Top 10 Hidden Secrets in Movie Credits
Special thanks to our user Jacob Koopmann for suggesting this idea!
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Top 10 Hidden Secrets in Movie Credits
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The fun isn’t over just because the credits are rolling! Welcome to WatchMojo.com and today we’re counting down our picks for the Top 10 Hidden Secrets in Movie Credits. For this list, we’re scouring the end credits of our favorite movies for Easter eggs, jokes, and hidden messages hidden among the names of production staff. Remember, post-credits scenes aren’t the only reason to stay for the credits.
#10: No Thanks Whatsoever
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“Scream” (1996) Wes Craven’s seminal slasher movie revitalized the flagging genre with a dose of wry meta-commentary, but the movie ended up having a bigger villain than the knife-wielding Ghostface. The production apparently had a verbal agreement with the Santa Rosa City School District Governing Board, which would allow them to film the movie’s high school scenes there. But the School Board backed out and the last minute, forcing Craven and crew to scramble for a new shooting location. Still salty over the near-disastrous setback, the horror legend made sure to offer the board “no thanks whatsoever” with a message in the film’s end credits. Don’t cheese off horror directors, folks!
#9: No Hard Feelings
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“An American Werewolf in London” (1981) If movies are to be believed, getting arrested is much harder than you’d think when it’s what you actually want. Protagonist David Kessler finds this out the hard way in this classic werewolf movie, as his attempts to get locked up where his hairy alter-ego can’t eat anyone prove unsuccessful. After confessing to his nocturnal rampages, David is no closer to a jail cell, and he lets fly a string of insults to British royalty, including one aimed at Prince Charles. To let the Royals know it was all in jest, the production included a special message congratulating Charles on his impending marriage to Diana Spencer.
#8: Detectives Andrew, Kevin, & Walker
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“Fight Club” (1999) No, we’re not talking about the “hidden surprise” that you might notice just as the credits roll. But if you’re a fan of David Fincher’s classic mindbender, you might remember this scene in which Edward Norton’s character runs afoul of three detectives. You wouldn’t know it unless you watched the credits carefully, but the trio are named Andrew, Kevin, and Walker. Why does this matter? Because they’re named for writer Andrew Kevin Walker, who wrote Fincher’s breakout hit “Se7en” and did some uncredited rewrites for the film in question. Hey, we’d go uncredited too if it meant we could get a shout-out like this.
#7: Crazy Facts
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“Hot Shots!” franchise (1991-93) This duology of early 90s movies starring Charlie Sheen definitely fall into the category of “a joke every few seconds” comedies, hitting the viewer with a continuous barrage of gags. This intense comedic momentum doesn’t end when the credits roll, as each movie has a number of jokes hidden among the ending titles. Sharp-eyed viewers will find everything from a few tasty recipes, a serious spoiler for the movie “The Crying Game,” a few trivia questions, and the more-than-a-little questionable fact that actor Richard Crenna invented tartar sauce. We’re not sure we believe that last one, but we’ll let it slide in the name of comedy.
#6: Split Personality Credits
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“Split” (2016) M. Night Shyamalan came back with a vengeance with this tight, intense, and furiously acted thriller. James McAvoy stars as a man with over 20 distinct personalities, some of which apparently have special abilities. When the credits roll after the shocking final scene, viewers will be surprised to see that in addition to the normal front-and-center credits, there are twenty-three more sets of credits scrolling in the background. The exact number is specific, because McAvoy’s character has 24 personalities, and apparently each one gets their own credits scroll. This one is honestly a bit hard to miss, but still fun once you recognize the significance at play.
#5: A Maori Message
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“The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King” (2002) Making it to the end credits of Peter Jackson’s epic fantasy trilogy can be quite the journey, especially if you’re watching the extra-long extended versions. But if you get to the end of the final installment, you may see this confusing message tucked in among the credits. Is it one of the fantasy languages spoken by characters in the film? Nope! This is a special message in Maori, the language spoken by the indigenous people of New Zealand, where the movies were filmed. The message translates to “Let us dedicate our memories to the spirits of the Eldar who came to us from the Ocean that lies to the West.”
#4: The Hanso Foundation
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“Mission: Impossible III” (2006) Before it was baffling viewers with its ending, “Lost” was a bona fide cultural sensation. It’s pretty easy to find Easter Eggs and in-jokes related to the show across a wide variety of media from the mid 2000s, including this little nugget from “Lost” co-creator J.J. Abrams. In the end credits of the third “Mission: Impossible” movie, directed by Abrams, a special thanks can be seen directed at none other than the Hanso Foundation, the sinister group responsible for funding the DHARMA initiative. We’re not sure what the Foundation had to do with “MI3,” but the movie didn’t have a polar bear, so we know that’s out.
#3: Coffee Shop
“Pulp Fiction” (1994) When “Pumpkin” and “Honey Bunny” set out to rob a coffee shop in this iconic scene from Quentin Tarantino’s trendsetting movie, the poor owner winds up with a gun in his face during the fray. Attempting to de-escalate the situation, the owner begins to say, “I’m just a coffee shop manager,” but he gets cut off before he can finish, making it sound like he says that he’s just a coffee shop. In an easy-to-miss gag in the end credits, actor Robert Ruth is even credited as “Coffee Shop” for his role in the film. It’s just the kind of in-joke we’ve come to expect from Tarantino.
#2: Wizard’s Footprints
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“Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” (2004) Not even young wizards can escape the call of school romance. When the credits start rolling on the third film in the “Harry Potter” franchise, it isn’t just white text on a black screen. Instead, the credits are modelled after the Marauder’s Map, a magical document that reveals the location of everyone within Hogwarts School by showing their footprints. That includes these two students, whose feet can be seen in an out of the way location. They’re awfully close, which implies that the students are sharing a secret smooch or maybe even something more scandalous. We just hope these lovebirds didn’t get caught in the act. Before we reveal our top pick, here are some honorable mentions. Corporate Enforcement Droids “RoboCop” (1987) The Views and Opinions Expressed by Kristoff “Frozen” (2013) Gina's Boobs “The Heat” (2013)
#1: A Cavalcade of Credits Gags
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“The Naked Gun” franchise (1988-94) Remember our previous entry about a movie that practically has a gag every minute? Well, this series practically wrote the book on that idea. Following intrepid police detective Frank Drebin, played by comedy legend Leslie Nielsen, each installment in the beloved franchise is a comedy classic in its own right, packed to the rafters with laughs from start to finish. This includes the credits, which are bursting with jokes, including tornado warnings, jokes about the lengths of the credits themselves, and snippets of dialogue performed by bit players. Like the gags from the movies themselves, these just never seem to let up, and we’re laughing too hard to protest.
