List of Alfred Hitchcock cameo appearances


English film director Alfred Hitchcock made cameo appearances in 40 of his 54 surviving major films. For the films in which he appeared, he would be seen for a brief moment in a non-speaking part as an extra, such as boarding a bus, crossing in front of a building, standing in an apartment across the courtyard, or even appearing in a newspaper photograph.
This playful gesture became one of Hitchcock's signatures; and fans would make a sport of trying to spot his cameos. As a recurring theme, he would carry a musical instrument– especially memorable was the double bass case that he wrestles onto the train at the beginning of Strangers on a Train. In his earliest appearances, he filled in as an obscure extra in crowds or walking through scenes in long camera shots. His later appearances became more prominent, such as when he turns to see Jane Wyman's disguise as she passes him in Stage Fright, and in stark silhouette in his final film Family Plot.
His appearances became so popular that he began to make them earlier in his films so as not to distract the audience from the plot. Hitchcock confirms this in extended interviews with François Truffaut, and indeed the majority of his appearances occur within the first half-hour of his films, with over half in the first 15 minutes.
Hitchcock's longest cameo appearances are in his British films Blackmail and Young and Innocent. He appears in all 30 features from Rebecca onward; before his move to Hollywood, he only occasionally performed cameos.

Cameo appearances in Hitchcock films

This is a list of Hitchcock's cameo appearances in films that he directed.
TitleYearH:MDescription
The Birds19630:02:18Leaving the pet shop with two of his own Sealyham terriers, Geoffrey and Stanley, as Tippi Hedren enters.
Blackmail19290:10:25Being bothered by a small boy as he reads a book on the London Underground. This cameo is 19 seconds long.
Dial M for Murder19540:13:13On the left side in the class-reunion photo.
Easy Virtue19280:21:15Walking past a tennis court carrying a walking stick.
Family Plot19760:40:00In silhouette through the door of the Registrar of Births and Deaths.
Foreign Correspondent19400:12:44After Joel McCrea leaves his hotel, wearing a coat and hat and reading a newspaper.
Frenzy19720:04:07In the center of a crowd, wearing a bowler hat; he is the only one not applauding the speaker; and a minute later, right after the victim washes ashore, standing next to a gray-haired man with a gray beard.
I Confess19530:01:33Crossing the top of a flight of steps.
The Lady Vanishes19381:32:31In Victoria Station, wearing a black coat, smoking a cigarette, and making a strange movement with his head.
Lifeboat19440:00:25In the "before" and "after" pictures in the newspaper ad for "Reduco Obesity Slayer".
'19270:03At a desk in the newsroom.
'19271:24In the mob scene next to Detective Joe, who's bearing the lodger's weight on the fence by holding his arms.
The Man Who Knew Too Much19560:25:12As the McKennas watch the acrobats in the marketplace, Hitchcock appears at the left in a suit and puts his hands in his pockets.
The Man Who Knew Too Much19340:33:25Walking across a road in a dark trench coat as a bus passes.
Marnie19640:05:00Entering from the left of the hotel corridor after Tippi Hedren passes by, and clearly breaking the fourth wall by looking the audience straight in the eye.
Mr. & Mrs. Smith19410:42:57Passing Robert Montgomery in front of his building.
Murder!19300:59:45Walking past the house where the murder was committed with a female companion, at the end of Sir John's visit to the scene with Markham and his wife Lucy.
North by Northwest19590:02:09Missing a bus, just after his credit passes off screen during the title sequence.
Notorious19461:04:44At the big party in Claude Rains's mansion, drinking champagne and then quickly departing.
Number Seventeen19320:51:25On the bus amongst other passengers, in a dark coat and hat, facing away, he bounces up and down; approx. four seconds.
The Paradine Case19470:38:00Leaving the train at a railway station, carrying a cello case.
Psycho19600:06:59Seen through an office window wearing a Stetson cowboy hat as Janet Leigh comes through the door.
Rear Window19540:26:12Winding the clock in the songwriter's apartment.
Rebecca19402:06:57Walking near the phone booth just after George Sanders makes a call.
Rope19480:01:51Just after Hitchock's credit towards the end of the opening sequence, walking alongside a woman.
Rope19480:55:00In the background as a red flashing neon sign of his trademark profile.
Sabotage19360:08:56Just after the lights come back on in front of the Bijou, looking up as he crosses in front of the crowd.
Saboteur19421:04:45Standing in front of "Cut Rate Drugs" as the saboteurs' car stops.
Shadow of a Doubt19430:16:27On the train to Santa Rosa, playing cards, his back to the camera.
Spellbound19450:39:01Coming out of an elevator at the Empire State Hotel, carrying a violin case and smoking a cigarette.
Stage Fright19500:39:49Turning to look back at Jane Wyman in her disguise as Marlene Dietrich's maid.
Strangers on a Train19510:10:34Boarding a train with a double bass as Farley Granger gets off in his hometown.
Suspicion19410:03:25Walking a horse across the screen at the hunt meet.
Suspicion19410:44:58Mailing a letter at the village postbox.
The 39 Steps19350:06:56The man tossing a white cigarette box while the bus pulls up for Robert Donat and Lucie Mannheim to leave the theatre.
To Catch a Thief19550:09:40Sitting next to Cary Grant on the bus.
Topaz19690:32:27Being pushed in a wheelchair in the airport. Hitchcock gets up from the chair, shakes hands with a man, and walks off to the right.
Torn Curtain19660:08:00Sitting in the Hotel d'Angleterre lobby with a baby on his knee. The music playing at this point is an adaptation of Funeral March of a Marionette, the theme for Alfred Hitchcock Presents
The Trouble with Harry19550:22:14Seen outside of the window—the man walking past the parked limousine of an old man who is looking at paintings.
Under Capricorn19490:02:11In the town square during new governor's speech, wearing a blue coat and brown hat.
Under Capricorn19490:12:17One of three men on the steps of Government House.
Vertigo19580:11:40In a grey suit walking in the street with a trumpet case.
The Wrong Man19560:00:18Seen in silhouette narrating the film's prologue. Donald Spoto's biography says that Hitchcock chose to make an explicit appearance in this film to emphasize that, unlike his other movies, The Wrong Man was a true story about an actual person.
Young and Innocent19370:15:00Outside the courthouse, holding a camera.

Other cameo appearances