9 Horror Movie References You Never Noticed In Anime

3. JoJo's Bizarre Adventure

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One of the most important things to know about JoJo's Bizarre Adventure is that the characters have spiritual vessels that they can summon to fight for them – known as 'Stands'.

The other important thing to know is that the creator, Araki Hirohiko, is really into movies from the West, so the series is full of Hollywood references. Not as many as there are musical references, like one of the characters being named Robert E. O. Speedwagon and the Zepelli family name, coming from Led Zeppelin.

A blatant reference to horror movies is when one character, Polnareff, is turned into a child and hides from an axe-wielding villain. The latter breaks down the door with his axe and leans his head in in a clear reference to the Stanley Kubrick version of Stephen King's The Shining.

Other more oblique references are in some characters' Stands: Devo uses a Chucky doll and Mannish Boy's Stand can attack people in their dreams, a la Freddy Krueger.

Contributor
Contributor

Author of Escort (Eternal Press, 2015), co-founder of Nic3Ntertainment, and developer behind The Sickle Upon Sekigahara (2020). Currently freelancing as a game developer and history consultant. Also tends to travel the eastern U.S. doing courses on History, Writing, and Japanese Poetry. You can find his portfolio at www.richardcshaffer.com.