The crisp autumn season brings Halloween, crunchy leaves, pumpkin spice lattes, and best of all, horror movies. There’s something truly chilling about watching a creepy film on a quiet October evening. However, women in horror films are often overlooked or misrepresented. Too often, there’s a damsel in distress, a virgin needing to be sacrificed, or women murdered because of dated sexual stereotypes. This is why finding a strong, ferocious woman is especially thrilling in this genre. Women in horror movies have an incredible potential, as seen by these ten “bad” girls!
Ellen Ripley: Alien (1979), Aliens (1986), Alien 3 (1992), Alien: Resurrection (1997). Played by Sigourney Weaver.
Ellen Ripley is one of the older characters in this list, with the first Alien being released in 1979. This fierce warrant officer aboard the Nostromo may be second in command, but she is first in every other way. Using her smarts and nerves of solid steel, she is able to fight off a deadly, acid-blooded, unknown alien species. Her protocol, remarkable intelligence, and insistence for the greater good may not win her popularity with crew and audience members, but she’s calm, collected, and not there to play games.
Mia: Evil Dead (2013). Played by Jane Levy.
Mia is instantly portrayed as a pitiful, almost weak, character, struggling with an intense addiction to heroin. Whenever she states that something is wrong with the cabin her brother and their friends own, she is constantly dismissed as going through withdrawals. Mia is an incredibly intense character. Throughout the entire film, she is fighting off intense withdrawal symptoms, while dealing with the intense unleashed evil. The bloody, macabre climax gives the audience a shrieking Mia with an undying will to survive as she fights her way to freedom. Mia was never a victim. Mia was a survivor.
Erin: You’re Next (2011). Played by Sharni Vinson.
When mysterious attackers begin to surround her boyfriend’s family home, Erin immediately jumps into action to fight back. Hard. Harder than anyone could ever possibly imagine. Erin is immediately seen as the driving force for any chance of survival, outsmarting the attackers and aggressively protecting her loved ones. To avoid risking spoilers, I will just say that she is a strong and intelligent woman who is absolutely fearless in the face of death.
Laurie Strode: Halloween (1978, 2007). Played by Jamie Lee Curtis, Scout Taylor-Compton.
Laurie is another classic scream queen, originally played by the famed Jamie Lee Curtis. While being stalked by the terrifying Michael Myers (the one in the mask, not Austin Powers!) Laurie is not only able to defend herself, but also the children she is babysitting. She fights back against the massive, fearsome Myers with some surprising ferocity and skill.
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Maddie: Hush (2016). Played by Kate Siegel.
A more controversial casting of a non-deaf/mute woman as a deaf/mute character, Maddie takes all of the disadvantages she has in her personal and home life and smashes them. We’re left with a woman who is initially helpless but is forced to stand up for herself when she realizes no one is there for her. And stand up she does. Her incredible patience and craftiness is truly admirable. Even when she’s cornered, she’s able to claw her way out with relentless willpower. She’s an incredibly smart woman, and she knows it.
Sarah Carter: The Descent (2005), The Descent Part 2 (2009). Played by Shauna Macdonald.
Sarah, the grieving mother and widow of a tragic accident’s victims, appears much weaker than she actually is in her grieving state. After betrayal, she is left to defend herself and her friends from terrifying creatures in an unmapped cave. It is her unique combination of maternal instinct and ruthless savagery that makes her truly memorable. While she may have more moments of fear and a desire to give up, compared to others on this list, she makes up for in sharp intuition and brutal physical strength.
Clarice Starling: Silence of the Lambs (1991). Played by Jodie Foster.
While perhaps less of a horror movie and more of a thriller, Clarice still earns a nod for her cool and calm demeanor when talking to, and gathering information from, a literal cannibal killer that everyone else is terrified of. She is only a student during the film, and yet she is able to prove her mettle with ease, surpassing even her superiors in terms of results. Clarice is intelligent, persuasive, and fearless. She plucks clues from Hannibal Lecter’s wry speeches, and is able to use her not even completed training and skill sets to fulfil her goals.
Photo by padrinan from Pixabay
Ángela Vidal: (Spanish speaking) REC (2007), REC 2 (2009), REC 4: Apocalypse (2014) / (English speaking) Quarantine (2008). Played by Manuela Velasco, Jennifer Carpenter.
Ángela is the definition of hard working. Even when things go terribly wrong while filming a news segment, she remains professional. Instead of cowering in fear, she stands up and demands to record everything so their struggle is not in vain. Even when she’s trapped and panicked, she keeps her cool and keeps on filming.
Lorraine Warren: The Conjuring (2013), The Conjuring 2 (2016). Played by Vera Farmiga.
Lorraine Warren is one half of a married ghostbusting duo, but she is 100% capable by herself when it comes to things that go bump in the night. Lorraine catches subtle clues in the nick of time and is eerily connected to any evil presences she finds, giving her a better understanding of how to take them down. She’s a loving mother and wife, but a force to be reckoned with when it comes to the dead.
Elise Reiner: Insidious (2010), Insidious: Chapter 2 (2013), Insidious: Chapter 3 (2015). Played by Lin Shaye.
Elise is the oldest on this list, but also the one with the most experience. A parapsychologist with a burning desire to help those in need, she faces her own mortality on a daily basis with a haunting past. She knows that one day, her job will be the end of her, and yet she continues to boldly expel evil. Elise uses her psychic abilities and determination to eliminate evil fearlessly, and is an incredibly inspiring character to watch.
Photo by jarmoluk from Pixabay
Bonus! The 11th best in horror: villain style!
Vera-Ellen “Baby” Firefly: House of 1000 Corpses (2003), The Devil’s Rejects (2005). Played by Sheri Moon. Baby isn’t the typical villainess. She uses her contradictory sex appeal and cutie looks to get what she wants and to lure her victims in, then continues with her upbeat happiness to do what she does best: torture and killing. Despite competing for screen time with her huge family, she really stands out. She is incredibly inventive and clever. Baby is an interesting combination of obedient and loving to her family, and absolutely ruthless. She’s got massive nerves and is so brave and confident that she will put herself in danger, just for fun. When the going gets tough, Baby pulls out a shotgun and chases it down!
Horror movies are like most other films: dominated by men. Luckily, there are these 10 (+1) women who can subvert this and dazzle audiences with their intelligence and bravery. These women are unique and fantastic to watch, entertaining viewers with each moment on screen. Let’s give these women a cheer, Baby Firefly style!
“Give me a B! Give me an A! Give me a B! Give me a Y! What’s that spell? What’s that spell? WHAT’S THAT SPELL?!”