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Benoit Blanc is back to solve another murder in Glass Onion: A Knives Out mystery. The second movie features an all-star cast including Kate Hudson, Edward Norton, Janelle Monáe, Kathryn Hahn, and, of course, Daniel Craig. But there are also some more surprising familiar faces included in Rian Johnson’s sequel too.
To help you spot them all, we've taken a deep dive into all of the major cameos from Knives Out 2 that we spotted. There's a lot of impressive talent here, from Hollywood actors to sporting icons. Of course, given the topic of this article, we’ll be dealing with some pretty hefty spoilers from here on out. So if you haven’t managed to catch the whodunnit on Netflix yet, bookmark this page for later on. For everyone else, let’s get stuck in.
Every Knives Out 2 cameo in order *spoilers ahead*
Jake Tapper
CNN anchor Jake Tapper has the first cameo in the Netflix movie when he interviews Claire about her senate run. He’s playing himself during the interview, quizzing Hahn’s character about her environmental policies. Tapper has been CNN’s lead Washington anchor since 2012.
Yo-Yo Ma
Cellist Yo-Yo Ma also makes a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it appearance at Birdie Jay’s lockdown party. He’s one of the guests who helps her work out Miles Bron’s puzzle invitation. The acclaimed cellist was a child prodigy who later attended Juilliard School, Harvard University, and Columbia University. He has received 19 Grammy Awards over his career, and recorded more than 90 albums.
Stephen Sondheim
The late, great Stephen Sondheim has a small role in the film when Benoit is hosting a Zoom play-along of Among Us with some friends… from his bath. The composer and lyricist was behind some of the best musicals of the 20th century, including Into The Woods, Follies, Company, and A Little Night Music.
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar also appears over Zoom as himself. The former professional basketball player is well known for his NBA records, as well as being an actor, author, and activist. Some of his previous movies include Game of Death, opposite Bruce Lee, and Airplane!
Angela Lansbury
Another guest on the Zoom quiz is the late Angela Lansbury. The actor is best known for her iconic role as Jessica Fletcher in Murder, She Wrote, a staple of the murder-mystery genre. Just like the others on the call, she’s of the opinion that Blanc needs a new case to occupy his mind during lockdown.
Natasha Lyonne
Russian Doll and Orange Is The New Black star Natasha Lyonne also pops up in the Zoom chat with Blanc. The actor is a close friend of director Johnson, and will be starring in his new series Poker Face alongside Adrien Brody and Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
Ethan Hawke
Ethan Hawke appears very briefly in the movie when all of Miles’ guests arrive in Greece. He’s charged with rounding them up and spraying them all with a mystery concoction. We’re not clear what exactly it is, but it seems to be some kind of vaccine as they can all take their masks off afterwards to enjoy their luxury trip. Hawke is sporting the long hair his character has in Moon Knight, the movie and MArvel series having been filmed at a similar time.
Noah Segan
Don’t mind Derol, he’s just always lingering in the background on Miles’ island. The character who keeps himself out of the action is played by Noah Segan, one of Johnson’s real-life best friends. And if he looks very familiar, then that’s because he’s cameoed in almost all of the director’s movies, including the original Knives Out and Star Wars: The Last Jedi.
Joseph Gordon-Levitt
While he may not physically appear in the movie, Joseph Gordon-Levitt voices Miles’ clock. Every hour, a very loud voice rings out around the island, much to the confusion of his guests. The actor also appeared in the first Knives Out movie, when he voiced a moment from the TV show Marta’s sister is watching.
Jeremy Renner (kind of)
Jeremy Renner may not actually appear in the movie, but we do see the Hawkeye star an awful lot. He’s the face of a brand of hot sauce which Miles has been trying to palm off to every guest. Luckily, it proves very useful when Blanc fakes Helen’s death as the bright red sauce looks a lot like blood.
Hugh Grant
Glass Onion gives us a bit more insight into Blanc’s private life as his partner Phillip is referenced in the movie. However, it’s only when we get a flashback to Helen’s arrival at their home that it’s revealed he’s played by Hugh Grant.
Serena Williams
There are a lot of great cameos in Glass Onion, but tennis legend Serena Williams’ may just be the best. When Helen and Blanc are discussing the next stage of their plan, they hide in Miles’ state of the art gym. In the background, a video of Williams can be seen, before it becomes clear that she’s actually there on a video call waiting. Miles has been paying her to always be ready in case someone is keen for a guided work-out.
Jared Leto, Anderson Cooper
Like Renner, Glass Onion also references several other stars throughout. First of all, there’s Jared Leto’s Kombucha, which is a big hit with Helen, and is actually pretty alcoholic. Then Anderson Cooper is also mentioned in a pivotal moment when Duke discusses Miles almost running him over.
Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery is out on Netflix now. For more on the movie, check out our Glass Onion ending explained and round-up of Glass Onion Easter eggs.
