As part of the most recent Bloody Disgusting Reader Survey, we asked you an incredibly difficult question. Specifically, we asked you to name the best kill in the history of horror. Hundreds upon hundreds of you answered. For some, the answer was clear and obvious. Others chose to wax poetic with near essay-length responses. We […]
Specifically, we asked you to name the best kill in the history of horror.
Hundreds upon hundreds of you answered. For some, the answer was clear and obvious. Others chose to wax poetic with near essay-length responses.
We parsed and analyzed over 700 responses to bring you a sincere attempt at identifying the single greatest kill in all of horror.
Read on for the results but fair warning, this article will feature mild spoilers for many horror movies…
Horror Kills Throughout History
‘Suspiria’
What was most impressive about the data we collected was the sheer range of kills mentioned by survey respondents.
The oldest kill mentioned was George Waggner’s , so mentioned because, “it is a curse that can only be broken by death.”
The Wolfman (1941)
We also received over a dozen mentions of the shower sequence in Psycho (1960) as well as a handful for the opening sequence of Suspiria (1977).
On the newer side, In a Violent Naturereceived two dozen votes, all of which were for the “yoga kill” whenever the respondent chose to be specific.
A small number of you also mentioned a particular third act death from Weapons. Might it be recency bias? Or do we have a new entry into the horror canon on our hands? Only time will tell.
Slashers and Science-Fiction Reign Supreme
‘Alien’
Six movies or franchises received more than 30 votes.
Alienreceived 36 votes, with all but one vote going to the chest burster scene (when specified), making it the single kill with the largest amount of votes.
The one outlier vote went to Dallas’s death because, “I love the way the tension builds when you don’t know where the alien is and you can see the panic increase in Dallas’s face.”
And in another chest-related death, 41 votes went to John Carpenter’s The Thing. Special shout out to the survey taker who left the comment, “the thing stomach mouth” and another who said, “The Thing when the chest opens up like a nightmarish Pac-Man.”
Then came the slashers. Halloweenreceived 35 votes, especially for Bob’s death in the original film. The Nightmare on Elm Streetseries received 40 mentions. And relative newcomer Art the Clown took home 43 votes across the Terrifier franchise.
Which brings us to the absolute consensus killer… Jason Voorhees. At least half of the dozen entries in the Friday the 13th franchise were mentioned in the 90 total votes for the series.
But there was one standout from the beloved franchise. The sleeping bag kill from Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Bloodreceived one third of all of the Voorhees votes.
So there you have it. Jason is our most prolific killer and the xenomorphs are responsible for the single most shocking moment in horror.
Now read on for a bit more data and select quotes from readers.
Runners Up for the Best Kills in all of Horror
‘Final Destination 3’
Just outside the top tier of horror kills is Scream, which received 27 votes.
The Final Destination franchise received 22 votes with the tanning bed, the nail gun, and–of course–the log truck.
Seven different readers voted by simply writing, “Choke on ‘em,” a reference to 1985’s Day of the Dead.
And finally, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, The Omen, Hatchet, Cabin in the Woods, and Ghost Ship all received a single digit amount of votes.
Bloody Disgusting Reader’s Thoughts on Horror Kills
‘Scream’
Perhaps the best part of this exercise, readers wrote answers that revealed more about themselves than the horror movies being discussed.
Many of the quotes mention seeing something upsetting, like Killer Klowns from Outer Space, at a young age, which explains a lot.
Multiple readers expressed dismay at the thought of trying to answer the question, “If I try to think of THE ONE I’ll be here forever.”
Others showed their love of horror by writing some variation of, “Every kill.”
One person said, “Anything eyeball related.”
Another commenter expressed their disdain for the entire project, “What are we twelve years old, who really cares?”
But the most sincere opinion, one likely shared by the majority of Bloody Disgusting readers, were the three responses that read, “Seriously, just one?”
