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Spoiler warning: This article contains Scream spoilers.
The new Scream packs extensive franchise history into a film dedicated to Wes Craven‘s memory. That history doesn’t just shape the story; it offers fans a slew of references, Scream Easter eggs, and even fun surprise cameos to track, from Skeet Ulrich to a slew of franchise alumni lending their voices in a toast.
Some of the Scream Easter eggs and references are obvious, but even the most devout and eagle-eyed viewer will have a Herculean task spotting them all.
Bloody Disgusting chatted with directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin & Tyler Gillett and executive producer Chad Villella about the Scream Easter eggs, deep cut nods and other references that you likely missed, helping you prepare for your next re-watch.
A Nightmare on Elm Street Easter Eggs
Let’s start with an easy one; the ways the filmmakers pay tribute to A Nightmare on Elm Street. The opening scene at Tara Carpenter’s house bears a strong resemblance to the iconic house at 1428 Elm Street. Is this intentional?
Bettinelli-Olpin reveals, “That was just serendipitous that we saw that house, which had Elm Street written all over it. But the actual Elm Street Easter egg is that Tara says that Sidney lived on Elm in the real world of Woodsboro. Because that was in the original [1996] script; Sidney lived at 34 Elm Street, which was one of Kevin Williamson’s nods that got cut for time. So, we’ve now brought it back to life in this one. Then you see the Elm Street sign when they drive into town. That’s Sidney’s block.”
Also, keep an eye on Kyle Gallner’s character Vince. His tattoos hold specific significance. Gillett shares, “The tattoo on Vince’s knuckles is the Elm Street house. It’s 1428.”
Freddy Krueger even inspires a direct Easter egg.
Gillet explains, “At the end, when Amber (Mikey Madison) runs out all burned to a crisp, our amazing special effects makeup team designed the side of her head to look exactly like Freddy Krueger’s ear. Talk about deep, deep love and fandom; the makeup effects team was also responsible for all the tattoos on Vince. I mean, everyone did a very painstaking job with all of that.”
Special makeup effects department head and FX artist Rick Pour recently gave a closer look at the burn makeup on Instagram.
Wes Craven Horror Movie and Character Easter Eggs
One of the more obvious Easter eggs is on the theater marquee on the mantle behind Mindy Meeks at the Meeks household, including The People Under the Stairs, The Last House on the Left, and The Hills Have Eyes. All three, of course, are Wes Craven movies.
Brandon Adams in ‘The People Under the Stairs’
Not so easy to spot are the character names hidden in plain sight on Sheriff Judy Hicks’ phone. Bettinelli-Olpin breaks it down, “The character names in Judy’s phones are Leroy, from The People Under the Stairs. Nancy T., who is Heather Langenkamp’s character in Elm Street. Tina G., who is Amanda Wyss’s character in Elm Street. Then B. Adams, which is Brandon Adams, who played Fool in The People Under the Stairs. We didn’t want to write Fool, so we put the actor’s name.”
The People Under the Stairs Easter eggs don’t end there either. The People Under the Stairs VHS appears in that pivotal exposition scene at the Meeks house, “behind Mindy, and it’s behind Randy. It’s also behind Mindy when she’s getting stabbed because we weren’t sure where it would get in the movie. So, it’s in two places,” Bettinelli-Olpin explains.
The Wes Craven Easter Eggs
The “For Wes” party, toast, and balloons that herald in Scream‘s third act are one overt nod to the horror master, but the filmmakers even paid tribute to Craven’s avid love of birdwatching.
Look for bird art in the foyer and behind the TV in the Macher house. But also listen for the sound of a whippoorwill bird at the end of “For Wes.”
Wes Craven. Photo: Chris Buck/AUGUST
Bettinelli-Olpin credits this to their sound supervisor finding an older interview with Wes Craven. He explained, “He had an interview where he talked about how whippoorwills remind him of being a kid in Ohio. So, we put it over the for Wes at the end there.”
Wes Hicks (Dylan Minnette) is also a walking reference to Wes Craven. His name is the obvious spot, but pay attention to his phone number. His phone number includes 1939, Craven’s birth year.
Even everything on the YouTube page that appears in the film is an Easter Egg, right down to the subscriber number. Bettinelli-Olpin revealed its significance, “On the YouTube channel it’s 821,939, which is Craven’s birthday.” August 2, 1939.
Sidney Prescott’s Husband is a Legacy Character
Scream 3
Villella confirmed the last name of Sidney Prescott’s husband, “Mark Kincaid,” the character played by Patrick Dempsey in Scream 3!
Gillett added that we very nearly heard more about Scream 2‘s Joel (Duane Martin), “There were honestly a handful of conversations about the peripheral characters. Joel was a part of the script in a line that we ended up lifting at some point when it felt it might be too populated. We wondered if the world of this movie is now too cross-pollinated with everything else. We picked and chose a bunch, but you know, we love the offscreen story of all of these characters’ lives continuing to weave together after the fact.”
Even the Easter Eggs Have Easter Eggs!
The Dawson’s Creek footage appearing in Scream won’t surprise diehard fans who are aware of producer Kevin Williamson’s work on the series. But it is surprising how meta the featured episode gets… and how it was all pure coincidence.
“Dawson’s Creek” season 1 episode, “The Scare”
Bettlinelli-Olpin states, “In the script that was I Know What You Did Last Summer. For maybe half the edit, we had I Know What You Did Last Summer in it. There was something about it that just wasn’t quite clicking. It felt like we’ve all seen horror movies where there’s a horror movie within the movie, and it’s fun but nothing new. It became a joke that maybe we should put in Dawson’s Creek.
“Then we found that episode, and we thought it was great. That’s the meta on meta. What gets really crazy is when you look at that episode, that episode has a Scream poster in it. The characters are watching I Know What You Did Last Summer, which we were literally temping in our movie. Kevin Williamson wrote it. We have the same casting director; our local casting director on our film was the casting director on that episode. It was shot at the same stages we shot at. This is all serendipity.“
Gillett adds, “And that whole episode starts with a phone call, and it’s Michelle Williams walking around her house, thinking somebody is breaking in.”
Then there’s the Scream franchise alum included. Bettinelli-Olpin stays, “Scott Foley is in it. And Joshua Jackson. I think it’s what Tyler was saying about when the ideas work. They work because it’s Scream; you just embrace it. It’s so fun, and I think that’s an example of where there are Easter eggs in the Easter eggs.”
The Director Cameos
That blink and you miss it Halloween freeze-frame on the TV screen? That’s a recreation.
Gillett shares, “The rights to the frame of Halloween that the TV is paused on were unattainable; it’s just so expensive to use a still frame. So, we recreated it. That’s actually Matt.”
Bettinelli-Olpin cracks, “I’m officially Michael Myers canon now, guys. I’m just saying.”
Look for the directors in one of the thumbnails, too, on the YouTube page, getting chased by Ghostface.
Gillett teases some extended footage of this, “We shot some fun Stab stuff that we didn’t use that I hope we’ll release on Blu-ray or Digital at some point. There’s some really hilarious Stab 8 footage outside of flamethrower Ghostface, which is just the most ridiculous joke that actually made it to production.”
Of course, this is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to all of the Scream Easter eggs, nods, and references to be mined from the new film. How many have you found?