As we've come to know over the years, one of the best parts of the "Scream" franchise is the meta element. The focus on the "rules" of horror movies and the commentary on the genre at large is what makes the franchise so lovable, and to see ourselves as fans reflected back at us in such an iconic and memorable way is what keeps us coming back. So, naturally, they decided to up the meta-ante in 2022's "Scream," which arrived in theaters this weekend.

And because they decided to up the meta-ante this time around, directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett made sure to throw in plenty of Easter eggs for fans of the Wes Craven originals (and horror films at large) to find. After all, you gotta respect the original, you know? Here's our list of the Easter eggs to watch out for in the new "Scream" — but watch out, there are major spoilers beyond this point!

Scream Easter Eggs

There are several great references to the original "Scream" in the latest installment, which are more subtle than the direct references made throughout the film.

Our opening scene girl, Tara (Jenna Ortega), is memorable for a lot of reasons, but one thing that will stick out about her for fans of the original is that she really does follow Casey Becker's lead. Casey Becker, the first "opening scene girl" (played by Drew Barrymore), was psychologically tortured by Ghostface over the phone while running around her home — but the phone call started innocently enough in her kitchen. Tara's kitchen, where she also gets entangled in a phone call with the new Ghostface killer, looks nearly identical to Casey's. She even plays with a knife from a block of cutlery during the conversation, similarly to Casey in the first movie.

Here's another: Remember that Nick Cave banger that plays during the 1996 original? It's called "Red Right Hand," and its brooding tone and creeping pace made it the perfect soundtrack to the unease of Woodsboro during its first Ghostface massacre. Before it became known as the theme tune for "Peaky Blinders," the song was practically synonymous with "Scream," so the directors decided to use it again to underscore the new film's first kill. Kyle Gallner's character Vince, who aggressively tries to get back with Sonia Ben Ammar's Liv from the moment he is introduced on screen, meets his demise by Ghostface as the first victim — and the eerie kill takes place in a parking lot after he's lured to his own car, which is running with the headlights on and playing the Nick Cave creeper at full blast.

Later in 2022's "Scream," our favorite sheriff, Dewey Riley (David Arquette), reveals that he still has possession of his sister Tatum's ashes. Tatum was played by Rose McGowan in the original film. Speaking of the original film itself, there is also a scene where several Woodsboro kids are watching "Stab," but it's actually "Scream" — you can tell because you can hear Barrymore as Casey fighting Ghostface.

Scream 2 Easter Eggs

There are some great allusions to "Scream 2," the franchise's original sequel, as well. After leading lady Sam (Melissa Barrera) is attacked by Ghostface for the first time, she tells the killer, "Come and get me!" Ghostface's response? "With pleasure!" If you're a "Scream 2" buff, you probably noticed this reference to what the killer says to Sidney before attacking her in the sorority house in the second film.

Naturally, Sam isn't the only one who goes head-to-head with the killer in the new installment — the iconic Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) also has a brush with a knife in this installment — and she ends up stabbed in the same place she was in "Scream 2."

Scream 3 Easter Eggs

"Scream 3" Easter eggs abound in the fifth entry, from big to small. In the opening scene, Ghostface asks Tara during his over-the-phone game to name who plays Casey Becker in "Stab." When Tara goes on IMDb to figure it out, Jennifer Jolie — aka the actress played by Parker Posey in "Scream 3" — is credited as Gale Weathers. David Schwimmer, Luke Wilson, and Tori Spelling are also credited on the page. Speaking of our girl Gale, she discusses her iconic "Scream 3" bangs in the new film — which is one of the hottest topics in the franchise to date, let's be real.

Sidney mentions her husband Mark a few times in "Scream" — and in case you didn't catch it, she means Detective Kincaid from "Scream 3," to whom she is now married. Later in the film, Dewey mentions that you have to shoot the killer in the head so they won't come back — he knows this because that's how he killed Roman Bridger, the director of "Stab 3" and the Ghostface killer of "Scream 3." Speaking of killings from the third movie, one of the 2022 antagonists, Amber (Mikey Madison), reveals her bulletproof vest after killing Dewey in the Woodsboro hospital, which is a reference to "Scream 3."

Scream 4 Easter Eggs

Don't worry, 2022's "Scream" doesn't forget about its little brother, "Scream 4," when it comes to Easter eggs. Deputy Judy Hicks (Marley Shelton) leaves a note on the fridge for her son, Wes, during one scene. It says that there are lemon squares in the fridge — a direct callback to their appearance in "Scream 4."

Here's another interesting one: Kirby from "Scream 4" (Hayden Panettiere), aka a friend of killer Jill Roberts (Emma Roberts), is confirmed to be alive in the new film. When Richie (Jack Quaid) is on his computer watching a scene from "Stab," one of the recommended videos on the sidebar is "Interview with Woodsboro Survivor, Kirby Reed," which confirms the character is still alive out there somewhere.

Horror Homages

There are also a few fun Easter eggs that pay homage to our favorite horror heroes and films in the latest "Scream" installment. As we all know, the ones who usually meet their demise in a "Scream" movie are the leading lady's friend group, and thus it makes a lot of sense that Tara and her sister Sam's friend, Wes (Dylan Minnette), would be among the people to take their last breath at the hands of Ghostface. Interestingly enough, Wes' death is reminiscent of the Alfred Hitchcock classic "Psycho."

While Wes' mother, Deputy Hicks (Marley Shelton), begs Ghostface over the phone not to kill her son as she races back home to him in her squad car, Wes is blissfully unaware, taking a shower. The killer even mentions the similarity to her: "Have you seen 'Psycho'?" they ask her. Plus, Wes is blond, and Hitchcock was known for having a thing for blondes. The whole thing really cleverly cemented the film's self-aware meta slant, and did so in a satisfying way.

There are also a couple of cool name-based Easter eggs that allude to some legends in the genre. After all, who else would you want to be named after?

There's the aforementioned Wes Hicks, who obviously is named after the late, great Wes Craven. Tara and Sam's last name is Carpenter, in reference to (you guessed it) "Halloween" creator John Carpenter. But the final name-based Easter egg might be my favorite of all: A big reveal tells us that Sam discovered at a young age that her real father is Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich), aka Sidney's old boyfriend and one half of the original Ghostface killing team alongside best friend Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard). That means her real name would be Sam Loomis, who is a character in both the "Halloween" film series and "Psycho." Pretty smart, huh?

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