10 Horror Heroes Worse Than The Villain
Who needs horror villains when the "good guys" are this bad?
While watching a horror movie, it should be pretty obvious who to root for. When a maniacal demon or masked lunatic is chasing someone, it's clear who's the victim and who's the bad guy. Sure, the hero may have some flaws, but it should be established early on that we're supposed to be on their side.
But things aren't always that simple.
If the main character is idiotic, whiny, or unlikeable, nobody is going to care whether or not they make it out alive. At times, our protagonists may come across as irredeemable, to the point where they're responsible for most of the problems in the story.
These characters might not have a bad bone in their body, but their incompetence or lack of foresight may lead to incalculable destruction. Even if the noble do-gooder defeats a nasty monster or ancient spirit, it's not something to be proud of if they're the person who awakened it in the first place. Other times, a last-minute switcheroo will reveal that the "hero" was evil all along and that the antagonist was 100% justified in their actions.
The following figures may be labelled as champions, messiahs, and final girls, but there's no doubt they caused more trouble than the villains they went up against.
10. Shawn - Deadstream
Shudder original Deadstream centres around Shawn, a disgraced internet personality who decides to livestream himself inside a haunted house, hoping to win back sponsors and subscribers. After being attacked by a sinister spirit called Mildred, Shawn realises he's no longer fighting for his reputation but for his soul.
Shawn may have screwed up in the past but he's surprisingly likeable, coming across as a bumbling fool rather than a heartless jackass. And when compared to Mildred, Shawn comes across as a saint. However, Shawn has done things that are borderline unforgivable. Near the climax, the air-headed streamer explains how his reputation was tarnished because he made a video of himself fighting a sick homeless man.
Rather than making amends with the man he hospitalised and nearly beat to death, Shawn was more concerned with being famous again. Mildred may be malevolent, but she was only unleashed upon the world because Shawn summoned her in a feeble attempt to reclaim his popularity.
As a result, everything that happens to Shawn in the haunted house is his own fault, since he entered it of his own volition for selfish reasons.