WithDead By Daylightgiving horror fans some extreme nostalgia feels by letting them play - or try to outrun - some of the most iconic killers of horror fiction, it’s no longer surprising if a goodDead By Daylightmatch inspires a player to watch a horror movie or two. After all, some killers in the game come from franchises with both stellar and rather unremarkable movies attached to them.
RELATED:Best Opening Scenes In Horror Movies
However, it’s much more interesting identifying iconic horror villains that don’t seem to belong in the movies that they’re in, be it through out of touch writing or just plain bad storytelling in general. Over the years, there have been plenty of fantastic horror villains who were held back somewhat by the underwhelming movies in which they featured.
8Xenomorph (Alien Vs. Predator)
When people hear the term “science fiction,” the idea of giant conglomerates sending soldiers and ships into space to explore the galaxy’s frontiers can give an idea of prestige and honor. Not inAlien, however, especially with seemingly unstoppable horrors like theXenomorph. This is what made the first slate ofAlienmovies so terrifying, especially when the Xenomorph quickly proves that advanced weapons are useless when up against their advanced physiologies.
As such, it’s quite a relief to see that the extraterrestrial Predators are more than capable of handling them with their own advanced weaponry and hunting philosophies. This transformsAlien Vs. Predatorinto a science-fiction action movie, and one that dullsthe horrific nature of the Xenomorph. While entertaining in itself, the idea of bladed weapons and specialized missiles harming a Xenomorph makes facing them more a matter of “how big is the boom?” compared to a fight for survival, something that hurts their reputation as scary villains.
7Samara Morgan (Rings)
In the originalRingfranchise,Sadako Yamamura is a vengeful spirit as well as a nensha user, capable of psychically affecting photographs and other art media. It’s what made the notion of her death tape so alluring to horror fans, and what made her American iterationSamara Morganquite a hit. Unfortunately, despite the separate mythology and depth of Samara’s separation from Sadako, 2017’sRingsfails to elevate the franchise’s rich mythos.
While the movie does offer a fresh retelling of Samara’s story, there’s not a lot of new things introduced inRings. Fans of horror who haven’t seenThe Ringcan definitely find solace in the similarity ofRingsfrom the original movie - but with that in mind, there’s no reason why fans should skip the original that started the craze in the first place.
Horror savantClive Barker is best known for the creation of theHellraiserfranchise, with concepts based on his “Hellbound Heart” novella. In it, and in the firstHellraisermovie, extradimensional Cenobites led byPinheadare summoned through a puzzle box called the Lament Configuration and end up converting humans into their religion that involves transforming pain into pleasure.
RELATED:Horror Game Protagonists Who Stared Death In The Face, And Won
While the franchise would change from body horror to psychological horror, it’s difficult to find a worse movie in the franchise - or possibly, of all time - thanHellraiser: Revelations. There may not even be a need to say its premise here, as many critics considerRevelationsa mockery of the franchise. In fact, some believe that it’s so bad that it elevates its predecessors by comparison.
5Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare On Elm Street)
It’s one thing to be able to travel to someone’s dreams and interact with them there, but another entirely for an evil soul to cherish the idea of killing people in their nightmares. This added to the allure ofFreddy Krueger, the seemingly-undefeatable villain inA Nightmare On Elm Street, who remained the sole villain in its 2010 remake.
Unlikethe Freddy Krueger that’s become known for his comical quipswhile killing others though, the 2010 remake tried its best to tone down Kruger’s personality and transform him into a nightmare-traveling killer. Unfortunately, these changes did nothing but hurt the potential of the movie, with its writing and storytelling lacking the necessary depth. While it remains faithful to the original movie, the remake failed to uplift the spirit of the original and bring out something new.
4Michael Myers (Halloween: Resurrection)
WhenMichael Myersseemingly killshisHalloweenarchnemesisand proverbial “final girl” Laurie Strode by throwing her off the roof of a psychiatric facility at the start ofHalloween: Resurrection, no one seems to be left to stop whatever he’s planning on doing next. This proved dangerous, especially when the 2002 movie had a group of youngsters participate in a reality show where they had to stay in the abandoned Myers home to figure out what caused Michael’s sprees.
RELATED:Resident Evil Reboot: Other Horror Games That Need A Film Treatment
While Michael will live to fight another day after his supposed defeat, the entire movie ended up being the black sheep of the franchise. Aside from Michael having to fight the character Freddie - played by rapper Busta Rhymes - the events of the movie were ignored entirely in the sequels.
3Jason Voorhees (Jason X)
It’s thanks toJason Voorheesthat students have reasons to be scared to stay in camping zones, and Jason’s terrorizing of Camp Crystal Lake reaches the final frontier - space, and the literal future. InJason X, scientists have begunlooking into Jason’s vast regenerative abilitiesas something that can be replicated, prompting them to not just turn him into a cyborg but also cryogenically freeze him. Much to the horror of students aboard the ship Grendel, it seems a 455-year freezing isn’t enough to contain Jason, who begins a new onslaught.
While fans take delight in this form of Jason and call him “Uber Jason,” the futuristic setting of the movie fails to makeJason Xany more than a typical slasher. This was quite the opposite of other movies which, despite their campiness, at least tried to add some depth to Jason’s character.
2Killjoy (Killjoy Goes To Hell)
It’s one thing to have akiller clownplague the streets, but another to have it stuck in a story that doesn’t help bring to life its true potential. Such was the case withKilljoy, the eponymous killer clown of theKilljoyseries, where he’s summoned to exact vengeance, with his summoners having no idea of the lengths this demonic clown is willing to go to to wreak havoc in the world of the living.
While the series is already infamous for its dark humor and bad production,Killjoy Goes To Hellplummets to all new lows. Plagued with the lack of budget and a story that doesn’t seem to try all that hard,Goes To Hellhas Killjoy literally go to hell for a trial. Becoming a slasher with a courtroom drama on the side, Killjoy and his demonic streak need the right room for his menace.
1Smiley (Smiley)
WhenCreepypasta was all the rage, some filmmakers tried capitalizing on the niche concept. One such example wasSmiley, which talks about the eponymous Smiley arriving and killing one’s partner in a video chat website if they type a certain phrase. In the movie, Smiley is a murderer who stitched their own eyes and carved their mouth into a smile, hence earning the name. Protagonist Ashley tries the Smiley rumor in a video chat, only to see a stranger actually being horrifically murdered. Seeing her friends being killed by Smiley one by one, Ashley tries to challenge it to a one-on-one showdown… only to die.
At the end of the movie, Smiley is revealed to be Ashley’s friends, who, as part of a fringe Anonymous group, had perpetuated the Smiley myth. Smiley as an urban legend that can be copied has the potential to become quite a horrific villain, but the dull nature of the storytelling and the unnecessary twist at the end certainly hurt Smiley’s status as a compelling villain.
