Horror Movie Characters Who Should Have Survived

[AntonioDelLago]

Enclosed is a list of horror movie characters who died in vain. Their deaths did not serve the interests of the progression of the story, like Janet Leigh's Marion Crane character in PSYCHO or Brooke Shields in ALICE, SWEET ALICE...without their deaths, there would have been NO movie. Ditto Bruce Willis in THE SIXTH SENSE or Tim Robbins in JACOB'S LADDER. Although we cared about their characters, their deaths served a purpose in the film's plot.

(1,2) Donald and Nancy Thompson (John Saxon and Heather Langenkamp in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3) A double whammy!

(3) Dom Spages (Niles McMaster, who portrayed Brooke Shields' father in ALICE, SWEET ALICE) Talk about brutal! This guy deserved to play the hero.

(4) Judy Barton (Kim Novak in VERTIGO) Did the lookalike have to die as well? Poor Jimmy Stewart!

(5) Sally (Nancy Allen in BLOW OUT) Perhaps the most mean-spirited and unforgivable murder of the whole lot.

(6) Michelle (Emmanuelle Seigner in FRANTIC) This beautiful French babe should have hooked up with Harrison Ford instead of taking a bullet meant for him. Technically a thriller, but since Roman Polanski ripped off Hitchcock big-time in this film, its' wrongful death deserves a place on this list.

(7) Carrie White (Sissy Spacek in CARRIE) I always wondered what Carrie's life would have been like without her religious fanatic mother and cruel classmates? Give this poor soul a break!

AND THE REST...
Hutch (Maurice Evans in ROSEMARY'S BABY)
Miss Collins and Tommy Ross (Betty Buckley and William Katt in CARRIE)
Alice (Adrienne King in FRIDAY THE 13TH, PART 2)
Rob (Erich Anderson in FRIDAY THE 13TH, PART 4)
Karen and Terri (Dee Wallace and Belinda Balaski in THE HOWLING)
Cici Cooper (Sarah Michelle Gellar in SCREAM 2)
Helen Lyle (Virginia Madsen in CANDYMAN)
Rachel Carruthers (Ellie Cornell in HALLOWEEN 5)
Sue Snell (Amy Irving in THE RAGE-CARRIE 2)
Jennifer Jolie (Parker Posey in SCREAM 3)
Fry (Radha Mitchell in PITCH BLACK)
Randy Meeks (Jamie Kennedy in SCREAM 2)
Hicks and Newt (Michael Biehn and Carrie Henn in ALIEN 3)
Lt. Sean McTaggart (Robert Loggia in THE BELIEVERS)
Annie Hayworth (Suzanne Pleshette in THE BIRDS)
Jamie Lloyd (J.C. Brandy in HALLOWEEN 6)
Maureen Coyle (Diana Scarwid in PSYCHO III)
Sasha (Tara Reid in URBAN LEGEND)
Dr. Susan McAllister (Saffron Burrows in DEEP BLUE SEA)
Helen Shivers (Sarah Michelle Gellar in I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER)

LOST IN LIMBO: What about the characters of Jimmy (Lance Guest) in "Halloween II"?; Randy (Sam Rockwell) in "Clownhouse"?; and Paul (John Furey) in "Friday The 13th Part 2"? Did they survive? Only Jimmy and Paul deserved to. I hated Randy! I hope he bled to death in that closet!


[This message has been edited by AntonioDelLago (edited 06-27-2001).]

[!MorganOnyx!]

Dude, i've been waiting for someone to post this topic. That's QUITE a list - i do agree with a lot of them, but some of the deaths i feel were neccessary for the movie to shake off the 'predictable' tag. I love it when a horror is unpredictable!
Example - I thought RANDYS' death in SCREAM 2 was great! I was SO NOT PREPARED for him to die - i thought he was a cert for survival. I'll never forget what my face must've looked like when we were in the cinema watching that scene - I was so SHOCKED, i just thought "Shit - all bets are off now!!!"

There are a lot of my own, but i can't think of all of them right now. Here's a few:

1. Tyrell (MEKHI PHIFEER in ISKWYDLS). I SO wanted him to live. He was the hero, he took control. Besides, how unpredictable would it have been if, for example, RAY gets killed and TYRELL saves JULIE and they are the only survivors??!!
2. Jimbo (CRISPIN GLOVER in FRIDAY THE 13th PART 4). I loved this guy. JASON was a bit harsh on his hand! And his face!
3. Ted (LAWRENCE MONOSON see above). I loved this guy! Him and Jimbo were a great team! I always wondered what it would've been like if it had been these two left to battle Jason! Especially seeing as though one woman is guaranteed survival in a friday flick!
4. Ali (NICK SAVAGE in FRIDAY THE 13th PART 3). He actually saved the day! If it wasn't for him reviving from the earlier beating and distracting Jason, Chris would never have had time to pick up the axe! If wasn't fair that he died. He was hard as well! There aren't many people who could survive an attack from our Jase!
5. Becky (TANYA ROBERTS in TOURIST TRAP). How cruel was that?! I fucking hated that Slausen twat after that, and was so glad when he got an axe rammed into his neck! I still think that Becky should've survived instead of that loser bitch in that sad, white dress - she was so annoying. Also, if you notice at the end, when she is driving the jeep away with all the mannequin like bodies of her friends stashed with her, the only one who wasn't turned into a mannequin was Becky. She was murdered in cold blood and she was left behind! That was sad as fuck. If i was there i would've saved her by kicking Slausens' punk ass and driving off to Mexico where we would get married, and then move to california where we would have 3 kids and live happily ever after!
Sorry - i got a bit carried away.

[Green]

I agree with Jamie LLoyd and Rachel Carruthers in the Halloween series........

[zombiejason]

Although it was a good choice to kill off Randy in Scream 2,I didn't want him to die.Call me a pussy,but i CRIED when he died!I am such a loser.

List of people That I wish would have survived:

1.Jimbo and Ted in Friday pt. 4
2.um,I dunno

There are lots more,just cant think of any.Sorry.I'm tired.

[ArgentoRules]

I agree with most on the above list...I was really pissed off that Ellie Cornell died in Halloween 5...She was the only likeable character in the whole damn lot!

I think Saffron Burrows (Deep Blue Sea) and Rahda Mitchell's (Pitch Black) death scenes were great ones...it takes balls for a screenwriter to kill off the main heroine.

[Hypnotic Eye]

I'd also agree that Jamie LLoyd and Rachel should have surived through the Halloween series, but another person I'd pick would be Randy Meeks.

[AntonioDelLago]

Looking back, I somewhat agree with Argento about the deaths of the characters played by Saffron Burrows in DEEP BLUE SEA and Radha Mitchell in PITCH BLACK...they were shocking, and at least the filmmakers had the balls to kill off their leads (reminiscent of the great disaster flicks from the 1970's...in THE POSEIDON ADVENTURE, Shelley Winters was lost to flood, Gene Hackman to fire; in EARTHQUAKE, Charlton Heston and Ava Gardner were sucked into raging floodwaters...pretty ballsy to kill off those heavyweights).

Anyway, what pissed me off about the deaths of the Mitchell and Burrows babes was that other, undeserving characters got to see the morning after (like the obligatory African-American survivors David Keith in PITCH and LL Cool J in SEA).

[A.J. Hakari]

Robert Loggia's death in "Psycho II", and it wasn't even Anthony Perkins' fault! Poor guy...Plus, James Brolin shouldn't have died at the hands of Yul Brynner in "Westworld"; Richard Benjamin, maybe, but not Jimmy Brolin, especially not before "Capricorn One"!

[Crazy Ol' Loomis]

I really thought the Rachel in H5 and Jamie in H6 would live!!! AND RANDY AND CICI!?!?!
Tisk tisk tisk.... I couldn't belive those deaths!!!

[AntonioDelLago]

In a more recent horror flick, Det. Pazzi (Giancarlo Giannini) should have survived the wrath of HANNIBAL. He was the only sympathetic character in the movie!

[This message has been edited by AntonioDelLago (edited 06-05-2001).]

[psychopath]

Jud crandall(Fred gwynne)on "Pet sematary."Also poor gage(i knew he was going to die by read stephen kings thrilling novel,but...poor kid!)

[krazyivan]

Jesus Christ Super Star-Jesus should of survived. Who would have seen that coming..hung on fucking cross man...came out of nowhere...I gotta stop sniffing white out one of these days....

[Femme_Fatale]

*Katherine Heigl in Valentine- she deserved a bigger part in that movie- she was the best actress in it and shes dead within 10 minutes!!!! She would have been better in the lead role.

*Virginia Madsen in Candyman- she had it so hard! and I would have liked her to come out as a hero at the end- but it wasnt likely to happen- and the ending is the best it could be, I guess!!

*Hutch in Rosemary's Baby- he deserved a bigger part- Rosemary should at least have visited him while he was ill. A sad loss...

[jason13th]

Rachel ( Elie Cornel ) in Halloween 5, why did she die ? she was great !!!!!

[pizowell]

Crispin Glover in Friday 4. Stu in Scream. Tatum in Scream.

[pizowell]

I agree with Femme about Heigl in Valentine. That flick had the most unlikable characters in film history. Heigl would have improved that.

[bloodyVALENTINE]

Parker Posey in SCREAM 3

...Courtney Cox could have died instead, in an act of post-modernism.

[neco82]

Randy Meeks in Scream 2... he was the best character out of that whole goofball bunch, with whiny Sydney, psychotic Cotton, annoying wannabe cool guy Dewey, bitchy Gail, and Derek who can't act worth a shit.
Randy was hilarious and he truly didn't deserve to get hacked. While Dewey gets knifed in a million spots and he still lives.

Oh, and that blonde chick from Deep Blue Sea... damn, she was cute! I really hated it when she died, because then I had no one to gawk at but that scrawny Saffron Burrows.

[Randy_Junior]

I agree with Parker Posey (Jennifer) in SCREAM 3. Yes~Gale SHOULD'VE died instead of her. She practically CARRIED the movie!!

I DO think that Cici (Sarah Michelle Gellar) should've bit the dust. How aggrivating was it watching her go up EVERY flight of stairs!! Besides, teh trailer practically GAVE her death away, so her being dispatched was expected, just not that early on.

YES!!! Rachel & Jamie SHOULD HAVE SURVIVED!!! And that WILL BE like the demise of Laurie Strode in the next HALLOWEEN sequel...& since MOST of us want Laurie to get the big one, it kinda all makes sense...(**Notice how each of them was either the opening victim, or an early murder...)

Getting back to SCREAM series, I think Randy should've survived S2, but demised in S3, whereas he states that "any character can die in the concluding chapter in a trilogy." But I guess he just wasn't movie-savvy enough, huh?? :P

[mary lou 102]

i think denise richards shouldent have died or katerine heigil in valentine. i heard that there gonna kill off jamie lee curtis in halloween 8.

[AntonioDelLago]

MOST SHOCKING REAL-LIFE DEATHS:
Vic Morrow (TWILIGHT ZONE-THE MOVIE)
Natalie Wood (BRAINSTORM)
Sal Mineo (WHO KILLED TEDDY BEAR?)
Heather O'Rourke (POLTERGEIST)
Dominique Dunne (POLTERGEIST)
Brandon Lee (THE CROW)

[nightmareman]

The little black kids big brother in Friday the 13 i dont remember which one it was, but he got killed in the port-a-potty singing to his girl friend" ooohhh baby ohhhhhhhh baby"

[AntonioDelLago]

NIGHTMARE MAN, Reggie's brother's name in FRIDAY 5 was Demon.

[nightmareman]

Thanks Antonio, Demon shouldnt of died he was there to say whats up to his lil brother and got fuc7ed up in the porta-potty

[Jo-Jo]

moving.....

[Cyclonus]

Crispen Glover in Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter. His character wasn't obnoxious like his friend Ted, so I didn't expect him to die, let alone get a meat cleaver in the face. Ow! http://www.joblo.com/ubb/frown.gif

[This message has been edited by Cyclonus (edited 03-30-2002).]

[BitchTits]

Sally's little brother on the wheelchair in Texas Chainsaw Massacre. Damn, I actually felt pretty sorry for him.

[teenkiller]

Rick Johnson from The Dream Master. He is the fukcin MAN! Well thats all for now GOoD JOURNEY my fellow schmoes.

[Ominous Phone Call]

Dennis (Matthew Lillad) in THIR13EN GHOSTS should've lived. His death REALLY served no purpose other than to have someone killed...He shoulda been the hero. Now Maggie~SHE coulda bit it...

[stevereno]

RIPLEY killed in ALIEN 3

NEWT! killed in ALIEN 3

HICKS killed in ALIEN 3

HUDSON killed in ALIENS

VASQUEZ killed in ALIENS

RACHEL killed in HALLOWEEN 5

JAMIE killed in HALLOWEEN 6

KRISTEN killed in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4

RANDY killed in SCREAM 2

DAN killed in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 5

JOEY killed in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4

KINCAID killed in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 4

TARYN killed in A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3

NANCY killed in A NIGHMARE ON ELM STREET 3

SEVEREN killed in NEAR DARK

DAVID killed in THE LOST BOYS

CASEY killed in SCREAM


SHIVER ME TIMBERS

[Lady Summerisle]

Most of what Stevereno said, and

LEFTY ENRIGHT from TCM 2

[El Intruder]

I should also add Sgt. Brodski and Janessa from Jason X. They were my two favorite characters in the whole movie and yet they had to die. What is it with favorite secondary characters usually dying?

[Jason13thh]

Crispin Glover in F13th 4
Morticia in The Convent, she was the real heroine to me !!!

[MICHAELvoorhees]

Rachel in THE RAGE: CARRIE 2.
Dorothy in VALENTINE.
Helen in I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER.

[Sheepshaver127]

The drug dealer in Ginger Snaps.

[Cabrini Green]

Paula Irvine as Liz in Phantasm III. Getting rid of one of the likable characters in part 2 and replacing her with a little kid and a rambo wannabe was a poor decision.