Movements, manifest as changes in cell arrangements and shape, are an integral part of metazoan development. The molecular basis of such movements is only now being understood. Drosophila offers an excellent opportunity to apply powerful classical and modern molecular genetic methods to the analysis of movements during development. Moreover, the genes that contribute to pattern formation in fly development are under intense investigation. The future promises to illuminate how such genes regulate the structure and function of the membrane skeleton. This review is a progress report on our current understanding of the membrane skeleton in Drosophila.