In horror, acting is like the fruit from your local supermarket – some performances are rotten while others are nourishing and tasty. Ranging from terrible to terribly great, performances in horror are often a complex conversation among blood buffs.
While for many reasons, including self-financed filmmaking and ’80s sequel excess, actors in horror are often producing on various levels.
So, let’s all go method, remember our lines, and nail it on the first take, as I count down the 5 greatest performances in horror history since 1960.
Betsy Palmer as Pamela Voorhees in Sean S. Cunningham’s ‘Friday the 13th’- Courtesy of Paramount Pictures
“You see, Jason was my son, and today is his birthday” – Pamela Voorhees
Slashing her way on our list of greatest horror performances at number 5 is Mrs. Voorhees herself, Betsy Palmer.
Starting her onscreen career in the 1951 TV series “Martinsville U.S.A.,” Palmer went on to cut her way into horror history. While accepting the role of Pamela Voorhees in Sean Cunningham’s classic, 1980’s Friday the 13th, she did what others thespians often only dream of.
Encompassing both false compassion and blind rage, Mrs. Voorhees is unlike any other characters in the history of horror. Showcasing the script’s more underrated intricacies, Palmer was playing ’80s audience expectations like a finely tuned instrument.
While not on screen for much of the film’s 95-minute running time, Palmer makes the most of every second. On top of that, the actress had to make us understand her reasoning for killing. While not justifiable, the loss of a loved one would make anyone go a bit insane. Only, hopefully, not to the point of murder.
R.I.P (1926-2015)
Jeffrey Combs as Herbert West in Stuart Gordon’s ‘Re-Animator’-Empire Pictures
“No, I did not. I gave him life” – Herbert West
Raising the dead on our list of best performances is horror vet Jeffrey Combs, playing the incomparable Herbert West. Providing his most hailed role in Stuart Gordon’s 1985 masterpiece, Re-Animator, Combs is simply chilling as the doctor with a passion for the deceased.
What makes Combs so greatly spellbinding, other than bringing to life the script he was given, is the sensational subtlety. Properly portraying West’s drive and unflinching determination, taking your eyes off of Combs is an impossibility.
Fully displaying his pure passion for science and its progression, Combs is simply magnetic in Re-Animator. In fact, Combs is so amazing as Herbert West, watching his performance is murdering mayhem.
Duane Jones as Ben in George A. Romero’s ‘Night of the Living Dead’- Courtesy of Image Ten
“Now get the hell down in the cellar. You can be the boss down there, but I’m boss up here!” – Ben
Our list continues with zombie killing, as Duane Jones saving a horde of bad actors comes in at number 3.
Crediting the role as his first onscreen performance, Jones’ portrayal of Night of the Living Dead hero Ben is one of horror’s most powerful displays of pure performance.
Performing as a strong black man against the backdrop of historically radical racism, Jones should be applauded for having the courage to simply be in the film. Throw in the fact that he’s on screen slapping a white woman in 1968, and it’s entirely admirable.
Moreover, Jones’ take on a man trying to survive the beginning of society’s horrific breakdown is insanely brilliant. He’s strong, fiercely focused, and intelligently untouchable.
Today’s actors can certainly learn a thing of two from the underrated thespian. George A. Romero certainly saw Jones’ brilliance when casting the 1968 classic.
R.I.P (1937-1988)
Donald Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis in John Carpenter’s ‘Halloween’- Courtesy of Compass International
“I met this six-year-old child, with this blank, pale, emotionless face, and the blackest eyes… the devil’s eyes” – Dr. Sam Loomis
Chasing evil at numbers 2 on our list of horror’s best performances since 1960 is Donald Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis in John Carpenter’s Halloween.
Filling the shoes and trench coat of Loomis, Pleasence’s take on the role elevates Carpenter’s classic beyond an average horror film. Enhanced by Halloween’s remarkable script, Pleasence’s performance is a textbook display of sensible subtitles.
Each line spoken with pitch-perfectly clear intention, the 1978 slasher classic saw the English actor creating one of the greatest characters in film history. From his iconic monologue to hilariously telling Lonnie to “get his ass away from there,” Pleasence is a revelation as Dr. Sam Loomis.
Just look at Loomis’ stare at the film’s end. Of course it was going to end this way. Evil never dies.
R.I.P (1919-1995)
Anthony Perkins as Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s ‘Psycho’- Courtesy of Universal Pictures
“A boy’s best friend is his mother.” – Norman Bates
Dressing our list in his mother’s Sunday best, Anthony Perkins is going psycho at number 1 as Norman Bates.
Undoubtedly a raw talent, Perkins’ take in bringing to life Norma Bates’ baby boy will forever live in infamy – it’s simply stunning.
While taking direction from the great Alfred Hitchcock, Perkins perfectly straddles the line between innocence and insanity. When viewing the film for the first time, you don’t know he’s the killer. On second viewing, his subtleties are staggeringly artful.
On top of that, his line delivery is chilling. He was the only man who could have played the role so well. Just look at that stare in the film’s final moments. A boy’s best friend may be his mother, but a horror fan’s best friend is Anthony Perkins.
R.I.P (1932-1992)