we all know he’s the real-life Hank Scorpio.
The Big Bang Theory/Young Sheldon (2015/17)
Considering its focus, it was probably inevitable that Musk would turn up on The Big Bang Theory at some point, and he did just that in season 9’s “The Platonic Permutation,” in which Howard (Simon Helberg) meets his idol when they both happen to be helping out a homeless shelter on Thanksgiving — because that’s something Elon totally does. Musk later returned — in a less glowing portrayal — for prequel series Young Sheldon, in a cutaway gag that reveals he only successfully created a landing rocket after stealing the pre-teen genius’ notebook.
South Park (2016)
Not many celebrities actually voice themselves on South Park due to the notorious animated show’s scalding sense of humor, and yet Musk counts among this small club as he turned up in no less than three episodes in 2016. Musk’s mini-arc on the series in its 20th season begins with him giving Cartman and the gang a tour of SpaceX before enlisting Heidi to help him create a new energy source that will allow him to go to Mars, although his plans are ultimately scuppered when it’s destroyed by Kyle.
Why Him? (2016)
In probably his most obscure pop culture appearance, Elon Musk shows up for a brief walk-on part in the 2016 comedy flick Why Him?, which stars Bryan Cranston as a father who doesn’t approve of his daughter marrying James Franco (I mean, who would?). The Tesla creator turns up when Cranston’s character just happens to bump into him at a bar. It’s an entirely pointless and gratuitous moment that adds precious few laughs to an already lackluster movie.
Men in Black: International (2019)
It’s a classic running joke in the Men in Black franchise that the latest hot-button celebrities around at the time of the latest movie’s release are outed as secret aliens being monitored by the MiB. In 2019’s failed relaunch Men in Black: International, the joke is reheated to reveal that Ariana Grande, Donald Glover, and Musk are extraterrestrials among us. This is one of Musk’s least offensive cameos as he’s only onscreen for a few short seconds.
Rick & Morty (2019)
Sorry Simpsons and South Park, but Musk’s greatest cameo in animated TV has to be his role in Rick & Morty. In season four’s “One Crew over the Crewcoo’s Morty,” the duo are putting together a crew for a heist so they enlist Elon Tusk — a Musk variant who has tusks — which he admits have made him more of a team player and open to collaborating with others than regular Musk. Honestly, we kind of wish Tusk was the one who existed in our universe. He might not insist on “helping humanity” by firing a total of 75% of Twitter staff.