Watch: A Supercut of Every Alfred Hitchcock Cameo from 1927-1976
by Alex Billington
November 28, 2024
Source: YouTube
There he is! The “Master of Suspense” hiding in plain sight. Can you identify all of his cameos? Do you know where he is in every one of his own films? Time for something a bit fun this year – enjoy this supercut video collecting every single Alfred Hitchcock cameo. There’s a grand total of 40 of them! Spanning from 1927 to 1976 and in both B&W and color across his entire filmography. Wikipedia explains: “English film director Alfred Hitchcock made cameo appearances in 40 of his films. They began during production of The Lodger: A Story of the London Fog when an actor failed to show up, and the director filled in for him.” There are obviously some more iconic and unforgettable cameos, like the one where he gets on the train with a cello in Strangers on a Train (1951), or the one where he gives actress Jane Wyman a look in Stage Fright (1950) – seen in the image above. It’s a fun look back at cinema history and Hitchcock’s kooky comedic sensibilities.
Thanks to OpenCulture for the tip. The video was edited and posted by YT user named Morgan T. Rhys – you can view the channel here. It was originally created 12 years ago and is still up to watch anytime. “This was originally a college project that I was going to remove from YouTube, but it seems to have got quite a great following. Thanks Hitchcock fans!” This Hitchcock cameos supercut starts out with The Lodger (1927) and Easy Virtue (1928) and continues through the entire filmography ending with Frenzy (1972) and Family Plot (1976) – which was also the very last feature film that Hitchcock directed before passing away in 1980. For more info and a full list of cameos, you can visit Yardbarker’s post or visit the full Wikipedia list. They add this fun tidbit: “In his discussion with Franรงois Truffaut, Hitchcock called the gag ‘troublesome’ because audience anticipation of his appearance had grown distracting. To keep the focus on the film, the director would get his cameo over in the first 5 minutes.” Ha! Follow the film’s plot not him. Your favorite?