Top 10 Biggest Accidental Deaths in Horror Movies

“Prom Night” (1980)
Released in the midst of the slasher craze, “Prom Night” follows a group of high school seniors who are being hunted down during their prom. One of the students is Lou Farmer, who is asked to the prom by a jealous ex-girlfriend named Wendy Richards. Wendy’s ex-boyfriend, Nick McBride, is crowned the prom king, but Lou ties him up and steals the crown for himself. The killer in turn mistakes Lou for Nick and leaves him without a head for his crown. The killer, Alex Hammond, was specifically targeting Nick, as Nick was partly responsible for the death of Alex’s fraternal twin sister six years earlier.

“Pet Sematary” (1989)
Stephen King personally believes that “Pet Sematary” is his scariest novel, and it’s not hard to see why. Not only is it viscerally horrifying with zombie-like beings, but it also touches on very real-world fears surrounding tragic and meaningless death. The story concerns the Creed family, who move to Ludlow, Maine and inhabit a house next to a busy highway. One day, toddler Gage is flying a kite when the spool gets away from him. Chasing after it, Gage runs into the middle of the highway and is hit by a speeding truck. It’s an all-too-common occurrence, and his sickening death proves a little too realistic for many readers and viewers.

“Zombieland” (2009)
After encountering con artists Little Rock and Wichita, Columbus and Tallahassee learn that the sisters are traveling to Pacific Playland in Los Angeles. Following a fun little road trip through the United States, the group finally arrives in Hollywood, and Tallahassee has the bright idea to hunker down in Bill Murray’s mansion. While there, he joyfully discovers that the iconic funnyman is still alive and thriving. Unfortunately, Murray decides to play a prank on the paranoid Columbus and approaches him groaning like a zombie. Columbus in turn springs up and shoots Murray straight through the chest. Luckily, he is able to voice his regret about doing “Garfield” before passing away.

“The Strangers” (2008)
Partly inspired by the Manson-Tate murders of 1969, “The Strangers” follows couple James Hoyt and Kristen McKay as they are stalked by three masked assailants outside their secluded summer home. Before the intrusion begins, James phoned his friend Mike and asked for a ride in the morning. When Mike arrives a few hours later, he finds James’ vandalized car and enters the house to investigate. By this point, James had long been the tormented subject of the assailants, and believing that Mike is one of them, James accidentally shoots him in the face with a shotgun. It was a great shot. Just, not on the right person.

“Tucker & Dale vs. Evil” (2010)
A brilliant subversion of the traditional slasher movie, “Tucker & Dale vs. Evil” concerns two friendly hillbillies who are mistaken for slasher movie villains by a group of teenagers. Most of their well-meaning actions are misinterpreted by the teens, and they are often blamed for the teens’ own accidental yet incredibly violent deaths. For example, Mitch runs into and impales himself on a tree branch, Mike dives into a wood chipper while trying to kill Tucker, and Chuck shoots himself in the head while inspecting the gun’s safety mechanism. The movie finds increasingly creative ways to depict accidental deaths, and it makes for hilarious viewing.

“The Descent” (2005)
Written and directed by Neil Marshall, “The Descent” is a claustrophobic horror film set in a dark and unexplored cave system. A woman named Sarah and a small group of her adventurous friends decide to go spelunking in the Appalachians of North Carolina. Sarah is still traumatized over the tragic deaths of her husband, Paul, and young daughter, Jessica. One year earlier, Paul was driving the family home from a whitewater raft when he became distracted by Sarah and veered the car into oncoming traffic. The scene is straight out of “Final Destination,” as both Paul and Jessica are impaled on copper pipes that fly off the other car’s roof.

“Aliens” (1986)
Poor Drake is one of the first people to die in James Cameron’s seminal “Aliens.” And it’s not a pleasant way to go, either. Before investigating the Atmosphere Processing Plant, the Marines are ordered to give up their ammunition and deactivate their weapons to prevent bullets from damaging the reactor. Vasquez disobeyed orders and produced backup ammo for their guns without the knowledge of her superior. During the resulting pandemonium with the Hive, an alien gets the drop on an unsuspecting Drake. Vasquez shoots the alien to save her good friend, but its exploding head sends a spray of acid blood into Drake’s face.

“Saw III” (2006)
The “Saw” franchise is full of accidental deaths, like the crime scene photographer who randomly gets a spike through the head in “Saw IV.” But perhaps the most memorable accidental death is the one belonging to Judge Halden. Halden is saved from a vat of rotting pig guts by Jeff, who burns his son’s belongings in an incinerator. They team up for the next test involving drunk driver Timothy Young. Jeff goes to retrieve a key that has been tied to the trigger of a shotgun while Holden fiddles with the contraption that is twisting Timothy’s limbs. Unfortunately, he’s in the wrong place at the wrong time, as he is hit by the shotgun after Jeff retrieves the key.

“A Quiet Place” (2018)
Poor Regan just wanted to make her little brother happy. In a world populated by monsters with hypersensitive hearing, any little noise could prove to be a death knell. This is why Lee reluctantly takes a space shuttle toy away from his four-year-old son, Beau. But feeling bad for her little brother, Regan secretly gives it back to him. Unfortunately, Beau activates the loud toy while the family is walking home, and despite Lee’s noble effort, he is swiped and carried away by one of the monsters. The violent death of a four-year-old is one hell of a depressing way to start a movie.

“Night of the Living Dead” (1968)
George A. Romero revolutionized the horror genre with “Night of the Living Dead,” and the groundbreaking zombie film contains one of the bleakest endings in horror movie history. Nearly every character dies in the climactic break-in, and Ben proves the only survivor. After spending all night in the cellar, Ben carefully emerges and investigates the sound of gunfire. He spies on an armed posse that is dealing with the zombies, but when one of the riflemen spots him inside the house, they mistake him for another zombie and shoot him in the head. His body is thrown onto a bonfire, and the movie ends on a truly horrifying and pessimistic note.