Sabrina Carpenter and Jenna Ortega’s music video pays homage to a ’90s dark comedy film

At just 25 years old, Sabrina Carpenter has carved out an incredible pop legacy for herself already, having released six studio albums with some certified bangers over the years.

The pop sensation’s latest album, Short n’ Sweet, was released on August 23, 2024, and has been making headlines for its flirty and peppy pop anthems. Apart from summer hits “Espresso” and “Please Please Please,” there’s a third song on the album that has been receiving the oohs and ahhs for its music video, primarily because of the chemistry between Sabrina Carpenter and the actress that appears in it.

Wednesday star Jenna Ortega stars in the video, and she can be seen playfully engaged in a personal war with Carpenter. Directed by Dave Myers, the music video features plenty of fake blood and gory elements, but the body horror is mixed with some cute moments, making it an exciting blend of charm and dread. The best encapsulation of this theme is seen towards the end of the video, where Ortega chainsaws Carpenter after realizing they had been making out all this while—though there’s another twist after that, too.

The two women are fighting over the affection of a man and go to the extent of chopping each other’s arms off and burning voodoo dolls. At the very end, it is shown that the man died from the chainsaw attack that Ortega thought she had initiated on Carpenter instead. It is alluded that the girls are more than happy to spend time with each other after this “beloved boyfriend’s” death.

The music video is inspired by the 1992 dark comedy Death Becomes Her, starring Meryl Streep and Goldie Hawn. In the movie, the two women violently fight over the same man (Bruce Willis) after taking a potion that promises eternal life. The film carries a similar premise to what’s shown in the music video, which also borrows from Addams Family Values, Ginger Snaps, Kill Bill: Volume I, and Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho.

Fans of both Ortega and Carpenter have been loving the video, especially the steamy moment shared between the pair. All in all, it’s been an album promotion masterclass from Carpenter and her team, who, in an appearance on Jimmy Fallon, called the music video her “favorite one I have ever done.”