10 More Horror Movie Performances That Proved EVERYONE Wrong
Nobody was expecting these actors to be this good as horror stars.
In the eyes of many, horror is a genre that sits a rung below everything else on the great ladder of cinema. It has a reputation of being cheap, un-artistic, and generally just lesser-than, despite the fact that it takes a lot of skill to convincingly perform in a horror picture. It doesn't help that so-called "big names" don't often get stuck into horror, but when they do, they do so in the most surprising of ways.
Some of the shiniest names in acting have tried their hand at scaring people, so much so that there's already a full list of them on this very website. As it turns out, there's enough material for an entirely separate countdown of actors who surprised everyone with these darker roles.
Most of these performers were in serious danger of being typecast before these movies came along and changed everyone's perception of them, getting to display a breadth of abilities that wasn't normally afforded to them. These performances may not have led to any great changes in their careers, but at least these famous faces will always have their horror field trip to look back on with fondness.
10. David Tennant - Fright Night
In 2011, David Tennant had just wrapped up his first stint as the Tenth Doctor on classic sci-fi monolith Doctor Who. Viewers had gotten very used to seeing him as an affable hero overflowing with bumbling British charm, but that all changed when he appeared in the remake of the classic vampire movie, Fright Night.
In the film - which also starred Anthon Yelchin, Colin Farrell, and Toni Collette - Tennant plays Peter Vincent, who Roddy McDowell originally portrayed. Vincent is an actor who found fame as a fictional vampire hunter but has his world turned upside down when a fan, Charley Brewster, turns up at his door and demands help in fighting the real thing.
The character of Peter Vincent is wonderfully snivelling. He’s a complete washout, a shell of the dashing hero he plays on TV, and Tennant handles this grovelling cowardice with ease.
This was the first real hint that the former Time Lord could handle a role that wasn’t so squeaky clean, and this role helped pave the way for his performances in Jessica Jones and Good Omens - there’s more than a little bit of Vincent in Crowley.