cold open

noun

variants or less commonly cold opening

plural cold opens also cold openings

: a scene of a film or television episode that precedes the title sequence or opening credits and that typically takes place in medias res

Cold opens are a bold move in any medium. When a movie or TV show drops the audience into its world without so much as a "here's the title," it speaks to a confidence that whatever's about to happen on screen is sufficient enough to immerse, intrigue, and otherwise hook them.—

Alexis Nedd

For fans of NBC's "The Office," the cold open from season five's "Casual Friday"—where Kevin spills his famous chili—is one of the show's most beloved scenes.—

Addy Bink

The film lost me right from the overacted cold opening …—

Alexa Chipman

Examples of cold open in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

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Saturday marked the fifth consecutive week of Rudolph portraying Harris during the show’s cold opens. —

William Vaillancourt, Rolling Stone, 3 Nov. 2024 During the show's cold open, Harris appeared alongside actress Maya Rudolph, who has portrayed the vice president on SNL since 2019. —

David Faris, Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2024 Alec Baldwin returned to Saturday Night Live as Fox News anchor Bret Baier during the show’s cold open, which spoofed the testy interview with Kamala Harris (Maya Rudolph). —

Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Oct. 2024 Keaton later noted that Samberg, 46, has typically been appearing during in season 50 in the show's cold opens, in a cameo role as vice president Kamala Harris' husband, Doug Emhoff. —

Nicholas Rice, People.com, 20 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cold open