10 Best ‘Dead And I Know It’ Moments In Recent Horror Movies

Those moments where recent horror characters realised they're goose is cooked.

by Andrew Pollard
Sissy Alex Kutis
Shudder

There have been some immense, iconic kills over the decades when it comes to the horror genre, and one particular sort of kill many a horror hound has a soft spot for is a demise that a victim sees coming.

Whether it's hulking serial killers, supernatural entities, monstrous creatures, or some other terrifying threat of the day, there's something special about that moment when a character realises their goose is cooked. Some of these characters may absolutely deserve what's coming to them, while others may not, but either way, there's that great split-second where somebody knows they're not long for this world.

While this topic has been covered in previous articles, things are a little different this time out. By that, the spotlight is being shone specifically on more recent horror releases. In that regard, all of the films featured here were put out to the masses at some point within just the past two years.

So with all of that in mind, then, the following ten characters have some of the greatest 'I'm dead and I know it' moments in recent horror history.

10. Brandon - M3GAN

Sissy Alex Kutis
Universal

Despite only being a child, Brandon is the sort of obnoxious character you really, really hope something bad happens to. And when he bullies Cady and then starts to slap around the dormant M3GAN, that something bad comes in the shape of the titular robotic doll.

This all takes place out in the woods, where Brandon - who's already been shown to be a rude little sh*t - continues to pick on poor Cady, before then turning his attention to the M3GAN doll. Having had enough of this young prick, M3GAN winds up grabbing him by the ear, throws out a one-liner, and tears the lobe right off Brandon's head.

It's here that Brandon knows he's done messed up, with M3GAN getting on all fours and chasing after the kiddo in an animalistic fashion. Brandon realises he's now in a fight for his very life, which causes him to trip over a tree branch and tumble into a nearby road, just as a car comes speeding through and fatally hits this bully.

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Senior Writer
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Once described as the Swiss Army Knife of WhatCulture, Andrew can usually be found writing, editing, or presenting on a wide range of topics. As a lifelong wrestling fan, horror obsessive, and comic book nerd, he's been covering those topics professionally as far back as 2010. In addition to his current WhatCulture role of Senior Content Producer, Andrew previously spent nearly a decade as Online Editor and Lead Writer for the world's longest-running genre publication, Starburst Magazine, and his work has also been featured on BBC, TechRadar, Tom's Guide, WhatToWatch, Sportkskeeda, and various other outlets, in addition to being a Rotten Tomatoes-approved film critic. Between his main dayjob, his role as the lead panel host of Wales Comic Con, and his gig as a pre-match host for Wrexham AFC games, Andrew has also carried out a hugely varied amount of interviews, from the likes of Robert Englund, Kane Hodder, Adrienne Barbeau, Rob Zombie, Katharine Isabelle, Leigh Whannell, Bruce Campbell, and Tony Todd, to Kevin Smith, Ron Perlman, Elijah Wood, Giancarlo Esposito, Simon Pegg, Charlie Cox, the Russo Brothers, and Brian Blessed, to Kevin Conroy, Paul Dini, Tara Strong, Will Friedle, Burt Ward, Andrea Romano, Frank Miller, and Rob Liefeld, to Bret Hart, Sting, Mick Foley, Ricky Starks, Jamie Hayer, Britt Baker, Eric Bischoff, and William Regal, to Mickey Thomas, Joey Jones, Phil Parkinson, Brian Flynn, Denis Smith, Gary Bennett, Karl Connolly, and Bryan Robson - and that's just the tip of an ever-expanding iceberg.