‘Coco’ Director Reveals ‘The Shining’ Easter Egg Nobody Noticed

Pixar movies are known to include Easter Eggs from other Disney franchises, but did you know that many of them also contain very intentional nods to one of the creepiest films ever made?

Some fans have noticed that, over the years, a few Pixar films have contained references to Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining, based on the novel by Stephen King. These nods include the carpet in Toy Story, the “Here’s Brucey” line in Finding Nemo, and many others. While just about everybody missed it, there was actually a major Shining Easter Egg in Pixar’s latest outing, Coco.

Lee Unkrich, director of Coco, has often cited The Shining as one of his biggest influences, thus compelling him to add these nods in his films. In a recent interview with Yahoo!, Unkrich revealed that he had hidden a pair of Shining characters in Coco, but nobody seemed to pick up on it.

“I’ll tell you one nobody’s spotted yet, oddly,” Unkrich said, before pointing out a painting in the background of the scene below.

When Miguel pays a visit to Frida Kahlo’s art studio in the Land of the Dead, his clumsy dog Dante stars knocking things over and making a mess. As Miguel chases him, a painting he passes features the creepy twins who appeared in the hallway of the Overlook Hotel.

“That’s a Día de los Muertos-inspired version of the twin girls from The Shining,” Unkrich confirmed. “I don’t know why no one has caught it yet, because I didn’t think it was the difficult one in the movie! I always try to do these in a way that’s pretty obscure.”

As you look closer, you’ll see what the director meant by a “Dia de los Muertos-inspired version” of the characters. Since they are in the Land of the Dead, where everyone is a skeleton, the twins are nothing but bones.

It’s more than likely that Unkrich and his team hid even more Shining Easter Eggs in Coco and, with the movie now available on Blu-ray, it’s up to the fans to find them!

What are your favorite Pixar Easter Eggs? Let us know in the comments below!