Fan Spots 'Titanic' Easter Egg in 'Frozen': 'Never Seen Anyone Find This'

A TikTok user believes they've found a Titanic Easter egg in Disney's Frozen.

Chloe Hutchon (@chloehutchonn) was watching the 1997 blockbuster with her grandma over the holidays when she noticed something new.

Early in the movie, Leonardo DiCaprio's Jack wins two third-class tickets aboard the ship in a game of poker. He is playing against two men called Olaf and Sven, who share their names with beloved Frozen characters Olaf the snowman and Sven the reindeer.

"I have NEVER seen anyone find this before & I wouldn't of either if it wasn't for my gran watching it when I was over," Hutchon wrote alongside the clip, in which she stitches the Titanic poker scene with Olaf and Sven meeting for the first time in the 2013 animation.

Fellow film fans were stunned by the discovery, with many throwing in theories of their own. Since being shared on December 7, 2022, Hutchon's post has received almost 5 million views and more than 1,200 comments.

What Is a Movie Easter Egg?

Easter eggs are hidden jokes, secrets or references that creators sneak into their work for fans to find. Many are added just for fun, but sometimes Easter eggs can be part of a franchise's marketing plan (such as Marvel).

However, Easter eggs aren't just found in movies, with the term supposedly originating from the 1973 video game Moonlander. The purpose of the game is to land your spaceship on the moon, but dedicated gamers discovered that flying horizontally for long periods of time leads you to a secret McDonald's (you can even order fries).

TV shows also sprinkle Easter eggs throughout their series, such as Doctor Who, Kaleidoscope and Wednesday.

Pixar is especially well known for hiding Easter eggs in its movies. Many early Pixar pioneers graduated from the California Institute of the Arts, and often reference the classroom "Room A113" in their films. You'll also find plenty of Easter eggs in Disney flicks, as well as their promotional materials.

Robert Thompson, the director of the Bleier Center for Television and Popular Culture, said secret messages and covert references in art are nothing new, and it's common for creators to use Easter eggs—or the more technical term "allusions"—to honor their inspirations.

"Literary scholars and English majors have for centuries been spending their days looking for and explaining these things," he told Newsweek.

"In contemporary popular culture, the appeal of the 'Easter egg' is more simple and less academic: there is a lot of fun to be had in finding an obscure reference, just like there is in finding an actual egg at Easter."

However, he doubts Hutchon's find is a legitimate Easter egg.

"Sven' and 'Olaf' are names we would have expected to encounter in both the steerage class on the Titanic and way up North in Arendelle," he said.

"So even if it was deliberate, it was a weak and not terribly interesting allusion. But it was amusing to have it pointed out...and that's often what Easter eggs are all about."

'I've ALWAYS Noticed This'

Although Thompson isn't convinced by the possible Titanic Easter egg in Frozen, TikTok users were more than ready to hop onboard.

"WHAT. WOAH WOAH WOAH WOAH," said Alexa Michele Christian singer.

"Didn't the parents die in a shipwreck..?" asked Stacey Leavey, referencing the death of Elsa and Anna's parents, the king and queen of the fictional kingdom Arendelle.

"Titanic hit a North Atlantic iceberg, Elsa has ice powers, Frozen takes place in Norway," wrote thepalmtrees, to which Hutchon replied: "THE PLOT THICKENS."

"Tarzan is the brother of Anna and Elsa. Their parents died on the Titanic. That's why," theorized Andy.

"Jack and rose are the parents of elsa and anna???" wondered Chanurri.

It turns out, Hutchon isn't the first to notice the possible name link between the two films, with Anisah Sharmin commenting: "I've ALWAYS noticed this."

"IVE BEEN SAYING THIS SINCE I SAW TITANIC," wrote Monty.

"I'm a diehard Titanic fan [and] when frozen first came out I thought they copied it from there as well," wrote Ashley.

"My family has always joked about this, it's so funny," said Brigid Buthy.

While Shelby commented: "One of the writers from Frozen was a big fan of Titanic. I think it was addressed in the BTS of Frozen 2 documentary that's on Disney+!"

Newsweek reached out to @chloehutchonn for comment.