10 Horror Heroes Worse Than The Villain

In Zach Cregger's horror thriller Barbarian, actor AJ is fired from his TV series after a co-star brings some extremely serious accusations against him. With no money coming in, AJ is pressurised to sell his assets, including the home he rents out through Airbnb.

While inspecting the house, AJ discovers an elaborate tunnel system where he finds the previous tenant, Tess, being cared for against her will by an inbred savage called the Mother. Even though AJ seems like a scumbag, there's a sliver of decency inside him. For example, when he discovers another man in the tunnels, he tries to rescue him... before discovering he's the one who created the Mother. And when Tess is injured, AJ drags her to safety and back to the surface.

Though AJ looks like he's being set up for a redemption arc, that goes out the window when he hurls Tess off a water tower, hoping the Mother will leap off to rescue her. What makes AJ's actions more deplorable is the fact Tess bent over backward to save him, returning to the Airbnb herself when the authorities refused to help.

The Mother may look like a monster, but she's not evil since she acts out of instinct rather than malice. Yes, she's a killer, but that's only to protect Tess, who she perceives as her child. AJ, on the other hand, is a predator who will sacrifice anyone in a heartbeat to save himself.