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In addition to its commentary on horror, the Scream franchise has a pattern of putting sneaky homages to classic horror films. Of the six films that have come out so far—plus the fact that Scream VII is coming next year—there are plenty of horror Easter eggs hidden among the carnage.
Some of them are obvious, like Billy Loomis making a Carrie reference with the pigs' blood, Randy dropping titles like Halloween or Friday the 13th in a monologue, but not every reference is explicitly named. There are plenty of references that are just living in the background of scenes or simply placed in without pause to give the reference time to breathe before moving on.
Disclaimer: All opinions in this article belong to the writer.
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10 Easter eggs in Scream movies every fan should know
10) Wes Craven dressed like Freddy Krueger (Scream 1996)
In the original movie, director Wes Craven has a split-second cameo where we see him as a janitor cleaning the halls of Woodsboro High, wearing a red-and-green striped sweater and fedora, which is a blatant homage to Freddy Krueger of A Nightmare on Elm Street.
And to drive it home, Principal Himbry yells “Fred!” after him as he walks out. That one-second moment isn’t simply a visual gag. It is Craven very quietly connecting two of his greatest horror legacies in one single frame.
9) Sidney does a move reminiscent of Laurie from Halloween (Scream 4)
In Scream 4, also stylized Scre4m, Sidney Prescott is once again immersed in a Ghostface mess. She may be a little older, but she is still surrounded by chaos. Although there has always been a level of connectivity between Sidney and Halloween's Laurie Strode, this installment includes a moment that links them in a more tangible way than before.
In John Carpenter's 1978 classic, Laurie throws a flower pot at a window in order to awaken the kids and get help, as Michael Myers is closing in. Scre4m does the opposite. Instead, Sidney throws a potted plant through Olivia's front door window, charging toward danger instead of away from it. This moment is a callback to horror legacy, but also a reflection of how far Sidney has come from the high school girl we met in the first film.
8) A split-second reference to A Nightmare on Elm Street (Scream 2)
Scream 2 doesn’t lean as hard into A Nightmare on Elm Street nods as the first film did, but there’s one sneaky detail buried deep in the background that’s too deliberate to ignore. It happens during Cotton Weary’s heated library confrontation with Sidney. Cotton gets pinned against a bookshelf. And right there, just over his shoulder, is a massive cream-colored book titled Our Dreaming Mind.
It’s not just set dressing. Our Dreaming Mind is a real book by psychologist Robert Van de Castle, diving into the science and symbolism of dreams. Likely a quiet tip of the hat to horror’s most famous dream-stalker, Freddy Krueger. Just one book, tucked into the chaos, connecting this movie back to Wes Craven’s other legacy. Blink and it’s gone. But once spotted, it’s hard to unsee.
7) Tatum dresses like Glen from A Nightmare on Elm Street (Scream 1996)
There's a silent reference to A Nightmare on Elm Street hidden in Tatum Riley's outfit in the original movie, one that can easily be missed if viewers don't notice the details. In the film, Tatum appears about halfway in a white football jersey and a pair of red pants. It's a casual outfit and can easily dissolve into the background. But fans of the horror genre may recognize that combination—it is the almost exact carbon copy of what Johnny Depp wore as Glen in A Nightmare on Elm Street.
Glen has a grim fate where he gets sucked into his bed in one of the most recognizable death scenes of the film. In Scream, Tatum is in a matching outfit. The outfit is not just a coincidence. It grounds a visual connection between Glen and Tatum, two seemingly laid-back teenagers who end up dead. Even something as seemingly incidental as a costume becomes a quietly planned setup for what will ensue, particularly in a movie that engages actively with genre tropes and callbacks.
6) A reference to Friday the 13th
This one almost wrote itself. For Scream VI, directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin set the sequel in Manhattan, allowing for a quick reference to another slasher icon who took on the Big Apple: Jason Voorhees. Sure enough, Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan finds its way into the background early on.
The Easter egg is hidden inside a quick scene in Jason Carvey's dorm room. If one looks closely, there it is: Jason Takes Manhattan playing quietly on the TV, just before Scream VI turns up the chaos itself. It's an easy-to-miss moment, but appropriate. Two killers, in one city, with a shared history of blood-soaked bodies.
5) The dream sequence references
Scream 3 may be the most self-aware film in the franchise. However, it also involves classic horror with one of the few dream sequences. In a chilling scene, Sidney sees a ghostly image of her mother outside her bedroom window. Her mother calls her name and whispers a line from the living dead, “Everything you touch dies.” The scene is very short, somewhat surreal, and completely chilling.
The scene is a very visual homage to Salem’s Lot, and the 1979 Stephen King miniseries that disturbed an entire generation. The scene most likely references the sequence where Ralphie Glick, now a vampire, floats outside the window of his brother, tapping the glass, until he is invited in.
In Scream 3, the moment does more than serve as a homage. It plays into Sidney's terror that death is following her, even into her sleep. Although dream sequences are rare in this franchise's lore, this one manages its homage well, linking Sidney's trauma with one of horror's iconic visual scares.
4) The Elm Street sign
The 2022 Scream reboot starts off by paying respect to its horror roots, including a brief reference back to Wes Craven's other popular franchise. When Richie is driving through town, his Prius passes a street sign for Elm Street. It is quick and subtle to be sure, but undeniable.
Naming the street after the familiar locale of Freddy Krueger's stomping grounds connects the two Craven creations with tongue-in-cheek playfulness but purposeful intent. Ghostface may not have a residence in the dream world, nor would his slash-and-dash routine in Scream 5 have any supernatural component. But one can easily imagine that mask appearing in the nightmare realm with Freddy Krueger.
So while there's no plan to crossover between the two franchises on the surface, the shared DNA allows the door to remain slightly ajar. And considering Scream films are known for their layered references and commentary on genres, the minuscule nod carries with it more than what it seems.
3) Billy Loomis' calls back to horror classics
The name Billy Loomis isn’t just a creepy-sounding choice—it’s a callback packed with horror history. Before Scream, the surname "Loomis" already had a place in two genre-defining films. First, there’s Dr. Sam Loomis, the relentless psychiatrist in Halloween, chasing down Michael Myers with grim determination. Then there’s Sam Loomis from Hitchcock’s Psycho—Marion Crane’s boyfriend and one of the few characters to walk away from the Bates Motel relatively unscathed.
By naming the killer Billy Loomis, screenwriter Kevin Williamson wasn't just tossing out a fun reference. He was drawing a direct line back to the roots of slasher cinema, connecting the dots between the genre’s past and what the franchise was trying to reinvent. And there's another layer: both original Loomises are secondary characters, men reacting to chaos. Billy flips that script. He is the chaos.
There’s even an argument to be made that the name hints at the movie’s twist ending. Two names, two killers. A quiet clue hiding in plain sight.
2) A top horror YouTube channel
One of the more surprising Easter eggs in the 2022 film that doesn't reference another slasher or horror icon is actually a YouTube channel. Dead Meat, hosted by James A. Janisse and Chelsea Rebecca, has become a community for horror fans across the internet. With over six million subscribers, Janisse and Rebecca’s 'Kill Count' videos have turned a body count into binge-worthy content, decomposing every horror movie one bloody scene at a time.
Considering the catalog of Scream legacy deep-dives they made over the years—and the millions of views those videos received—having James and Chelsea appear in the reboot was not a reach. They appear as two podcasters discussing Stab, the film series within the movie's universe based on the original Woodsboro murders.
The nod is brief, but it makes sense. The homage is not to the past of horror, but to how we speak about horror today, which is through commentary, breakdowns, and digital deep-dives.
1) Exorcist girl cameo
The original film included a very brief Easter egg with its inclusion of Linda Blair. Blair gained fame in the '70s for her role in The Exorcist. She makes a brief cameo as one of the reporters harassing Sidney during the scene where reporters swarm outside Woodsboro High.
Her inclusion in the original not only acts as a fun callback to one of horror's most renowned films but also connects the franchise to a larger horror icons.
From nods to Psycho and Elm Street to YouTube shoutouts and horror legends, the Scream franchise has always worn its influences on its sleeve. These details aren’t just clever but proof that behind every mask, there's a fan who knows the genre inside out, frame by frame. The franchise can be streamed on Max.
