In 1990, Sullivan's Travels was selected for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant."[14][15] In 2000, the American Film Institute listed the movie at No. 39 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Laughs.[16] In 2006, it was ranked No. 25 on AFI's 100 Years... 100 Cheers.[17] In 2007, it was ranked at No. 61 on the anniversary edition of their 100 Years...100 Movies.[18]
The Writers Guilds of America voted the screenplay for Sullivan's Travels as the 29th greatest ever written,[19] as well as the 35th funniest.[20] The movie's poster was ranked as No. 19 of "The 25 Best Movie Posters Ever" by Premiere. A 2010 special issue of Trains magazine ranked Sullivan's Travels 25th among the 100 greatest train movies.[21]
O Brother, Where Art Thou?, the fictional book that Sullivan wants to adapt for the screen, was used as the title of a film by the Coen brothers in 2000.
