Post-credit scenes may have become synonymous with superhero movies, but plenty of other genres use the space after the credits in ingenious ways. Post-credit scenes have spiked in popularity since franchises like the MCU, DCEU and Sony Spider-Verse Universe started including one or two clips during the credits to build anticipation for future projects. However, superhero movies were not even close to being the first genre of film to use a post-credit scene to further interact and engage with the audience.
In fact, the first film to include a post-credit scene is The Silencers, a spy comedy from 1966 that parodied many of the tropes of movies like James Bond. The additional scene was used as a way to poke fun at movies like James Bond and act as an overt reference to the reliance on romance in those movies (via Collider). Today, post-credit scenes are used in a wide variety of genres to tease future entries, get one last joke in, or even to tell a follow-up story in a shorter format. Post-credit scenes can be incredibly creative and dynamic.
10 Kong: Skull Island (2017)
Clash Of The Titans
Kong: Skull Island
In 1973, a team of scientists and soldiers travel to the mysterious Skull Island in pursuit of the legend of Kong. Upon arrival, they learn that though the giant ape is the last of his species, he’s not as dangerous as they’d imagined. They also discover that the world is filled with far more dangerous creatures than Kong, and they might just need his help to make it off of Skull Island alive.
The MonsterVerse was a highly anticipated movie universe expected to come from Legendary Pictures, but when Kong: Sull Island was released in 2017, it was still just a rumor. That changed when the film revealed ties between Kong and the other titans in the post-credits scene. James Conrad (Tom Hiddleston) and Mason Weaver (Brie Larson) are introduced to the Monarch organization, and the truth about the extraordinary creatures is finally revealed. This is an ideal use of a post-credit scene to build excitement for future sequels, and confirm the rumors that were building up.
9 Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (1986)
“Go Home!”
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
John Hughes’ comedy classic Ferris Bueler’s Day off follows the titular high schooler, a self-assured, charming young man who wants a day off. Going to unheard-of lengths to secure that day for himself, his girlfriend, and his best friend, he conjures up the ultimate scheme to get them out of school. However, his sister and principal are confident he’s up to no good, and his principal will embark on an equally overblown quest to expose Ferris’ truancy.
Comedy films were among the first to feature post-credit scenes and the classic 80s movie by John Hughes, Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, included one of the most iconic post-credit scenes of all time. After the action-packed adventure, the credits wind down the events of the movie with some music from the incredible soundtrack, and for anyone who continues watching to the very end, Ferris has one last message for viewers. As he comes out of the bathroom, he addresses the audience once more, as he has done throughout the movie, and encourages everyone to “go home,” as the movie is over.
10 Non-Superhero Movie Post Credit Scenes That Went Absolutely Nowhere
Many superhero movies have post-credit scenes that tease a sequel that never arrived, but non-superhero movies are guilty of it too.
8 Dawn Of The Dead (2004)
Found Footage Short Film
Dawn of the Dead (2004)
Ana goes home to her peaceful suburban residence, but she is unpleasantly surprised the morning that follows when her husband is brutally attacked by her zombified neighbor. In the chaos of her once picturesque neighborhood, Ana flees and stumbles upon a police officer named Kenneth, along with more survivors who decide that their best chances of survival would be found in the deserted Crossroads Shopping Mall. When supplies begin running low and other trapped survivors need help, the group comes to the realization that they cannot stay put forever at the Shopping Mall and devise a plan to escape.
Dawn of the Dead is an incredible modern retelling of the original by horror legend George A. Romero, with a screenplay by James Gunn, and directed by Zack Snyder. These incredible storytellers came together to bring the iconic zombie franchise made famous by Romero to a modern audience, and after the credits roll, the audience is treated to an additional short story through found footage, with people on a boat sailing to an island and coming face to face with the zombie outbreak. Everything, from the music, to the staggered shots makes this mini-movie a treat for patient viewers.
7 Jay And Silent Bob Strike Back (2001)
The Askewniverse
Kevin Smith is an incredible filmmaker who has made some of the most beloved cult films of all time. Throughout his career, Smith has put together a series of films which make up a movie universe known as, The View Askewniverse. This existed long before any Marvel Cinematic Universe, and was highly praised by Smith’s fans. When Smith directed Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back, he clearly intended to leave this Askewniverse behind, as he featured a brief post-credit scene with Alanis Morrisette as God, literally closing the book on “The Askewniverse.”
6 Toy Story 3 (2010)
A Happy Ending For The Toys
Toy Story 3
The third installment in the Toy Story franchise, Toy Story 3, continues the story of Woody and Buzz as they come to terms with the inevitable. With their owner, Andy, growing older and no longer playing with his toys, Woody, Buzz, and co. are given a new lease on life when they end up in a local daycare center. However, things there aren’t as they seem, and the toys must work together to find their way home.
The Toy Story franchise originally began in 1995, and when the third movie was released 15 years later, it appeared to finally conclude Andy and his toy’s story for good. In order to give the toys closure, Andy, now grown up, decides to donate them and let some other child find joy in them, and the post-credit scene shows what came next for the toys. The toys were donated to a nursery for children, and thus would have a continuous stream of kids to play with into the future, offering the perfect happy ending for the toys.
5 Pirates Of The Caribbean: The Curse Of The Black Pearl (2003)
Greedy Monkey
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
The Curse of the Black Pearl is the film that kickstarted the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise, a series of supernatural swashbuckling adventures. In 1720, blacksmith Will Turner teams up with eccentric pirate “Captain” Jack Sparrow to save his love, the governor’s daughter Elizabeth Swann, from Jack’s former pirate allies, who are now undead.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl tells the story of the crew of the Black Pearl and their eternal cursing after stealing Aztec treasure, and while the movie appears to neatly tie things up, the post-credit scene shows things aren’t over yet. The monkey, who is a part of the crew, swims back into the cave where the crew returned the treasure, and in his greed, he picks up a coin, and immediately returns to his cursed state. This was a great way to leave the door open for the future and invoke some mystery.
10 Horror Movie Post-Credits Scenes That Went Absolutely Nowhere
Horror movies rarely have post-credits scenes, and while some set up sequels, others ended up leading absolutely nowhere for different reasons.
4 Crank (2006)
Crank: The Video Game
Crank is an action movie starring Jason Statham, where Statham plays an assassin who is infected with an advanced poison. The poison circulates in his body, and remains non-lethal, as long as his adrenaline remains at a high level. The film explores this concept as Statham must keep his blood-pumping and his heart racing at all times, and for those who sit through the credits of the movie, a small post-credit scene plays out. The scene is an 8-bit stylized video game version of the film, and essentially replays the plot in under 20 seconds.
3 Scary Movie (2000)
Rules For Survival
Scary Movie
Scary Movie is a 2000 comedy horror movie that parodies a popular horror films such as Scream, I Know What You Did Last Summer, and The Blair Witch Project. Starring Anna Faris, Regina Hall, and Marlon and Shawn Wayans, the first Scary Movie spawned a franchise and popularized the parody genre in the early 2000s.
The Scary Movie films combine comedy and horror in a parody series which plays on classic slasher films, particularly the Scream franchise. The first movie stars Marlon Wayans as Shorty, a character who meets his end later in the movie, and after the credits roll, a pre-recorded message from Shorty is played. Shorty declares that if anyone is watching he didn’t make it, and then offers up some helpful advice on how to survive. However, the scene then reveals that Shorty is in the middle of teaching people how to shoplift, and it wasn’t about surviving at all.
2 Airplane! (1980)
Waiting For A Cab
Airplane!
Drowning his sorrows after that botched mission during World War II, Ted Striker, a traumatized ex-fighter-pilot with a neurotic fear of flying, still has not gotten over his old flame, flight attendant, Elaine Dickinson. Determined to win her back, Ted boards a domestic flight from Los Angeles to Chicago, only to come face-to-face with a severe case of in-flight food poisoning that is threatening everyone’s lives. With most of the passengers and the entire cockpit crew down with the food-borne illness, Striker must confront his inner demons and take over the control of the ungovernable aircraft with the help of a gruff air-traffic controller and his former commander. Can Ted Striker land the airplane and save the passengers?
Airplane! constantly seeks to subvert expectations and include humor throughout, and one of the best uses of this is in the framing of the movie. As the film begins, Ted Striker (Robert Hays) is an ex-pilot, working as a taxi driver, but just as a customer gets into his cab, he takes off in a wild attempt to win back his ex-girlfriend. The events of the movie play out, and after the credits roll, it returns to the man in the taxi, growing more frustrated, but, in a noncommittal way, declaring “I’ll give him another 20 minutes, but that’s it!”
1 Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
Kip And LaFawnduh Get Married
Napoleon Dynamite
Considered a cult classic, Napoleon Dynamite follows the titular character, an awkward high school student from a small town in Idaho. The film follows Napoleon’s life as he deals with the antics of his strange family, his romantic feelings for a fellow classmate, and his assistance of a friend to win Class President over the school’s popular girl. Jon Heder stars as Napoleon Dynamite, with a further class that includes Efren Ramirez, Tina Majorino, Aaron Ruell, and Jon Gries.
Napoleon Dynamite is one of the most infamous cult comedies of the early 2000s for its surreal and deadpan humor. Throughout the movie, one of the ongoing jokes was around whether Kip really did have a girlfriend he met in a chatroom. After the credits’ roll, that question is finally resolved in a scene that lasts roughly five minutes, and reveals Kip’s girlfriend at their wedding. The scene is the perfect send-off for the movie, continuing to deliver it’s awkward, slow-paced humor, and giving Kip a moment to shine and perform a deeply moving song.
