Yahoo News Pixar's 20 most obscure movie Easter eggs
From winning Oscars to earning billions to making children cry – Pixar's capabilities are well known. But they're also the undisputed kings of the Easter egg, with references so sneaky and frequent that they make even Marvel look like rank amateurs in comparison.
In fact, their worlds are so bursting with self-referential secrets that there's actually a theory that all the films are set in the same universe.
But there are also some strange, surprising and downright creepy nods to things outside of the Pixar-verse – that even fans don't always spot. Read on to find out:
UPDATE! We've spotted eight more since we published this article – we've added them to the bottom of the list.
1. 1995
The number 95 recurs throughout the Pixar films – it's Lightning McQueen's number in Cars, and can be seen in Toy Story 3 on the runaway train and on the T-shirt of one of the Sunnyside Daycare children. Why? Because 1995 was the year Pixar released its first feature, Toy Story.
2. Sid's rubbish career
The garbage collector in Toy Story 3 is Sid Phillips, the monster child from the first film. He is voiced by the same actor, Erik von Detten, and is even wearing an identical skull T-shirt. Sid mate, it might be time for a new wardrobe.
3. Read all about it
At the Incredible family dinner table, Bob reads a newspaper with the headline "Catastrophe Seen as Crisis Looms". A very headline appeared in director Brad Bird's earlier Warner Bros movie The Iron Giant, and before that on Jim Dear's newspaper in the 1955 Disney classic, Lady and the Tramp.
4. Pixar's hidden shorts pt 1
During Woody's moving announcement early in Toy Story, the books on the shelf behind him are named after Pixar's early short films, including The Adventures of André and Wally B, Red's Dream, Luxo, Jr, Tin Toy and Knick Knack.
5. Heeeeeeere's Woody
The Toy Story series is packed with references to a very un-family friendly movie, Stanley Kubrick horror classic The Shining. Sid's family shows some very interesting taste in interior decorating, as their carpet in the first film is straight out of the Overlook Hotel, and Toy Story 3 director Lee Unkrich is a big fan of the film, scattering the number 237 (as in the infamous Room 237) throughout his movie.
6. The Up/Toy Story connection
It turns out there's some unknown link between Andy Davis's family and Carl and Ellie Fredricksen from Up, as in Toy Story 3 you can just spot a postcard from the pair pinned to his bedroom board.
7. Pixar's hidden shorts pt 2
When Hamm is flicking through the TV stations in Toy Story 2 trying to find Woody's kidnapper, he speeds past a load of old Pixar shorts, including Red's Dream, Luxo, Jr, Tin Toy and Knick Knack. Blink and you'll definitely miss it.
8. Pixar goes back to its roots
The tree in A Bug's Life had a tragic future in store back in 1998. It's the same one that Jessie is left under in her Toy Story 2 flashback, and also sits on the hill that Ellie tries to climb before she is taken to hospital in Up. Sob.
9. Two out of nine old men
The two old men near the end of The Incredibles who praise the "old school" superheroics are Frank Thomas and Ollie Johnston, who were part of Walt Disney's go-to group of animators, the 'Nine Old Men'. Brad Bird also featured them in The Iron Giant.
10. Apple's iCar
Apple co-founder Steve Jobs was a key investor when Pixar broke away from parent company Lucasfilm. One of Lightning McQueen's rival racing cars is decorated with the Apple logo and 84 – the year the first Mac computer was released – in Jobs's honour.
11. Tyred
There are some very familiar sounding tyre brands in the two Cars films. Maybe you prefer the Lightyear, or maybe Sector 4 Gamma Quads (another Buzz reference) are more to your taste? Failing that, can we interest you in a set of our Lassetyres?
12. Who's been hiding in Andy's room?
The cloudy wallpaper that Randall camouflages himself against in Monsters, Inc is very clearly the same design that covers the walls of Andy's room in Toy Story. No one is safe.
13. Supervillainous day job?
Incredibles villain Bomb Voyage can be seen in Ratatouille on the streets of Paris practicing the most evil of performing arts: mime.
14. A closet Incredibles fan
We only get a brief flash of Linguine's boxers in Ratatouille (we're okay with not seeing more), and sharped-eyed viewers will notice that they are branded with the Incredibles' logo.
15. All for the birds
Remember those little guys from Pixar's short For the Birds? They certainly get around, and can be seen hanging out on telephone lines in Cars and Inside Out.
16. Written in the stars
If you're paying very close attention to the opening shot of Toy Story 2, you might spot the famous Pixar desk lamp hidden as constellation in the night's sky. It's at the top of the screen, right of centre.
17. Pixar fried rice
Someone at Pixar clearly has a taste for Chinese, with takeout boxes (most with an identical or at least similar design) showing up in A Bug's Life, Monsters, Inc, Toy Story 2, Ratatouille and Inside Out.
18. Trailer of terror
The trailer under which A Bug's Life's 'big city' is built is the very same one that Randall is banished to at the end of Monsters, Inc.
19. Dentists: probably scarier than monsters
In the dentist's surgery in Finding Nemo there is a fish mobile and a drawing of a person on the wall. Both were seen before in Boo's room in Monsters, Inc. Maybe she traded them for some shiny new braces.
20. Take in a show in Bug City
The city in A Bug's Life is no backwater – it's a cosmopolitan hub, don'tcha know. Look carefully among the billboards and you'll see a poster for Disney's award-winning Lion King musical.
21. What’s in the tank?
1995’s Toy Story kicked it up a notch when Buzz and Woody were left out in the wild at a Dinoco petrol station. As it turns out, the gas-guzzling cars in Toy Story use the same fuel as the autonomous motors in Cars. Dinoco just so happens to be the proud sponsor of the Piston Cup.
22. Boo’s Toy Story connection
When Monsters, Inc. delivered the heart-wrenching twist of Sulley having to take Boo home, her bedroom was revealed as a treasure trove of Pixar Easter eggs. Lying on the floor, eagle-eyed fans might be able to spot a certain cowgirl by the name of Jessie. Well, at least we know she gets herself a loving owner after Andy and Bonnie.
23. ‘Buzzing’ with energy
If you’ve ever wondered what keeps Buzz Lightyear charged and ready to go to infinity (and beyond), the square-jawed Space Ranger is powered by Buy n Large batteries. When Rex reset Buzz in Toy Story 3, it turned out the conglomerate responsible for wrecking Earth in Wall-E powers everyone’s favourite astronaut.
24. The Heimlich manoeuvre
Curvy caterpillar Heimlich appears twice in Toy Story 2. Although several A Bug’s Life toys can be seen in the background of Al’s Toy Barn, the actual Heimlich is crawling on a branch before Buzz cuts it out the way. This would’ve been hard to spot unless the movie’s blooper reel zoomed in on the Bug’s Life favourite.
25. Sulley’s time travel
If you’ve heard the theory that Boo from Monsters, Inc. is the witch from the medieval-set Brave, the evidence comes mainly from the inclusion of a certain James P Sullivan. There’s a wooden model of the Pizza Planet truck and a carving of Monsters, Inc.’s top scarer when Brave visits the witch’s shack.
26. An ‘incredible’ read
Despite Bob Parr’s expanding waistline and ageing limbs, the exploits of Mr Incredible have made him pretty famous over the years. During Finding Nemo’s dentist scene, one Incredibles superfan can be seen reading a comic book with the spandex-clad hero on the cover. It comes pre-red suit during the crime-fighter's Golden Age.
27. Using spare parts
Wall-E was a love story at its core as the booping robot fell in love with the cold-hearted Eve. When Eve blasted off on her mission to save the human race, Wall-E built a replica version to cheer himself up. There’s a grisly demise for another Pixar favourite as the famous Luxo, Jr lamp happens to be part of Wall-E’s model.
28. Doc Hudson’s memory
Paul Newman famously voiced Doc Hudson in the first Cars movie and later appeared (after his death) through unused audio. Even though Cars was released after The Incredibles, a blue Hudson Hornet appears when Mr Incredible is taking on one of the haywire robots. It doesn’t quite have Doc’s face, but maybe he hadn’t developed sentience yet?
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