Research- Characters

 In this post, I will research in depth about my chosen genre and subgenre. At this point in the research, I'm already starting to get a feel for the characters that I want and most of the conventions I will use in my film. 

Characters

In most horror films, specifically slasher and psychological, the antagonists are run-of-the-mill people. The movies aren't typically remembered by their victims but by the killer. Take Jason, or Ghostface, or Chucky. I guarantee that when someone talks about the movies those characters are in, you don't initially think about the victims of those killers. This is because the killers in a slasher film all have something special about them. Whether that's the iconic hockey mask of Jason or the personality of Ma from the movie Ma, each character can be identified by a specific feature about them. 

Herald Of Doom

As for different characters in the story who are NOT the villain, there are different common stereotypes to characterize them. One of them is the "herald of doom". This character is a survivor of the antagonist who lives on to warn the protagonist of the story. This can be seen in the movie Fear Street: Prom Queen when one of the supporting characters sees the killers and goes to tell the main character before the mayhem takes place. They provide useful information on how to avoid getting killed in most films. 

When the main characters of a horror film are a group of people (usually high school students/friends), they normally all fall into one of the following archetypes: The Skeptic, The Final Girl, the Repressing Authoritative Figure, the Innocent Character, and. There are a lot more, but these six are the ones that I tend to see.

Skeptic

One of the most common character types in psychological slasher films is the skeptic. This is the person who keeps insisting there has to be a logical explanation for what’s going on. They brush off anything supernatural or extreme and blame it on coincidence, stress or someone “overreacting.” This character works because they act a lot like the audience would at first; most people don’t want to believe something truly terrifying is happening, because that means admitting they’re not in control. In "Talk to Me", the characters treat possession like a joke or party trick, and that disbelief ends up making everything much worse.

Final Girl

Another really common character in slasher and psychological horror movies is the Final Girl, sometimes just called the survivor. She’s usually the one who makes it to the end of the movie and either escapes or defeats the killer. In older slasher films, this character was often shown as innocent, cautious, and “well-behaved,” but in more modern horror, she’s usually stronger, smarter, and more complicated, sometimes dealing with a lot of trauma by the time the movie ends. Movies like Halloween and Scream are classic examples where a female character survives while most of the others are killed off. This character keeps showing up because audiences like rooting for someone who refuses to give up, even when everything around them is terrifying.

Innocent / Vulnerable Characters

Some horror films include characters who are naive or very innocent, like children or people who seem helpless at first. These characters heighten the emotional stakes because audiences usually worry about them more when danger arrives. They don’t usually fight back, but their vulnerability makes the horror feel sharper, as viewers connect emotionally to characters who can’t protect themselves. 

Repressed Authority Figure

Another common character you’ll see in psychological slashers is the repressed authority figure: parents, partners, or any adult who refuses to face the truth. These characters often act like everything is fine, dismiss warnings, or try to stay in control no matter what. That “everything’s okay” attitude usually makes things a lot worse. In The Lodge, the adults’ choices and lack of emotional support push the kids into a full-on psychological breakdown. In Run, the controlling mother keeps secrets to stay in power over her daughter, which ends up putting her in real danger. These characters are scary because their denial and need for control don’t just frustrate others—they actually cause harm, showing how fear can be made even worse by the people who are supposed to protect you.

Monster as a Mirror

Finally, many psychological slasher films use the monster as a mirror, meaning the killer or threat represents something emotional or psychological instead of just being a random villain. In Candyman, the killer represents generational trauma and violence being passed down over time. In Pearl, the slasher is the result of isolation, frustration, and crushed dreams. These monsters are unsettling because they reflect fears and emotions that feel real and human.

Sources

https://screencraft.org/blog/what-makes-a-killer-horror-movie-character-common-horror-character-archetypes/
https://horrorobsessive.com/2021/10/29/horror-film-theory-101-carol-j-clovers-original-theory-of-the-final-girl/
https://www.ualberta.ca/en/folio/2017/10/monsters-in-modern-horror-culture-reflect-social-anxieties.html
https://the-artifice.com/six-archetypal-horror-characters-and-why-they-are-important/
https://www.quora.com/What-are-stereotypes-of-a-protagonist-in-a-horror-movie