Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is Rian Johnson’s latest hilarious whodunit, and several of its funniest moments come from the movie’s celebrity jokes and references. While Glass Onion is a sequel to Johnson’s 2019 mystery Knives Out, the only returning character is Daniel Craig’s Benoit Blanc. This time around, Blanc heads to Greece with a group of wealthy friends who have been invited to take part in a murder mystery party, hosted by Miles Bron in the Glass Onion mansion on his private Greek island.
Daniel Craig is joined by an ensemble cast for Glass Onion including Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, and Dave Bautista – but it’s Glass Onion‘s celebrity references and cameos that make for some of the most memorable moments. Rian Johnson is known for including his celebrity friends in his movies, with Shaun of the Dead director Edgar Wright appearing as a Resistance soldier in Star Wars: The Last Jedi, and that trend continues in Glass Onion alongside name-drops of some of Hollywood’s best-known actors. Here’s every celebrity joke and reference in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery.
Benoit Blanc’s Among Us Friends
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Benoit Blanc is feeling lost without an exciting case to solve, so his closest friends distract him with a game of Among Us over a Zoom call. But Blanc’s friends in the Knives Out 2 plot aren’t just anyone – he is joined by actor Angela Lansbury, legendary composer Stephen Sondheim, NBA great Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, and actor Natasha Lyonne. The brief cameos make for a bizarrely hilarious scene that sees the group try and cheer Blanc up, and Glass Onion marks the final posthumous roles for both Lansbury and Sondheim.
All four of Benoit Blanc’s friends have a link to the murder mystery genre. Most famously, Angela Lansbury played the detectives Jessica Fletcher in Murder, She Wrote and Miss Marple in The Mirror Crack’d. Stephen Sondheim co-wrote the whodunnit The Last of Sheila, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar has co-written several Mycroft Holmes novels, and Natasha Lyonne is set to star in Rian Johnson’s upcoming comedy mystery series Poker Face.
Yo-Yo Ma Helps Open Miles’ Mystery Box
Miles (Edward Norton) sends each of his friends a custom-made puzzle box that has several games to get passed before an invitation to the Glass Onion is revealed. Birdie (Kate Hudson) is not much help with the puzzles, but Yo-Yo Ma is in attendance at her COVID-19 rule-breaching party to help solve a classical music-related problem. Ma’s appearance is Glass Onion‘s most surprising cameo given the cellist’s sparse filmography, but it makes for an amusing moment.
Ethan Hawke As The Efficient Man
Ethan Hawke appears in another one of Glass Onion‘s cameos. Known as “Efficient Man”, Hawke’s character greets the guests as wait for their boat to visit Miles’ island and sprays the group with a COVID-19-eliminating substance. Having such a high-profile current actor like Ethan Hawke appear in such a minor role is a comical moment, and Rian Johnson revealed that his appearance only came about because Hawke happened to be in Europe while filming the MCU’s Moon Knight.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt As The Hourly Dong
The easiest celebrity joke to miss in Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s cameo. When Benoit Blanc and Miles’ guests arrive at the billionaire’s private island, they hear a loud ‘dong’ that Miles reveals is played on the hour, every hour. It turns out that Gordon-Levitt voices the hourly dong, continuing his trend of appearing in every Rian Johnson movie.
Jared Leto’s Hard Kombucha
Not all the celebrity jokes in the film involve Knives Out 2 cameos. By Miles’ pool, his friends treat themselves to Jared Leto’s Hard Kombucha which is 9% alcohol, and later causes Andi (Monáe) to go on a booze-fueled rant later in Glass Onion. Although Jared Leto’s Hard Kombucha is a fictional creation by Rian Johnson, it is the perfect phrase to hear Benoit Blanc say in his southern accent.
Hugh Grant As Benoit Blanc’s Partner
Another A-list Glass Onion cameo comes in the form of Hugh Grant. Mid-way through Knives Out 2 it is revealed that Benoit Blanc’s domestic partner, Phillip, is played by Grant. Like Ethan Hawke’s appearance, Grant having such a small supporting role in Glass Onion is counter to the lead characters he usually plays, making for a brief but funny moment.
Jeremy Renner’s Hot Sauce
Another fictional product created for the Glass Onion movie is Jeremy Renner’s Hot Sauce. A common theme of the latest Knives Out mystery is that Miles uses the fame and brilliance of other people to elevate his own name, and he does that again by bragging about the exclusive range of Jeremy Renner’s Hot Sauce that he owns. Unlike Jared Leto’s Hard Kombucha, Jeremy Renner’s Hot Sauce plays a vital role in the ending of Glass Onion.
Serena Williams The Personal Trainer
Adding to the star power of Glass Onion is a brief appearance from Serena Williams. The 23-time Grand Slam winner is one of the greatest sports stars of the 21st century, but is relegated to Miles’ online personal trainer in the Knives Out sequel to the shock of Benoit Blanc and Andi who speak to Williams while they are discussing their plan to find the killer in the Glass Onion’s huge gym. Glass Out: A Knives Out Mystery regular use of celebrities, like Serena Williams, creates hilarious moments that add to the excitement of Benoit Blanc’s latest case.