Glass Onion, the sequel to Knives Out, follows the further adventures of super-sleuth Benoit Blanc. But when the COVID-19 pandemic hits and Blanc isn’t getting invited to the country estates of the rich and powerful, it turns out he doesn’t have much use for his detecting talents. So instead of real-life murder-solving, he apparently did what all of us did in 2020: play Among Us.
While this momentary glimpse of the game early in the film is a good bit of fun for anyone in the know, the most exciting part of the scene comes when the movie reveals Benoit is playing with an all-star lineup of murder-mystery greats. But in case you missed who each player was, or aren’t familiar with their work in the genre, we broke them all down for you:
[Ed. note: This story contains spoilers for Glass Onion.]
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
One of the great multi-hyphenates of the modern era, Abdul-Jabbar was an all-time great professional basketball player who transitioned after retirement to a career as an accomplished writer of columns and, most importantly for the purposes of Glass Onion, mystery novels. In 2015, Abdul-Jabbar started co-writing a series of novels with Anna Waterhouse, based around the character of Mycroft Holmes. The series is now on its fourth entry, which is why he’s part of Benoit’s celebrity Among Us game.
Stephen Sondheim
The greatest composer in musical theater history, Sondheim’s inclusion here may seem confusing at first, but he was actually a screenwriter too. Most importantly, Sondheim co-wrote (with Psycho star Anthony Perkins) a murder-mystery movie called The Last of Sheila, which was Rian Johnson’s most direct inspiration for Glass Onion, according to the director himself.
Angela Lansbury
Perhaps the easiest to figure out of the list, Angela Lansbury spent 12 years playing Jessica Fletcher, the famed writer and amateur detective who solved crimes in the mystery television show Murder, She Wrote. The show ran for 264 episodes and more than a few movies, making Lansbury one of the most recognizable murder-mystery actors of all time.
Natasha Lyonne
Lyonne is the newcomer to this group of legends, but is an easy fit considering her upcoming mystery show is Rian Johnson’s next project. The show is called Poker Face, and it already looks like a great time, based on its trailer. Like any good mystery series, it appears to be stacked with guest stars, and Johnson and Lyonne hope it will be loved enough to make Lyonne’s appearance at Benoit’s Among Us match feel like a no-brainer to future viewers.