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 The band helped craft the show’s cold open with Jimmy Fallon and the Roots’ Questlove and Black Thought. —

Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 12 July 2024 Kelly Ripa just slithered into a Live cold open as chilly as the scales of a reptile, as the beloved talk show host kicked off Wednesday's episode with a stern warning to audience members. —

Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 10 July 2024 Episodes begin with dramatic, Breaking Bad-style cold opens and end on cliffhangers but often drift sluggishly between the two. —

Judy Berman, TIME, 10 July 2024 During this weekend’s cold open, cast members depicting Biden allies made exaggerated claims about his vigor, drawing laughs. —

Shant Shahrigian, New York Daily News, 3 Mar. 2024 See all Example Sentences for cold open

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'cold open.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.