Week 26.31 - Socials Roundup POSTERS IN MOVIES
27 July - 02 Aug 2026: how films use posters of other films to make winking nods, animal puns, and threatening tableau
Week 26.31 posts include shots of other movies’ posters from King of New York (1990), Age of Innocence (1993), Scream 3 (2000); Life on Mars (2006-2007); A Single Man (2009); and BoJack Horseman (2014-2020).
Life on Mars
When Sam Tyler (John Simm) first meets his big boss Gene Hunt (Philip Glenister), we see a High Noon poster through Gene’s office window.
A few minutes later, Gene grabs Sam by the collar and threatens him . . . and that poster is very effectively used to signify what Gene is doing, which is in effect holding a gun to Sam’s head.
King of New York
This is a crime film, not a horror film . . . but this shot certainly evokes how darkly evil its characters and subject can be.
How Halloween created one of the most iconic openings in horror.
Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers had only just come out when they were shooting King of New York, so it’s also possible this was simply a poster still hanging around their shoot location, and Abel Ferrara used it (along with the deliciously eerie red lighting) to set a mood.
As opposed to our next poster, which had to be meticulously planned, created, lit, and shot.
A Single Man
On his way to the shops, George (Colin Firth) parks against a wall-sized movie poster of Psycho, starkly watching him, all painted in yellows and blues.
When George finishes shopping and shares a cigarette with Carlos (Jon Kortajarena), the eyes are still watching, but she seems to be fading and rose-coloured in the background, as George lets himself enjoy the moment, even under scrutiny.
Scream 3
Our last reference to classic horror actually comes within a horror film, as Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) looks at a photo of her mother, which is next to a poster for Kiss Me Deadly.
Both films open on a highway drive (with Kiss Me Deadly’s opening an iconic one of the genre), both involve stabbings and an imposter and a big explosion.
To say more would give away too much about both.
Bojack Horseman
BoJack Horseman also does animal pun names on storefronts and billboards, but it really shines when it can incorporate them in modern show promo and classic Hollywood posters, such as Wonder Worm, When Tabby Met Snappy, Catsablanca, and my (Mel’s) favourite: His Squirrel Friday.
Though its “Do The Right Thing 2: Do The More Right Thing” poster isn’t a pun, it is a commentary on the prominent insistence on sequel-izing movies which don’t need them, and the prominent “A Spike Lee Joint” serves as a tongue-in-cheek joke about the universe’s character-naming conventions.
Honourable Mention
It’s not a movie poster, but it is a painted reference to a movie-making legend up on a big wall, so we’re counting this painted sign for SCHOONMAKER’S PAINTER’S SUPPLY STORE in Age of Innocence.
