The 50 Funniest Deaths in Slasher Movies
If it weren’t for movies, especially those of the comedy variety, we as a species might never get an appropriate pause to laugh about the absurdity of death. In life, save for the occasional Darwin Awards contestant or clown car catastrophe, death is seldom funny. In slasher films, they are often hilarious.
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Before diving into this list I’ve so painstakingly put together for your reading (and viewing) pleasure, we need to be on the same page as to what constitutes a slasher. First off, the killer (or killers, thanks Scream) needs to be human or at least in human form — either physically, like Zombie Jason from Friday the 13th, or spiritually, like the soul of a serial killer stuck inside Chucky. So, no A.I. or demon doll (think M3GAN, Annabelle), and most unfortunately, no pair of possessed jean pants slashing the ever-loving shit out of people like in the 2020 horror comedy, Slaxx.
The Horror Collective
The killer in a slasher should also qualify as a serial killer, as no one is making a horror franchise about the dude who killed Spider-Man’s uncle. Ideally, there should also be both stalking and some sort of revenge angle going on. There are, of course, exceptions to these rules, and they mostly pop up in parodies (Scary Movie), genre-benders (The Cabin in the Woods) and proto-slashers (1974’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre). However, all of these films still fall under the slasher banner because they either tick all the boxes of the genre or have greatly influenced slasher films at large (or, in most cases, both).
To wrap up the rules, I omitted any hilarious kills that happen off-screen (sorry, Joseph Gordon-Levitt getting an ice skate to the face in Halloween H20: 20 Years Later). Death scenes don’t have to be at the hand of the main killer, either — it just needs to be a funny death in a slasher movie. Of course, points for epicness and ingenuity, while lead-up sequences do count toward humor. And, as always, this list is just one person’s opinion, so don’t tear off your face and go all revenge-plot on me if your favorite scenes didn’t make the cut. Honestly, the probability of two people having the exact same list of the 50 funniest death scenes in slasher movies is probably the same as the odds of there never being another Michael Myers movie.
Aces, let’s dive into some deaths.
Shotgun Wall Mount, ‘Halloween 4: Return of Michael Myers’
As I’ve pointed out before, Michael doesn’t need a gun to shoot and kill anybody. He’ll simply use one to ram a random victim through a wall before walking away like he’d just hung himself a nice ol’ family photo.
Arrow Head, ‘Wrong Turn’
“Dead? What people?” says the cop before getting his eye pushed into his skull by an unexpected arrow. Classic.
Death by Nail Gun, ‘Bride of Chucky’
John Ritter’s face, when receiving a nail facial, alone is enough to earn his death a spot on this list. Man, it must be so damn embarrassing getting off-ed by a killer doll. Watch at the 5:59 mark:
Handstand Death, ‘Friday the 13th: Part III’
There was no other reason to have Andy walk around on his hands in this movie other than to show him die on them. Chekhov’s calisthenics.
Cross Eyed, ‘The House on Sorority Row’
The set-up to this kill alone gives you zero reason to take it seriously. The poor girl’s silly face when she gets stabbed confirms it. Watch at the 1:30 mark:
TV Pool Scene, ‘Club Dread’
Getting electrocuted isn’t funny in itself. Getting electrocuted in a swimming pool by a TV set airing an aerobics class? That’s more like it. Watch at the 1:49 mark:
Cut in Half, ‘Blood Rage’
Kicking off the “Getting Cut in Half” entries on this list, our first one sees Dr. Berman from Blood Rage getting split and yet somehow staying alive for a laughably long time. Watch at the 6:32 mark below:
Gun Much? ‘Halloween Kills’
It’s a slasher death that would be funnier if it also weren’t so ridiculously dumb.
All of This, ‘Texas Chainsaw 3D’
From Alexandra Daddario yelling, “Do your thing, cuz,” at her newfound family member, who is freaking Leatherface, to the chainsaw torturing of the victim before finally letting him slip into that giant grinder, to the cop ultimately standing by and allowing it all to happen — this entire scene is so bad, it’s hilarious.
Sliced Bread, ‘Fear Street Part One: 1994’
Everyday tools, props or machinery can make a bloody kill unexpected and unexpectedly funny. In the grossest way, of course.
Folded in Half, ‘The Final Girls’
I mean, he clearly had it coming.
Call a Spade a Spade, ‘Hatchet’
It’s a particularly bad case of getting cut into pieces at the 0:49 mark below:
Giving Head, ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’
No, I will not apologize for that title.
Good Shot, ‘House of Wax’
Initially, it feels lowkey refreshing that they’re letting Paris Hilton’s sexpot blond character fight off the killer and get a good jab in while hiding out in that car. However, Hilton’s good luck doesn’t last, with the comedy here being the shocking ease of throwing a sharp stick straight through a car window and headshotting a target.
Glen, ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’
Freddy hates crop tops.
Tongue Alive, ‘Hatchet’
This would have just been sheer gore if not for that tongue wagging around without its jaw — a sentence that pretty much sums up everything you need to know about this B-movie.
Meatball for Dinner, ‘Nightmare on Elm Street 4: Dream Masters’
It’s equal parts disgusting and amusing to watch Freddy eat the head of a random dude who’s been turned into a meatball on a pizza.
Bed Bend, ‘Freddy vs. Jason’
Not sure what sleep number setting this is.
Amber, ‘Scream 5’
Points for a great kitchen fight (a nod to the original) and an over-the-top killer who took the word “batshit” and ran with it.
Death by Toy Machine, ‘Child’s Play 2’
There was a large bar tab in the future for the OSHA worker who had this report come across their desk. Watch at the 2:38 mark:
TV Drop, ‘Scream VI’
Watch Ethan get it like his hero Stu did in the original at the 1:13 mark:
Death by Cymbal, ‘Studio 666’
(More) proof that Taylor Hawkins was as good a sport as his best bud Dave Grohl, who, in this fun little 2022 flick, plays a man who gets possessed after listening to a demo tape and begins killing practically everybody.
Predict This, Anna Paquin, ‘Scream 4’
It’s the great Anna Paquin and Kristen Bell cameos, the movie within a movie within a movie meta-joke, and the twist when Bell decides she’s heard enough --- capped by Paquin’s little gurgle at the end --- that makes this one of the most fun (if not the most fun) openers of a Scream entry to date.
Eyeball Gorge, ‘My Bloody Valentine’
This first kill in the 2009 My Bloody Valentine is a nod to the 1981 original where someone loses an eye, too. This kill, however, was done with an added “wink and a laugh.”
Chef Gets the Chop, ‘Intruder’
The clip, unfortunately, doesn’t include the wonderful lead-up to the kill that makes it all the more funny thanks to some clever editing choices, but it at least shows those headphones trying to slide off the side of our poor cook’s face. Watch at the 0:39 mark:
Beer Can, ‘Blood Rage’
Blood Rage clearly had a thing for human body parts getting detached but still going. Watch at the 5:38 mark:
Teacher, ‘Child’s Play 2’
It’s the combination of that air pump, the giant ruler and getting beaten to death by a puppet that unlocks the laughs when watching this scene. Beth Grant is such a great sport.
Bella Thorne’s Death Scene, ‘The Babysitter: Killer Queen’
Look, if you’re going to try and kill an undead demon cultist (Bella Thorne over here), then this is as valiant an attempt as any, I suppose.
Jack Black, ‘I Still Know What You Did Last Summer’
This scene in the sequel of I Know What You Did Last Summer proves that it’s impossible not to laugh at Jack Black and/or white people trying to pull off dreadlocks.
Chucky Explodes, ‘Child’s Play 2’
This installment might have the funniest death scenes in the series, including the psycho-killer doll’s own melting demise at the end.
‘Some Final Destination Shit,’ ‘Tragedy Girls’
The diabolical sequence does indeed seem like something from a Final Destination movie, proving that we’ll always find these exaggerated accidental death scenarios pretty damn funny.
Smell the Gas, ‘Scream 3’
A full-on comedic sequence ends with a bang in a truly funny and underrated Scream movie.
‘Garbage Day!,’ ‘Silent Night, Deadly Night Part 2’
You don’t even need to watch the clip; you already have the line delivery playing in your head.
‘This Sucks on So Many Levels,’ ‘Jason X’
Watch the “Death by Pun” at the 4:00 mark:
First Sacrifice, ‘The Babysitter’
Much like the bread slicer scene in the first Fear Street and Dave Grohl decapitating his best buddy in Studio 666, this scene falls hard into comedy because, well, you just don’t expect to see an innocent game of Spin the Bottle turn into a satanic sacrifice with a dude getting knifed in the head. Extra points for the “porpoise” joke, naturally.
Beer Can Hammock, ‘The Conference’
Netflix
This Netflix movie just dropped, so I’m not going to spoil anything here, but watch it to experience the funniest beer can death scene in slasher cinema to date.
Jennifer Always Wanted to Be on TV, ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors’
It’s one of Freddy’s most iconic quotes from the entire franchise, and it’s devilishly funny.
Opening Kill Scene, ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2’
Following the macabre and absurd first entry in Tobe Hooper’s iconic franchise, the immediate sequel made no secret that it would be ramping up the fun with its opening scene that sees Leatherface living his best life torturing what seems to be the slowest-driving car in the history of car chases while wearing another man’s face.
Virtual Camp Kill, ‘Jason X’
Say what you will about Jason X (the tenth Friday the 13th film, and the one that went full sci-fi for some joyously inexplicable reason), but it has some of Jason’s most entertaining action and kill sequences. The film also doesn’t take itself seriously (something that works well in this franchise), brilliantly peaking with a shout-out to Friday the 13th Part VII: The New Blood’s sleeping bag death via this marvelously meta virtual simulation scene.
KO, ‘Jason Takes Manhattan’
The only reason our favorite Friday the 13th boxer’s funny death doesn’t make the Top 10 is because, well, it’s also kind of sad. He punched too close to the sun.
Die, Cheerleader, Die, ‘Scary Movie’
Elizabeth Shannon was the go-to It Girl of R-rated comedies in the late ’90s and early aughts, and this scene in Scary Movie might be one of her best of that era as she clearly understood the assignment.
Tina’s Dance of Death, ‘The Final Girls’
A shout-out to a most excellent song choice here as Tina, our busty camp girl, needs to take one for the team and pull out her seductive moves to lure Camp Bloodbath’s slasher into the group’s trap. Of course, Tina doesn’t make it in the end, but not in the way anyone would expect.
Slay, Girl, ‘The Blackening’
Lionsgate Films
It’s a shame that this marvelous kill at the hands of a Final Girl has not been uploaded on YouTube or shared at least a million times on TikTok yet. For shame, internet, because Allison (played by the wonderful Grace Byers) is a kickass delight as she goes full Wolverine while on Adderall and somehow manages to bring down the masked killer all by herself. You have to watch the movie to fully appreciate it.
Surfboard Decapitation, ‘The Babysitter: Killer Queen’
Surf’s up, cult demon.
At Last, He Gets to See the Merman, ‘The Cabin in the Woods’
While The Cabin in the Woods is most certainly a genre-bender, it also sits firmly amongst its fellow slashers. Perfect for us because this glorious death is also a classic example of how to do a long payoff joke right.
Death by Tennis Racket, ‘Freaky’
Arguably one of the best comedy horror openings of the 21st century, Freaky not only gave us some wholly original slasher kills — that wine bottle death was gnarly — but genuinely funny ones, too, with the tennis racket gag topping them all. Watch at the 1:20 mark:
Woodchipper, ‘Tucker and Dale vs. Evil’
There aren’t a lot of self-deaths in straight horror movies but there are quite a few in comedy horrors. The ones on this list most certainly fall under the “Memorable” category, for none who have seen it will ever forget Alan Tudyk, covered in the blood of an idiot kid, asking said kid’s splattered guts: “You okay?”
Blender Scene, ‘You’re Next’
The sheer ingenuity of taking a kitchen fight to the next level by way of blender action is what makes this death one of the funniest in comedy horror. Who cares that the blender in this movie doesn’t seem to have any safety locks built in? We’re rolling with it, just like that guy’s brains.
Stu, ‘Scream’
His entire death was a hoot, from his little chat with Sidney (“My mom and dad are gonna be so mad at me”), to the drool dripping from his chin to, of course, his climactic end when Sidney, appropriately, drops a television onto his head. A goofy end to a goofball killer.
‘Ophelia, Call the Police,’ ‘Us’
In which the entire (and horrible) Tyler family gets slaughtered by their tethered selves, and Elisabeth Moss gets to participate in the movie’s funniest joke. There’s just nothing like a great needle drop to land a punchline.
