Note: Contains major spoilers for Us, including its ending.
Symbolism is nothing new to the world of horror, but peeling back the various layers of meaning hidden in Jordan Peele's latest film is a particularly intimidating task.
From that shocking ending to the various questions Us raises throughout, there's a lot to get your head around. Because it takes so much effort to fully grasp the bigger picture, it's easy to overlook the small, intricate details that Peele has also planted in every scene of Us.
Nothing is left to chance, so multiple viewings are absolutely essential in order to fully understand everything that's going on – but who has the time and money to visit the cinema that often?
That's where we come in. Tether yourself to this page as we dive deep underground to uncover all of the details you might have missed in Us the first time round.
1. The Goonies
Plenty of people noticed that there was a VHS copy of CHUD sat next to the TV in the film's opening scene. This is important because the story of CHUD also features underground monsters that drag people down below the streets.
However, what you might not have noticed is that there are also copies of The Goonies and The Man With Two Brains.
While the parallels that Us shares with the latter film are kind of obvious, The Goonies is relevant as well because the kids featured also descend into an underground world. Red even subverts Sean Astin's speech from the original at one point, saying, "It's our time up there" instead of "down here".
2. The Lost Boys
There's a lot going on in the Santa Cruz Boardwalk scene right before Adelaide runs off on her own, but those with keen hearing might have heard the girl's mother mention that a movie is filming "over by the carousel" that night.
In real life, The Lost Boys was shot in that exact location in 1986 and Peele has since confirmed that this was an intentional shout-out.
3. Whac-A-Tethered
Later on in this same scene, Adelaide's father has some fun playing Whac-A-Mole, the game where players must push back against subterranean creatures who emerge unwanted from the underground… Sound familiar?
This theme also comes to the fore later when the NWA song 'F**k Tha Police' kicks in with the line: "F**k the police, comin' straight from the underground."
4. Circle of life
Remember when that red frisbee surprised Adelaide on the beach? It’s no coincidence that this seemingly harmless toy covered a blue dot of the exact same size.
The red circle replaces the blue one perfectly, much like Adelaide herself, who turns out to be one of the Tethered all along.
5. Cut loose
Scissors featured heavily in the promotional campaign for Us and it's easy to see why. Not only are they horrifically creepy, but they're also the perfect symbol to explore the themes of connection and cutting ties.
Peele himself confirmed to EW that the scissor metaphor was intentional, explaining that: "There's a duality to scissors — a whole made up of two parts but also they lie in this territory between the mundane and the absolutely terrifying."
6. And the winner is...
Fashion-wise, most of the attention has gone to the shirts that reference Jaws and Thriller, but there's something rather special about Jason's white tuxedo pyjamas too.
This doesn't become clear until Zora kills one of the twins and Jason peers around the corner holding his geode weapon like some kind of award. Jordan Peele also wore a white tuxedo when he recently won his Oscar for Get Out and you can't tell us that's a coincidence.
7. 'I Got 5 on It'
We wouldn't be surprised if Peele pulls out the white suit again at the Oscars again next year just for that soundtrack alone. The way he reconceptualises the creepy energy of 'I Got 5 on It' to fit within a horror framework is truly masterful, but the song also has a deeper meaning that directly tethers it to the themes of the story too.
As the characters reveal early on in Us, this famous song by Luniz is all about weed and how selfish people try to take more than their half share of a $10 bag.
This of course reflects the soul that Adelaide and Red share, which both characters fight to take back for themselves. Peele draws attention to this early on when Adelaide tries and fails to successfully click along to the beat.
8. 11:11
The number 11 recurs throughout Us, bringing to life the kind of unlikely coincidences that Adelaide herself spots as everything starts to line up.
As a child, Adelaide picks prize number 11 and then sees a reference to the biblical passage Jeremiah 11:11. When Gabe watches the Giants highlights, they're tied at 11-11 and Jason’s bedside clock also reads at 11:11.
As if that weren't all freaky enough, the ambulance which the family drives away in at the end is numbered 1111 too. It's no coincidence that a miniature version of the ambulance features prominently early on when Jason uses it to wedge the closet door open while trying to save himself.
9. Tethered stick together
There's a moment during the confrontation between Adelaide and Kitty's double Dahlia (Elisabeth Moss) where it looks like Adelaide is about to die. Dahlia gets right in her face as she readies herself for the killing strike, but then she just suddenly stops.
This is never explained, but with hindsight, it seems like Kitty can sense Adelaide is also Tethered and therefore spares her life. One of the twins later attacks her because she's yet to get up close and realise the same.
10. Strawberry delight
Another clue that Adelaide might not be who she says she is takes place very early on when the family sit together for a meal. While they all eat restaurant food, Adelaide eats strawberries in a very strange, almost animalistic fashion. It's a subtle detail, but one you can't miss once you know.
It's also worth noting that Adelaide's behaviour becomes more animalistic as the film progresses and this is reflected by the state of her white dress, which becomes redder and redder with blood following each encounter.
11. Michael Jackson
In many ways, the Thriller shirt that the original Adelaide wears in the film's first scene is crucial to the entire story.
In Michael Jackson's video for the song, his character rises up with other zombie-like figures to take over the surface world and when everything seems normal again at the end, it's revealed that he's really an evil creature in disguise.
The parallels between this and Adelaide's story are undeniable, so it's easy to see why each member of The Tethered wears a single glove like Jacko too.
After teaching in England and South Korea, David turned to writing in Germany, where he covered everything from superhero movies to the Berlin Film Festival.
In 2019, David moved to London to join Digital Spy, where he could indulge his love of comics, horror and LGBTQ+ storytelling as Deputy TV Editor, and later, as Acting TV Editor.
David has spoken on numerous LGBTQ+ panels to discuss queer representation and in 2020, he created the Rainbow Crew interview series, which celebrates LGBTQ+ talent on both sides of the camera via video content and longform reads.
Beyond that, David has interviewed all your faves, including Henry Cavill, Pedro Pascal, Olivia Colman, Patrick Stewart, Ncuti Gatwa, Jamie Dornan, Regina King, and more — not to mention countless Drag Race legends.
As a freelance entertainment journalist, David has bylines across a range of publications including Empire Online, Radio Times, INTO, Highsnobiety, Den of Geek, The Digital Fix and Sight & Sound.
