10 of the Best Movie Easter Eggs Hidden in Classic Films

From Star Wars to Toy Story, discover concealed artistic references, messages, and other winks from directors

Film can be about much more than the stories told on the screen. Some movie buffs enjoy a kind of intimate complicity with their favorite directors, generated through seemingly tiny details that give rise to a real connection and another level of engagement—such as "Easter eggs".

What are Easter eggs?

In cinema and video game culture, Easter eggs are small details, often hidden in plain sight, to enrich the movie-watching experience. A tool writers and directors use to wink at their audience, and a little gift for discerning viewers who spot them, these messages can appear as veiled artistic references, jokes, messages, and more.

Read on to discover ten excellent Easter eggs that you might have missed—but first, here's a quick look at the history of the easter egg.

1979: The first Easter egg

The term "Easter egg" was coined by former Atari software development director, Steve Wright over forty years ago.

The idea came about as Wright sought to describe a hidden signature programmer Warren Robinett had snuck into the videogame Adventure in 1979. His piece of code displayed the words “created by Warren Robinett” when players positioned themselves over a specific pixel known as "The Gray Dot".

Atari only realized what had happened a year later in 1980 after a child wrote in explaining they'd found the message, and by that time it was too costly to rewrite the program and delete the hidden message.

Upon Wright's advice, they decided to leave hidden references inside all their games instead. And they named these little intrigues “easter eggs”. The term became such a powerful idea that the practice of leaving hidden messages spread.

10 Easter eggs hidden in your favorite movies

1. Toy Story (1995)

Easter egg: reference to The Shining

One of director Stanley Kubrick’s most iconic screens from his 1980 horror The Shining scenes shows Danny riding his tricycle through the corridors of the haunted Overlook Hotel. It's a scene that famously builds anticipation, combining childhood innocence with feelings of dread.

Look closely, and you'll see Toy Story replicates the hotel's recognizable carpet in the house of the movie's antagonist, Sid—a character known for destroying his toys—which we see as a kidnapped Buzzy and Wood attempt their escape.

This is just one of Pixar’s many Easter eggs paying tribute to the film director, including several more throughout the Toy Story franchise.

2. Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

Easter egg: reference to Star Wars

The Indiana Jones saga is another one that's packed with film references. Directed by George Lucas, the explorer's adventures in search of the Lost Ark feature a scene picturing hieroglyphed walls and columns.

Upon closer inspection, you’ll spot a familiar sight from another of Lucas' creations. The symbols feature a pair of the Star Wars franchise’s most iconic characters hidden among the Ancient Egyptian figures: R2-D2 and C3PO.

3. E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial (1982)

Easter egg: reference to Star Wars

In Steven Spielberg's classic film about an extraterrestrial stuck on Earth who needs to get home, we a scene in which the children and E.T. dress up to go trick-or-treating for Halloween.

E.T. spots one of the other trick-or-treaters wearing a Yoda costume and seems to recognize him, allowing fans of both films to surmise that the stories take place in the same universe.

4. Star Wars: The Phantom Menace (1999)

Easter egg: reference to E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial

Star Wars director George Lucas confirms the fan theory above in this installment of his great saga and creates the perfect ending for the seed sown in Spielberg’s earlier film. Three members of the Galactic Senate are unmistakably members of the same species as E.T.

5. The Godfather (1972)

Easter egg: oranges as a message hinting at death or betrayal

A cult movie, widely considered to be one of the greatest of all time in US cinema, The Godfather's director Francis Ford Coppola left a few Easter eggs in the film for fans to enjoy.

One of the most famous? Whenever you spot an orange, it’s because someone’s about to die, commit an act of betrayal, or be betrayed.

6. The Birds (1963)

A cameo appearance from Alfred Hitchcock

Many people view Englishman Alfred Hitchcock as one of the greatest film directors of all time. But what lots of fans don’t know, is that he appears in thirty-nine of the fifty-two films he directed!

Perhaps his most famous cameo is in his 1960 horror, The Birds. You can spot him leaving a pet shop with two little dogs: his own pets in real life.

7. Tron (1982)

Easter egg: a reference to Pac-Man

A film that was notable for its time, 1982 sci-fi adventure Tron tells the story of a programmer and game developer who gets sucked inside the software.

In one scene, director Steven Lisberger shows a close-up of a spaceship circuits screen that clearly draws artistic inspiration from the iconic videogame character: Pac-Man.

8. Scream (1996)

Easter egg: a reference to The Exorcist

Director Wes Craven consolidated his position as the king of nineties horror with Scream. Aligning his movie with other greats from the genre, he brought in The Exorcist star Linda Blair for a cameo role as a reporter. It’s a clear tribute to one of the best horror films of all time.

9. Captain America: Winter Soldier (2014)

Easter egg: a reference to Pulp Fiction

MCU (Marvel Cinematic Universe) films are packed with hidden gems referencing comics published by Marvel Studios—but they also reference films outside their own universe.

For example, in Captain America: Winter Soldier, Colonel Nick Fury’s tombstone bears the beginning of the famous monologue spoken by hitman Jules Winnfield in Tarantino’s film, Pulp Fiction—two characters played by Samuel L. Jackson. The line reads: "The path of the righteous man... Ezekiel 25:17".

10. Taxi Driver (1976)

Two cameo appearances by Martin Scorsese

This film features two appearances from its director. The first is when he features as an extra sitting in the street staring at Betsy. Then, much more visibly, he’s the ride who discovers his wife is being unfaithful on seeing her silhouetted in a window.

These hidden messages and nods to other artworks are a fun way for film fans to uncover the creativity of screenwriters and directors. What are your favorite movie Easter eggs? Let us know in the comments below.

English version by @studiogaunt.

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