A new horror film (and one of the year's best movies) called Heretic recently opened. It features Hugh Grant in one of the year's best performances in a role that is a massive departure from the types he is known for playing.
He is best known as the romantic lead in proper English films like "Maurice," "Remains of the Day," and "Sense and Sensibility." He is also beloved as the charming, stammering British guy with fabulous hair and winking smile in such rom-com dreck as "Four Weddings and a Funeral," "Notting Hill," "Mickey Blue Eyes," "Bridget Jones's Diary," "Love Actually," and the list goes on.
He is NOT known for playing brilliant but psychotic loners who live in secluded houses, torturing the young ladies who make the mistake of knocking on his door, which is what he plays in "Heretic."
His outstanding performance got me thinking about other comedic actors who took a chance on being scary and did surprisingly (or shockingly, if you will) great at getting into the world of horror.
5 Comedic Actors Who Got Scary...Real Scary
ROBIN WILLIAMS in "One Hour Photo"
Robin Williams started as a successful stand-up comedian and became hugely popular for his breakout performance as Mork from Ork in the TV series Mork and Mindy. His work in movies has varied from flat-out comedy to serious drama, but he was always adored more for his wildly energetic appearances on talk shows, the crazy antics he did on stage, and the improvisational comedy he did throughout his career.
Williams got genuinely weird in movies a few times (his disturbing performance in Christopher Nolan's remake of "Insomnia" is a great example), but he was never scarier or creepier than he was in director Mark Romanek's tight, queasy thriller "One Hour Photo. " In it, he plays a mentally unstable photo developer who becomes obsessed with a family who has been his customers for years.
Now, truth be told, this is a very unpopular opinion, but I am not a fan of Robin Williams at all, and I never have been. I find his persona annoying and his comedy forced, shrill, and derivative. Except for a few films, I don't think he was a very good actor.
Having said that, his work in "One Hour Photo" is brilliant. It's very controlled, uncharacteristically subtle, and shockingly disciplined, and as a result, it is easily one of the very best performances of his career. He is also ably supported by an excellent cast that includes Eriq LaSalle and Clark Gregg as detectives, Michael Vartan and Connie Nielsen as the heads of the family, and an outstanding Gary Cole as Williams' boss.
But Williams steals the show and fearlessly goes to some scary places to bring some sheer terror to the screen and help make "One Hour Photo" an underrated horror classic that snuck under the radar over 20 years ago and should be seen by more people.
CHRIS ROCK in "Spiral"
Chris Rock is best known as one of the best stand-ups in comedy history. He is also an ex-cast member of "Saturday Night Live," a successful writer and director of many comedic films, and a hilarious actor who has provided huge laughs in live-action and animated films for over 35 years.
In real life, Rock happens to love horror movies and always wanted to star in one. Well, he made that happen when he appeared as the lead in the 9th installment of the "Saw" horror movie series, "Spiral" (subtitled "From the Book of Saw") in 2021.
The "'Saw' universe," if you will, began in 2004 when the micro-budgeted original took the horror world by storm with its unique, simple setup, clever plot, and HUGE surprise twist ending. Its success also spawned the creation of a subgenre that would eventually be known as "Torture Porn," or movies in which most of the imagery consists of lingering shots of damp, bloody bodies being mangled and tortured for 90 minutes.
I actually really like the original "Saw" a lot (I also truly LOVE "Saw III" for reasons that I won't go into now). It breathed some new life into the horror genre of the early aughts and announced a smart new filmmaking talent named James Wan to the scene.
The subsequent sequels varied in quality and got dumber and gorier as they went along, so by the time "Spiral" came out, I was pretty much done with the series, except that Chris Rock was the star!
The plot is just another variation of the "Saw" prototype. Rock is a detective investigating a series of murders that seem to be copycat versions of the Jigsaw Killer from the other movies. In addition to Rock, Samuel L. Jackson, Max Minghellam, and Marisol Nichols appear in the film.
Rock plays the part very, very seriously (too seriously, in fact) and never even cracks a smile throughout the grim proceedings as he wades through gore, intensely stares at things, ends up handcuffed to a pipe, and contemplates sawing off his own arm (that's standard "Saw" stuff).
Rock does his job competently in this movie, and it's not really his fault that the series had run out of gas by the time he joined up, but ultimately, it's not a good film. Its history is actually more interesting than the final product.
Chris Rock got involved in "Spiral" after the release of "Jigsaw" in 2017. The project was officially announced in May 2019, with Rock polishing a script by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger. The rest of the cast joined in July, with filming taking place in Toronto through that month and August.
Originally scheduled to be released in May 2020, "Spiral" was delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and was theatrically released in the United States on May 14, 2021, by Lionsgate Films. The film grossed $40.6 million against a budget of $20 million, becoming the lowest-grossing installment in the franchise. It received mixed reviews from critics.
In 2023, it was followed by a tenth and awful installment, titled "Saw X. " This installment is set between "Saw" and "Saw II," which means that these "Saw" movies are probably never going to end, but I am certain that Chris Rock won't be a part of them anytime soon.
JIM CARREY in "The Number 23"
Rubber-faced comedian Jim Carrey got his start doing stand-up, wacky impressions, and goofy voices. He eventually earned a gig in 1990 as one of the cast members of the groundbreaking sketch comedy show "In Living Color," which put him on the map.
In 1994, everything changed for Jim Carrey. First came the release of "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective," which, inexplicably, became a massive box office sensation. Then, in rapid succession came "The Mask," "Dumb and Dumber," "Batman Forever," and "Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls." By the end of 1996, he was earning over $20 million a film, pretty good for a guy who became a huge star because he made his ass talk.
I love Jim Carrey, especially his early work. I could not be happier with his success or what he did when he expanded beyond comedy.
His terrific work in such strange, severe, and earnest films as "The Truman Show," "Man on the Moon," "The Majestic," and especially "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind" was quite impressive.
Carrey had never done horror before, and when his "Batman Forever" director Joel Schumacher offered him the lead in "The Number 23," he jumped at the opportunity.
In the psychological horror film, he plays a man who becomes obsessed with the "23 Enigma" as he reads an obscure book that seems to mirror his own life. Murder, mayhem, nightmares, split personalities, and more all follow as Carrey plays it very dark and very straight.
The fabulous Virginia Madsen plays his wife in the movie, providing a much-needed grounding as she supports Carrey. Danny Huston, Corey Stoll, Logan Lerman, Ed Lauter, and an unbilled Bud Cort round out the excellent cast, all of whom can't save this mess of a movie.
It's a clumsy, unengaging, and confusing horror film that is all style over substance, and that style is ham-fisted and inept. Schumacher's direction consists of loud sound design, ragged editing, and monotonous weightiness that works against the fine work that Carrey actually does in the film. Carrey came to play, and he gives it his all; it's just too bad what surrounds him is far less interesting than what he is doing.
He's actually proud of his performance in the movie: "I was able to explore the darker edges of my personality, which really was a blast and something different for me."
Yeah, he's quite good in the movie, and I would love to see him do something else in the horror genre at some point.
KRISTEN WIIG in "mother!"
The hilarious Kristen Wiig is not only one of the best cast members in the history of "Saturday Night Live," but she is, in my opinion, one of the funniest women to ever walk the earth.
Her hilarious work in tons of TV shows and movies like "The Brothers Solomon," "Knocked Up," "Walk Hard: The Dewey Cox Story," "Adventureland," "MacGruber," "Paul," "Date Night," and many more are just outstanding. Of course, her triumph as co-writer, producer, and star of the magnificent "Bridesmaids" is legendary and a singular achievement in a remarkable comedy career.
She has also branched out by giving terrific performances in serious stuff like "Friends With Kids," "Girl Most Likely," "Hateship Loveship," "Downsizing," "The Martian" and especially the absolutely beautiful film she made with Bill Hader, "The Skeleton Twins."
But, her striking and terrifying work in Darren Aronofsky's insane masterpiece "mother!" is unlike anything she has ever done, mainly because that film is unlike any movie ever made. I will not try to explain the film to you (if you've seen it, then you understand why).
I'll let Wikipedia give it a go:
"Mother!" (stylized as "mother!") is a 2017 American psychological horror film written and directed by Darren Aronofsky, and starring Jennifer Lawrence, Javier Bardem, Ed Harris, Michelle Pfeiffer, Domhnall Gleeson, Brian Gleeson, and Kristen Wiig. Its plot, inspired by the Bible, follows a young woman whose tranquil life with her husband at their country home is disrupted by the arrival of a mysterious couple, leading to a series of increasingly chaotic and destructive events.
Sure...that's it.
In this batshit crazy, downright horrifying biblical allegory, the main characters are Jennifer Lawrence as Mother and Javier Bardem as Him. Again, I'm not gonna get into the symbolism or the wanton provocation of Aronofsky's thoroughly fucked-up vision; let's just say that some weird-ass stuff happens, and Wiig plays The Herald (yeah, a messenger of God) who shows up late in the film.
By this point in the movie, Man (Ed Harris), Woman (Michelle Pfeiffer), Oldest Son (Domhnall Gleeson), and Younger Brother (Brian Gleeson) have already ingratiated themselves into the house of Him and Mother. Later, an unruly crowd breaks into the house, making a huge mess and causing chaos. One of the members of this crowd is The Herald, who goes after Mother when she retreats into a room alone.
Things get worse in the house; at one point, military forces are brought in to fight deranged cult followers. The Herald plans the mass executions. Mother sees The Herald shooting the hostages to death with her guns. The Herald then orders the revolutionaries to execute Mother.
Then, it gets weird.
Look, I know most people hate this movie; the movie-going public certainly did, and I know most critics found it either incomprehensible or pretentious, but I don't care; I LOVE this movie.
It's absolutely brilliant, wholly original, and overwhelmingly frightening. There are moments in this film in which I literally forget to breathe, as I am loaded with more anxiety than I have ever felt while watching a film. Jennifer Lawrence gives one of the best, bravest, most daring performances I have ever seen. The supporting performances are all incredible (Pfeiffer is particularly mesmerizing), and the actors are completely committed to this insane world that Aronofsky brings to life.
Right in the center of the madness is the great Kristen Wiig, doing things that she has never done on screen before or since. It's a sonic dive into the deepest end of the horror pool, and her performance is a monstrous combination of interesting choices and jaw-dropping execution...and she's scary as hell in it.
JOHN GOODMAN in "10 Cloverfield Lane"
John Goodman is best known for his very humorous work, from playing Dan Connor on "Roseanne" to his role on "Righteous Gemstones," to the multiple times he has hosted and guest-appeared on "Saturday Night Live," to the over-the-top comedic performances he's given in films like "Revenge of the Nerds," "True Stories," "Raising Arizona," "King Ralph," "Matinee," "Blues Brothers 2000," and "Monsters Inc."
It's not like he can't get serious or creepy because he certainly can, and you can see him get really scary in movies like "Fallen," "Death Sentence," "The Gambler" and especially in the Coen Brothers' best film, "Barton Fink," in which he is truly terrifying.
As terrifying as his performance in Barton Fink is (and it's terrifying), it's nothing compared to what he does in the brilliant, claustrophobic horror movie 10 Cloverfield Lane from 2016.
After surviving a car accident, Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) wakes up to find herself in an underground bunker with two men, Howard (John Goodman) and Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.). Howard tells her that a massive chemical attack has rendered the air unbreathable, and their only hope of survival is to remain inside.
Despite the comforts of home in the bunker and the friendship she develops with Emmett, Howard's controlling and menacing nature makes Michelle want to escape. After taking matters into her own hands, the young woman finally discovers the truth about the outside world.
A sequel of sorts to "Cloverfield," the 2008 kaiju-destroys-New-York-found-footage horror film, "10 Cloverfield Lane" is a beautifully made paranoid thriller about seclusion, madness, and monsters.
Much like the aforementioned "Heretic," this is anchored by three outstanding performances and a taut direction. The director, in this case, is Dan Trachtenberg, and he relentlessly tightens the screws until the eruptive climax when the tension explodes.
Helping maintain the gigantic level of tension that exists throughout the film is Goodman, whose portrayal here as an imposing, volatile survivalist who may or may not be completely insane is one of the best of his career. He makes the monsters who may be on the outside seem tame compared to the monsters on the inside.
Quiet looks, flashes of anger, moments of intimidation, and other strong and subtle choices that Goodman makes all add to one of the most terrifying creations I have ever seen in a thriller. He is beyond scary in the movie, but his unique performance is a marvel to behold and makes "10 Cloverfield Lane" an exceptional experience.
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