Noun
suspension of disbelief (usually uncountable, plural suspensions of disbelief)
People's acceptance, for the sake of appreciation of art (including literature and the like), of what they know to be a nonfactual premise of the work of art.
In science fiction films, suspension of disbelief is essential.
That willing suspension of disbelief for the moment, which constitutes poetic faith. Samuel Taylor Coleridge
It is now life and not art that requires the willing suspension of disbelief. Lionel Trilling
Sometimes I read a script and it's obvious from early on that it's one where the suspension of disbelief has to develop strongly from page one. Some are more reality-based. Gillian Anderson
The stage is suspension of disbelief. Film is a literal medium. Joseph Bologna
Every little thing that people know about you as a person impedes your ability to achieve that kind of terrific suspension of disbelief that happens when an audience goes with an actor and character he's playing. Edward Norton
For a found-footage-style movie, there's a definite advantage in using unknowns, because it helps sell the illusion that it's real. A known actor would get in the way of the suspension of disbelief. Oren Peli