20 Recent Horror Movies That Made ONE Big Mistake
9. Pete Davidson's Casting - The Home
The Purge creator James DeMonaco's new film The Home was admittedly a thunderous letdown any way you slice it, but even accepting its lackluster script and pedestrian direction, it was well and truly sunk by the decision to cast Pete Davidson in the lead role.
On paper Davidson might not seem terribly out of place as troubled graffiti artist Max, but considering that The Home is a psychological horror film that takes itself somewhat seriously, Davidson can't rely on his comedic chops as he did in, say, Bodies Bodies Bodies.
It's not unfair to say that Davidson has sure limitations as a dramatic performer, demonstrated here by a pancake-flat performance which fails to adequately sell Max's trauma to the audience.
This admittedly wouldn't have been a particularly good movie with a far stronger lead actor either, but at least it would've been easier to buy into the emotional throughline it was shooting for. Instead, it's a big ol' nothingburger.