Great filmmakers often plant details that slyly hint at story developments well before the ending. This is particularly true with thrillers and chillers, where carefully applied foreshadowing builds tantalizing tension before the horrors are finally unleashed.

In some cases, though, a film’s foreshadowing is so subtle, even mega-fans do doubletakes when they finally catch the hint. Here are some of my favorite blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moments from classic films and modern masterpieces.

1. Two Things Acknowledge Each Other in The Thing

John Carpenter’s The Thing (1982) is filled with foreshadowing moments before the practical-effects extravaganza reveal in the kennel. In fact, for any fan that happens to speak Norwegian, the entire twist is revealed as the crazed scientist attempts to shoot the dog in front of U.S. Outpost 31, only to be killed before he can warn them. (You do speak Norwegian, don’t you? Jeg vil ikke snakke med deg!)

But there is a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it moment before the iconic defibrillator scene when the gang begin to doubt R.J. MacCready’s (Kurt Russell) allegiance.

As Nauls (T.K. Carter) makes it back from the frozen tundra, he produces evidence of MacCready’s possible transformation: his shredded uniform. Windows then states, “When do you think ‘It’ got to him?” At that moment, alien imposters Palmer (David Clennon) and Norris (Charles Hallahan) momentarily glance at each other, as if to say, “Was this your doing?”

It’s a moment that requires a bit of hindsight for most, but upon rewatch, it’s a brilliant scene that almost always slides under the radar. 

2. The Son’s ‘Self Portrait’ Reveals the Hidden ‘Ghost’ in Parasite

“My son is an artist by nature,” says Choi Yeon-gyo  (Cho Yeo-jeong) early in Parasite (2019).

Artist, yes. But that isn’t creativity flowing through Da-song’s (Jung Hyeon-jun) veins. It’s fear. 

While showing off her son’s skill with a paintbrush to Ki-woo (Choi Woo-shik), it is hard not to notice that the off-putting image doesn’t seem to be a painting of himself nor either of his parents, but rather, something else. Later, the viewer will realize it depicts the “ghost” he saw in the kitchen.  

Looking at the “Schizophrenic Zone” in the lower right-hand side of the drawing, Da-song has drawn a figure on all fours in all black. Later in the film, the audience can spot the hidden figure of Oh Geun-sae (Park Myung-hoon), the man hiding in the basement, running in a similar manner.

3. The Tapestry at the Beginning of Midsommar Reveals the Film’s True Villain

In the opening shot of 2019’s Midsommar, a folksy tapestry of extraordinary color and dark motifs is displayed as the poignant visual component that not only represents the themes of Ari Aster‘s horror outing, but highlights key plot points as well.

In each section of the drapery, an important scene from the film is spotlighted: the death of Dani’s parents, Dani’s grief, the trip to Hälsingland, the rituals of the midsummer festival, and the crowning of the May Queen. Even the bear is present. 

But another figure is also present: Pelle.

He might seem filled with good intentions and smiles, but Pelle (Vilhelm Blomgren) has sinister intentions from the very beginning, as he lures his “friends” to be sacrificed and plots to make Dani (Florence Pugh) his own. In almost each panel, he is seen observing Dani while leading his pals to their eventual demise. For his loyalty to his family and community, there is no doubt he will be given Dani, which is why he kisses her near the end of the film. He knows she will eventually be his.

4. The Song of Death in Final Destination

Singer-songwriter John Denver died in a plane crash in 1997, and in the first film of the Final Destination series, his song “Rocky Mountain High” is viewed as the harbinger of doom. You can often hear the composition before the demise of central characters, who themselves have escaped certain death via plane crash. 

But Death cannot be cheated, and apparently is a big fan of country rock. 

The song can be heard:

• In the airport restroom prior to the plane crash, giving Alex Browning (Devon Sawa) a bad premonition
• Before the death of Carter Horton (Kerr Smith), a street performer can be seen with a guitar performing the song in French outside of a cafe.
• Tod Waggner (Chad Donella) hears the song on the radio right before his demise via strangulation. 
• Valerie Lewton (Kristen Cloke) puts on the record before she is consumed in a house fire.

5. Chief Brody Reads Exactly How He’ll Defeat the Shark in Jaws

After the first attack on the beach in Steven Spielberg’s 1975 Jaws, Chief Brody (Roy Scheider) decides to brush up on his shark lore with a few books on the subject. In a scene where Brody is flipping through pages of a book, he is looking at several sources, including National Geographic, The Shark: Splendid Savage of the Sea by Jacques-Yves Cousteau, and The Fishes by F.D. Ommanney. 

One particular image has captured a shark chomping down on an air canister, foreshadowing the great white shark’s eventual defeat. This image is from an article titled “Sharks: Wolves of the Sea” published in the February 1968 issue of National Geographic.

6.  The Toy Figures in The Sixth Sense Divulge Malcolm’s True Nature

M. Night Shyamalan’s The Sixth Sense (1999) is a masterclass in precision suspense storytelling, with twists and turns that still give audiences the shivers.

Within the film, many superb moments foreshadow the film’s surprise ending. Splashes of red foreshadow moments of the paranormal, and no one seems to notice that Malcolm (Bruce Willis) only wears a single outfit for the entire film. 

There is one early moment of foreshadowing that is easy to miss. In the church when Malcolm attempts to chat with Cole (Haley Joel Osment), the young boy appears to be playing with action figures. On closer inspection, these are not mere toys, but saints and biblical figures probably owned by the church. On his way out, Cole nabs one to take home with him. 

Later, an observant viewer can see that within his protective red tent, Cole has built an altar of all the figures he has swiped. There is a good chance that each figure represents a ghost, as Cole is hoping the figures will protect him. 

So, when he stole a saint figure from the church while talking to Malcolm, that saint was meant to protect him from his new ghostly apparition: Malcolm himself.

7. Principal Himbry Reveals the Twist in Scream

In the original Scream (1996), after two pranksters are caught pretending to be Ghostface, Principal Himbry (Henry Winkler) has them hauled into his office for a good and proper tongue lashing about their cruel trick. The entire encounter telegraphs the surprise ending of the Wes Craven classic, revealing that there were not one but two Ghostfaces working together.

In addition to the reveal of the dual villains, the two teens are also dressed exactly as Stu (Matthew Lillard) and Billy (Skeet Ulrich), sporting both their wardrobe and their haircuts. One of them seems to be wearing Billy’s signature flannel. 

Principal Himbry then goes so far as to foreshadow his own death when he tells the jokesters that they should “rip their insides out, hang you from a tree” and expose them for the heartless and cruel monsters they really are. Later, his body is found hanging on a goalpost.

8. Joan Is Proven to Be a Liar Early in Hereditary

Following the death of her daughter, a distraught Annie (Toni Collette) befriends a support group member named Joan (Ann Dowd), who states that she lost her son and grandson. Joan weaves a story about her ability to communicate with her deceased family members via an heirloom chalkboard through a seance ritual, but keen observers of Hereditary (2018) know this to be a lie. 

In an earlier scene, a brand new chalkboard can be spotted in the back of Joan’s car, still in its plastic wrapping fresh from the shop. Far from a family heirloom, the entire story was a ruse to lure Annie into Joan’s trap, getting her access to the family and Annie’s mind.

Tell us your favorite subtle foreshadowing scenes in the comments.