History Main / ThisIsWhatTheBuildingWillLookLike

* UsefulNotes/NapoleonBonaparte built ''two'' full-size monuments in honor of his Empire's achievements: the Elephant of the Bastille, and the Arc de Triomphe, constructed of plaster and wood, respectively. The Elephant was meant to be completed in bronze, from melted-down cannons that had been captured from enemy armies, but it was never finished, and eventually decayed and its remains were demolished. Subverted by the Arc de Triomphe, the construction of which was halted after Napleon's defeat at Waterloo, but was eventually finished in stone in 1836, during the reign of Louis-Philippe I.

* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' had Angelica trying to sneak away from her mom's boring business meeting so she could play with the scale model of the theme park her company was planning. Yes, she utterly wrecks the set, and it's one of the few times her usually very permissive parents actually disciplines her for it.

* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' had Angelica trying to sneak away from her mom's boring business meeting so she could play with the scale model of the theme park her company was planning. Yes, she utterly wrecks the set.

* Reflecting history, ''Film/{{Downfall}}'' has Hitler obsessing over a massive scale model of what he wanted to turn Berlin into (as opposed to the huge pile of bombed-out rubble it currently is).
* In ''Film/DieHard'', there's an architect's model of a bridge in Mr Takagi's office. The model mainly serves to establish Hans Gruber as WickedCultured: "Oh, that's beautiful! I always loved to make models when I was a boy. The exactness! [[TheChessmaster The attention to every conceivable detail!]] It's beautiful." The Director's Comments in ''Film/DieHard'' stated the bridge model was for a bridge Frank Lloyd Wright had designed but never built, and borrowed for the movie from the Wright estate as the director was a fan of the architect.

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[[folder:Videogames]]

* The model of Kuzcotopia in ''WesternAnimation/TheEmperorsNewGroove''.
* An episode of ''WesternAnimation/{{Rugrats}}'' had Angelica trying to sneak away from her mom's boring business meeting so she could play with the scale model of the theme park her company was planning. Yes, she utterly wrecks the set.

* In the ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb'' episode "Hail Doofania!", Doofenshmirtz makes a scale model (made of felt) of his floating city, Doofania. By the end of the episode, the city has sunk and only the model remains.

* ''WesternAnimation/GravityFalls'': In "Gideon Rises", after [[spoiler:stealing The Mystery Shack from Grunkle Stan]], Gideon Gleeful and his father Bud hold an event for the town to show off a model of what he plans to build in its place: "Gideonland", a theme park complete with rides, a giant robot statue of Gideon and a logo that’s a replica of the Ride/{{Disneyland}} logo.

[[folder:Comicbooks]]

[[folder:Films -- Live-Action]]
* In ''Film/{{Zoolander}}'', Mugatu unveils a model for the Derek Zoolander Center For Kids Who Can't Read Good (And Who Wanna Learn To Do Other Stuff Good Too). Derek Zoolander isn't impressed... [[ComicallyMissingThePoint because he doesn't realize it's a model]].
-->'''Zoolander:''' ''[incredulous]'' What is this? \\
''[Picks up the model and smashes it on the floor.]''\\
'''Zoolander:''' A center for ANTS?\\
'''Mugatu:''' What?\\
'''Zoolander:''' How can we be expected to teach children to learn how to read, ''if they can't even fit inside the building?''\\
'''Mugatu:''' Derek, it's just a small--\\
'''Zoolander:''' I don't wanna hear your excuses! The center has to be at least... ''three times'' bigger than this!\\
'''Mugatu:''' ''[to his PA, [[DeadpanSnarker completely deadpan]]]'' [[SureLetsGoWithThat ...He's absolutely right.]]
* ''Film/TheFlintstones'' used the exact same gag as above years earlier, which we're counting because we never see the completed pre-fab homes in the movie, just the machinery used to make them which creates a DeathCourse in the climactic scene.
--> '''Fred:''' I hate to bust your bubble, but if you build houses this small, who's gonna live in them?
* ''Film/{{Hook}}'' features a model of a new hospital, built thanks to Wendy.
* In ''Film/RoboCop1987'', the model of "Delta City", intended to replace the old Detroit, is displayed on several occasions. It shows up again in [[Film/RoboCop2 Part 2]] and [[Film/RoboCop3 Part 3]] (the above picture).

* Bisonopolis from the ''Film/StreetFighter'' movie. In the climactic battle, Zangief and E. Honda are fighting among it like a {{Kaiju}} film.
* ''Film/HerbieRidesAgain'' begins with a showing of a model of the future Hawk Plaza. After the reception, workers pull the model out, revealing a model of ''the one house not yet demolished'' underneath.
* A twisted take on the concept occurs in ''Film/OneCrazySummer''. Creator/BobcatGoldthwait, through a series of contrived coincidences, gets stuck in a Godzilla costume while spying on the Big Bad's business party where he is showing off his planned project to some Japanese investors. A cigar idly tossed away (still lit) ends up in the godzilla suit's mouth, Goldthwait goes berserk trying to get it out... and the Japanese investors are treated to the sight of Godzilla roaring and screeching, stomping the model flat. They find it hilarious, naturally.
* In ''Film/{{Darkman}}'', Louis Strack Jr shows a model of his new waterfront city development to Julie.

* ''Film/YouDontMessWithTheZohan'' has [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Walbridge's]] planned shopping mall [[MundaneMadeAwesome with a roller coaster.]] For added comedy there's also one of his hot supermodel girlfriend.
* The 1983 movie ''Film/GetCrazy'' follows this trope explicitly, as the corrupt music producer displays a model of his big sinister skyscraper to a meeting of big sinister investors. All that stands in his way of building it is the old-school music theater run by the good guys.
* Shows up in ''Film/IronMan2'' with the miniature Stark Expo model. Also becomes a plot point when it turns out that [[spoiler:the model is also a "blueprint" of sorts for synthesizing an element that can replace the potentially-toxic palladium currently used for arc reactors like the one keeping Tony alive]].
* Lampshaded in the first ''Film/AustinPowers'' when Number 2 shows Dr. Evil a collection of minututre models of companies they own including a factory that makes miniature models of factories
* The waterfront stadium plan in UsefulNotes/{{Vancouver}} -- er, [[CaliforniaDoubling San Francisco]]! -- in ''Film/RomeoMustDie''.
* Spoofed in ''Film/{{Freaked}}''. Evil freakshow owner Elijah C. Skuggs shows off a model of his facilities, then proposes that the [[EvilInc Everything Except Shoes Corporation]] upgrade it to 'Super Mega Freak World', which is represented a larger version of the same model.
* Reflecting history, ''Film/{{Downfall}}'' has Hitler obsessing over a massive scale model of what he wanted to turn Berlin into (as opposed to the huge pile of bombed-out rubble it currently is).
* ''Franchise/StarWars Episode II: Film/AttackOfTheClones'' features a miniature hologram of what is soon known as the Death Star. Doubles as an EasterEgg, since it uses the 'correct' model of the original Death Star, where the hologram in ''Film/ANewHope'' had the projector dish on the equator instead.

* In ''Film/NowYouSeeHimNowYouDont'', Dexter and Schuyler, after turning themselves invisible, discover that A.J. Arno plans to turn Medfield College into a gambling establishment, with a dog track replacing the football field, a casino in place of the library, etc.
* ''Film/HowToStealADog'': Soo-young has grand plans to bulldoze the family restaurant and build a big apartment tower and development on the land. He's frustrated by his aunt, who actually owns the restaurant and land, refusing to play along. He is given to staring at the model of the mixed-use complex he'd like to build.
* From ''Film/AntMan1,'' a model of the future Cross Technologies plaza is prominently featured in Darren Cross' presentations. When Scott shrinks and runs across it, the soundtrack references the ''Film/{{Zoolander}}'' example -- the track is titled, "A Center for Ants."
* In ''Film/TheSpyWhoLovedMe'', Stromberg shows James Bond a model for an underwater city, with Atlantis, his lair, as the main structure and numerous other domes nearby.
* ''Film/PoliceAcademy 6: City Under Siege'' featured high-profile crimes occurring along an old bus route which is later revealed to be the intended route of a new rail corridor, to be accompanied by massive development portrayed by a plan in the mayors office [[spoiler: it's all a plan to make this development happen cheaper by driving down property prices in the area - and the mayor is the major investor in the development...]]. When Captain Harris and Proctor attend a meeting with the mayor, of course Proctor tries to play with it.
* In ''Film/DieHard'', there's an architect's model of a bridge in Mr Takagi's office. The model mainly serves to establish Hans Gruber as WickedCultured: "Oh, that's beautiful! I always loved to make models when I was a boy. The exactness! [[TheChessmaster The attention to every conceivable detail!]] It's beautiful." The Director's Comments in ''Film/DieHard'' stated the bridge model was for a bridge Frank Lloyd Wright had designed but never built, and borrowed for the movie from the Wright estate as the director was a fan of the architect.
* In ''Film/ThisIsSpinalTap'', Ian is very impressed with the model for the band's Stonehenge prop...until he finds out that it actually ''is'' the prop, thanks to Nigel's diagram featuring the shorthand for inches rather than feet.
* ''Film/TheLastKingOfScotland''. What [[DepthDeception appears to be a building]] turns out to be a model being admired by Idi Amin.
* In ''Captain Nemo and the Underwater City'', Captain Nemo shows the rest of the protagonists that the amazing SteamPunk UnderwaterCity that they have been going ga-ga about through the whole film is just the ''first phase'' of a larger compound, with a model to give proper scale (the new city, already starting construction, is approximately twice as big).

* In ''Film/TheBorrowers1997'', Potter shows off a model of the apartment complex he intends to build in place of the Lenders' home.

* In ''[[Literature/JackelianSeries Secrets Of The Fire Sea]]'', the First Senator of Jago proudly displays scale models of his preposterously over-ambitious designs for new cities, port facilities, and civic buildings to visitors. It's implied that his underlings have these models created purely to suck up to and humor their boss, as Jago lacks the resources, the prosperity, and even the population size to permit even a tiny fraction of its crackpot leader's architectural imaginings to ever come to pass.

* In the ''Series/InspectorMorse'' episode "Twilight of the Gods", CorruptCorporateExecutive Andrew Baydon plans to endow a new college, and the model of it is on display. Everyone else at Oxford privately regards the design as hideous, and after Baydon is exposed as a war criminal the model is shown being thrown on the fire.

* All architects in ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'' build models. Occasionally models of dinosaurs that breathe fire.
** And, on one occasion, a model which evidently looked like a giant... [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything towering]]... tower.

* One of these shows up in the second series of ''Series/WaterlooRoad'' when [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Roger Aspinall]] intends to rebuild the school as the [[{{Egopolis}} Roger Aspinall Academy]]. His disaffected son later trashes it with a fire extinguisher.

* In ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'', Buffy Bot admires a model "City of the Future" at a science fair, but notes that she's never seen people that small.
* The ''Series/DoctorWho'' episode "Boom Town" begins with Margaret Blaine (really an evil alien) showing off the model of a new power plant to the press. She is planning on blowing up the planet and escaping in a Tribophysical waveform macro-kinetic extrapolator, which is hidden in the model power plant.
* In ''Series/GilmoreGirls,'' after Christopher starts paying for Rory's tuition, Emily and Richard decide to take the money they'd set aside for it and instead donate a building to the university in Rory's honor. She's mortified at the suggestion, and even more mortified when they show her the model of the "Rory Gilmore Planetarium," not in the least because, if it were to scale, her name would be at least a mile high.
* ''Series/{{Sandglass}}'': In episode 14 President Yoon the casino magnate leads his daughter Hye-rin into a room, and shows her his model: not just a model of the enormous casino he plans to build, but also a model of the rolling hills behind the casino where he says he'll build a family resort. This is the cue to begin Yoon's downfall, as the scene ends with Yoon being told that his enemy President Park (backed by Tae-soo) has taken a casino from him. In the scene after that Park tells Yoon that he'll never get the government permit to build the full-scale version of that model casino.
* ''Series/SpeerUndEr'': Speer gives Hitler a model demonstration of what his megalomaniacal architectural plans for Berlin will look like once finished.

* The unbuilt [[https://liverpoolmetrocathedral.org.uk/the-second-cathedral/ Liverpool Catholic Cathedral]], by the great Sir Edwin Lutyens.

* The unbuilt [[http://www.liverpoolmuseums.org.uk/conservation/departments/models/lutyens/gallery/views/graphics/assembled_model.jpg Liverpool Catholic Cathedral]], by the great Sir Edwin Lutyens.

* In the ''Series/InspectorMorse'' episode "Twilight of the Gods", CorruptCorporateExecutive Andrew Baydon plans to endow a new college, and the model of it is on display. Everyone else at Oxford privately regards the design as hideous, and after Baydon is murdered the model is shown being thrown on the fire.