The best TV and film Easter eggs of the year
Easter eggs mean different things to different people. They might mean a time-honored tradition or an excuse to hunt for prizes and candy (or both). For a rabid entertainment fan, Easter eggs are friendly little inside jokes in your favorite pieces of pop culture that reward the voracious viewer.
In honor of Easter here are some of our favorite Easter eggs (ha, get it?) from the past year.
Moana
Disney/Pixar films are connected in a way Ryan Murphy will envy for all time, and Moana was no exception. The animation included lightning-fast glimpses of characters from The Little Mermaid, Wreck-It Ralph, Big Hero 6, and many from Aladdin, which was also directed by Ron Clements and John Musker.
All Marvel everything
From Spider-Man's resurrected web wings to the shared Defenders shows on Netflix, to the Thor trailer full of Avengers feels and even a nod to Hunt for the Wilderpeople, Marvel's Easter egg game is strong.
Fantastic Beasts
The Harry Potter spinoff isn't hiding its ties to the Boy Who Lived, but since it's set 60 years before Harry's birth, that can be tough. Director David Yates (of the last four Potter films) turned to a favorite technique from his Potter days: Newspapers. There were enough gems in the newspaper montage of Fantastic Beasts that it merited its own post, but see if you can spot them here first:
Related: J.K. Rowling's new website
In the early 2000s, particularly around the releases of Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows in hardcover, jkrowling.com was an oasis for thirsty Potterheads around the world. Rowling used it to shut down wild rumors, shoutout her favorite fan sites, and drop tidbits about the upcoming novels, often with riddles or games. The latest site isn't as elaborate, but it's simple and straightforward and calls back to the desk layout of her old site -- including that rumor-debunking page.
Rogue One
Star Wars fans are a detail-oriented bunch, so an imperial probe droid on Jedha is exactly the kind of blink-and-you'll-miss-it goody we love to see. Now, can we get Indiana Jones' hat into the Han Solo movie?
This wacky Doctor Who installation in London
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Joe Hill's out-of-this-world painting includes everything from Daleks to Cybermen, and even a glimpse of the Doctor himself (Peter Capaldi).
13 Reasons Why caught on Google Maps
A PopSugar writer stumbled upon what appears to be the production crew of 13 Reasons Why in San Rafael, Calif., because at least one person in the visual looks an awful lot like the show's star, Dylan Minnette. The faces are blurred, but there's no mistaking the trucks full of filming equipment, the crew member talking to a curious neighbor, and the one member of the production who appears to be flipping off Google. Clay wears a similar shirt/hoodie combo (see below), so the light jeans and ear buds could be Minnette or a stand-in taking five.
Stranger Things...
Is basically just a giant '80s Easter Egg.
Lego Batman
Like The Lego Movie before it, Lego Batman was bursting with pop culture references, including obligatory jabs at every single Batman movie before it and shoutouts to the most tertiary comic book villains.
Proma Khosla is a Senior Entertainment Reporter writing about all things TV, from ranking Bridgerton crushes to composer interviews and leading Mashable's stateside coverage of Bollywood and South Asian representation. You might also catch her hosting video explainers or on Mashable's TikTok and Reels, or tweeting silly thoughts from @promawhatup.
