# List of films with post-credits scenes
A post-credits scene, also called a stinger, credit cookie, or tag, is a short clip placed during or after a film's closing credits, used for jokes, sequel teases, plot revelations, or dedications. The device dates to the mid-1960s, became a comedy staple in the 1980s, and was made a near-obligatory expectation by the [Marvel Cinematic Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/marvel-cinematic-universe) (MCU) beginning in 2008.[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) • [2](https://repositorio.ufc.br/bitstream/riufc/40981/1/2018_tcc_lbdcarvalho.pdf)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Earliest widely cited example | *The Silencers* (1966), teasing Dean Martin's return in *Murderers' Row*[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) |
| First modern stinger | *The Muppet Movie* (1979), with Animal telling the audience to "go home"[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) |
| 1980s comedy examples | *Airplane!* (1980) and *Ferris Bueller's Day Off* (1986)[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) |
| Early sequel teases | *Young Sherlock Holmes* (1985) and *Masters of the Universe* (1987), both promising returns that never came[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) |
| MCU turning point | Marvel Studios made the stinger a franchise fixture from 2008 onward[4](https://time.com/5516692/marvel-post-credit-scenes-breakdown/) |
| Outlier count | *Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2* (2017) carries five post-credits scenes[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/may/09/post-credits-scenes-ruining-movies-guardians-galaxy-avengers) |
## Definition and placement
A post-credits scene appears after the credits have rolled; a mid-credits scene appears partway through them. Some films use both, as in *Captain America: Civil War* (2016), which has one of each.[6](https://era.ed.ac.uk/bitstream/1842/31381/5/Codsi2018_redacted.pdf) Common forms include a blooper or outtake, a comic scene addressing the audience, an unconnected gag, and a scene that hints at more to come or fleshes out existing lore.[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) Catalog services such as What's After The Credits? classify entries by type, tagging stingers as after-credits, during-credits, bloopers, sequel setups, dedications, and other categories.[7](https://aftercredits.com/about/)
## Early history
Before true post-credits scenes, filmmakers teased sequels with on-screen text. The [James Bond](https://www.edgepedia.org/james-bond) series began including the line "James Bond will return in..." with *From Russia With Love* (1963), though that text appeared before the credits rather than after them.[8](https://aftercredits.com/2012/06/a-short-history-of-the-post-credits-scene/)
**The 1960s and 1970s.** *The Silencers* (1966), a [Dean Martin](https://www.edgepedia.org/dean-martin) spy spoof, is widely cited as the first film with a post-credits scene, announcing that Martin would return in the sequel *[Murderers' Row](https://www.edgepedia.org/murderers-row-1966-film)* (1966).[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) [George A. Romero](https://www.edgepedia.org/george-a-romero)'s *Night of the Living Dead* (1968) is also cited: its final shot plays after the credits, which run over still images.[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) The scene that captured public attention came in *The Muppet Movie* (1979), where the credits roll over the Muppets partying and Animal, left alone in frame, yells "Go home! Go home!"[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) The Muppet films kept the fourth-wall-breaking tradition through 2011.[8](https://aftercredits.com/2012/06/a-short-history-of-the-post-credits-scene/)
**The 1980s and 1990s.** Stingers became particularly popular in comedies. *Airplane!* (1980) ends with the taxicab passenger abandoned at the start of the film still waiting, saying he will give the driver another 20 minutes while the meter passes $100.[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) *Ferris Bueller's Day Off* (1986) closes with Ferris telling the audience, "You're still here? It's over. Go home!"[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) Sequel teasing also began, with mixed results: *Young Sherlock Holmes* (1985) introduced its villain signing himself "Moriarty," and *Masters of the Universe* (1987) had Skeletor declare "I'll be back!", but in both cases the promised returns never reached the screen.[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/) • [3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) The 1990s produced quick gags in films such as *Lethal Weapon 3* (1992), *Super Mario Bros.* (1993), *Space Jam* (1996), and *Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me* (1999).[1](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/)
## The Marvel era
Beginning in 2008, [Marvel Studios](https://www.edgepedia.org/marvel-studios) built its post-credits scenes into a connected storyline culminating in *Avengers: Infinity War* and *Avengers: Endgame*.[4](https://time.com/5516692/marvel-post-credit-scenes-breakdown/) Marvel Studios president [Kevin Feige](https://www.edgepedia.org/kevin-feige) has said the habit came from his own moviegoing: he always sat through credits hoping for a bonus scene, and "when I started making movies, I'd be like, 'That'd be fun to do.'"[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) The practice spread across superhero cinema; the X-Men films, the [DC Extended Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/dc-extended-universe), and standalone films such as *Venom* (2018) all use credits scenes to glimpse a franchise's next steps.[9](https://digitalcollections.bowdoin.edu/file/62509/content) *Justice League* (2017) carried two end-credits scenes advancing the DC Extended Universe.[10](https://time.com/5028603/justice-league-after-credit-scenes-explained/)
The convention spread beyond superhero films to animation and family franchises, including *[Shrek](https://www.edgepedia.org/shrek-franchise)*, *Spy Kids*, *Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets*, and the *Fast and Furious* series.[3](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/) Recent releases continue it: *The Super Mario Galaxy Movie* (2026) has multiple post-credits scenes with Nintendo cameos,[11](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/animation-movies/super-mario-galaxy-movie-ending-explained/) and *Super Troopers 3* (2026) uses a post-credits bit to announce *Super Troopers 4: The Hunt For O'Hagan's Gold*.[12](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/super-troopers-3-revived-post-credits-gag-cast-beerfest-stoners-mad-potfest)
## Types and functions
A 2018 undergraduate thesis at the Universidade Federal do Ceará analyzed roughly 80 post-credits scenes and proposed five types: advertisement scenes, destiny scenes (following a character's fate), hook scenes setting up sequels, in memoriam scenes, and "What if?" scenes showing an alternative history.[2](https://repositorio.ufc.br/bitstream/riufc/40981/1/2018_tcc_lbdcarvalho.pdf) Its author concluded that some scenes carry information essential to a narrative universe's continuity rather than functioning as mere bonuses, and that each film genre tends to favor particular types.[13](https://periodicos.ufc.br/eu/article/view/75488)
Not every stinger teases a sequel. *The Disaster Artist* (2017) ends with a scene included to satisfy a contract that [Tommy Wiseau](https://www.edgepedia.org/tommy-wiseau) negotiated when he signed his life rights to the filmmakers.[14](https://www.thewrap.com/disaster-artist-post-credits-scene-james-franco-tommy-wiseau/) Placement can even vary by release version: the 2026 film *Backrooms* has no credits scene in its theatrical cut or digital release, while its "Everything Must Go Edition" and home-video versions add a 16-minute post-credits sequence.[15](https://thethingsyoumissed.com/movies/the-backrooms/post-credits)
## Criticism
The device has drawn pushback as it spread. A 2017 Guardian piece argued that *Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2*, with five post-credits scenes, turned "a little peck-on-the-cheek" into an exhausting ritual, and noted that none of its five scenes advanced the plot.[5](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/may/09/post-credits-scenes-ruining-movies-guardians-galaxy-avengers) Later commentary on the MCU's Multiverse Saga made a similar point, describing stingers as less teasers than attempts to keep audiences engaged, with some, such as the Kang council scene in *Quantumania*, rendered moot by off-screen events.[16](https://www.escapistmagazine.com/marvel-needs-to-stop-making-post-credits-scenes/) Critics also note that stingers can dangle storylines never followed up, as with most post-credits scenes in [Sony's Spider-Man Universe](https://www.edgepedia.org/sonys-spider-man-universe).[17](https://time.com/7099007/venom-the-last-dance-post-credit-scenes/)
## References
1. [What is a Post Credit Scene — The Movie Stinger Beyond Marvel, StudioBinder](https://www.studiobinder.com/blog/what-is-a-post-credit-scene/)
2. [Carvalho, Luan Barbosa de (2018). Será que tem cenas pós-créditos? Universidade Federal do Ceará](https://repositorio.ufc.br/bitstream/riufc/40981/1/2018_tcc_lbdcarvalho.pdf)
3. [Does 'Glass' have an after-credits scene? The Washington Post](https://www.washingtonpost.com/arts-entertainment/2019/01/18/does-glass-have-an-after-credits-scene-audiences-surely-expect-one/)
4. [Breaking Down Every Single Marvel Post-Credits Scene, Time](https://time.com/5516692/marvel-post-credit-scenes-breakdown/)
5. [Why post-credits scenes are slowly ruining blockbusters, The Guardian](https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/may/09/post-credits-scenes-ruining-movies-guardians-galaxy-avengers)
6. [Codsi (2018), Master's thesis, University of Edinburgh](https://era.ed.ac.uk/bitstream/1842/31381/5/Codsi2018_redacted.pdf)
7. [About — What's After The Credits?](https://aftercredits.com/about/)
8. [A Short History of the Post-Credits Scene, What's After The Credits?](https://aftercredits.com/2012/06/a-short-history-of-the-post-credits-scene/)
9. [The postcredit scene has become somewhat of a..., Bowdoin Digital Collections](https://digitalcollections.bowdoin.edu/file/62509/content)
10. [Breaking Down the Justice League End Credit Scenes, Time](https://time.com/5028603/justice-league-after-credit-scenes-explained/)
11. [The Super Mario Galaxy Movie ending explained, GamesRadar+](https://www.gamesradar.com/entertainment/animation-movies/super-mario-galaxy-movie-ending-explained/)
12. [Super Troopers 3 Revived A Gag Cast Says Still Has Stoners 'Angry' At Them Everywhere, CinemaBlend](https://www.cinemablend.com/movies/super-troopers-3-revived-post-credits-gag-cast-beerfest-stoners-mad-potfest)
13. [Será que tem cenas pós-créditos? Encontros Universitários da UFC](https://periodicos.ufc.br/eu/article/view/75488)
14. [Does James Franco's 'The Disaster Artist' Have a Post-Credits Scene? TheWrap](https://www.thewrap.com/disaster-artist-post-credits-scene-james-franco-tommy-wiseau/)
15. [Backrooms (2026): Which Version Has the Post-Credit Scene, The Things You Missed](https://thethingsyoumissed.com/movies/the-backrooms/post-credits)
16. [Marvel Needs To Stop Making Post-Credits Scenes, The Escapist](https://www.escapistmagazine.com/marvel-needs-to-stop-making-post-credits-scenes/)
17. [What to Make of Venom: The Last Dance's Post-Credit Scenes, Time](https://time.com/7099007/venom-the-last-dance-post-credit-scenes/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Awards and screen reference › Collective, character, and franchise filmographies*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 11, 2026; Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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