What Are the Three Seashells? (Demolition Man’s Funniest Mystery Explained)
I do like watching old times 80, 90 era movies, somehow a diehard fan of that era, like Starship Troopers, Raiders of the Lost Ark, The Shining, etc. They are just cool and amazing period content.
Now, if you have ever watched the awesome sci-fi action movie “Demolition Man” from 1993, there is one bizarre scene that everybody remembers: the mysterious Three Seashells.
In the movie, Sylvester Stallone plays John Spartan, a police officer from the past, gets frozen and wakes up in the future, probably 2032, in a futuristic era. In this movie, when he needs to use the bathroom, he looks around completely confused. He could not find any normal toilet paper, but he spotted three seashells sitting on a shelf. The look on his face is priceless because he has NO IDEA how to use them, and honestly, neither do we.
It’s been more than 30 years since this movie hit theaters, and people are still scratching their heads and cracking jokes about this bathroom mystery. Let’s take a fun look at what these three seashells might be for, how someone might use them (if anyone even knows!), and why such a quick bathroom joke became such a huge deal in movie history.
Where Did the Three Seashells Come From?
The whole thing started with just a short, hilarious moment in the movie. John Spartan needs to use the bathroom in this fancy future world. But when he gets there – surprise! – instead of toilet paper, he finds these weird three seashells. His reaction is comedy gold: he’s totally confused and super embarrassed. Making it even funnier, another character walks by and laughs, “He doesn’t know how to use the three seashells!”
And that’s literally all we get! The movie NEVER explains how these mysterious bathroom shells actually work. That’s exactly why for the last three decades, fans have been asking the same burning question: “HOW ON EARTH do you use the three seashells?
If you’re looking to learn how are seashells created biologically, read this well researched blog.
How to Use the Three Seashells? (Wild Fan Theories!)
Since the filmmakers kept us in the dark, movie fans have gone crazy coming up with their own explanations over the years. Some theories are downright hilarious, while others actually try to make practical sense. Check out these popular guesses:
Theory 1
The “Grab and Scrape” Method – Use two seashells like tweezers or chopsticks to grab the waste (gross!), and then use the third shell as a scraper for final cleanup. This theory came from the movie’s writer, but even he was just joking around!
Theory 2
The “Secret Buttons” Theory – The seashells aren’t used directly – just fancy buttons that activate some super high-tech cleaning system. Maybe one controls water spray, another is for soap, and the third is for air drying? This seems less disgusting, at least!
Theory 3
The “Eternal Mystery” Theory – Some fans believe the whole three seashells thing was just meant to be a joke that keeps people guessing forever. Maybe the future people in the movie are laughing at us as much as they’re laughing at Stallone!
The truth? Nobody REALLY knows how those seashells work, and we probably never will! But asking “how do you use the three seashells in the bathroom?” has become such a famous movie question that it’s now a permanent part of internet culture and movie history.
Bit embarrassing—not the fact Sly just caught me using his toilet, or that I still have no idea how the three seashells work either…
No, the real embarrassment is that I forgot to even mention them about Demolition Man —the one thing most people remember about that film!
I mentioned above the weird theories of fans. But I’ve found four theories further about how they might work. Some are mundane, some surprisingly sensible, one is frankly terrifying—and I’ve even tracked down the origin of the idea. Let’s start there, since that’s the most logical place to begin.
The Origin
According to screenwriter Daniel Waters at a Q&A in 2014, while he refused to explain how the seashells actually worked, he did reveal where the idea came from:
“There’s a scene where Stallone has to use a restroom. I was trying to come up with futuristic things you’d find in there. I was having trouble, so I called my buddy—another screenwriter across town—and asked if he had any ideas. Ironically, the guy was taking a dump when he answered the phone, looked around, and said, ‘I have a bag of seashells on my toilet as decoration.’ I said, ‘Okay, I’ll make something out of that.’”
So, the idea came from a friend who’s apparently the kind of psychopath that answers his phone while on the toilet… and decorates his bathroom with seashells.
While that’s an amusing origin story, it doesn’t get us any closer to answering how they actually replace toilet paper, which is what they seem to do in the film.
So, I turned to the cast for answers.
Sandra Bullock’s Theory
Turns out both Sandra Bullock and Sly Stallone had their own theories.
First, Sandra Bullock told Josh Horowitz on the Gravity red carpet:
“Well, think of a bidet, right? There’s several processes. You have number one, you have number two, and then the cleanup.”
It’s a perfectly reasonable answer… just incredibly vague. It doesn’t really explain how the seashells work in any detail.
Sly Stallone’s Terrifying Theory
Desperate for more, I turned to Sly Stallone’s theory—and honestly, I wish I hadn’t.
In 2006, Stallone claimed that a screenwriter explained the seashells to him like this:
“…you hold two seashells like chopsticks, pull gently, and scrape what’s left with the third.”
Cue the collective clenching of every butt in the room. Here’s a helpful infographic (not really)—because I don’t know about you, but the idea of scraping and plucking dingleberries off with seashells is not the future I signed up for.
And don’t even get me started on the plumbing logistics. Seashells in sewage systems? Some countries can’t even handle toilet paper! Also, are there even enough seashells on Earth for 8 billion people to use three per poop?After ruling out the painful and the vague, I found a theory on Reddit that actually makes a bit of sense.
Reddit user u/Silverlil posted this theory on the Fan Theories subreddit nine years ago:
“The three seashells are actually buttons. The first washes your behind with a water jet, the second dries it with air, and the third adds talcum powder or some deodorizer. They’re just seashell-shaped buttons—you don’t actually pick them up.”
That makes a lot of sense! It fits with the aesthetic, aligns with Sandra Bullock’s bidet logic, and solves the hygiene and plumbing problems. The only issue? The movie props don’t really look like buttons. There’s no visible mechanism for pressing them.
People are making 3 seashells demolition man memes and making fun, some of them are sharing below.
SECOND Funny Tip.
3rd Helarious Suggestion.
4th last method.
How Do the Three Seashells Work? (According to Super-Creative Fans)
Some mega-fans have come up with even MORE detailed explanations for these mysterious bathroom shells! Many think they’re part of some awesome futuristic toilet system that would blow our minds today. Maybe they control different water jets, like a super-advanced bidet that cleans you from every angle! Others guess they might be voice command buttons that call cleaning robots to do the dirty work!
The internet really ran wild with this joke! Some creative fans even made fake instruction manuals with step-by-step drawings showing exactly how the shells might work (don’t worry, these were just cartoons meant to make you laugh, nothing gross or real). These fake guides spread all over the internet and became almost as famous as the movie scene itself!
If you’re curious and search for “3 seashells instructions” online, you’ll find TONS of hilarious diagrams, videos, and made-up explanations from creative fans around the world. They’re super funny to look through, but remember – none of them are official or real! The movie makers deliberately left it as one of cinema’s funniest unsolved mysteries.
The Three Seashells Meme Explosion!
Because it’s so wonderfully confusing and ridiculously silly, the three seashells meme absolutely BLEW UP online! It’s become one of those perfect inside jokes that movie fans can’t get enough of. People are constantly creating new jokes, hilarious pictures, and animated three shells demolition man GIFs showing Stallone’s confused face or making up wild new explanations for how the shells work.
On popular websites like Reddit, fans are OBSESSED with this mystery. You’ll regularly find trending posts with titles like Demolition Man’s Writer Explains How the Three Seashells Came To Be?” or “Has ANYONE figured out the three seashells yet?!” People are laughing about how this tiny movie joke has survived for decades, like on Reddit sub reddit r/movies, a redditor MINKIN2, comments :
“Apparently, this is a story that’s been out there before but we hadn’t heard it and figured you all might be interested too. Basically, Waters couldn’t think of something futuristic in the bathroom, called his friend and fellow writer Larry Karaszewski (Ed Wood, The People vs. Larry Flynt) who happened to be in the bathroom at the moment. He looked around, saw some seashells as part of a potpourri set, and mentioned it to Waters. The rest is history.”
Another PORKPIE1028 replies Eh, my trope is that they are just buttons for a bidet. Water spray, air dry, and an oscillator.
Depix a redditor says It’s actually a perfect piece of sci-fi. Most sci-fi ideas are based around things we already have. We might not be able to make it in reality, but the concept makes sense. The reality is that there is more than likely something that will be invented in the future that people today will be confused by and not be able to make sense of without help.
The best part? Even today, three decades after the movie came out, brand new three seashells gifs and memes keep popping up whenever people talk about futuristic bathrooms, weird movie mysteries, or moments when technology makes absolutely no sense. It’s become the perfect shorthand for “I have NO IDEA how this works!” in online conversations.
What’s the REAL Meaning Behind the Three Seashells?
So was there some deep, hidden meaning behind this bizarre bathroom setup? Maybe!
Some movie buffs think it’s actually a clever joke about the future – a hilarious way of showing that even something super basic like going to the bathroom will somehow become needlessly complicated in the years ahead. It perfectly captures how “advanced” doesn’t always mean “better”!
Other film experts see it as brilliant commentary on how the movie portrays a future world that’s become way too sanitized, overly clean, and just plain weird. The three seashells represent everything that’s become alien and strange about this “perfect” future society.
But if we’re being totally honest? The most likely explanation is much simpler: the writers just wanted to make people laugh! They came up with something completely ridiculous that would confuse both Stallone’s character AND the audience, creating one of the funniest moments in the entire film. Sometimes the best jokes are the ones that leave you scratching your head and still giggling decades later!
Why the Three Seashells Still Matter After 30 Years?
Demolition Man hit theaters way back in 1993, but the three seashells scene continues to live on in pop culture legend today. So what makes this 10-second bathroom joke so special after all this time?
It’s the perfect combination of being absolutely funny, completely weird, and 100% totally unforgettable. The scene works on so many levels – it’s hilarious watching tough-guy Stallone completely baffled by bathroom equipment, it’s relatable because we’ve all been confused by new technology, and it’s genius because it leaves us hanging without an explanation!
This tiny moment has officially earned its place as one of the greatest movie jokes of all time – one that people simply CANNOT stop thinking about decades later. Just look at how popular these search terms still are on Google:
- demolition man three seashells (thousands of searches every month!)
- three seashells meaning (people are still trying to figure it out!)
- three seashells quote (“He doesn’t know how to use the three seashells!” lives on!)
That’s the true magic of the three seashells – a 30-second scene from a movie made 30 YEARS ago still has people laughing, debating, and scratching their heads in 2023. Not many movie jokes have that kind of staying power! In the end, the three seashells aren’t just bathroom items from a sci-fi future – they’re proof that sometimes the best comedy comes from the questions that never get answered!
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My Own (Boring) Theory
Of course, I have my own very boring theory too.
I suspect… there is no actual explanation. It was just a throwaway joke to highlight how out of place and time John Spartan is. Writers often include weird future tech without having to explain how it works—just that it looks futuristic.
And that’s exactly what happened here.
But if I had to pick a “most plausible” theory, the Reddit one still wins hands-down—even if the props don’t fully support it.
If you love seashells, these blogs are simple and answer all your burning questions.
- These 6 Free Shell Identification Apps Helped Me Identify 90% of Rare Shells
- Top 5 Shelling Bags for Beachcombers – Expert Recommended
- The Ultimate Seashell Identification Guide: Easy Tips for New Collectors
- How to Identify Different Types of Seashells (A Beachcomber’s Complete Guide)
- Top 5 Seashell Identification Apps Recommended By A Marine Biologist
FAQs
Conclusion: Will We Ever Know the Truth?
So, how to use the three seashells? The truth is… we may never know!
But that’s what makes it fun. The mystery is part of the joke. Whether you love the movie or just found the meme online, the Three Seashells will always be one of the funniest bathroom mysteries ever made.
What do you think the seashells were for?
Let us know your funniest theory in the comments!