Every Major Classic Horror Movie Reference in Apple TV’s Widow’s Bay

Since November 1, 2019, Apple TV has released an array of original streaming content. With fan-favorite shows like the Jason Sudeikis-led comedy Ted Lasso and the sci-fi thriller Severance, Apple TV has successfully covered much of the television landscape. One of its latest series, Widow’s Bay, stars Matthew Rhys as Mayor Tom Loftis, whom viewers may know best from The Americans. The show premiered to rave reviews, and the horror-comedy took home 14 Emmys and was immediately renewed ahead of the finale of its inaugural season.

While Widow’s Bay is an original concept from Katie Dippold, one of the masterminds behind several Parks and Recreation episodes, the show honors the influential horror movies that came before it. Throughout the first season, keen-eyed viewers may notice that Widow’s Bay references horror masters like Stephen King and John Carpenter, and it features several nods to the Steven Spielberg maritime classic, Jaws, via its location, the show’s characters, and subtle drops in its script.

The Major Jaws References Lurking Within Widow’s Bay, Explained

Image courtesy of Apple Studios

As a major Jaws fan, Dippold and her crew incorporate several aspects of Spielberg’s groundbreaking thriller into Widow’s Bay. Looking at the more obvious nods to one of the best characters in Jaws, there was the crude shark drawing on the chalkboard in Episode 3 that strongly mimicked the one etched by Captain Quint in Jaws. Additionally, Widow’s Bay’s Mayor Loftis is determined to drum up tourism in the otherwise drab and dreary New England island, despite warnings from local fisherman Wyck Crawford and his own first-hand experiences of the island’s curse.

While Jaws fans will quickly clock Wyck corresponding with Quint and Loftis’ perspective, pulling heavily from Amity Island’s money-driven Mayor Vaughn in this way, there’s more at play within the latter’s character. Much of his wardrobe – a dark jacket, rugged flannel, and a tucked undershirt – is an inverted nod to Chief Martin Brody’s civilian attire. Further, Loftis’s obsession with making Widow’s Bay the next Martha’s Bay is a direct nod to Jaws.

“We talked a lot about Jaws. Like Amity Island in Jaws, we wanted Widow’s Bay to feel cozy and lived-in, but just feel like there’s something lurking underneath the surface.” — Katie Dippold

Funny enough, Rhys actually requested Loftis to have an anchor-themed jacket, as a nod to Vaughn. That was ultimately denied. That said, he stated that Jaws was central in conceiving Widow’s Bay, which can be seen in the camera work, script, and set design. The nautical decoration in the island township’s main restaurant, The Salty Whale, is one of the subtle ways Widow’s Bay pays homage. More specifically, the series’ set designer went so far as to accurately align the green curtains and exact light fixture of Brody’s kitchen to the Loftis household.

The Widow’s Bay costumes were meticulously selected as if they were second-hand and bathed in a special patina dye, which costume designer Alex Bovair dubbed “Jaws tech.” The show’s camera work pays homage to Jaws, with several underwater and swim shots like those seen in Episode 3, “Inaugural Swim.” Loftis and Wyck also channel Brody and Quint’s dynamic in Episode 7, “Seasickness,” which can be seen as a ghost story right in line with Jaws, as nearly half of its story takes place on Wyck’s boat. In a panic, Loftis tells Wyck, “We’re gonna need a different plan,” much like Brody’s iconic “bigger boat” quote, while transporting the founder of Widow’s Bay to the island’s dead zone.

The Shining, Carrie, and Other Stephen King Masterworks Are Referenced in Widow’s Bay

In addition to Jaws, the Apple TV series finds ways to honor some of Stephen King’s best movie adaptations. The show’s title card is a blocky serif font, harkening back to the lettering of King’s book covers in the 1970s and ’80s. In the same way that the New England setting of Widow’s Bay pays homage to Jaws, it provides a King-esque tone to the show, since fictional locations like Derry, Castle Rock, and Salem’s (or Jerusalem’s) Lot are all within the same region of the northeastern United States. Just as Mayor Loftis and Wyck act as Jaws references, Kate O’Flynn’s Patricia correlates to King’s masterworks. While promoting Widow’s Bay, O’Flynn cited The Shining‘s Shelley Duvall as a major through-line for Patricia’s appearance. Alongside Duvall’s iconic style from the ’70s, O’Flynn’s constantly guarded portrayal can be seen as another nod to Duvall’s Wendy Torrace.

More than just the characters, King’s influence is littered throughout the Apple TV series. The makeup work for the sea hag in “The Inaugural Swim” was a direct reference to the old lady in the bathtub in The Shining, as verified by cinematographer Christian Sprenger. Across the second and fourth episodes of Widow’s Bay, “Lodging” and “Beach Reads,” respectively, Loftis stays in Breakwater Inn’s Captain’s Suite to gain the township’s respect, and the experience is something straight out of The Shining. The mayor gets heavily inebriated and unknowingly spends an entertaining evening with one of the many ghosts haunting the hotel (It doesn’t hurt that Loftis’ unkempt hair, plaid shirt, and general look in that episode bears an overall resemblance to Jack Torrance in The Shining‘s final act).

Jumping forward a couple of episodes, the plot of “Beach Reads” essentially matches Carrie, as confirmed by O’Flynn. Similar to the titular character of King’s book, Patricia is constantly bullied and exiled by her former schoolmates, who believe her Bogeyman killer story is an attention-seeking lie. Patricia wants desperately to be accepted, so she throws a government-funded Sunset Cocktails party with the guidance of a self-help book. Unfortunately, the book isn’t what it appears to be, as Widow’s Bay reveals that everyone at the party has been under the book’s spell in some way, with attendees becoming potential sacrifices. While Patricia wasn’t lied to by those she sought the approval of, like Carrie, she was horrifically misled into believing she was finally accepted, when the evil grimoire was actually bewitching her.

Widow’s Bay Also Honors John Carpenter and Friday the 13th

Image courtesy of Apple Studios

Since Dippold was raised in a horror-loving household, it would make sense that Widow’s Bay would honor more than Jaws and King. The eighth episode, “Your Baggage,” is a clear love letter to John Carpenter’s Halloween and Sean S. Cunningham’s Friday the 13th franchises. The Boogeyman returns to finish the attack he started on Patricia, retrieving his mask, which looks just like Michael Myers’ iconic mask. Both franchise monsters and scream queens like Jamie Lee Curtis’ Laurie Stroud are channeled as Patricia flees and fends off the slow, stalky, and seemingly unstoppable killer’s advances. After going so far as to burn him alive, à la Halloween II, Patricia attains Final Girl status, defeating and ensuring the Boogeyman’s death by the episode’s end.

While it might be somewhat correct to say that Widow’s Bay references King’s The Mist in the first episode, the more accurate comparison is Carpenter’s The Fog. When Loftis first learns of the island’s curse, a mysterious and foreboding fog is rolling in. Wyck warns that the fog isn’t to be trifled with, telling him that it contains the revenants of lost sailors and overtakes its victims, turning their eyes white before stealing their souls. Though Carpenter’s Fog doesn’t possess its victims, it behaves similarly otherwise. In the 1980 movie, the titular fog slowly rolls over the coastal town of Antonio Bay, California, haunting its victims’ homes with electrical disruptions before killing residents with pirate ghosts. Widow’s Bay also directly references The Fog when Loftis dramatically warns those leaving the Salty Whale with the last third of its “Lock your doors. Bolt your windows. There’s something in the fog!” tagline.

Following the recent Season 1 finale of Widow’s Bay, the Apple TV series earned 14 Primetime Emmys, honoring its outstanding writing and the work of its cast and crew. Over 10 episodes, the Apple TV original series created a unique horror-comedy that has already been greenlit for a second season. With its reputation so far, it’ll be interesting to see how Loftis navigates his bloodline being directly tied to the inescapable island, as well as whether the writers will continue honoring the horror legacies that came before it.

Release Date

April 28, 2026

Network

Apple TV

Showrunner

Katie Dippold

Cast

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  Matthew Rhys

  Mayor Tom Loftis

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