Scream VI is now in theaters. It brings with it a love letter to the entire Scream franchise. With a shift from California, we settle with our remaining characters in New York City to gain a new experience for Ghostface to stalk victims. The film is jam-packed with fun references to other parts of the Scream franchise and other horror films in general. What Scream VI easter eggs did you possibly miss?
WARNING!!!!! There will be spoilers for Scream VI and possibly other entries in the Scream Series.
When Jason returns to his apartment, we see that the TV is on and the movie that is playing is Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan. This is a fun joke as this movie was to take Jason out of his usual hunting grounds of Crystal Lake and plop him in the middle of a giant city. The shift of setting was seen as a big deal for the franchise, although it didn’t quite live up to what fans were hoping for. This shift in local fits with this new Scream film. It also changes its location from California to New York for the first time in the series.
While Jason is going through his apartment, we see some posters for podcasts that cover horror content. In the living room is a poster for The Last Podcast On The Left which covers a lot of true crime stories, which in this world probably would have included the Woodsboro Murders. We see another poster for We Hate Movies in one of the bedrooms. The hosts of this podcast watch all sorts of films and decide if they should be left to the waste bin of time. Some fun shout-outs for horror podcast enthusiasts.
When we catch up with Tara and her friends at a local frat party, we see that the character of Ethan is wearing a cardboard suit of armor like a knight. This is a reference to an indie horror film by director Jeremy Saulnier named Murder Party. The main character Christopher wears the same costume to what he thinks is a party, but it turns out to be something more. A movie worth seeking out.
When the characters arrive at the frat costume party, the camera does a sweeping pan through the crowd of partygoers. One partier in particular can be seen wearing a Wednesday Adams costume. Jenna Ortega, of course, played the title character in Wednesday on Netflix. Surprised we didn’t see people break out into the popular Wednesday dance during the party.
Sam’s therapist is watching TV, and the movie is the original 1956 Invasion Of The Body Snatchers. Kevin McCarthy’s character begins screaming, “You could be next!” As the character walks to his front door to answer the person banging on it, we keep hearing the same thing repeatedly as a warning that he is about to be the next victim of Ghostface. The movie also works in the context of the series, as you never know if you can trust those around you or if they have become the enemy.
The song Red Right Hand by Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds is in every Scream movie except for part 4. Not sure for the exact reason. Rumors swirled that it was an issue with the copyright for the song, but nothing definitive was said about it. The song returned in Scream V, and it once again appears in the newest film. It just doesn’t feel like a Scream film if you don’t hear it at some point during the movie.
Every Scream film has to have its own set of movie rules, and this one is no different. Mindy breaks down what we can expect during the new Ghostface murders via updated movie rules for a modern time. We’re at a point where you can’t go by rules for individual films, sequels, or even a trilogy anymore. The modern era requires rules for a franchise now. New characters are not to be trusted, legacy characters will die, and sadly not even the main characters are safe. She then names multiple main characters who died, and their franchise carried on. Luke Skywalker and Tony Stark are two of the names on the list.
It is revealed that two of the Ghostface killers that were dispatched at the beginning of the film had a theater rented out that acted as a museum to the film franchise Stab and, more importantly, to the real-life murders that inspired the film franchise. Seen throughout this setup are lots of costumes and props from the previous movies. We can see items like Billy’s bloody shirt that he was wearing at the end of the first film, the knife that stabbed Kirby in the stomach in part 4, and the Ghostface masks of all the previous killers in the franchise. It’s a real flashback for any fan of the franchise. This scene in Scream VI is just filled with easter eggs.
The film teases a popular fan theory that someday we might see the return of Matthew Lillard’s character Stu. Since the first film, fans have been trying to figure out how to bring back the popular character. Even up to this film’s release, fans were speculating on if this would be the one to bring him back. In the Stab Museum, we see the TV that fell onto Stu’s head. One of the characters mentions it, and another replies, “Yeah, if he’s actually dead.” Then begins to explain the rumors on the internet of his death being faked.
As our heroes are trying to get to the Stab Museum for the showdown with Ghostface, they hop on the subway. We see that a lot of other passengers are on the way to costume parties of some sort. On the subway car are people dressed as Pinhead from Hellraiser, Jason from Friday The 13th, The Babadook, and maybe the most obscure one is someone dressed as Sam Neill’s character from In The Mouth Of Madness. He is wearing hospital scrubs that have crosses drawn all over them. It’s a lot of fun seeing how many cameos can get crammed into one scene.
What Scream VI Easter Eggs did you notice? Let us know in the comments.