What was the first film to feature a post-credits scene?
Post-credits scenes are all the rage these days, but they were once a relative novelty. The dominance of the Marvel Comic Universe means that modern viewers are, at this point, disappointed if a film doesn’t deliver the much-anticipated stinger, with many waiting in their seats long after the movie has ended, and directors increasingly relying on such scenes way of teasing sequels. Here, we’ll be looking at the first film to feature a post-credit scene.
For those of you who’ve had your heads buried in the sand for the last few decades, a post-credit scene (otherwise known as a credit cookie or stinger) is a short clip that occurs in the middle or at the very end of the film’s end credits. Today, they’re most commonly used in superhero films, but the device has been featured in countless genres. They can be used to give audiences a sneak peek of what to expect from a sequel or spin-off or for more creative and comedic purposes.
The history of post-credit scenes begins in 1966 with Phil Karlson’s The Silencers, which stars Dean Martin as Veteran agent Matt Helm, who leads a happy life photographing luxury models when his former lover, Tina Batori – played wonderfully by Daliah Lavi – drags him back to a life of espionage. A sinister group known as the Big O, led by the sinister Tung-Tze, is developing nuclear weapons and planning to detonate an underground atomic bomb in New Mexico. Armed with various spy gadgets and assisted by Tina, Helm is hired to ensure Big O fail in this nefarious endeavour.
The post-credit scene in question shows Matt Helm back where he belongs: surrounded by beautiful models. The scene also hinted towards his return in future films, the calling card of the James Bond Franchise. But rather than simply including text indicating the character’s return (“James Bond Will Return”), Karlson decided to feature actual footage of Helm reclined on a revolving bed with numerous semi-naked women. At the foot of the screen, the overlain text reads: “Coming up next: Matt Helm meets lovely Kravezit in Murderer’s Row.”
At that point, Helm breaks the fourth wall and says, “oh my God,” before hiding his head in his hands. In 1979, The Muppets Movie took things one step further with a post-credits scene in which Animals tells the audience to “go home” after the credits have finished rolling. Since then, countless directors have used similar moments to provide one last laugh.
You can check out the post-credit scene from The Silencers below.
