20 Things You Didn't Know About Your Favourite Horror Movies

There are a few reasons for the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre’s groundbreaking success. Certainly, the iconic figure of Leatherface, the masked madman swinging an enormous saw, was hugely important. Tobe Hooper's gritty direction also played a role, as did the film’s marketing campaign, which hyped its loose relation to a real-life murder case.

But perhaps the single most important element was Marilyn Burns, the film’s “final girl,” who endures unspeakable horror but manages to survive. No one who has seen The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has ever forgotten its ending, where Burns, drenched in blood and screaming for her life, runs from Leatherface’s home out to the highway, where she flags down a passing truck and narrowly escapes a violent death.

What many people don't know is that Marilyn wasn't merely acting, she was really being put through hell. For instance, during the infamous dinner scene Leatherface actually cuts her finger because they couldn’t get the fake blood to work properly. She experienced many real injuries during filming and the final scene where she is hysterical seemed so authentic partly because of everything she had been though. Quite the trooper she was.