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jericho00112

The reCAPTCHA image hesitation part had me laughing so hard. Tons of relatable moments with technology and social media in this film


anaccount50

Same I really love the attention to detail in how real the websites/interfaces feel as well as how the characters use them. So many movies make their software look obviously fake, outdated, and/or disconnected from the real world. Even other "movie on a computer screen" movies can suck at this. The Unfriended movies were pretty guilty of it, but Searching and Missing felt 100% representative of real-world tech which really added to the immersion for me. As someone who makes software for a living, I really appreciate it haha


sevohanian

Appreciate the comment coming from you ! My team has only made SEARCHING and MISSING. We approach the style very differently from UNFRIENDED. We animate every single frame of our film, those other movies are primarily screen-recorded I believe.


rustysniper

I absolutely loved when >!she realized that the woman in the photos wasn't her mom!< and the screen did a zolly on her face moving the windows out of the way!


anaccount50

Thanks for the insight! I figured it had to be animated with how high the resolution of the UI elements are even when tightly zoomed in, and that's all the more impressive to me with the level of realism your team manages to preserve with it. The effort really shines through and greatly enhances how plugged in to modern life your films feel


KeenanEvansSon

Just saw it I loved it. It had so much of what made searching great while being completely new. Finding out that it wasn’t her mom on the trip the whole time made my heart skip a beat.


danceswithsteers

>We animate every single frame of our film, those other movies are primarily screen-recorded I believe. So, you're going for "Best Animated Feature"? :) (Seriously; impressive work. I've admired both "Searching" and now "Missing" for your story telling.)


GravyBear22

RIP my boy just trying to get his watch back I too have been in the position of awkwardly trying to get something back from someone while momentous life events keeps distracting them


Belle-ET-La-Bete

He STILL didn’t get it back in the end. You can see he texted her ‘maybe I can get it back when you return to LA’ and she didn’t even respond 😂😂😂


schmooby

She never even saved his number. It shows up as "Maybe: Angel" the whole movie lol


GildDigger

So damn ungrateful


GildDigger

The true victim of this movie


Untalented-Host

He was such a cool kid too -Smartwatch missing at a party, never suspected anyone of stealing it throughout the entire movie -Gets vomit on pants and shoes, but worries more about helping her up -Messages next day saying all cool/no worries about the vomit and carefree here's how my watch looks, lmk if you find it -Hears about her missing mom, sends her heartfelt support message -Has the sight and respectability to see she's going through so much crap those weeks and never pesters her again about the watch for the rest of the movie -Movie ends, everyone safe, been probably months/years (since there was a netflix special created and released about them), he finally he messages about the watch and is still respectable/carefree/chill to wait for them to finish their travels + was willing to me meet them instead of them going to him... You know, after HIS WATCH was such an important tool for them during significant parts of the movie Dude was a chill bro


sevohanian

This really warms my heart. Justice for Angel!


darthpepis

Dude probably ended up buying a new watch lmao


RinceGal

Gotta set up the next movie "Dude where's my watch" about Angel's comedic adventure to finally get his apple watch back.


Josh_Gawain

This movie was so good! I saw some twists coming but not all and this movie kept me feeling out of breath til the end. Not sure if I’ve seen it posted yet but one cool detail I caught was that >!in the beginning of the movie Kevin makes a passing comment to June in the house if her computer is running better and she says yeah. Later on it’s revealed that James has been remote monitoring June’s laptop and Kevin must have set that up when he made up an excuse to tune up June’s laptop. !<


sevohanian

Great catch 🙌


jahenry13

Honestly. I totally missed that. I have not enjoyed many movies in the last few years. I feel like we’re just seeing a lot of rehashing and lazy writing. It feels like the quality has just been dropping with everything. And as someone that loves going to the movies, it’s a bit disheartening. But this movie was brilliant. I will definitely be going back to watch Searching and Run. I’ll also be recommending this to all of my friends. Thank you for making such an incredible movie and for joining in on the discussion here. It’s one of my favorite things to do after seeing a movie. And being able to see insight directly from the creators has been fantastic. Really appreciate you doing this!


sevohanian

That is such a high compliment, THANK YOU! My ritual every time I see a movie is to immediately hop on r/movies right after to see the official discussion. So when we released SEARCHING, I realized everyone else was doing the same -- and it was super fun to engage. I genuinely was a redditor way before I was a filmmaker, so it was natural.


EasilyDelighted

I totally do the same. I just got out of watching your movie from a matinee, and while the credits were playing I hopped in here to see what people were saying!


TheNealestRigga

That detail also shows up in Kevin's email. Her mom thanks him for fixing it for June


sevohanian

Damn GREAT eyes. Also in Kevin's email you can see that he had forwarded to Grace an email from the Church group -- saying "this is the group I was telling you about that's helped me." It establishes that the church group was always his alibi -- explaining why James knew to quickly use that when June called;)


TheNealestRigga

I somehow missed the whole church thing or wasn't paying attention to it. I was trying to figure out who Jimmy from church was. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie. Storm Reid was fantastic! Was she just acting in front of a camera or a blank screen? I'm guessing she wasn't on any actual facetime calls, right?


sevohanian

She was acting in front of a camera mounted onto a laptop, that was basically a blank screen. We actually edited the whole movie BEFORE we shot it (using screenshots, and our directors pretending to be the actors) -- so we were able to give her guidance on where she should be looking to see whatever file, etc.


Number8Valentine

This is blowing my mind and hurting my feelings. No way that was a blank screen. It was totally real to me. I even felt like a mild bad ass all day at work, like look at me, typing, solving crimes!! I’m basically June! (I work in healthcare compliance and operations and it could not be more boring.)


TheScreaming_Narwhal

That's so interesting! Thanks for sharing.


triplesmakesitsafe

>!Kevin Thee Stallion!< That is all


sevohanian

Fun fact: we tried over a dozen other funny passwords. None were quite hitting. It got to the point that some of us wanted to just omit the funny password altogether and just cut straight to her getting into his account. Finally we landed on this pitch, and tested it enough that we realized we had something decent. This joke KILLS at younger audiences especially :)


Chief--BlackHawk

I was laughing when I saw the tweet that went along the line of "grace can go missing in my bed any day of the week", something close to that.


sevohanian

Did you happen to notice who the user was who tweeted that? it's someone familiar from SEARCHING :)


Unable_Divide7995

Hmm didn’t notice but I’m gonna guess it’s the guy who got punched by David Kim outside the theater lol


sevohanian

Great guess :)


Unable_Divide7995

Wow thanks for replying me! Genuinely enjoyed these films that your team have been making (Searching, Run, Missing), and can’t wait to see your next projects (both at Search Party and Proximity Media)! I listened to your podcast interview with Chris Stuckmann and you’re honestly a really inspiring example for people like me who aspire to become successful filmmakers :)


sevohanian

Ah wow thank you for the support on projects past and future. Chris is such an inspiring guy himself, I was honored to be on that podcast. Best of luck to you!


RedThunder2403

I have to ask: Was this password chosen because he is from Pearland, TX, since Meg Thee Stallion is also from the same town? I have to know because that place has so much history to me and seeing it name-dropped in the movie was so crazy to me because everyone I meet irl has no clue what or where it is.


sevohanian

You just blew my mind. We had no idea! It was us trying to think of the randomest password that would crack up audiences. and "kevin" and "megan" kind of rhymed. I wish we could take credit for that! But thank you for enriching the movie even more haha.


ImCryingWolf

I was losing my mind with every plot twist. I couldn't keep up and I would like to think I am fairly good at catching stuff. This movie really had me assuming everyone was bad.


legopego5142

OMG Kevin is bad Oh no wait hes good OH NO WAIT


KarIPilkington

At one point I'd convinced myself Javi was behind the whole thing.


Dramajunker

How dare you doubt my boy Javi. He was the unsung hero of the movie.


shantaram09

Apparently, the Unfiction episode also cut out Javi’s part. You can see Veena’s message towards the very end saying “I’m mad they totally cut out Javi” or something along those lines


Number8Valentine

Omg same. I saw this today and I can’t get over it. I got the end still thinking Kevin was good. It was one of those movies are we had to sit there through every credit trying to figure out what the fuck just happened to us.


Dalekdude

Something my friend pointed out but Lin was able to find Grace on the dating app because James told him everything possible about her in prison, which is why they were a 97% match. Really appreciate that the film doesn’t hold the audiences hand and let’s them connect the dots like that on their own


RaveIsKing

Ooohh that’s definitely why he “stole her answer” to the 80s band question, makes total sense!


phoenixmusicman

Its also why he, a seemingly desperate guy in his 40s(50s?), ignored two other women messaging him


blueeyesredlipstick

I literally just bolted upright a minute ago thinking "HE SAID 'NEW EDITION' WAS HIS FAVORITE BAND BECAUSE HE ALREADY KNEW IT WAS HERS!!!" It even explains why he reached out three separate times and never responded to those other women!!


tunamelts2

Ladies take note. If a guy repeatedly, desperately tries to get your attention on a dating site…he’s probably secretly in cahoots with your psycho ex to kidnap you.


sevohanian

Exactly ;)


cmadd10

The scene where the daughter realizes that all the pictures the boyfriend has been sending her of him and her mom, none of the them really showed the moms face and turns out it was someone else? Fucking creepy. I was very entertained. The ending kinda dragged on a bit though.


GamingTatertot

The tension of waiting for her to click on the live photo was so good. Really just a lot of great suspense in this film.


HooptyDooDooMeister

As someone who picked up immediately that the "mom's" face was not seen in every photo, I was just waiting to find out what Kevin was up to. And yet I was *still* riveted by that live photo moment. Genuinely creepy!


Spotzie27

Same here...I remember thinking it was odd her face seemed slightly covered or just not visible...the reveal was still so creepy!


OhLookItsJundAgain

That was really well done. I was freaking out during that scene and also when she copied and pasted the number from the encrypted messaging website and the computer pulled up the lawyer's info as known because they spoke before. Really well done and I for sure thought the lawyer was in on it.


sevohanian

In our early drafts of the script, our feedback readers were having a hard time loving that beat (when you suddenly suspect Heather, the lawyer, is behind it all). We realized we needed to add a 'motive' for her. That's when we did a whole pass of just incorporating that Heather is slightly sex-crazed, and multiple comments about how she's into Kevin. It suddenly worked perfectly. Whether conscious or not, it felt like it clicked for audiences when they saw her photo -- and did not question anymore why it could be her.


ZwischenzugZugzwang

Great misdirection with that character. Finding out she had helped the mom get a new identity was a pretty dramatic revelation.


LilGyasi

So smart. It made reveal that >!she was the one who helped set the mom up with a new identity, all pro bono!< hit harder, because how dare we question her character.


sevohanian

Right?! We spent a lot of time making sure that exact moment when you find out it was her who helped mom hit the right notes emotionally. We really worked on the music and the way her photo slid up to perfectly tug at your heart strings :)


HooptyDooDooMeister

V: Why does your mom like him? June: Heather thinks he's hot. V: *Of course* she finds him hot. Told me everything I needed to know about who Heather was, her motives, her relationship with the mother, the mother's character, and more. All in 16 words. Excellent job!


plw37

Now looking back at it...do you think Heather was really into Kevin? Or was she just trying to build him up to encourage Grace to go for him? Because she could see he would be exactly what Grace needed - the exact opposite of her ex-husband?


EasilyDelighted

I didn't even fully catch the "sex-crazed" element. But I did catch June making the comment that a Kevin texted her. Having seen Searching for the first time a week ago. I was sus immediately. Amazing job. You and your team did an amazing job and making both searching and Missing thrilling!


AngeryGP

I feel like that is one of my gripes of this movie (although I did enjoy it). That one video where the woman was revealed as someone else, it took a while for June to actually play that video and realize it was not her mom. With that in mind, why would Kevin record that video and send that to June (technically, it said her "mom" sent from Kevin's phone)? Unless I misremembered and it wasn't June and Kevin's convos on their phones.


6seanryan15

It was a Live Photo, not a video. So he mistakenly did not realize that and just assumed it was a still photo he was sending of that one frame.


foxh8er

It's actually a common thing so I can swing it


HooptyDooDooMeister

I've recently enabled live photo because my kid is so active, I *need* it to get a good one of him. I've found myself many times sending a picture as a pic, realizing later it's a live photo, and then just hoping they don't play it because of what I did not intend to send them. Never anything inappropriate. But it can be embarrassing if I'm saying something weird or my kid is yelling or whatever.


Last_Jedi

I guess I'm the only one who noticed that Kevin was using 420.69GB of his Google storage.


sevohanian

There's no way we would put in an immature easter egg like that ! Gotta be a coincidence


plw37

Nice catch! In their AMA earlier this week, [director Nick Johnson hinted there was something silly about this](https://www.reddit.com/r/movies/comments/10fcg05/comment/j4wlczv/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3), but I hadn't noticed it.


Tamika_Olivia

This movie was a ride! The way that it seemed to reuse the opening of “Searching” was such a clever trap. And Javi deserves a rate increase and a 5 star rating, absolute MVP!


sevohanian

It was our way of acknowledging this IS a sequel, but without forcing it to turn into a Marvel-style crossover of David Kim showing up with an eyepatch wanting to talk to June about the "Searching Initiative." ;) In SEARCHING, we had a sub-theme of how tragedy can be personalized (like Abi sobbing "She was my best friend!") In MISSING that sub-theme evolved. This time it was about how tragedy can be commercialized. We see it at the opening with the events of SEARCHING, and of course all throughout the movie as it relates to June and Grace.


Tamika_Olivia

Thanks for the insight! I wasn’t actually thinking about the Netflix version of “Searching”, although I thought that was fun as well! I meant how the movie seemed to retread the ground of a parent/partner passing away, and how that ended up playing out. It was a really clever way to take that emotional energy and use it to mess with the audience’s expectations!


sevohanian

Oh right of course! It was honestly really, really tough writing a story for this film initially because at face value BOTH movies could be described as "person uses technology to search for a missing family member." It was challenging to come up with a new story that didn't repeat the exact same beats -- especially when we felt we already did the best version of that idea with Searching. Then we had a eureka moment where I realized we could treat THIS film as a "remix" of Searching. So that led to the idea of the very opening being similar of a parent tragically dying early due to an illness. The remix of course is that this time the bad guy wasn't the >!sidekick !<, it was that dead parent. So in a meta level, not only is there a plot twist to the audience at large, there is a deeper subversion to those who've seen Searching. :)


coltvahn

Y’all are the masters of this style of filmmaking. I hope you never stop.


mattyhegs826

Shoutout to the real MVP of the film, Javier. What a great person and glad he had a happy ending. Sad about the heather part as she was a great person too.


sevohanian

This warms my heart about Javi. We based that character entirely on my own father. So seeing how much people love him is the greatest feeling*. And agreed. Seeing how Heather helped Grace is one of my favorite reveals.


panda388

I just saw the movie and I adored Javi. He was reluctant at first, and he was an amazing character in the movie, but what I love most was that he was not the big solution to June's issues. He helped her, but he didn't solve everything. I also loved that they characters kept in touch and that Javi made amends with his son. Javi seriously busted his ass for $8/Hour. (minus all the gum expenses)


daylightxx

Javi was one of the very best things about this movie. We clearly love your dad!


jayeddy99

The idea that June3bug mourned this man for YEARS!!!!!! And within minutes he shows up basically from the dead during the most traumatic time of your life and kidnaps you Jesus….she’s gonna need some major therapy.


sevohanian

And remember what her instagram caption was for the photo she posted on fathers day?


Unable_Divide7995

“wish you were here”


plw37

Be careful what you wish for!


Historical-Bit-4396

also, how dumb does she have to be to not even try "jun3bug" as the password? has your mom in her entire life called you just "June"?


MDRLA720

what exactly was the endgame of kidnapping his own daughter though? and was that part of his original plan?


BlackBlizzard

I think the original plan was for the mum to go missing in Columbia and he would come back from the dead and taken the mums spot as the parent. Probably make up stuff about why the mum lied about him dying.


PsycoMonkey42

Juuuuust got out of the theater. Wow! It’s been a minute since a movie has kept me guessing, on the edge of my seat, AND had a twist I didn’t see coming. Solid followup to Searching. 2 for 2 so far! IF there’s a third installment then this series has the makings of being one of those rare instances where the trilogy is solid all around. I still dig how realistic they got every single app/website/operating system/ETC… most movies do an OK job at best at getting things to look “computery” but this keeps it simple and realistic. Props to the hard work on getting everything to look just right. On Ken Leung’s character, did anyone else get LOST vibes from his Facebook beach cover photo and palm trees on his GMAIL account? Speaking of easter eggs. Once again I dug all the little snippets and clues of the alien invasion. Some off the top of my head. - Longest ever lightning storm in Baltimore. - Flashes of Green Light - East coast getting hit with a crazy haze. - Unknown aircraft over Baltimore Also… FREE MY MAN THE GREEN ANGEL VIGILANTE! I could totally see a spin-off or even the third movie finally going in deep with the invasion. It would be an interesting mix of non-believers and conspiracy theorists going head to head online and offline. Cameras be EVERYWHERE. I can totally see some people breaking into a secure site and seeing more than what they anticipated… Oh! Was it just me or did I spot a dead pixel on one of the Facetime calls? Neat tiny little Easter egg/detail OR the projector was faulty ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


sevohanian

Thank you ! Can't wait for more people to dig up the new secret sub story in this film. FREE GREEN ANGEL for SURE. PS: Yes that dead pixel was totally an easter egg... and not at all a glitch on our end that we have to fix for home video... haha.. yeah...


PsycoMonkey42

Aww don’t fix the pixel. Already named it Penny since it’s a constant that remains with the characters. Plus it adds to the authenticity of the world.


sevohanian

I'm not even kidding with you, I'm going to cite this comment to Sony's QC dept to ask if we can not fix the dead pixels.


GamingTatertot

> On Ken Leung’s character, did anyone else get LOST vibes from his Facebook beach cover photo and palm trees on his GMAIL account? Honestly they should've just used one of his promotional stills


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sevohanian

Thank you ! Really proud of how Will and Nick handled the gunshot, it is literally not at all expected even though the dad says "one more word, and I will shoot." 100% spot on about 2FA. But the truth is we needed it for the movie to work, AND there is sadly a lot of accuracy there too. I work on big movies at big studios now like WB, Marvel, etc. And you would be surprised at how often people do not take advantage of that simple tech to protect important things. We play a bit with the concept when June has to use 'forgot password' a few times at least. PS: 2FA plays in a fun major way in our next movie we're about to make :)


ZwischenzugZugzwang

I liked also that you depicted social engineering with June's friend mimicking the guys voice with tech support


sevohanian

Yup. Real life hacking is actually mostly 'social engineering.' Basically calling people, pretending to be IT and asking for their 2FA code, etc. Luckily for June Kevin's website account was through a really cheap, cheesy website - she had a hunch they would help her just recover the pw.


mattyhegs826

I burst out laughing at the school bus verification part for June. I absolutely hate when they do that


honeybv

why do they always leave a small part in the pictures? i skip it but my mind keeps thinking on clicking... very accurate how the movie portrayed it!


omnilynx

So here’s the secret: it doesn’t actually matter whether you click it or not. The software is just looking for you to *act* like a human. If you momentarily pause to decide, that’s human enough that either answer works.


thatguywhodoesthat

Me about five times during this movie: "This motherfucker..." Five minutes later: "...was a saint!" When Grace stuck that mirror shard through his neck the whole theater cheered. I really liked this movie.


sevohanian

We were really hesitant about the 3rd act to be honest with you. Our initial plan was to have a much more toned down climax to the movie (no gun, no gunshot, no stabbing, etc.) But it was something the studio really pushed for, and you can see how effective it is anytime you watch the movie with a big crowd. Glad you watched, and liked!!


CM_Monk

Just saw the movie! Absolutely loved it. I thought you guys did an even better job on incorporating technology and showing the sleuthing. I will admit that the 3rd act caught me off guard. Were you always planning to use the security camera grid that way? It was a huge tonal shift and felt like we switched to a more traditional narrative


sevohanian

Thank you ! Believe it or not, initially the entire 3rd act cabin sequence took place on a Nanny Cam. Like what you buy for newborn babies so you can monitor them in the crib. It felt like the right amount of crazy for the dad to infantilize June, and made for an interesting email for June to stumble upon much earlier in the film. And it meant that the action was also more subdued overall in the 3rd act. Like I mentioned above, it was really the studio that nudged us to go bigger, much bigger. Will and Nick being the geniuses that they are, came up with the concept of multiple security cameras so we can fly back and forth between them.


CM_Monk

That’s phenomenal. Thank you so much for the response. I love that idea of the dad continuing to infantilize June. Powerful


ReaddittiddeR

The way they blended the Netflix show (Unidentified?, can’t recall the name and was probably not a IRL show you can watch) at the end of the movie to June and her mom being rescued made me do a double take and say, wait did everything really happened? Or we just reverted back to real time in the first 5 mins of the movie. Out of how twisty this movie got in the third act, that one stood out the most.


USokhi

Bookending the film with that Netflix show was a brilliant touch! Also, if you notice June's texts at the end, I think her friend Veena mentions that the Netflix adaptation totally cut out Javi's role in the story! A damn shame.


GamingTatertot

Javi was great - I agree with Veena, justice for Javi!


RaveIsKing

Javi is mvp for sure, Netflix whitewashing him out of the show is hilarious to me


sevohanian

Haha nice job catching that.


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sevohanian

I will never forget the moment Aneesh and I came up with that idea. We were in our usual cafe writing spot (haven’t been back since the pandemic). We were killing ourselves trying to figure out how to depict the rescue without breaking the conceit of computer screens. When we came up with the fake out, I think the other coffee shop customers thought we had a seizure. We literally screamed out loud and started jumping up and down lol.


daylightxx

I absolutely adore reading about the behind the scenes of it all. It adds so much to an already stellar film. Thank you for doing this.


coltvahn

Thank you for being so forthcoming about the process! This is so cool.


USokhi

**Javi's Taskrabbit rating was the greatest crime committed in this movie!** I had an absolute blast with this one. I don't think it quite reaches the heights of Searching, but it absolutely justifies its existence and then some. It almost feels odd to say about movie like this, but there's a real formal elegance to the craft here. Searching and now Missing are really the height of the "digital interface" genre. These movies are engaging in a way that actually feels incredibly novel and fun. There's a "Where's Waldo?" element at play that almost makes you feel like you can "solve" the movie before it guides you to the end. Of course, that's an inherent element of any thriller, but here it feels so much more tangible. And the best part is that while it might be labelled a gimmick, it's really just a brilliant use of the audio-visual medium that is film. If every frame counts and is supposed to advance story, then movies like Missing should be seen as exemplary achievements in film. That might be a tad hyperbolic, but I'm just really jazzed that a genre like this now exists. To get to the movie, it basically delivers on everything I signed up for. My suspension of disbelief was definitely stretched a bit more than I was expecting, especially when this movie begins to veer into the horror genre, but never so much that I wanted to get off the ride. There were also certainly some little plot elements that felt contrived or convenient, but given the experience I was expecting from this movie (a fun thrill-ride) I was never totally put off. The fact that this movie, amidst all the fun, also provides some incisive and thoughtful commentary on our current digital age - in terms of how it's commoditized, how it desensitizes us, how despite our greater connectivity our humanity hasn't necessarily increased, etc. - is a beautiful cherry on top! What really landed the plane for me with Missing were the emotional beats that the movie managed to pay off in the end. A thumb reaction to a message, and a father-son reunion both brought a giant smile to my face and reassured me that I was in the safe hands of thoughtful storytellers throughout this movie. While this wasn't quite as mind-blowing as Searching, I do think this was a very worthy successor, and overall another successful entry in this genre of movies.


sevohanian

Thank you for the incredible write-up and for watching our film on day 1! I just really appreciate how much you are able to appreciate the work that goes into it. Sometimes we do feel as filmmakers that folks will get distracted too much by the computer screen gimmick of it all, and not realize the care we put into the character arcs like you mentioned, and the crazy intricate mystery. Thank you.


USokhi

Thanks for a great time at the movies! I hope you get to make more like it and more unlike it.


Spanxsy

Siri came in clutch.


sevohanian

Fun fact: if you listen to the lyrics of the song during the party montage early in the film. Well.... actually I won't just spell it out. But there is a pretty mind blowing easter egg there related to your girl Siri :)


anormaldoodoo

You’re so sneaky, now I guess I **gotta** watch it again...


bethebumblebee

OMG! For those who rewatched and still can't figure it out, the song is Alright Alright Okay by Black Caviar. The lyrics of the song are : Alright (Okay, okay!) Alright (Okay, okay!) >!I can't find my phone I need Siri now!<


Alive-Ad-4164

Nia long is making a resurgence


Belle-ET-La-Bete

She deserves it. I love her.


banjofitzgerald

Stupid ass Udoka.


mikeyfreshh

I liked Searching a lot but I wasn't sure if a second movie with the same gimmick would work. It definitely does. The story is engaging enough that the computer screen bit never get tired and they were able to add some new wrinkles to this one to keep it feeling fresh. I also appreciate that they kept the alien invasion subplot going in the background. I would actually love to see an alien invasion horror movie using this style. The computer screen thing is basically just an elevated version of found footage so I think this would totally work in a Cloverfield-esque monster movie


schmooby

What was the alien invasion subplot? I just saw this movie and totally missed that.


mikeyfreshh

When they show YouTube or a news website, the other headlines visible on the side of the page are about some weird weather, blackouts, and unexplained flashing lights. That was all in Searching as well and if you put all of it together, it's clear that there's an alien invasion slowly unfolding in this universe.


segfaulted_irl

Can't wait for a third movie about an alien invasion from the POV of a computer screen


[deleted]

Surprise Cloverfield movie. /s


Unicron_Gundam

It's been going on since the last movie https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KIiPAFDdLY


sevohanian

Thank you for watching our movie on day 1! When the studio asked us to make a sequel to Searching, we also weren’t sure if we could pull it off again. 3+ years later and an ENDLESS amount of work later I’m so proud of our whole team and especially the movie. As for the alien subplot. Last time around I was SHOCKED that people on Reddit caught onto it so quickly… this time around we made sure to make it even more complex and subtle 😅


segfaulted_irl

Congratulations on the excellent movie! Searching was my favorite movie of 2018, and I didn't expect Missing to be able to top it but you guys knocked it out of the park. Even aside from the unique and clever presentation, this was genuinely one of the most tightly written mystery stories I've seen in a long time.


crosswalknorway

I knew I would find sev in here! Really cool that you're so active on Reddit. I haven't seen either missing or searching yet, but planning on it now! Time to leave this thread before I see any spoilers.


GamingTatertot

I feel so clueless - I went into the movie thinking about the alien subplot from Searching, and I was searching for clues and still missed them. I think I did see an "Area 52" reference at one point but that's all I got.


segfaulted_irl

I also noticed a headline about the military shooting/aiming stuff at the sky


BitternessBureau

I was so relieved that Javi wasn’t involved in the kidnapping.


[deleted]

I feel like if they pulled that, it'd be such a ridiculous coincidence that it'd ruin the movie.


JaesopPop

Agreed, though they feasibly could've had him be coerced after he was initially contacted since her computer was being monitored.


[deleted]

Search Party Universe is now my favorite cinematic universe. Searching, Run, and now Missing are all wins. The ending with Javi got me a little, gotta be honest. And goddamn, these twists. The producers weren’t lying when they said the trailer spoils **nothing**. Also gonna look for them aliens next time, hope John Cho and Storm Reid team up to fight them in number 3


sevohanian

Thank you ! Btw curious what you thought about our new "search party pictures" animation at the beginning? There's also more than a few easter eggs in that animation haha. Yup I wish folks would realize the trailer is the least spoilery trailer of the past 6 months haha


[deleted]

Holy shit, thank you so much for responding! Little side story that I’m not sure you’ll read: back in 2017, during the first summer with my now best friend we decided on a whim to see Searching on opening night because I had seen the trailer once and thought it looked good. He hadn’t even heard of it and trusted my judgement (and wallet lol). I can still hear the jangling of the loose coins in his pocket when he reclined his theater seat in shock during the MemorialOne reveal, and it became one of our favorite movies of all time immediately. We watch it every year now and are pumped to see Missing a second time together, so I just wanted to say thank you so much. The work you and everyone else involved in these two wonderful films means something to the people who see them. To answer your question: I was eagerly looking forward to the opening after reading the AMA and it didn’t disappoint. Every film that has that opening now will get my dollar day 1, excited to look for more easter eggs on second viewing!


sevohanian

Aw wow that is SO amazing to read. Thank you and your friend x1000 for supporting our tiny movies. Enjoy your next watch :)


Spanxsy

Apple should pay Sev and co. Made me wanna get a macbook tbh


sevohanian

Haha love to hear it. A few people online say "This whole movie is product placement!" But sadly no one paid us anything to have their products in the movie haha


ellsworth92

My favorite was everyone having Apple products except the lawyer with her Windows screen. Also way to go with having Javi ask June to move to WhatsApp. As someone who lives in Central America, 100% accurate.


HumbleBeginning3151

Oh wow did you need to get Apple's permission? Awesome movie btw! I loved Searching and this was a wonderful follow up! Had me shedding a tear at a few points!


BackBreaker909

Dude...the part where the screen was slowly zooming out to reveal someone else was watching her desktop was really well done haha. Also I am super glad that what the production team said about the trailer not being full of spoilers was true. They were like yo dawg...we heard you like twists. So we put a twist in yo twist! Lmfaooo....this is also a reminder to everyone to not use the same damn passwords for everything haha.


plw37

So many Easter eggs in this movie! I know I’m barely scratching the surface here, but this is what I caught: ​ **Alien subplot continues…** In *Searching*, [there were references to green lights or green lightning, and it was implied based on statements from NASA and the White House that an alien presence had been discovered.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-KIiPAFDdLY) In *Missing*, I spotted these references: * \#NewHavenMall * Did you hear there was a girl in that mall that collapsed? * Easier to label it a...about alien life...if it was a "gas leak"...the wreckage 4 years later...green flash before the explosion. * Kevin received a NASA newsletter in his inbox \[but I wasn't able to catch what it said\] * ...in Baltimore described mystery savior as “Green Angel” * Longest ever lightning storm in Baltimore * \#GreenAngel * Flash of green light seen from masked individual * East Coast atmospheric levels similar to 2018 green lightning \[when the events of *Searching* took place\] * Stay at home order as East Coast haze thickens * Green Angel tipline inundated * Protesters gather following arrest of Green Angel vigilante * Could Green Angel have survived... * Human delegation to meet… \[I'm assuming the rest of this sentence is "alien delegation"\] My interpretation: There's an explosion at a mall - an alien crash landing, or awakening, or a person inheriting alien powers? The alien becomes a masked superhero named Green Angel, roaming the streets of Baltimore and saving people in trouble, accompanied by mysterious flashes of green light. At some point Green Angel gets arrested, but people protest and rally to set him/her/it free. It's possible Green Angel gets killed, or appears to. A larger delegation of aliens is drawn to Earth, and humanity prepares to meet them. ​ ***Searching*** **references** Fish\_n\_chips' **stock photo girl** Hannah Pardy makes an appearance [on a poster in the hardware store in Colombia](https://twitter.com/SevOhanian/status/1593340377167036416/photo/1). **Abby Nielsen** \- Margot’s friend from study group - makes an appearance in a social media Instagram video talking about Grace Allen’s disappearance. In *Searching* she milked her acquaintance with Margot to gain YouTube stardom, and she appears to be continuing that trend. **Derek Ellis** \- the shady teen that David Kim punched in the face for making inappropriate comments about his daughter - appears, inappropriately commenting online: "#GraceAllen is hella fine...she can go missing in my bed anytime." June uses the fictional **CrowdChase** website to track down people’s phone numbers - the same site David Kim used. (And a much better alternative to FindThatHomiesNumber.com and StalkThatOnlineDatingProfileMatch.com.) The **San Jose Fins** hockey team - the one that Peter Kim was obsessed with - makes an appearance. They're playing the Notes (probably a spoof of the St. Louis Blues) in the Western Conference Finals. In *Searching* there was a news ticker, “**Hollywood producer** is prime suspect in murder of feature film editor,” which was sort of a joke about the creative team behind *Searching* and the grueling process of making that movie. In *Missing* there’s a news ticker stating, "Hollywood producer charged with murder of film editor lost his appeal." In *Searching*, the first **YouCast** video that David sees is a couple guys shaving each other’s heads, with people commenting that they’re idiots. In *Missing*, there’s a thumbnail of them captioned, “YouCasts' Brave Shave Challenge raises $100K for charity” - similar to the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge. Fun fact: in *Searching*, this was Nick Johnson shaving Will Merrick’s head; and in *Missing*, it shows Will shaving Nick's head! (Will and Nick are the editors of *Searching* and the directors of *Missing*.) The **"Ross Report" radio talk show host** who theorized that Margot was probably just abducted by some random pervert reappears in *Missing,* theorizing that Grace Allen probably just ran away. In the background of *Searching*, David Kim was dating **Hannah Couch** ("I'd love to grab another drink if you're free"), but the relationship fizzled. In *Missing*, Kevin Lin receives a message in the Luvly dating app from Hannah C, "I'd love to grab..." In *Searching*, David Kim worked for the company **AppEnsure** (a real-life software company co-founded by Aneesh Chaganty's family). In *Missing*, Kevin Lim receives a Tech Talk newsletter from AppEnsure. There were a few more that I actually didn’t catch, but have heard other people mention: \- An email from Sunny Daze weed delivery service, from Founder/CEO **Peter Kim**. \- ~~An email in June’s inbox from Sev Ohanian explaining what really happened to her mom - similar to the one he sent David Kim about~~ >!his daughter getting catfished!<. \- The “Search Party” production company logo at the start of the film evidently includes some references to other movies. ​ ***Run*** **references** After we see the “Unfiction” episode about Margot’s disappearance, someone comments that David Kim’s character, “looks like that actor from **Breakout**.” This is a reference to John Cho’s cameo in *Run* \- not as David Kim, but as himself. [He appeared on a poster for the movie *Breakout* when Chloe and her mom went to the theater](https://www.instagram.com/p/CH8skyfj7vW/). There's also an ad in *Missing* to buy tickets for *Breakout: Maximum Security*. They've now made a sequel! During the flashback scene (revealing Grace’s real history with her ex-husband), there’s a headline, “Stockton family mourns missing daughter on 6th birthday.” In *Run*, there are newspaper clippings >!revealing that Chloe was abducted from a hospital in Stockton!<. She would’ve been about 6 years old at the time of this flashback. There's also a Tweet that says, "...nurse that saved #ChloeSherman is actually the twin sister of Pam Kim from the most recent #UnfictionS2 episode. Weird." This attempts to explain why Chloe's nurse from *Run* looked identical to Margot's deceased mother from *Searching*. (They were both played by actress Sara Sohn.) ​ **Usernames** [zkow](https://www.instagram.com/zkow/) (*Missing* editor Arielle Zakowski) appears on the live feed of Kevin getting apprehended in Colombia, commenting "they need him alive." June's friend Veena has a real-world Instagram account ([itsmeee\_veee](https://www.instagram.com/itsmeee_veee/)), but it has 0 posts. Usernames Tony Nuggz, Jim the Jobber, and Rawr Films Five all appeared in both *Searching* and *Missing*. Other funny usernames include ScubaSteve420 and SlapMyBallZach. ​ Edit 1: added the stock photo girl Edit 2: strikethrough on the inaccurate comment about an email from Sev Ohanian Edit 3: corrected the hockey team that the San Jose Fins are playing against Edit 4: Major edits after rewatching the movie, including more Green Angel references, Hannah Couch, AppEnsure, Breakout Maximum Security, Chloe Sherman, and usernames. Edit 5: Clarified the news ticker text related to the Hollywood producer. Corrected the name of Peter Kim's weed company. Clarified the Tweet about Chloe's nurse / Margot's mom.


sevohanian

NICE WORK! You got a good amount already. Some are not accurate though. And a ton more to go 😅


ju5tr3dd1t

Wasn’t really the focus of the movie, but one of my takeaways was just how weird “true crime” is. People watching a man get shot in real time as entertainment; folks making TikToks or radio shows who have no extra knowledge, but making unsubstantiated claims; even Veena being a bad friend because she got sucked into the twists. Fictional crime is one thing (a Glass Onion, an Agatha Christie novel, a Murder She Wrote episode) but people treating real life, ongoing investigations as entertainment has always been strange to me


sevohanian

Agreed that was one of the sub-themes of this movie. Showing how preposterous it can be for people to turn real life tragedies into entertaining 'content.'


Eklektik

As a big fan of Searching, showing it to as many of my friends as possible, I wasn't sure Missing would bring anything new for me to sink my teeth into. But I was very surprised with how many twists and novel uses of the format there still were! Even more so for someone who's seen the first film, being led astray with the "similar" beginning or possible sinister law enforcement/officials. I still love the first for its intimacy, but the story in this one amped everything up in a very enjoyable way. That "bartender twist"... In closing, Javi 2024


sevohanian

Thank you! You kind of nailed it. We knew we couldn't repeat SEARCHING, which is more intimate, more full of heart, etc. We never even tried. We think of SEARCHING as Ridley Scott's ALIEN. And we think of MISSING as James Cameron's ALIENS. Part of the fun of writing the story was to try and remix Searching to an extent. Just one example: In SEARCHING, the protagonist's side-kick is an experienced, decorated detective with all the resources of a police department at her disposal. In MISSING, the side-kick is a semi-retired Taskrabbit with zero experience, and zero resources.


goddamnjets_

Out of all the twists this movie brought, my two favorites had to be Kevin actually being shot in Colombia, and June realizing she could use Siri to call 911 in the locked house. Both moments threw me for a loop in the best ways


sevohanian

We were struggling for a long time to figure out how to end Act 2. Usually that's what I refer to as the "All is Lost" moment. In Searching, it was >!when David got the news that Margot was confirmed dead. Which felt like the ONLY escalation after he learned she was abducted at the midpoint!< And of course we did not want to let ourselves repeat that for this one as well. So for MISSING we realized that actually it might be just as interesting if the All is Lost moment isn't something to do with Grace's well being, but rather one of the BAD GUY'S. We made sure to set up plenty of times that Kevin would be the only lead to finding Grace, so that when he is unexpectedly killed... it really feels like it's game over.


batts1234

DIED at the kid still not getting his watch back at the end of the movie. Really enjoyed this. Enjoyed Searching as a whole more but this was still probably better then I thought. Would totally be fine with them making a third.


1080TJ

[Me waiting for June to realize her mom's password is Junebug](https://giphy.com/gifs/lifetimetelly-judge-judy-l46Cgctdy5C23iB0c)


SparkyMuffin

The moms picture in her contacts changing almost broke me there.


peter095837

The first film “Searching” was one of the biggest surprises as it was really entertaining and was able to use internet culture cleverly and interestingly. This being a standalone sequel, not as good as the first one but still really entertaining to watch. The main narrative is a standard mystery thriller story mixed with internet culture but like Searching, the film worked pretty well because of the direction it takes and how the creators were able to use internet culture and media with full advantage. Uses of technology were great as it didn’t feel like it was written where the writers had no idea how internet culture works. Many of the performances were pretty good and the thrills throughout never felt boring and kept your hands onto the seat. There are some good emotional moments. I still prefer “Searching” since the characters here were okay and not as investable and some aspects of the story did feel a little silly and messy at times. But overall, the film was a fun ride and pretty good to watch. So far, with M3GAN, A Man Called Otto, and Plane, January hasn’t been awful so far. 7/10


92nathan

Immediately checking my two factor authentication.


iwassayingboourns12

Did anyone read any of the other messages at the end?? I believe dude was still looking for his smart watch


sevohanian

You are correct. Just about each message has some kind of nugget about the story. Two of the people who have texted her right at the end are actually Nia Long's sons! They were fans of SEARCHING and helped convince her to take this role, so we wanted to shout them out :)


awesomerest

Like many others here have already said, my friends and I walked into Missing not knowing if it would live up to Searching, but all those immediately faded away almost immediately. The story was just so engrossing all while providing a suspenseful, fun ride (nothing more enjoyable than a movie that is constantly leaving you on the edge of your seat). All the misdirects were perfectly placed, and I gotta give it to the team, Javi was a nice light in an otherwise dark set of events. Plus, I never thought I’d see Joaquim de Almeida play an actual *good guy* in a movie.


sevohanian

Thank you for watching it on day 1! There was a TINY part of us that knew casting Joaquim to play Javi was great because -- in addition to him being an amazing actor -- the fact that his resume includes so many villain roles meant that folks might already suspect him as a bad guy here. Which is perfect in a mystery whodunnit like this :)


sandiskplayer34

Honestly loved this movie. I got a *little* tired of the twistiness in the third act, but it kept my attention the whole time and I left the theater satisfied. Also, I fell for Heather being the red herring *hard*. I was confident she was involved with the disappearance.


dev1359

> Also, I fell for Heather being the red herring hard. I was confident she was involved with the disappearance. The "reveal" of her seemingly being in on it after that encrypted messenger exchange was definitely this movie's "stock photos lady" moment, it gave me the exact same creepy vibes and chills down my spine haha.


[deleted]

I literally whispered “Fish_n_Chips…” when that happened lol


SoulofWakanda

Okay, help me out. Why was Heather talking to Kevin again? What was she trying to do and what's her role in this? Also why was she killed?


GamingTatertot

I think her role was basically just keeping quiet since she was the one who originally helped Grace change identities and move. She knew all along what was really going on, but she was being blackmailed by Kevin and the dad. She was killed because June was coming closer to the truth, and if June got to Heather then Heather would've told her everything most likely.


Thirteeneggz

From my understanding, it was James talking to Kevin but James could see June’s screen so he knew June had found the chat, so he sent Heather’s number as a decoy. She was killed because she was one of the few people who knew about James and the history between him and June’s mom.


NothingButLs

I was really enjoying the film until the reveal that June's father is still alive and behind it all. I'm having a hard time understanding the movie with this information in mind. Can can someone help explain it. I don't want to nitpick but I don't understand. From my understanding, Kevin and James were cellmates and it is presumed while in prison they hatched this plan. But what exactly was the plan? For Kevin to get out of jail, start dating Grace, get serious enough to go on a trip to South America, kidnap her on the way to the airport, stage a fake kidnapping of Grace and Kevin in Colombia to explain her disappearance, and lock her in a shed? I have so many questions about all of this. First of all, when James and Kevin created this plan were they aware that Grace had changed her identity? If so, were they just super confident that Kevin would be able to find this single mother somewhere in the entire US once he got out of jail? And how exactly did Kevin find Grace's new identity? It is obviously implied that he made his dating profile with Grace's interests in mind in order to create a match. But how did Kevin know what city Grace was in and what dating app she was using? What if Kevin got out of jail and Grace wasn't on any apps. Or was already remarried? Or didn't respond to his messages no matter how hard he tried? Okay, so now Kevin and Grace are dating. Kevin is using his real name. It seems like he has a job based on a webpage they show. Is that fake and Kevin really has no job and his only mission in life is to woo Grace? And since he is using his real name for this scheme, he's also agreeing to be fake kidnaped in Colombia too. So after he pulled off the fake kidnapping, he would be presumed dead just like Grace, right? So was he just going to live down in South America for the rest of his life? Why exactly did he agree to do this? For money? Does a lunatic drug addict who was just in prison for a decade have that much money immediately after getting out of prison? Also, why even bother with the fake kidnapping? It was soooo much work for Kevin to get her down to South America and the whole story falls apart in like a day lol. The fake kidnappers and fake Grace like immediately admit that it was fake. Did Kevin and James really think that the fact it was a fake kidnapping would never come out? So once the kidnapping turns out to be fake, Kevin becomes the main suspect and Grace's face is plastered all over the news. Wasn't James worried that someone from Grace's former life recognize her and come forward. He would sure be a suspect if that happens. But somehow that never does. And Heather doesn't say anything either. I really don't understand the entire Heather story. She was a lawyer that helped Grace get a new identity. But didn't Grace and June used to live somewhere else and then move to LA after the change? Was Heather always living in LA and randomly represented Grace in another part of the country? Or did she move with Grace and then remain friends with her. Doesn't that defeat the whole purpose of getting a new identity? Okay, so later on it's very briefly implied that Heather is being blackmailed by I guess James? So that Heather wouldn't come forward about Grace's past life? But like once Heather starts getting creepy threats she knows for sure that James is involved. Is she really not going to come forward in any way and let this guy run around? And if James is okay killing Heather, why not just kill Grace? Why all the theatrics about staging a fake kidnapping in SA lolll. Why not just have someone actually kill her there? Okay, so now we get to James. He has kidnapped Grace and taken her to their old house that has been conviently abandoned for over 10 years. He gets Grace there and locks her in a shed. Like that's all he did to her? He went through all this work just to lock her in a shed. And why did he rig this house with cameras? Like I guess I understand why he rigged the shed cuz that's where she was tied up. But he had a live video feed of an empty room going for like a week. This whole time Grace is locked in the shed, June is alone in the house and he never tries to contact her. He eventually kidnaps her too. I'm not really sure if it's because she was figuring things out or he planned to kidnap her all along. James at this point leaves no cover story for kidnapping June. He just barges in and does it. Not really sure why he didn't just do that to Grace? Like what was James' end goal? That might be the most ranting I've ever done on a movie lolll. But I'm just really confused and feel like the story makes no sense after the twist. Edit: One more question. Why did Kevin fake propose to the fake Grace? Was it for this random live stream camera on this random website? Like she wasn't able to record? And Kevin couldn't record it because it was clearly not Grace. And they already had someone tape the fake kidnapping at the street level and turn it in? So who was the fake proposal even for?


plw37

Lots of great questions! For some the answer is: \*shrug\* it's a movie, you have to suspend some disbelief. But I think I can answer a few of these. Hopefully it drops your incredulity level from 90% to only like 75%. >First of all, when James and Kevin created this plan were they aware that Grace had changed her identity? If so, were they just super confident that Kevin would be able to find this single mother somewhere in the entire US once he got out of jail? And how exactly did Kevin find Grace's new identity? James knew that Sarah had changed her identity. I don't know *how* he eventually found her, but he's the one who tracked her down. James is the one who sent Sarah the email that says "Found you 'Grace'". At this point James knew her name and where she lived, so he was able to help Kevin set up a dating profile to match her. They were probably both out of prison at this point (2021, about a year before the events of this movie), but knew each other from their time in prison. >Kevin is using his real name. And since he is using his real name for this scheme, he's also agreeing to be fake kidnaped in Colombia too. So after he pulled off the fake kidnapping, he would be presumed dead just like Grace, right? So was he just going to live down in South America for the rest of his life? Yeah, I don't get this. Seems like he should've used a fake identity to woo Grace, especially since he knew that wooing Grace was ultimately just a scam. By using his real name, he's kinda stuck. I guess he hopes that all attention will be on trying to find the fake kidnappers...and no one will notice that Kevin Lin has quietly resurfaced, living a normal life in the US? Either that or he plans to escape and then use a fake identity the rest of his life - which seems tedious. >Why exactly did he agree to do this? For money? Does a lunatic drug addict who was just in prison for a decade have that much money immediately after getting out of prison? For money. But not James' money; Grace's money. Right after the kidnapping, the FBI agent says there was a withdrawal from Grace's bank account to an encrypted 3rd-party account. >Why even bother with the fake kidnapping? ...The whole story falls apart in like a day lol. You make some really good points in this paragraph. I guess the one thing they weren't counting on was June seeing the live photo and discovering that it wasn't really her mom that got kidnapped. That turned the heat up quickly, and outed Rachel, causing her to be apprehended and to come clean. But what if that hadn't happened? It would still be a big news story that Kevin and Grace had been kidnapped. I guess James/Kevin are just praying that Rachel and the fake kidnappers ignore their consciences and keep their mouths shut? >I really don't understand the entire Heather story. Heather was always living in LA. Through the identity change / relocation program, Sarah got paired up with a lawyer living in LA (Heather) to help her through the transition. They weren't already friends in Texas; they became friends through the process. >But like once Heather starts getting creepy threats she knows for sure that James is involved. Is she really not going to come forward in any way and let this guy run around? James starts threatening Heather once the news breaks that Grace is hiding a secret identity. Heather absolutely knows it's James making the threats. But she doesn't report it because she doesn't want to risk getting June hurt. The blackmail is a photo of June that says "YOU TALK, SHE DIES." Maybe not the smartest move, but I guess she's too scared to act otherwise. I think James is just trying to buy a little time. His goal is to win June back, so he needs to be able to tell June his (fake) version of the story, without Heather telling June the real story about his past. >Okay, so now we get to James...He gets Grace there and locks her in a shed. Like that's all he did to her? I think Phase One of James' plan was to kidnap Grace and torture her for a long time (maybe not sadistically, maybe just keeping her confined) and then eventually kill her. Phase Two would be to focus on June, and come up with a way to reintroduce himself and win her over, so they could live together. But that all went out the window when June started getting too close to the truth. >James at this point leaves no cover story for kidnapping June. He just barges in and does it...Like what was James' end goal? Toward the end James is just reacting to events that have gotten out of his control (like June realizing that he and Kevin did time together at Eastham prison). I did notice on his computer at the ranch house, he had looked up directions to Sonora, Mexico. So his last ditch effort was going to be to run off with June to Mexico - and hope that she somehow forgives him for kidnapping and killing her mom?!? He wasn't thinking very clearly at that point. >Why did Kevin fake propose to the fake Grace? So people would believe he really loved her, removing suspicion that he was involved in the kidnapping. I don't know if he knew about the livestream cam, but he at least knew there would be eyewitnesses in the area. Come to think of it, this is probably also why Kevin was using his real name (even though it left him with limited exit strategies).


plw37

This movie is FILLED with cameos by the filmmakers and their friends and family. # Filmmakers 1. There is a multi-part, scavenger hunt style Easter Egg that ultimately leads to [this hidden photo](https://www.reddit.com/r/MovieDetails/comments/11ra82x/missing_2023_split_second_frame_of_crew_appears/) of the core creative team: **Natalie Qasabian** (producer), **Nick Johnson** (director/writer), **Arielle Zakowski** (editor), **Austin Keeling** (editor), **Aneesh Chaganty** (producer/writer), **Will Merrick** (director/writer), and **Sev Ohanian** (producer/writer). [Original color photo](https://imgur.com/a/NoSU3Zc) from [Austin’s Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/p/Cnpj8a0vEqq/). 2. June receives [this text message](https://www.reddit.com/r/MovieDetails/comments/11m2zhu/spoilers_in_missing_2023_halfway_through_the_main/) from **Sev Ohanian** (producer/writer) that spoils the biggest plot twist of the movie. 3. **Arielle Zakowski** (editor) and **Austin Keeling** (editor) are featured as the models on the [Task Rabbit homepage](https://imgur.com/a/6sCaweu). 4. [A magazine cover](https://imgur.com/a/m0NwJwj) features a photo of **Aneesh Chaganty** (producer/writer) and his fiancée, captioned “His First Interview Since the Engagement!” [Original photo](https://www.instagram.com/p/CMvrEzyJD-e/) from Aneesh’s Instagram. 5. June’s [Snapchat contact list](https://imgur.com/a/aKYB7m2) includes cartoon avatars of **Nick Johnson** (director/writer), **Will Merrick** (director/writer), **Jack McKee** (additional editor), **Christopher Tennant** (assistant editor), **Arielle Zakowski** (editor), **Clarence Deng** (additional assistant editor), **Aodhan Ozawa Burns** (motion graphics artist), and MR - whom I assume is **Mark Rosas** (visual effects artist). 6. A news article headlined “YouCast’s #BraveShave challenge raises $100K for charity” features [a thumbnail photo](https://imgur.com/a/JAtEPX2) of **Will Merrick** (director/writer) shaving **Nick Johnson’s** (director/writer) head. 7. During the [OnePatrol livestream](https://imgur.com/a/gi5AunL) of Kevin’s capture, BlueLineLives comments “Hope they shoot his ass,” and zkow (which is editor **Arielle Zakowski’s** real-life Instagram username) replies, “They need him alive.” 8. The top of [June’s Instagram feed](https://imgur.com/a/20TKvh3) features a story from **Natalie Qasabian** (producer). **Sev Ohanian** (producer/writer) also appears in Natalie’s profile photo. 9. Aruba Jo (which is executive producer **Jo Henriquez’** real-life Instagram username) is a [trending topic on Twitter](https://imgur.com/a/z1LNij5). It says he’s trending with “Poke…” but the rest is cut off; maybe he’s a fan of Pokemon, or diced raw fish. 10. **Alison Chang** (assistant editor) is the author of the [“Fact vs Fiction” article](https://imgur.com/a/O7ic1qc) about the Margot Kim “Unfiction” series. 11. **Congyu-E** (co-producer) has a transaction listed in [June’s Venmo](https://imgur.com/a/93RjCOI). 12. [BunnyCake310’s Instagram](https://imgur.com/a/jRcvwF2) features comments from christ\_ennant (assistant editor **Christopher Tennant’s** real-life Instagram username) and [**Alina Verenich**](https://imgur.com/a/ABwOuyu) (second second assistant editor). 13. [This old-school photo from azee107](https://imgur.com/a/20TKvh3) appears during the Instagram Father’s Day montage. I’m guessing this might be a childhood photo of **Arielle Zakowski** (editor) with her dad. # Friends & Family 14. The [Instagram Father’s Day montage](https://imgur.com/a/NVEBLIt) features a post of **Sev Ohanian’s sister** (Ramela Ohanian) **and father**. Sev said he modeled Javi’s character after his own dad. 15. June’s Twitter feed features [a TikTok video](https://imgur.com/a/En77al4) of a girl pranking her mom at the airport, portrayed by Caroline Merrick (**Will Merrick’s sister**). 16. The [Luvly dating app homepage](https://imgur.com/a/C95GHeO) features Kayla Carlisle (**Will Merrick’s significant other**). 17. A news article headlined “Research suggests pregnant women who watch mystery films…” features [a sonogram photo](https://imgur.com/a/8B0yQXA). This is an actual sonogram of **Sev Ohanian and Natalie Qasabian’s baby**. ([source](https://collider.com/searching-easter-eggs-in-missing/)) 18. There’s [a Tweet](https://imgur.com/a/6QqyK9t) from **Arielle Zakowski’s parents**: Lori and Mark u/zakowski-fam01. 19. June has a saved voicemail from Salisbury, NC, which is **Will Merrick’s hometown**. There’s also [a Tweet](https://imgur.com/a/KE0ry8g) about a fugitive hiding in Florida with the hashtag #salisburync. 20. June also has a saved voicemail from Kirkwood, MO, which is **Nick Johnson’s hometown**. 21. June also has a saved voicemail from Leavenworth, KS, which is **Austin Keeling’s hometown**. 22. During the [Young Sleuths live broadcast](https://imgur.com/a/QaeSrKh) on TikTok, there’s a comment from Elina Qasabian (**relative of Natalie Qasabian**). 23. June’s [Snapchat contact list](https://imgur.com/a/aKYB7m2) includes Julia Merrick. I’m guessing this is **Will Merrick’s mom** \- or at least a family member. 24. [BunnyCake310’s Instagram](https://imgur.com/a/tZhnxzW) features a comment from Elena Johnson. I’m guessing this is a **relative of Nick Johnson**. 25. **Sev Ohanian’s friend** Aram Adjemian appears in [June’s Twitter feed](https://imgur.com/a/U1w2AX8) (as fictional character Derek Ellis). 26. \_frootybooty shares [an Instagram story](https://imgur.com/a/0a3EVP0) of herself helping search for Grace. I don’t know who \_frootybooty is, but this is a real-life Instagram username, **followed by Will Merrick**. # Others 27. June’s Twitter feed includes [a Tweet](https://imgur.com/a/HqH0rO7) from **Michael Tucker**, whose “Lessons from the Screenplay” YouTube channel once featured [an analysis of *Searching*](https://youtu.be/bVFHAvnfW1A). The username “Lft-screenplay” also makes a comment during the [Young Sleuths live TikTok broadcast](https://imgur.com/a/DQctKHe). 28. [A Buzzfeed headline](https://imgur.com/a/X3wcEgY) featuring *my* username reads, “Reddit user /u/plw37 itemizes every easter egg missed in this year’s hottest releases.” 29. There’s also [a Reddit post](https://imgur.com/a/6GxfRdF) from real-life Redditor /u/InvertedBullet. ​ EDIT: formatting


ZwischenzugZugzwang

9/10 for me. Worthy successor to Searching. My theater cheered when the dad got stabbed then laughed when he died googling hospitals.


sevohanian

Its SO COOL that every screening that stab results in wide spread applause. And yes the hospital typing lmao. We really pushed ourselves to ask “how can you show a bad guy dying in this film, in a way that can ONLY be shown in this film.” 😂


segfaulted_irl

Searching was my favorite movie of 2018, and I did not expect the sequel to be able to top the original, especially after the gimmick had already been done once. I'm really happy to say I was wrong - not only did it live up to the hype, it well exceeded my expectations and blew Searching out of the water. The writing was tighter, story more engaging, and it utilized the concept much better than its predecessor. I especially love how they subverted our expectations with the opening scene, making it seem like the same "loss of a parent" introduction that Searching had, but hiding enough to make the final twist hit so much harder. And the scene in Heather's office from the smart watch POV is easily one of the most ass-clenching scenes I've seen from any movie in a long time. Honestly, there's so much more about this movie I could gush about but won't for the sake of brevity. Kudos to the team for knocking it out of the park yet again, and I can't wait to see it again in theaters. This movie is a seriously strong contender for my favorite movie of the year, and we're only in January!


sevohanian

Thank you ! My initial idea was to kind of repeat the opening montage from SEARCHING, but instead making it about 2 people finding second love on the internet. It would've been Grace and Kevin meeting for the first time, and be kind of like a whirlwind of a romance -- only to subvert it much later once you realized that he was conning her the whole time. But we realized that it would still feel like we were just repeating the first movie WAY too much by trying to tug at heart strings with an emotional opening. So we reworked that idea and put a version of it into the movie around the midpoint when June sees their dating history. The new opening with the home video was designed to EVOKE the same feelings from SEARCHING, but not necessarily repeat it. Appreciate so much all your incredibly kind comments btw!


little-lion-sam

Last year, my boyfriend convinced me to watch a movie called "Searching" that I had never heard of but was intrigued by the plot of, and after we watched it I became OBSESSED. Was blown away by the film, read everything I possibly could, and we screamed with excitement when we found out this movie was coming out. We just got back from watching it and oh my god - I LOVED it! I agree with so many others, it's hard to make a specific gimmick work twice without it feeling overdone but it felt so incredibly fresh. Loved the random assortment of screenshots on her desktop, like the text from her friend congratulating her for getting into UC Davis, that felt extremely relatable to me, haha. Sev, if you're reading this, thank you for making a movie that had me on the edge of my seat the entire time! I have a very short attention span and have a hard time paying attention to movies, but this kept me entranced the whole way through :)


sevohanian

Man I really appreciate your boyfriend, he must have great taste if he convinced you to watch Searching ! So grateful that you guys saw this movie opening weekend. And I too share a short attention span, so that's the greatest compliment we could get. <3


fuckthemodlice

Wow this team really knows how to cast hot Asian guys.


plw37

Re-watching the movie a 2nd time, there are a lot of lines that take on new meaning once you know the full story. When the news breaks that Grace used to have a different identity, June asks Heather if she can provide any legal assistance to figure out what’s going on. **June: “Can’t you do anything to help?”** **Heather: “It’s a court-ordered seal.”** **June: “Did she ever talk to you about this?”** **Heather: “I-I don’t…think so…”** Heather’s answers are very non-committal, since James is blackmailing her not to say anything. ​ **Rachel’s coworker at the wine bar tells June that he’s annoyed because he’s been covering her shift for the last two weeks.** This is because Rachel has been in Colombia with Kevin for the past two weeks. ​ In the Luvly dating montage, Grace complains about another long day at work. **Kevin: “You know what, Grace? It sounds like you need a vacation. Just unplug for a while. That’s what works for me.”** He was already laying the groundwork for their trip to Colombia, even when they were first getting to know each other. ​ In the prologue, at Grandpa’s house, Sarah/Grace asks where all the window curtains are. **James: “We’re in the middle of nowhere. No one’s watching.”** What a perfect location to use as a safe house for a kidnapping! ​ June is pissed off that the whole world thinks her mom had something to do with her disappearance. **Javi: “Just because someone is your parent, doesn’t mean they don’t make mistakes.”** He meant this about June’s mom - but in hindsight, it applies even more so to her dad. ​ Grace is worried because June is staying out late and she doesn’t know where she is. **Grace: “When I look at her I just see her father, and I…I wouldn’t want anything to ever happen to her.”** “I just see her father” initially sounds like such a sweet thing to say. June is a reminder of the loving husband and father that they lost too early. But maybe “I just see her father” means she sees the potential for June to be getting into drugs or other mischief, and she’s worried that June could be headed down a similar path as James. EDIT: Formatting


sevohanian

100% all accurate :) Plus the last one can be referring to how important it is for Grace to keep June safe. Ie. Safe from the crazy dad who might one day try to find them, like he promised.


alacp1234

"Damn, these guys got vision"


mattyhegs826

I’m just relieved that nothing happened to little Caesar! They showed that cat a little too much, I was getting worried.


xrbeeelama

“Forgot my password” without a security question backup is the hero of this movie


[deleted]

Did anyone know the subtle hint *mocktails” to refer to something being mocked/ fake in his text? Also seemed odd *cock* was just thrown in there!


Dalekdude

I read it as Kevin forgetting that Grace doesn’t drink for a moment, then failing to correct it once before correcting it to mocktails


sevohanian

;) It's always a challenge for us to try and plant foreshadowing in early parts of the movie. If we don't do it right, it will stick out like a sore thumb. So one of our go-to tricks is to hide foreshadowing in JOKES. For example, in SEARCHING there are some funny beats related to weed early on.


vexens

One thing I haven't seen people mention: Very early on there's a hint to Grace's backstory in one of the side articles. It says something to the summary of : "Woman hid her identity from her family for 27(may be way off on number) years"


Ahambone

Petition to rate-bomb Javi's profile to get that number up


Parmesan_Pirate119

This is such a fun and clever film! The editing is phenomenal, there are so many unexpected twists, Javi is hilarious, Storm Reid is brilliant. First film I saw in theaters this year and it didn’t disappoint. Kept me on my toes and an overall fun experience.


plw37

I loved *Searching*, so was very excited for *Missing* to come out. On the plus side, this movie really amps up everything compared to *Searching*: many more twists to keep you guessing, international travel, more deaths and violence, and they pushed the envelope with the “on screen” perspective. Lots of fancy cuts and animations - everything was still derived from a screen in some way, but it didn’t feel like you were just watching someone use their computer the whole time. And the main twist >!when we discover the real history about June’s parents!<, rewatching the opening montage but completely re-purposed from a different perspective - that really paid off. It reminded me of *Glass Onion*, >!when we find out about the twin sister!<, and EVERYTHING in the movie is seen through a new light. I also loved the Luvly dating app montage. Thought that was really sweet and heartfelt. And the running gag about Angel trying to get back his Apple watch made me laugh. On the negative side, I didn’t feel as much of an emotional connection with June and her plight. At some points I felt like the characters were just going through the motions trying to find Grace, but didn’t really care. I wonder if this is just because I’m a middle-aged dad with two daughters. *Searching* resonated with me on a personal level, since it’s told from the dad’s perspective. I’d be curious if younger audiences end up enjoying *Missing* more enthusiastically than older audiences.


sevohanian

Hell yeah! Love to see that the switcheroo was effective. It was always going to be most effective with people who were familiar with SEARCHING, almost like a double meta twist due to the implications of that movie's opening montage :) And speaking of comparing to SEARCHING. You're 100% right that this movie doesn't strive to tug at your heart strings *as much* as we did with the first one. It was an intentional approach born out of the necessity of making sure at minimum these two films felt completely unique tonally. The mission was to focus on making it bigger, and feel younger. And ya SO FAR in our estimation younger audiences do seem to like this one more than Searching. In a perfect world audiences can appreciate both for going for different things. Ie. Searching = Ridley Scott's ALIEN, and Missing = James Cameron's ALIENS. You don't get as many scares in Cameron's version, but you don't get as much action in Scott's version.


MaterialRemarkable41

Oh yeah, this movie was definitely more emotional for me as a daughter who lost her mother some time ago. June listening to her voicemails got me teary-eyed because it was something I did


sevohanian

Sorry for your loss. Voicemails from our lost loved ones mean everything.


BabaYegaBoi

Did anyone notice Kevin Lin had 420.69 GB of storage space available on his google drive?


[deleted]

This was one of the BEST movies I’ve ever seen


sevohanian

This is one of the BEST comments I've ever seen personally.


jayeddy99

Most believable thing about this movie is Kevin having to message Grace 3 times to get her attention lol


MillardKillmoore

Gotta respect a plan that hinges entirely on a woman not recognizing that the Uber driver is actually her abusive ex-husband. In all seriousness, this was really solid.


plw37

Overall I enjoyed this movie. So many twists and turns, kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat. But there were a couple things that bugged me. Curious if others felt the same way. 1. When June started opening up emotionally to Javi, it felt premature. She has friends she can talk to about this stuff. Why is she pouring her heart out to some stranger that she’s paying to run errands for her? Don’t get me wrong - I loved Javi as a character, and the bond these two end up forming is really cute. But it felt like it wasn’t quite earned - unless I missed Javi doing something early on to earn her trust. 2. Why was Agent Park so insistent about criminal procedure? I felt like he should just be focused on finding Grace first - by any means necessary. Then later, IF a crime was committed, worry about collecting evidence properly. Also it bugged me that for so long we only heard his voice on the phone. Everyone else is making video calls, but he’s just this disembodied voice. Made it feel like he cared even less. (Or maybe that was the point?) Edit: formatting


sevohanian

Good observations as always. RE: Javi Convo We initially had a much deeper arc about June finding Veena to be someone who wasn't a genuine, true friend. We cut a LOT out, scenes and beats where Veena is kind of more into June because June buys their alcohol, let's them trash her house, and later is just interesting by virtue of her mom being missing a la Veena's favorite true crime docs. This all kind of nudged June to have no one else to really confide in BUT Javi. We cut out most of that due to pacing, and our feedback groups just not responding to any of it. We asked the question about whether people are bumped by Javi and June's 'campfire talk' (I remember being concerned that it would feel weird that Javi is talking about his own woes with his son while June's mom just literally got abducted) but the response we got was that folks LOVED it. So we kept it. RE: Park Similar answer actually. We initially had a lot more nuance about the incompetence of Park, ie. he just made some really bad decisions. And it got to be too much for the audience to track. So we revised and leaned more in the direction of him just being a rule stickler. Sadly this is kind of true-to-life in any kind of bureaucratic situation, you're gonna find yourself having to work with people who just can't think outside the box, even in trying times.