Top 10 Unexpected Horror Movie Deaths

The Cabin in the Woods (2012)

Wait...Thor can't die!? The God of Thunder himself, Chris Hemsworth, bit the dust when he played Curt Vaughan in the 2012 horror comedy "The Cabin in the Woods." And no one saw it coming. Then again, given the film's playful homage to horror movie clichès and conventions, it's also perhaps not so surprising that writers Joss Whedon and Drew Goddard went this route. The fact that Curt's All American good looks and confident swagger would've surely made him the hero of most movies isn't lost on the filmmakers as they have him fall to this death after hitting a force field with his motorcycle - undercutting a moment of would-be heroism. Seeing Hemsworth meet such an ignoble demise was definitely a curveball.

A Quiet Place (2018)

The death of a child, whether on-screen or off, is a delicate subject, even in the world of horror movies. 2018's "A Quiet Place" opens up with such a scene, depicting the swift and shocking death of Beau, the youngest member of the Abbott Family. The little boy is taken by one of the otherworldly creatures who have devastated the earth in the year 2020. The mysterious race of aliens are drawn to sound, so we know that Beau's toy jet is going to make noise the second he steals the batteries from behind his father's back. But given his age and the conventions of storytelling, we kept expecting a last minute rescue. Instead, we got the devastating death of a child mere minutes into the film.

Pitch Black (2000)

Played by Radha Mitchell, Carolyn Fry is established as a character in need of redemption early in the film. A commercial pilot, she almost sacrifices the lives of her passengers in an effort to save herself during a crash landing. Soon after however, it becomes clear that this was out of character, as she seems generally guided by a moral compass. When Fry makes the decision to try and save Vin Diesel's Riddick from the clutches of light-sensitive alien creatures, we're led to believe that she's been redeemed, and now in the clear for the end credits. However, she's killed by one of the beasts almost as soon as she's recovered Riddick, making her sacrifice something of a bittersweet one for the audience.

Us (2019)

When characters go to friends for help in a horror movie, it rarely ends well for the friends in question. But, proving yet again that he’s a modern master of horror filmmaking, writer/director Jordan Peele subverts our expectations. It’s not the Wilson family doppelgangers who show up at the Tylers’ house, but a sadistic group of doppelgangers of their very own. This adds a whole new dimension to the film, taking the threat from an isolated incident to a widespread one. The scene is made all the more impactful by the excellent use of music, compounded with the brutality of the attacks. It's just one of the elements that made "Us" so damn satisfying.

Deep Blue Sea (1999)

Sure, this next scene on our list may be a meme today, but it's important to remember just how surprising this death was back in the late ’90s. "Deep Blue Sea" was an otherwise unmemorable killer shark movie with one very memorable death sequence. Here, Samuel L. Jackson's Russell Franklin delivers a long and passionate monologue to the cast about sticking together against the genetically mutated sharks that are threatening their lives. Then, just as he’s beginning to outline his plan, Franklin is torn away by a CGI shark and dragged to his death in an unintentionally hilarious moment. It isn't often we get to see Nick Fury taken out with such impunity, so we'll take this one as a bit of unexpected comedy gold.

Hereditary (2018)

Writer/director Ari Aster has mastered the art of killing characters unexpectedly. We considered the death of Josh for Aster’s 2019 film "Midsommar", but we're going to go with the film that first put him on the horror movie map, 2018's "Hereditary." Young Charlie Graham's death is unexpected not only because of her age and her central role in the film, but also due to the brutality and realism of the scene. Charlie's nut allergy causes a medical emergency, but this isn't what kills her. Instead, it's a combination of her head being stuck out the window of a speeding car and a telephone pole that do the shockingly gruesome trick. The audience is left reeling as the Graham Family attempts to deal with their grief.

Scream (1996)

She was the iconic face on the film's poster, and the celebrity who did a lot of the promotional interviews, but Drew Barrymore was one of the first characters to die in Wes Craven's 1996 horror classic, "Scream." This was a calculated move on the part of Craven and Co., as it not only capitalized on Barrymore’s star power when initially marketing the film - Barrymore originally signed on to play the heroine - but also served as one of the genre's most shocking and unexpected deaths. Becker is initially set up to be the movie's heroine, so when she's gruesomely murdered by Ghostface in the opening sequence, it turned audiences and critics alike on their heads with surprise. And you know what? It still works brilliantly today.

Night of the Living Dead (1968)

The casting of African-American Duane Jones as the lead of George A. Romero's "Night of the Living Dead" was reportedly not intentionally designed to be a commentary about race relations in America; but this hasn't stopped critics from intellectualizing the director's classic horror film in the decades since its 1968 release. The image of Ben's lifeless body piled high upon the other corpses in the fire is a haunting and disturbing image to this day. Sure, Jones may have been mistaken for one of the undead and shot by the traveling mob outside, but the connection between the actor's talent and screen presence during a time of such heavy social unrest has made it a death that still manages to shock and surprise today.

Alien (1979)

It's a scene that's been copied and parodied to death, yet it remains an all time iconic moment for science fiction and horror cinema. Kane wasn't set up as the hero of Ridley Scott's "Alien," but that doesn't mean that his death scene was any less shocking for audiences and cast members alike. Just watch Veronica Cartwright's reaction as Lambert when the Xenomorph bursts through Kane's chest. It's clear that she's just as shocked and horrified as we are to see this incubating creature hit the silver screen in all of its toothy glory. The scene was similarly replicated throughout the franchise's history, but there's just something special about that first time.





Before we name our number one pick, here are a few honorable mentions!



The Wall

The Meg (2018)





Sue Snell

The Rage: Carrie 2 (1999)





Megan

The House of the Devil (2009)

Psycho (1960)

Wes Craven wasn't the first filmmaker to kill off his leading lady in a horror film. The Master of Suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, had done it years earlier with his unforgettable horror classic, "Psycho." We spend quite a bit of time learning about Marion Crane's backstory as a woman with a past...and a secret. The sexual politics of 1960 were very different when compared to the modern day, making the depiction of Janet Leigh's lead as a sexually active woman with a morally flexible attitude towards larceny somewhat scandalous for the time. Equally shocking was the decision to kill her off before the halfway mark, in a shower scene that has gone on to become the stuff of horror movie legend.