Top 10 Dumbest Horror Movie Decisions That Still Worked

“It Follows” (2014)

In this film, a teenager named Jay is pursued by a malevolent entity through a disturbing curse. Once they’re aware of the curse, her friends try to help her avoid being killed by the relentless force. Toward the climax, they decide the best way to take out the entity is by having it follow Jay into a swimming pool before electrocuting it with nearby appliances. There’s no way that can backfire, right? It’s great that Jay has such supportive friends to help her, but they’re lucky this dangerous stunt doesn’t get them all killed. Especially since the plan leads to one of the friends, Paul, accidentally injuring Yara while shooting at the entity.

“The Curse of La Llorona” (2019)

To keep La Llorona from coming for two children, a holy man sets up a spiritual barrier around the family’s home, which is able to ward off the evil spirit. However, one of the children, Sam, decides to reach over the barrier to retrieve her doll on the front porch, leaving her vulnerable to La Llorona. After Sam unwittingly breaks the barrier, the spirit grabs and almost drowns her in a swimming pool. That would be a horrifying way to go, but hey, at least she got her dolly, right? Luckily for Sam, her mother Anna is able to intervene and save her.

“Final Destination” (2000)

When Death tries to kill a group of teenagers that were meant to die in a freak plane crash, one survivor, Carter, can’t handle the pressure of being next. Trying to regain a sense of control, he drives recklessly in spite of his passengers’ safety before parking his car on some train tracks, potentially killing the whole group at the same time. However, by the time he wants to flee the incoming train, he finds his car stalled and seatbelt stuck. Luckily for him, Alex intervenes and saves Carter, and only Billy ends up getting killed in the whole ordeal.

“Poltergeist” (1982)

There are so many red flags from the very beginning that something isn’t right with this house. After rescuing youngest daughter Carol Anne from a ghost dimension, the Freelings still think it’s a good idea to wait until nightfall before moving out completely. The decision to stay is in line with the horror tradition of people in haunted house movies not leaving the house right away. Fortunately for the Freelings, this decision doesn’t get any family members killed, but they probably would’ve been better off had they just gotten a motel room to begin with.

“28 Days Later” (2002)

On the way to a military blockade where they hope to find sanctuary, a group of survivors decide to go through a tunnel. The problem is that a dark, enclosed space may not be the best place to enter during a zombie apocalypse. The car they’re traveling in gets a flat tire, and wouldn’t you know it, an infected horde comes at them while they’re trying to fix the problem. Thankfully, the group replaces the tire in time, and they’re able to speed away from the horde without losing anyone. That all being said, the dumb risk and stakes involved makes for quite an intense scene.

“Annabelle Comes Home” (2019)

Feeling responsible for her father’s fatal car accident, Daniela wants to contact him from beyond the grave. To do this, she goes into a room in the Warrens’ house that’s filled with cursed artifacts and foolishly touches everything. Because of Daniela’s actions, Annabelle and other spirits are released, which leads to a host of horrible events happening, including Daniela herself getting possessed by the Bride. Thankfully, after all’s well that ends well, Daniela gets closure when Lorraine passes on a message from the former’s father, who says she wasn’t responsible for his death after all.

“The Mist” (2007)

If you were stuck in an apocalypse where outside was an enigmatic mist filled with interdimensional monsters, you’d probably take shelter and stay put. However in this film, one woman decides to leave a relatively safe grocery store to look for her children. While that’s a brave and noble thing to do, it’s also a high-risk decision that isn’t likely to be successful. Despite the woman being unable to persuade anyone to accompany her, she beats the odds anyway. At the end of the film, she’s seen in a military vehicle with her kids, while the main character, David, can only sorrow over the unnecessary loss of his own child.

“1408” (2007)

If there’s a lesson from Stephen King stories about hotels, it’s to stay away from specific rooms. In this film, writer Mike Enslin wants to stay in room 1408 of the Dolphin Hotel in order to debunk rumors that it’s haunted. Despite numerous warnings not to, Mike goes ahead anyway. Sure enough, odd peculiarities happen from the very beginning of Mike’s stay, and he’s put through harrowing situations where he almost dies. Sure, in the alternate endings Mike perishes, but in the theatrical version, he’s fortunate enough to live to tell the tale.

“Zombieland” (2009)

Hoping to blow off some steam during the zombie apocalypse, sisters Wichita and Little Rock decide to break into an abandoned amusement park and turn on all the lights and rides. Unsurprisingly, this catches the attention of a horde of zombies, which immediately rushes toward the theme park. The two sisters are swarmed by zombies and are almost killed. Fortunately for them, Columbus and Tallahassee come to their aid and help take on the zombies. Taking the chance of getting eaten alive for cheap thrills seems like a high-risk, low-reward prospect.

“Hellraiser” (1987)

During her stay at a hospital, Kirsty Cotton fiddles around with a puzzle box that she took from her uncle Frank. Given that Frank was a bloody, skeletal mess at the time Kirsty found the box, she should’ve known it was bad news. When Kirsty solves the puzzle box, she summons demonic Cenobites who intend to torture her soul for eternity. Through quick thinking, she’s able to negotiate her way out of her jam and instead sic the Cenobites on Frank. Next time though, maybe stay away from the mystical object your evil skeleton uncle wants.