“Searching” (2018) and “Missing” (2023) are two films that prove how deeply the word “connection” runs in our lives. The internet has certainly put the world at our fingertips. It is surreal how the films show how we can find out about a missing person’s whereabouts. As long as there is the internet, a person can be traced across any part of the world. The concept of portraying the story via computer screens and smartphones is very “now,” and owing to how much the present generation is accustomed to the internet, the films proceed smoothly without there being any issue in making whatever is going on seem understandable. While there aren’t any literal Easter eggs in the two films, save for one or two, there are situations in “Missing” that remind us of “Searching,” proving that both belong to the same universe. Here are the Easter Eggs in “Missing” that connect it to “Searching”.
Spoilers Ahead
It’s All About Family
Both films begin with a happy family enjoying themselves. In “Searching,” we had the Kims, where Pamela (the mother) passes away due to lymphoma. In “Missing,” we have the Allens, where it is made to seem as if James (the father) dies from meningioma. Both deaths result in distance between the child and the surviving parent. It is interesting how both films make us think that if only the relationship between the child and the parent was better, the mishap could have perhaps been avoided. This brings us to the next Easter Egg.
Conversation
Text conversations play a vital role in both films. They form the backbone of the plots and take them forward. It is also through these conversations that we get a better picture of the relationship between the child and the parent. Texts become a means of exchanging not just words but emotions.
Venmo
Margot and June use the same app, Venmo, to transfer money to themselves, which they then use for their respective purposes. Kim sent the money to Robert, who she thought was someone else [“fish_n_chips” (on “YouCast”) aka Hannah Pardy]. June sends the money to Veena for the house party.
Clues
Both films are filled with clues that lead the protagonist closer to the truth. Every detail that David and June come across serves as a clue. No one told them that something was wrong. The clues helped them realize it. Moreover, in “Searching,” David notices that Margot has left her laptop at home, something she never does. This is what rings the first bell in his head. Likewise, in “Missing,” June notices that in a picture that Kevin sent her (of her mom Grace), her mother is using her laptop. This gives her the idea that she can track her mom. Although it was a diversion, it sheds light on a lot of things.
Hidden Cameras
The use of hidden cameras is also common in the two films. David set up security cameras in his brother Peter’s house to record their interaction after learning of the conversation between Peter and Margot (they had weed together and nothing more). June logged into a video feed that showed her the different rooms of the house where her family had gone for a family trip when she was a kid. She also uses the camera on her watch for safety when she goes to meet her babysitter, Heather.
Sunny Daze
In “Missing,” when June goes through Kevin’s email inbox, among the many emails she comes across is one from a weed delivery service called Sunny Daze. And the founder and CEO of this company is none other than Peter Kim, David Kim’s brother from “Searching.” It seems that Peter has made it big in the weed industry after all, despite being warned against using weed by David time and again.
The Return Of Fish N Dips
While one cannot be sure of it, it seems that “fish_n_dips,” from “Searching”, does have a cameo in “Missing”. When Javi goes to the hardware store, he finds a receipt for the lock that Kevin and Grace bought, and behind him is a poster with the stock image of “fish_n_dips,” aka Hannah Pardy. She had made it big in the industry, apparently from Los Angeles to Colombia.
Last Night Was Fun
These same words have been used in both films. Kim wrote these to Peter in “Missing,” which planted the idea in David’s mind that Kim was involved with Peter in some way. In “Searching”, Grace wrote these words to Kevin in the dating app, although they didn’t have any contribution to June’s quest.
The Ross Report
After the missing people in both films make it to the news, we find the Ross Report radio host addressing both incidents. Actor Sean O’Bryan played the role, another Easter egg proving that both events take place in the same universe.
News Anchor
In “Searching,” we come across a male news anchor (actor Roy Abramsohn) reporting the search for the missing driver after Margot Kim’s car is recovered. Roy returns as the male anchor in “Missing” to report the staging of Grace Allen’s disappearance. We also find the same news in the news ticker in both films, which says a producer was charged with the editor’s murder. Useful or not, it is always thrilling to notice such similarities.
“Searching” and “Missing” are two wonderful films executed to perfection, considering how the makers decided to portray the plot. It’s all electronic devices, but they carry the most intimate of human emotions, something that is more relevant today than anything else as far as our daily lives are concerned. Also, it is these very machines that add to the distance between two souls, leading to misunderstandings, to begin with. So we sync and desync at the same time.
See more: ‘Missing’ (2023) Characters, Explained: Everything To Know About June, James, Grace, And Javi
