Every so often, audiences spot acomedianin a horror movie and comment on how strange it is to see them in such a different genre. However, comedians acting inhorrormovies are more common than viewers might think. Horror and comedy are, in some ways, two sides of the same coin. Both involve absurdity, intense emotion, and surprises at every turn. Look at Jordan Peele, for instance, who went from creating and starring inKey & Peeleon Comedy Central alongside Keegan-Michael Key to becoming one of the most celebrated horror directors of the century with hits likeGet Out,Us, andNope.
A few comedians have made a big splash starring in popular horror films, too. Think Courteney Cox in theScreamfranchise or Bill Hader inIt: Chapter Two. Others have been a little more low-key in their horror pursuits, taking under-the-radar bit parts in horror movies or starring in projects that were ultimately outshined by comedies they were in around the same time. Regardless of why these roles have flown under the radar, it’s time to refresh our collective memories.
Here are 10 underrated horror movies you probably forgot starred comedic actors.
10Danny McBride in ‘Alien: Covenant’ (2017)
Alien: Covenant
Danny McBrideis a comedian and screenwriter known for creating and starring in shows likeEastbound & Down,Vice Principals,andThe Righteous Gemstones. He’s also dabbled in horror. In fact, McBride is a credited screenwriter and producer for all three of the recentHalloweenfilms directed by David Gordon Green (Pineapple Express). McBride doesn’t act in any of these movies, but he does appear in a different long-standing horror franchise.
The 2017 sci-fi horror movieAlien: Covenantis the sixth installment in theAlienfranchise, helmed by director Ridley Scott (who also directed the originalAlienin 1979).Covenantserves as a direct sequel toPrometheus. It stars Katherine Waterston (Perry Mason) and Michael Fassbender (Black Bag) as part of the crew on the spaceship Covenant. McBride plays Tennessee “Tee” Faris, chief pilot on the ship. He wears a cowboy hat and, in true McBride fashion, has a big personality.
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9Kristen Wiig in ‘Mother!’ (2017)
Written and directed by Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan),Mother!is a surreal horror thriller in which a woman and her husband start receiving unexpected visitors. Jennifer Lawrence (The Hunger Games) and Javier Bardem (No Country for Old Men) star as the couple, known as “Him” and “Mother” in the film. With so many visitors and big supporting stars like Ed Harris (Westworld) and Michelle Pfeiffer (The First Lady), it’s easy to forget thatSNLalumKristen Wiigalso has a small role in the movie.
While Wiig has appeared in a few dramas, she’s best known for comedies likeBridesmaidsandAnchorman 2, as well as animated films such asHow to Train Your DragonandDespicable Me. Her character inMother!is billed as The Herald, a dark figure who brings violence to the house. While Mother! is Wiig’s first horror role, it’s not her first time playing a serious antagonist. In 2020, she starred as Barbara Ann Minerva (aka Cheetah) inWonder Woman 1984.
8Joel McHale in ‘Deliver Us from Evil’ (2014)
Deliver Us from Evil
Joel McHalerecently had a brief guest appearance in the third season ofYellowjacketson Showtime, but he is best known for hostingThe Soupon E! and starring in the NBC sitcomCommunityas narcissistic community college student Jeff Winger. He’s worked on comedy, drama, and action projects over the years and has a prolific television career.
In 2014, McHale played an experienced but self-centered cop named Butler inDeliver Us from Evil, a supernatural horror movie directed by Scott Derrickson (The Exorcism of Emily Rose). Butler works with Ralph Sarchie (Eric Bana), a street cop who teams up with a Spanish priest named Mendoza (Édgar Ramírez) in a fight against demonic forces. This isn’t McHale’s only horror project, either. He’s scheduled to be inScream 7as Mark Evans, Sidney Prescott’s (Neve Campbell) husband.
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7Julian Barratt in ‘A Field in England’ (2013)
A Field in England
Julian Barratis an English comedian and actor who made a name for himself as a member of The Mighty Boosh comedy troupe. He’s done standup and appeared in a number of television shows along with films such asThe Electrical Life of Louis WainandRogue Agent. Like others on this list, he’s done a few horror comedies, but his first serious horror project wasA Field in England, a psychological horror film set during the mid-17th-century English Civil War.
Ben Wheatley (Rebecca)shot the film in black and whitewith a script by Amy Jump (Free Fire) and a cast that includes Barratt, Peter Ferdinando (Vita and Virginia), Ryan Pope (Andor), Reece Shearsmith (The World’s End), and Michael Smiley (The Silent Twins). The film focuses on a group of deserters and Barratt plays their severe superior, Commander Trower.
6Jim Carrey in ‘The Number 23’ (2007)
The Number 23
Jim Carreybuilt his careeron slapstick comedies in the 1990s likeAce Ventura: Pet DetectiveandDumb and Dumberbefore shifting into celebrated dramatic works includingThe Truman ShowandEternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. Right after makingFun with Dick and Janeand before voicing the title character inHorton Hears a Who!, Carrey starred inThe Number 23directed by Joel Schumacher (Phone Booth).
Carrey plays Walter Sparrow, a man who begins to notice strange similarities between his life and that of a character in a book his wife has gifted him calledThe Number 23by Topsy Kretts. Walter becomes obsessed with the novel and his life unravels as his fixation on the number 23 intensifies. The cast includes Virginia Madsen (Candyman), Logan Lerman (Hunters), and Danny Huston (Yellowstone).
5Aubrey Plaza in ‘Child’s Play’ (2019)
Child’s Play
Before the Syfy television seriesChucky, there was aChild’s Playremake in 2019, and it starred none other thanprofessional oddball Aubrey Plaza. After rising to fame playing April Ludgate on the sitcomParks and Recreation,Plaza has had a pretty varied career. She’s done comedy, drama, and even the horror-comedyLife After Beth, butChild’s Playwas her first foray into full-fledged horror.
Child’s Playis a remake of the 1988 horror classic of the same name, where the spirit of serial killer Charles Lee Ray (Brad Dourif) inhabits a talking doll that Karen Barclay (Catherine Hicks) gets for her son, six-year-old Andy (Alex Vincent). In the 2019 film, Plaza plays Karen opposite Gabriel Bateman (Lights Out) as Andy, with Mark Hamill (Star Wars) voicing the possessed doll, Chucky.
4Ryan Reynolds in ‘The Amityville Horror’ (2005)
The Amityville Horror
From romantic comedies likeThe Proposalto dramas likeWoman in Goldand action movies such asSafe House, Ryan Reynolds has done a lot. Most recently, he played the title role in the popularDeadpoolcomic book movies. Reynolds has done a fair share of genre-bending in his career, dipping his toe into horror comedies and thrillers, but in 2005 he went all out starring in a full-fledged horror project.
The Amityville Horroris a remake of the 1979 film by the same name. Reynolds stars as George Lutz, a role played by James Brolin (Life in Pieces) in the original film. When George and his family move into a Long Island home with a dark history, unsettling things begin to happen around the family — and to George himself. It’s one of the most serious performances of Reynold’s career and certainly the most chilling. Directed by Andrew Douglas (Mindhunter),The Amityville Horroralso stars Melissa George (The Mosquito Coast), Jesse James (Dead Souls), Jimmy Bennett (No Ordinary Family), and Chloë Grace Moretz (Greta).
Dawn of the Dead
Ty Burrell is best known for playing family man Phil Dunphy on the hit ABCsitcomModern Family, a role for which he won two Primetime Emmy Awards. He’s appeared in all kinds of genres with films likeThe Incredible Hulk,Black Hawk Down, andFinding Dory. He even got his start performing Shakespeare on Broadway.
After Broadway but before he became a household name, Burrell appeared as snarky businessman Steve Markus inDawn of the Dead. Written by James Gunn (Guardians of the Galaxy) and directed by Zack Snyder (Rebel Moon),Dawn of the Deadis a remake of the classic 1978 film of the same name fromNight of the Living Deaddirector George A. Romero. The cast includes Sarah Polley (Splice), Ving Rhames (Mission: Impossible), Jake Weber (Homeland), and Mekhi Phifer (ER).
2Chris Kattan in ‘House on Haunted Hill’ (1999)
House on Haunted Hill
It’s impressive how manySNLcast members go on to make horror movies. Chris Kattan was onSNLfrom 1996 to 2003 and starred in the filmA Night at the Roxbury, based on anSNLsketch, alongside Will Ferrell (Anchorman) in 1998. The following year, Kattan was cast in the William Malone (FeardotCom) remake ofHouse on Haunted Hill.
Based on the 1959 filmstarring Vincent Price(House of Wax),House on Haunted Hillfollows a group of strangers who agree to stay in a haunted house overnight for a cash prize. Kattan plays Watson Pritchett, the reluctant and cynical owner of the house. He stars alongside Geoffrey Rush (Pirates of the Caribbean), Famke Janssen (How to Get Away with Murder), Taye Diggs (All American), and Ali Larter (Final Destination).
1Paul Rudd in ‘Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers’ (1995)
Halloween: The Curse of Michael Myers
Before he was a comedy darling andAnt-Manin the Marvel Cinematic Universe,Paul Rudd got his startinHalloween: The Curse of Michael Myers. This was only Rudd’s second film credit after charming audiences as Cher Horowitz’s (Alicia Silverstone) former step-brother, Josh, inClueless.The Curse of Michael Myersis the sixth movie in theHalloweenfranchise started by John Carpenter (The Thing) and Debra Hill (The Fog) in 1978. Written by Daniel Farrands (Havenhurst) and directed by Joe Chappelle (Fringe),The Curse of Michael Myerspicks up with a Druid-like cult that sends Michael Myers (George P. Wilbur) searching for his niece’s newborn baby.
Donald Pleasence returns (You Only Live Twice) as Dr. Samuel Loomis and Rudd steps into the role of Tommy Doyle, the little boy Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) babysat in the original film (where the character was played by Brian Andrews). Tommy now lives as a recluse in a boardinghouse across the street from Laurie Strode’s old house and is obsessed with Michael Myers. After rescuing the baby, Tommy reveals to the current residents of the Strode house what he’s learned about the cult. Rudd is pretty baby-faced in the film, but he’s far from the first movie star to get his start in a horror movie. After all, it worked for Kevin Bacon (Footloose) inFriday the 13thand Johnny Depp (Pirates of the Caribbean) inA Nightmare on Elm Street.
