There’s nothing quite like combing a comic book movie for cameos and references. But hunting down all of the Birds of Prey Easter eggs isn’t easy, especially as you’ll be blinded by the bright lights and glitter bombs that Harley and her girl gang scatter throughout. Look a little deeper, however, and you’ll find deep cuts and nods to DC history from the opening salvo right through to the Birds of Prey post-credits scene.
Join us as we run through all the Birds of Prey Easter eggs we’ve seen so far and, when you’re done, maybe enjoy an egg sandwich for the road. With extra American cheese, naturally.
Warning: Spoilers ahead for Birds of Prey! turn back now if you have not seen Harley's latest adventure.
Harley Quinn’s original costume
While Margot Robbie’s version of Harley Quinn swerves her jester origins in favour of dip-dye pigtails and fishnets, we do actually get a sighting of her original outfit from 1992’s Batman: The Animated Series.
During the animated recap of her life, we see Harley Quinn’s black-and-red costume as she rises from the vat in Ace Chemicals. Unfortunately, we’ll probably never get to see it again in live-action, but it’s a great callback to an amazing cartoon.
Captain Boomerang poster
If you were waiting patiently for Suicide Squad alumni to turn up in Birds of Prey, you might be left disappointed. No one turns up in the flesh, though you can spot a Captain Boomerang (Jai Courtney) wanted poster in the police station about halfway through the movie. Harley even draws attention to it, saying she “knows that guy”. Maybe they’ll reunite in next year’s The Suicide Squad?
Bruce the Hyena
You probably already spotted one hyena-related reference in the first Birds of Prey trailer: Harley’s new leg-chewing pet is named after “that hunky Wayne guy” i.e. billionaire-by-day, Batman-by-night, Bruce Wayne.
What you might not know, however, is Harley having a hyena is a reference to both the comics and Batman: The Animated Series. In several stories, she’s seen with two hyenas, Bud and Lou.
Black Mask's... Black Mask
Most comic fans – as well as those who have played Arkham: Origins – will have expected ol’ Romy, Roman Sionis, to don the black mask at some point, and so it proved in the final third of Birds of Prey. Before heading off to apprehend Harley in Amusement Mile, Sionis completes his classic look and puts on the mask.
Victor Zsasz
Zsasz may have made his big-screen DC debut in 2005’s Batman Begins, but it’s here where the cut-throat henchman really makes his mark, having ripped off the face of a family on Roman’s orders early on in Birds of Prey. He’s seen throughout the movie with his trademark scars on his body – one for each person he kills – and even tells Harley that he’s left a spot empty for her. Zsasz is later killed by Huntress.
Joker and Suicide Squad flashbacks
While Harley is still getting over her messy break-up with Mistah J, she recollects some of the moments she and the Clown Prince of Crime shared. In the absence of Jared Leto actually showing up, that means a very quick shot of Joker cradling Harley in Suicide Squad, though you can only see the back of his head briefly. The moment where Harleen Quinzel turns into Harley Quinn via a plunge into the vats at Ace Chemicals is also shown again.
A classic Marilyn Monroe reference
While Harley is getting her clock cleaned by Ewan McGregor’s Roman Sionis, she suddenly starts hallucinating, imagining herself as Marilyn Monroe’s character, Lorelei, in the iconic song-and-dance number from 1953’s Gentlemen Prefer Blondes. She even gets to perform her own anarchic version of "Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend" before being smacked back into reality.
A tour of Gotham
We don’t get to see too much of Gotham’s landmarks – no Wayne Manor, no Gotham Zoo, no Crime Alley – in Birds of Prey, but we did get a couple of set-pieces that take place in classic territory.
Ace Chemicals is the most obvious locale. Harley blows up the factory, where a man named Jack Napier turned into the Joker in the comics, as a “middle finger” to her former beau. Amusement Mile, meanwhile, provided the setting for the movie’s final act, and was often seen as a haunt for Harley and Joker in Batman: Arkham City.
Batman
We couldn’t leave without mention the Dark Knight, could we? Even Harley has to get her penny’s worth in during the post-credits – mentioning Batman by name before being cut off. It’s not clear what she says about the Caped Crusader, though maybe he’ll have a riposte in 2021’s The Batman?
Read more: Birds of Prey ending explained: your biggest questions answered
