Sugar Episode 4's Nod To A 42-Year-Old Sci-Fi Thriller Might Have Revealed Colin Farrell's Character's Real Identity

Warning! Contains spoilers for Sugar.

Summary Sugar episode 4 drops a direct reference to John Carpenter's The Thing.

The Thing nod in Sugar might have foreshadowed its biggest twist.

The Thing reference and several other details in Sugar suggest the titular character is an alien.

Apple TV+'s Sugar features a reference to a 42-year-old sci-fi thriller, which might have revealed the real identity of its mysterious titular character. From its opening episode, Sugar presents itself as a murder mystery drama where the titular detective must get to the bottom of the truth behind the strange disappearance of a girl named Olivia. As the show progresses, it also drops several clues that hint at what might have happened to Olivia and whether she is still alive.

While unfolding John Sugar's investigation surrounding Olivia's disappearance, Apple TV+'s Sugar also presents an intriguing Hollywood conspiracy that might have something to do with the overarching mystery. However, even though so much goes on in Sugar, it is hard not to be more curious about the enigmatic titular character's real identity than anything else. Although many elements surrounding the main character's origins and backstory remain unknown, the show's reference to a classic horror movie might have given away some major clues.

Related Sugar Soundtrack: Every Song & When They Play While unfolding its gripping murder mystery drama, Apple TV+'s Sugar features a myriad of tracks that perfectly complement its story developments.

Sugar's Reference To John Carpenter's The Thing Explained

John Sugar Describes The Thing's "Chest Chomp" Moment To His Doctor

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In Sugar episode 4's opening moments, Colin Farrell's character meets his doctor after delaying his visit for a long time. While interacting with the doctor, he passionately describes a scene from John Carpenter's The Thing. Before this scene, Apple TV+'s Sugar had already established that John Sugar loves watching movies and even tries enacting them sometimes. While it is unknown whether John Sugar's love for cinema has something to do with the show's big twist, Sugar episode 4's reference to John Carpenter's The Thing might have provided some answers.

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During the brief opening scene, John Sugar asks his doctor if he has seen The Thing. He then goes on to describe The Thing's infamous "chest chomp" scene in which Dr. Cooper attempts to revive Norris by using a defibrillator. However, to everyone's shock, Norris' chest opens up and reveals a hollow cavity with teeth that sever Cooper's arms. As Sugar describes the scene, the show also gives audiences a glimpse of the actual The Thing moment. As random as John's description of The Thing's scene may seem, there is likely more to it than meets the eye in the Apple TV+ series.

Sugar's The Thing Reference Might Have Foreshadowed Its Biggest Twist

The Thing Nod Hints John Sugar Is An Alien

The Thing's "chest chomp" scene is one of the most defining moments of the film because it reveals to the characters that they are dealing with something otherworldly. The fact that John Sugar talks about it with so much fascination seemingly hints that he, too, could be some kind of otherworldly being. In the Apple TV+ show's episode 4, The Thing reference does not seem to add any heft to the overarching narrative. However, a close look at John Sugar's story arc and behaviorism seemingly hints that The Thing nod could be the show's way of foreshadowing that the Colin Farrell character is also an alien.

Related Where Was Sugar Filmed? All L.A. Shooting Locations Explained Apple TV+'s new genre-bending detective series, Sugar, uses real Los Angeles, California filming locations to create an authentic, compelling story.

Every Other Sugar Detail That Hints Colin Farrell's Character Is An Alien

Several Sugar Details Support The Alien Theory

Several early clues in Apple TV+'s Sugar suggest that the titular character is not human. For instance, there are several scenes where the character almost displays razor-sharp reflexes and even seems to possess superhuman strength. He also speaks multiple languages with ease, never mixing up words and sentences from two different languages despite knowing so many. In other strange moments from Sugar's first few episodes, the character even seems a little too altruistic to be human.

Since the Apple TV+ show has not confirmed his real identity, he could be any supernatural creature one's imagination can conceive.

Colin Farrell's John Sugar also almost always detects whether someone is lying to him just by looking at them. In Sugar's episode 3, even Ruby asks him why he keeps writing about his feelings in his journal when his job is to solely observe and report to a higher authority. The fact that even Roby expects him to have no feelings suggests he cannot be human. Since the Apple TV+ show has not confirmed his real identity, he could be any supernatural creature one's imagination can conceive. However, Sugar's constant references to sci-fi flicks like The Thing imply he is likely an alien.

New Sugar episodes release every Friday on Apple TV+.