History Main / ChekhovsHobby

** ''Film/JurassicParkIII'': Combined with another ChekhovsGun, Billy mentions he has experience with base jumping as he starts to pack up the parachute they found.

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* In ''Film/IndependenceDay'' they made mention that the President was a fighter pilot during the Gulf War. In the climax, he decided against reason and took control of an aircraft in their LastStand.

** In ''Film/JurassicPark'', Alex insists she isn't a computer-nerd, preferring to call herself a hacker. Later in the film, she is the only one not fighting dinosaurs to work the park's security system that is run by computers.

** Combined with another ChekhovsGun, Billy from ''Film/JurassicParkIII'' mentions he has experience with base jumping as he starts to pack up the parachute they found.

* ''Film/IndianaJonesAndTheKingdomOfTheCrystalSkull'' had Mutt mention that he took fencing classes and was rather proficient at it. He later has a sword fight with Irina Spalko.

* In an early scene in ''Film/LethalWeapon2'', Riggs bets another cop that he can escape from a straightjacket in under five minutes. After he wins the bet, he explains that the reason he can do that is because of an accident years ago where he dislocated his shoulder, enabling him to dislocate it purposely to slip out of such a restraint. This talent naturally comes in ''very'' useful much later when his life depends on escaping from a straightjacket when the villain tries to drown him while restraining him with one.
* In ''Film/IndependenceDay'' they made mention that the President was a fighter pilot during the Gulf War. In the climax, he decided against reason and took control of an aircraft in their LastStand. "I'm a pilot. I belong up in the air."
* ''[[Film/ANewHope Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope]]''
** FarmBoy Luke Skywalker is actually a [[AcePilot hot-shot bush pilot]] who used to bullseye womprats with his T-16 back home. Surely the wacky adventures Luke must have had while growing up on Tatooine had much to do with flying a military space fighter at extremely high speeds in a tunnel while evading fire from the most skilled pilots of the galactic [[TheEmpire empire.]]
** Luke also mentions that the Death Star run will be "Just like Beggar's Canyon back home", meaning he already has some experience with flying in confined spaces (though in an atmosphere, not space). The [[OldSchoolDogfight problem]] with this is described in [[http://irregularwebcomic.net/573.html this]] Webcomic/IrregularWebcomic. "Luke, you dweeb! You can't manoeuvre like that! There's no air out there!"
* In ''Film/AngelsAndDemons'', [=McKenna=] (the priest) mentions that he knows how to fly helicopters. Guess what happens later in the movie? He volunteers for a suicide mission to take a ticking bomb up in the air so it couldn't hurt anyone when the job could only be done by flying a helicopter (there was another pilot there but it wasn't his heroic moment).

* ''Film/{{Grindhouse}}'':
** Creator/ZoeBell's ability to always land on her feet in ''Film/DeathProof''. It is mentioned in a funny way when the girls talk, but when attacked by the BigBad, it becomes very important.
** In ''Film/PlanetTerror'', Cherry literally catalogues her "useless skills", most of which involve her ability to bend and flex as a dancer. Damned if they don't come in handy at the end of the picture though.
--->'''Dakota Block:''' You know, my girlfriend had a theory. She said at some point in your life, you find a use for every useless talent you ever had. It's like connecting the dots.
* In ''Film/MorningGlory'', Creator/HarrisonFord's character demonstrates the correct method of cooking a frittata, something he's perfected after many years. When he sets up an impromptu cooking segment in a last-ditch effort to keep his producer from jumping ship, he's of course frying up the perfect frittata.
* ''Film/TheGraduate'': It's mentioned at his graduation party that Ben was captain of the track team in college. Golly, I wonder if he'll have to do some running later...
* While in the cooler, Hilts tells Ives that he rode motorcycles a lot at county fairs in ''Film/TheGreatEscape.'' This dialogue sets up the movie's most famous action scenes.
* In ''Film/TheLastBoyScout'', Jimmy Dix mentions offhand that he's started riding horses and gotten quite good. At the film's climax, he saves the day by [[ItMakesSenseInContext throwing a football on horseback]].
* In ''Film/TheHungerGames'' Peeta's icing (like the original book below).
* In the film adaptation of ''Film/{{Madeline}}'', Pepito just loves to spend his free time riding his motorcycle throughout his parent's yard or playing pranks on everyone, much to the irritation of the titular character. Both of his hobbies later help the girls out: first by setting firecrackers off to scare potential buyers of their boarding school, then later, to [[spoiler: steal a motorcycle from kidnappers and escape into the country]].
* In ''Film/TheShawshankRedemption'', Andy's mentioned knowledge of geology helped him breaking out through the prison wall.
* In ''Film/NationalTreasure'', treasure hunter Ben Gates has diving skills. When the FBI rattle off his personal history, it's mentioned that he is an ROTC graduate and certified diver in the Navy Reserve. He also mentions in passing that his watch is a very expensive diving watch when he uses it as security to borrow a 100-dollar bill. Both of these are blink-and-you'll-miss-it, but together, they beautifully explain how a treasure hunter can jump off a bridge in a technically correct way. In RealLife, many treasure hunters are trained divers, since salvaging wrecks is the most common way of finding treasure.
* ''Film/{{Psycho}}'' establishes that Norman Bates is an amateur taxidermist--there are stuffed birds in the hotel office. Then in the end, we meet Mother.
* ''Film/MurderMystery'' reveals that Nick studied Latin in high school instead of a more commonly used language. Two scenes later, he uses that Latin to talk to someone who doesn't speak English.
* On the beginning of ''Film/{{CastAway}}'', one of the things that Chuck did in his spare time is sail, which comes in pretty handily later on. The only reason he didn't try leaving the island in the four year time-jump is the coral reef that kept the ocean waves from the beach also blocked any boat that he could have used.

-->'''Dakota Block:''' You know, my girlfriend had a theory. She said at some point in your life, you find a use for every useless talent you ever had. It's like connecting the dots.

---> '''Commander Badass:''' [[LampshadeHanging Can I just say it's pretty great havin' a human Swiss Army Knife 'f abandoned hobbies around?]]

* It was established in the first ''Film/{{Transformers}}'' movie that Mikaela had a criminal record for helping her dad steal cars. In the climax, she demonstrated the knowledge of how to hotwire a tow truck when Bumblebee was injured. Interestingly enough, this turns into a ChekhovsSkill in the sequel, where she has to hotwire another vehicle in a hurry.

* In the 2005 film of ''WesternAnimation/TheMagicRoundabout'', when the gang stops in a cave for camp for the night, Ermintrude thinks that people would flock for an open-air Verdi festival and even does some opera singing to accommodate that. However, her high note is so loud that it causes icicles to fall and almost impale Brian, but one gigantic icicle crushes Dougal's bag of gobstoppers. Towards the climax, when Zeebad tries to zap Dylan, but he zaps Ermintrude's tail, causing her to scream in pain, resulting in a crack on the frozen carousel to form, giving Dougal an idea on how to free the children who are trapped in there. Dougal tells Ermintrude to sing; she does so and when she reaches the high note, most of the ice on the frozen carousel breaks apart.

* In ''LightNovel/TheSaintsMagicPowerIsOmnipotent'', protagonist Sei is transferred to another world and finds herself lost and without anything to do until she stumbles onto an herb garden being used for magical potion research. It's never shown beforehand but she mentions that she has extensive knowledge and experience using herbs on earth, for things like cooking, making cosmetics, and herbal medicine. Combined with her magic, she creates borderline miraculous products, like an eye-bag cream that accidentally corrects her vision, too.

For example, before going on the adventure the PluckyComicRelief apologizes for being late because he had to help his sister who locked herself out of their car. Later, when everyone is detained and bound by shackles, this guy gets a hairpin from TheChick and manages to free himself and the others. It was mentioned he had the talent, but it isn't until now that we see him use it. If we actually saw him unlocking his sister's car, then it would be a ChekhovsSkill.

* In ''Literature/AlternateRoutes'' by Creator/TimPowers, it's a recurring thing that the protagonist and his late wife used to go hang-gliding together, which is shown in a few flashbacks. It's mentioned once near the beginning, and never shown, that he made the hang-gliders himself. The climax of the novel involves him having to build a hang-glider out of improvised materials and with improvised tools in order to escape from the place where he's trapped.

* In ''Alternate Routes'' by Creator/TimPowers, it's a recurring thing that the protagonist and his late wife used to go hang-gliding together, which is shown in a few flashbacks. It's mentioned once near the beginning, and never shown, that he made the hang-gliders himself. The climax of the novel involves him having to build a hang-glider out of improvised materials and with improvised tools in order to escape from the place where he's trapped.

* WesternAnimation/{{Barbie}}:

* In ''Film/NationalTreasure'', treasure hunter Ben Gates has diving skills. When the FBI rattle of his personal history, it's mentioned that he is an ROTC graduate and certified diver in the Navy Reserve. He also mentions in passing that his watch is a very expensive diving watch when he uses it as security to borrow a 100-dollar bill. Both of these are blink-and-you'll-miss-it, but together, they beautifully explain how a treasure hunter can jump off a bridge in a technically correct way. In RealLife, many treasure hunters are trained divers, since salvaging wrecks is the most common way of finding treasure.

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* This is a common thing in 'Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'', where someone will have what is at first just some quirk that later becomes important, such as Eddie's pick-pocketing skills in ''A Night in Terror Tower''.