Editorials
Hot For Monsters: Horror’s Most Crush-Worthy Beasts [1989 Week]
Presented by Lisa Frankenstein, 1989 Week is dialing the clock back to the crossroads year for the genre with a full week of features that dig six feet under into the year. Today, Jenn Adams tears a page from the new horror comedy and thirsts on threats similar to Lisa’s Creature.
Everybody loves a bad boy. There’s something appealing about a guy who disregards the rules and dreamy delinquents have been known to make even wholesome girls grow weak in the knees. Sometimes it’s the air of danger that heightens the appeal, allowing us to look past the most monstrous physiques.
The new horror comedy Lisa Frankenstein delivers a swoon worthy monster with Cole Sprouse’s Creature, a resurrected corpse who’s spent the last two centuries buried in the local Bachelor’s Cemetery. His tears may smell, and his body may be rotting, but the hunky fiend has an attractive glimmer in his sensitive eyes.
And just like Lisa (Kathryn Newton), we can’t resist this piano-playing killer and would gladly overlook a few graveyard worms for the privilege of putting him back together. He’s not the only one, though: Horror has a long history of crush-worthy monsters, horrific hunks, and beautiful beasts. Needless to say, we went beyond ’89 for this one.
Edward – Edward Scissorhands
Every little girl dreams of a handsome prince from a magical castle who will sweep her off to a winter wonderland. For horror lovers this fantasy tends to skew a little darker. Tim Burton brings this gothic vision to life with Edward Scissorhands, a suburban fairy tale starring a strangely handsome monster. When Avon saleswoman Peg (Dianne Wiest) finds a pale young man with wiry hair and scissors for hands, she brings him back to her pastel home where he falls in love with her beautiful daughter Kim (Winona Ryder).
Though initially caught off guard, Kim eventually warms to this compassionate outcast who wants nothing more than the love of a family. And Kim is not alone. Johnny Depp won over the world with his dreamy portrayal of this sensitive loner. Even better, the film led to Gen Z power couple Depp and Ryder, two of the world’s most attractive actors on the verge of super stardom. Dating Edward might lead to a few cuts now and then, but any man who can style your hair, trim your hedges, and create a fantasy snowscape has got to be worth at least a second date.
R – Warm Bodies
Zombies aren’t exactly known for being hunky – unless we’re talking about the hunks of human flesh that fall off their decomposing bones. But Jonathan Levine’s horror rom-com Warm Bodies gives us a delightfully dreamy zombie named R (Nicholas Hoult) who spends his days roaming the airport and absorbing human memories from the brains of his victims. After killing and eating a survivor of the zombie apocalypse, R develops feelings for his girlfriend Julie (Teresa Palmer). He saves her from a roaming horde of zombies and helps her return to her militarized enclave. As the two grow closer, R finds himself slowly returning to his human form. Could love be the cure for the zombie apocalypse? When the undead crush is played by future heartthrob Nicholas Hoult, that just may be the case.
Pinhead – Hellraiser
Clive Barker’s 1987 film is not only one of the most decadent and thematically rich horror films of all time, it gave rise to one of the genre’s most unique villains. This dark tale of forbidden love may center a toxic romance between Frank (Sean Chapman) and Julia (Clare Higgins), but there’s no doubt that the film’s iconic star is an entity known as Lead Cenobite or Pinhead (Doug Bradley).
Originally named the Hell Priest, this angel to some, demon to others leads a group of interdimensional beings who can be summoned by solving an intricate puzzle box. Once called, the Cenobites will drag the puzzle’s owner to another world where they will explore the outer limits of pleasure and pain. Inspired by 80s BDSM culture, Pinhead wears black leather robes sewn into his skin with intricate straps, and metal fastenings. His pale head is pierced with rows of nails that only add to the creature’s devilish allure.
With an austere voice and ominous warnings, there’s something deliciously seductive about this powerful monster who emerges from a forbidden lair to tempt us with the promise of excruciating pleasure.
Scott Howard – Teen Wolf
High school can be a tricky time for the lovelorn. Hormones are raging, peers and cruel, and it’s difficult to find acceptance in the complicated social hierarchy. And that’s if you’re NOT turning into a werewolf. Unfortunately 17-year-old loser Scott Howard (Michael J. Fox) has been noticing some bodily changes that go a bit beyond the regular realm of teenage angst. His hearing is ultra-sensitive, his nails have grown incredibly sharp, and long hair has begun to sprout all over his body.
It seems Scott has inherited the werewolf’s curse: a generational anomaly that doesn’t make him hunger for human flesh but does include superhuman abilities. Scott is terrified that his classmates will discover his secret, but a public transformation sparks Wolf Fever throughout his small town. Suddenly popular, Scott leads his basketball team to victory, wins a role in the school play, and lands a date with the most popular girl in school. But this sudden reversal of fortune leads to the age-old question: Will they accept Scott for himself or do they only have eyes for the Wolf? Played by the charming Michael J. Fox, this dreamy werewolf is one we’d want around even when the moon isn’t full.
Billy Hutcherson – Hocus Pocus
What girl doesn’t love the strong, silent type? There’s nothing more intriguing than a mysterious stranger who stands in the shadows not uttering a word. Unfortunately the reanimated corpse of Billy Butcherson (Doug Jones) has a troubling reason for his silent demeanor. Winifred Sanderson (Bette Midler), oldest of a trio of legendary witches, sewed his lips together in a fit of rage after discovering his love for her sister Sarah (Sarah Jessica Parker). Adding insult to injury, she brings him back to life only to retrieve a powerful book from a group of mischievous kids. But just when it seems the Sanderson Sisters may achieve eternal life, Billy reverses course and unleashes his pent-up rage against the sinister witch.
Though initially a villain, this tall and lanky zombie becomes a protector at the very moment Dani (Thora Birch) and her brother Max (Omri Katz) need him the most. Even decapitation is not enough to keep him from fulfilling his life and afterlife-long mission to defeat Winnefred Sanderson. Designed to be a punk rock version of Ichabod Crane, this cute corpse with his tousled hair, expressive eyes, and well-defined cheekbones goes from pursuer to savior in the blink of an eye. It’s no wonder millennials have grown up smitten with the silent but swoon worthy colonial monster.
Hellboy – Hellboy
Is there anything more attractive than a red hot demon with a heart of gold? Hellboy, aka Anung Un Rama, is a demon/human hybrid summoned from hell as a baby by the Third Reich. Raised as a normal child, he now works as an investigator for the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (B.P.R.D.) But aside from his snarky sense of humor, Hellboy is anything but normal. With blazing red skin, he is a muscle-bound brute with a devilish tail and massive horns protruding from his broad forehead. He may file these unusual appendages down to look like oversized goggles, but fully grown out these demonic antlers only add to his roguish charm.
Hellboy is usually spotted wearing a long trench coat, further amplifying his devil-may-care allure. He may be hot, but what truly sets this handsome monster apart is his genuine desire to save the world. Whether you’re lusting after Ron Perlman, David Harbour, or perhaps the original comic book images, rest assured this is a crush so powerful that it might just bring about the apocalypse.
Pennywise – It and It Chapter Two
Most children of the ’80s grew up afraid of clowns after watching Tim Curry’s iconic performance in the miniseries adaptation of Stephen King’s It. Ironically, their children might grow up with an attraction to clowns thanks to Bill Skarsgård. His depiction of Pennywise the Dancing Clown in Andy Muschietti’s 2017 film adaptation delivers a new and, yes, enticing stab at the shape-shifting monster.
Gone are the Bozo-esque pom-poms and the curly red wig. Skarsgård’s interpretation of the character takes inspiration from 19th century clowns. With a dirty, white tunic, puffed shoulders, and a ruffled collar, Muscietti’s films deliver a slimmer, and dare we say more attractive shape. Muschietti’s sequel It Chapter Two gives us a glimpse of the handsome Swedish actor out of makeup as well as an illustration of the sinister man roaming the streets of Derry sans costume. Whether in or out of his terrifying make-up, there’s no doubt this dreamy clown has the power to make us swoon as well as scream.
Lisa Frankenstein is only in theaters this Friday. Get Tickets Now!
Some movies are just so beloved that you can experience them through cultural osmosis without ever sitting down to actually watch them. From loving parodies to meticulous recreations of iconic scenes, memorable filmmaking lives on even after the curtains close on the silver screen. And when it comes to horror, few films can compete with the massive impact that Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining had on popular culture as a whole.
Whether or not you think the flick is a good adaptation of Stephen King’s seminal novel, 1980’s The Shining slowly but surely grew into one of the most influential genre movies ever made, inspiring everything from surprisingly heartfelt sequels to classic episodes of The Simpsons. However, not all The Shining references are created equal, and today I’d like to shine a light on six unexpected homages to Kubrick’s iconic film.
In this list, we’ll be focusing on references and Easter eggs that either came out of the blue or came from creators that you wouldn’t expect to be fans of this classic ghost story. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own favorite references to the Torrance family and the Overlook Hotel if you think we missed a particularly memorable one.
With that out of the way, onto the list!
5. A Nightmare on FaceTime – South Park (2012)
Regardless of the brand’s iffy reputation among former employees, the death of Blockbuster Video was a serious blow to fans of physical media. Of course, some folks were more affected by this than others, and South Park’s Randy Marsh definitely took things a little too far in the twelfth episode of the show’s sixteenth season.
Titled A Nightmare on FaceTime, the main plot of this 2012 story is a surprisingly faithful recreation of The Shining where Randy purchases an empty Blockbuster store and begins to go mad once he realizes that his investment may not have been a very good idea due to the rise of streaming and the now-defunct RedBox storefronts.
4. The Overlook Hotel Level – Ready Player One (2018)
I was never really a fan of Ernest Cline’s Ready Player One, so I viewed Stephen Spielberg’s divisive adaptation of the novel as an improvement over the source material despite having its own narrative issues. In fact, I actually prefer how Spielberg changed the story by removing several references to his own work and replacing a lengthy Blade Runner detour with an over-the-top homage to The Shining.
A CGI-heavy recreation of the film’s most iconic moments that feels like a big-budget ghost train ride set within the Overlook Hotel, this intense sequence is more of a recreation of the freaky aesthetics of The Shining rather than its mind-bending narrative. However, it’s still fun to see Spielberg make a heartfelt tribute to a filmmaker that was once his close personal friend.
3. IKEA Singapore Halloween Ad (2014)
It makes sense that commercials don’t typically borrow from the horror genre, as it might be a bad idea to scare away potential customers, but some references are just too much fun to pass up.
That’s probably why the publicists behind this Ikea ad from Singapore were allowed to turn their commercial into a genuinely unsettling recreation of Danny’s tricycle scene from The Shining. After all, nobody cares if your store is haunted so long as it offers late-night shopping hours and a large selection of merchandise that you can become lost in forever and ever…
2. The End of ‘Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality’ – Community (2014)
Community is no stranger to recreating iconic movie moments within the show, and the series had previously tackled horror tropes in episodes like the fan-favorite Epidemiology. However, the most laugh-out-loud moment on this particular list comes from a brief gag towards the end of the season five episode ‘Bondage and Beta Male Sexuality’.
The majority of this episode has nothing to do with scary movies, but there’s a brief subplot involving supporting character Chang and a possible encounter with ghosts that leads him to question his own existence. This subplot culminates in the episode’s hilarious ending where the camera zooms in on a black-and-white photograph of Chang in period clothing at some kind of celebration, just like Jack Nicholson at the end of The Shining.
However, the picture’s subtitle eventually reveals that it’s merely a conveniently placed keepsake from the ‘Old Timey Photo Club’.
1. The Overlook Hedge Maze Sequence – Zootopia 2 (2025)
Disney movies are pretty far removed from both the gruesome horror of Stephen King and the heady filmmaking of Stanley Kubrick, so I don’t think anyone was expecting the climax of last year’s Zootopia sequel to take place in an animated version of the snowy hedge maze from The Shining.
In this unexpectedly intense sequence, friend-turned-villain Pawbert Lynxley (an unhinged lynx cat played by Andy Samberg) chases our protagonists through a creepy labyrinth in a loving recreation of Jack Nicholson’s icy demise outside the Overlook Hotel. The actual ending here might be a little more child-friendly than what’s being referenced, but it’s amazing that the filmmakers were able to push the horror elements as far as they did – especially since the scene doesn’t really have anything to do with the rest of the movie.
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