do revenge easter eggs teen movies

Every Teen Movie Easter Egg In Netflix’s ‘Do Revenge’

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Netflix’s dark comedy Do Revenge has arrived to provide us with all the ’90s teen movie nostalgia we can handle.

The new movie, starring Riverdale’s Camila Mendes and Stranger Things star Maya Hawke, follows a high school student, Drea, who seeks to ‘do revenge’ on an ex-boyfriend after he leaks her nude video, by teaming up with new student, Eleanor, who also wants to exact revenge on a bully from her past.

The Netflix film has been copping glowing reviews, praised for its witty dialogue, inclusive casting, aspirational fashion, and above all, for providing some major teen movie throwback moments. Do Revenge is littered with teen movie easter eggs, referencing some of the most impactful films from the ’90s.

We’ve rounded up all the teen movie easter eggs that we could spot.

Here are all the teen movie easter eggs dropped throughout Netflix’s Do Revenge:

Clueless

Did any movie influence Do Revenge more than Clueless? As if! One word: makeover!

When Drea and Eleanor team up to do revenge, Drea decides the only way for her new ally to infiltrate the popular group is to have a new look. Cue: makeover montage that’s almost an exact replica of the Clueless scene, including the lipstick smacking part.

The bright colours and quirky school fashion were also hugely inspired by Clueless, as was the scene where Eleanor gets a tour of the school based on cliques which was classic Clueless. Eleanor even says in response to the tour suggestion, “I mean, as a disciple of the ’90s teen movie, I would be offended if I didn’t get one.”

It was hard to escape Clueless in this film, from Eleanor’s tilted beret giving Cher realness to Drea’s fluffy pink pen. Not to mention, the inclusion of tennis practice which is another touchstone of the Clueless universe.

As Drea is scheming at the tennis club, the Mighty Mighty Bosstones are blaring in the background, an American ska punk band featured in Clueless. In another musical cameo, a cover of ‘Kids in America’ plays in a scene at the senior’s dinner, which Clueless fans will know is the movie’s opening track.

But the most unmistakable reference to Clueless came in a scene at Rosehill where a sign for ‘Horowitz Hall’ was shown in the background, an unsubtle dedication to the film’s protagonist: Cher Horowitz.

10 Things I Hate About You

Fans of 10 Things I Hate About You would have clocked this reference as soon as that paintball date began between Drea and Russ. And if the two shooting paint at each other wasn’t enough of a clue, they then started making out while covered head-to-toe in paint.

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Where have we seen this before? Between Patrick and Kat after they ditch detention on 10 Things I Hate About You.

do revenge easter eggs teen movies

Mean Girls

There’s plenty of Mean Girls nods, from Drea starting out as a reigning queen bee to rival Regina George, to the four-strong popular girl clique that give pure Plastics energy. But the most overt easter egg came during the dinner when Drea spikes the students meals with magic mushrooms and one student makes a panicked phone call amid the chaos, asking “Mum, please just come get me.”

Mean Girls fans will recognise this is an obvious nod to the iconic line…

Jawbreaker

A movie about a geeky girl who gets a makeover, becomes the most popular girl in school, and turns into a monster is VERY Jawbreaker. Do Revenge’s director and writer, Jennifer Kaytin Robinson, has confirmed that the 1999 movie was a source of inspiration. “I do think that there’s definitely some Fern Mayo energy in Eleanor,” she told Netflix’s Tudum.

Another probable Jawbreaker callback is a red convertible with the license plate “DUMBTCH” pulling up at the start of Do Revenge.

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Look familiar? Vylette’s red convertible had the number plate “BITCH” in Jawbreaker.

Cruel Intentions

Firstly, ’90s screen queen Sarah Michelle Gellar playing the school principal can’t be pure coincidence. Along with starring in the titular Buffy the Vampire Slayer, SMG is most known for iconic role as Cruel Intentions villain, Kathryn.

But in addition to the Gellar cameo, during school assembly Gabbi is spotted reading Les Liaisons dangereuses, which happens to be the French novel Cruel Intentions was based on. A quote from the book is also on the wall of a classroom behind Drea’s head.

Max gives off some serious Sebastian softboi energy, especially when he encourages Drea to send him an intimate video, which parallels Ryan Phillippe’s character encouraging Tara Reid’s Marci to send him nude photos.

The kissing scene in the park between Eleanor and Gabbi also gave me some serious Kathryn teaching Cecile how to kiss in the park vibes. But at least this time, it wasn’t a queerbaiting pash tailored to the male gaze. By contrast, the Do Revenge scene was damn hot!

Then there’s Do Revenge’s song choice, with Fatboy Slim’s ‘Praise You’ ringing loud as Max is outed in front of the entire class, which is a song played in a scene between Sebastian and Annette (Reese Witherspoon) in the 1999 classic.

And finally, the end scene of Drea and Eleanor skipping graduation and speeding away in a vintage convertible is obviously a nod to Annette driving off in Sebastian’s convertible to Verve’s ‘Bittersweet Symphony’.

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Crossroads

There were a couple of nods to Britney Spears’ iconic Crossroads in the Netflix film. The singing in the car scene could be a callback to the ladies driving a convertible singing ‘Man! I Feel Like A Woman’, while Drea and Eleanor sang another feminist anthem, Meredith Brooks’ ‘Bitch’.

Then there’s the beach scene at the end when Drea and Eleanor run into the ocean and frolic together which also happened with the three childhood besties in Crossroads.

The Craft

In a subtle nod to the the 1996 witch flick that inspired teens the world over to take up the dark arts, there’s a group of girls at the school who are witches. They are even heard chanting “light as a feather, stiff as a board” during the ill-fated dinner which is a spell spoken by the coven of four in The Craft.

Election

The narration from both Drea and later Eleanor steering the plot and giving insight into the characters’ motivations is straight out of the Election playbook. Robinson admitted that she was inspired by the 1999 political satire to add a narration element. “The original script did not have voice-over in it. The voice-over came in post,” she revealed to Tudum.

Scream

The friendship group gathering at the school’s fountain was no random choice. In fact, the school where the movie was filmed didn’t even have a fountain. “We built that,” Robinson told Vanity Fair. “And it is an homage to Scream (1996). Obviously, Do Revenge is not a slasher, but tonally it’s something that I went to a lot.”

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In another cheeky easter egg, one of the girls even snacks on grapes in the scene, the same fruit the Scream gang are eating in the horror film.

Heathers

There’s plenty of Heathers’ dark comedy vibes throughout Do Revenge, and perhaps the most overt nod to the 1988 classic is when Drea visits Carissa at her rehab centre where she’s playing croquet. Where have we seen this game played before?

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Along with the croquet, Do Revenge’s lighting fast, snarky, and often dark dialogue is something Winona Ryder’s Veronica would be proud of.

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Relive the teen movie magic by watching Do Revenge on Netflix.