Pop sensation Sabrina Carpenter is ruling the summer charts, with her hit songs “Espresso” and “Please Please Please” taking turns at the number one spot on the Billboard 100. Known not just for her music but also for her love of movies, Carpenter has now released a new music video for her song “Taste,” the third single from her album Short n’ Sweet. The video, packed with references to iconic horror films, is a treat for cinephiles.
While “Please Please Please” featured a thrilling Bonnie and Clyde-style storyline, starring Carpenter’s boyfriend, Oscar-nominated actor Barry Keoghan, “Taste” shifts gears into the horror genre. In this latest video, Carpenter teams up with Gen Z’s “scream queen” Jenna Ortega to deliver a chilling yet humorous take on revenge.
Released on August 23, the video follows Carpenter on a mission to get back at an ex-boyfriend (played by Halloween Ends star Rohan Campbell) and his new girlfriend, portrayed by Ortega. Directed by Dave Meyers, the three-minute clip is filled with gruesome but darkly funny moments. Carpenter and Ortega’s characters engage in an escalating battle of bloody revenge, using everything from knives and chainsaws to a voodoo doll.
The climax of the video has Ortega mistakenly cutting her boyfriend in half during a body-swapping scene. In the end, the two women, now bonded over their twisted ordeal, walk off together, leaving the boyfriend’s grieving mother behind.
Ortega’s character jokes about the ex-boyfriend’s insecurity, to which Carpenter responds, “You kill me,” highlighting the video’s tongue-in-cheek tone.
Beyond the gore and dark humour, “Taste” is full of nods to classic horror films. For example:
"Death Becomes Her"
The 1992 fantasy classic starring Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn is a major influence on the video. Just like in the film, Carpenter’s character is shot and left with a gaping hole in her stomach, through which others can be seen.
The video also mirrors the movie’s final funeral scene, with both taking place in a grand mansion where characters keep coming back to life after suffering cartoonish injuries.
"Ginger Snaps"
This 2000 Canadian horror film about two sisters dealing with werewolf transformations is referenced when Carpenter’s character is impaled on a white picket fence, mimicking a famous scene from the movie.
"Kill Bill: Volume 1"
Jenna Ortega’s character dons a nurse outfit, complete with an eyepatch, just like Daryl Hannah’s character Elle Driver in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill. The scene adds to the video’s playful homage to classic horror.
"Psycho"
The video recreates the famous shower scene from Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, where Carpenter’s character faces a knife-wielding attacker, a clear nod to the horror master’s iconic film.
"Addams Family Values"
Carpenter’s outfit in one scene mirrors the feathered white ensemble worn by Joan Cusack’s character, Debbie Jellinsky, in the 1993 film Addams Family Values. The character’s serial killer tendencies fit perfectly into the revenge-driven plot of the “Taste” video.
