I Asked ChatGPT To Name High-Profile Actors in 80s and 90s Horror Movies

If you’re part of “film Twitter” (and it’s not a cult, just people who like films who happen to be on Twitter), you’re most likely familiar with an article on W Magazine that’s been making the rounds for all the wrong reasons. Written by W Magazine’s Digital Editor Maxine Wally, the article started off by bashing nearly 3 decades of horror due to the author’s self-confessed lack of knowledge of the genre:

It didn’t take long for horror fans to be (understandably) angry about this, and the conversation escalated to where even prominent horror filmmakers and journalists joined in the conversation:

You know me & I rarely get mad & go on…about things but the article in @wmag by @maxinewally had me seething w/ her hot take about 80’s horror being filled w/ predicable plots, ham fisted dialogue & C list actors. Here Maxine admits she really is NOT well versed. pic.twitter.com/1ZQMa0x2Qw

— Barbara Crampton (@barbaracrampton) March 19, 2023

If you just discovered the horror genre, that’s cool, but please don’t use your platform to hate on a genre you know nothing about. And please don’t insult the Queen of Horror, Barbara Crampton. https://t.co/IHutOptEHG

— Michelle Swope (@RedheadfromMars) March 19, 2023

The list goes on, and the conversation was pretty much the same all around: horror welcomes newcomers, but not at the expense of disrespecting the genre due to wanton ignorance.

And to showcase just how easy it is to disabuse yourself from the rather idiotic notion that horror was “the realm of C-list actors, ham-fisted dialogue, and predictable plots”, as Wally’s article says, I’ve asked ChatGPT to make a (not exhaustive) list of prominent actors who starred in horror films in the 1980s and 1990s.

I did this because I wanted to show Maxine, and others like her, that you’re one AI conversation away from not pissing off thousands of people who enjoy a genre you’re just starting to discover. We live in an age of near-endless access to information. There’s no excuse for anyone, let alone a high-ranking editorial boss at a big publication, to make such uninformed, offensive statements.

Without further ado, ChatGPT, take it away.

A Non-Exhaustive List of Prominent Actors Starring in Horror Movies in the 1980s and 1990s (as listed by ChatGPT)

The 80s and 90s were a heyday for horror movies, and many high profile actors made appearances in the genre during that time. Here are a few notable examples:

1. Jamie Lee Curtis – Curtis, the original scream queen, starred in several iconic horror movies in the 80s and 90s, including “Halloween” (1978), “The Fog” (1980), “Prom Night” (1980), and “Terror Train” (1980).
2. Johnny Depp – Depp got his start in acting in the 80s, and one of his earliest roles was in the classic horror movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984). He played Glen, the boyfriend of the main character, who meets a gruesome end.
3. Kevin Bacon – Bacon appeared in the horror movie “Friday the 13th” (1980), in which he played one of the counselors at Camp Crystal Lake who is dispatched by the film’s killer, Jason Voorhees.
4. Jennifer Aniston – Before she became a household name on “Friends,” Aniston appeared in the horror movie “Leprechaun” (1993), in which she played the lead role of Tory Reding.
5. Brad Pitt – Pitt had a small role in the horror movie “Cutting Class” (1989), in which he played the high school jock who becomes a suspect in a string of murders.
6. Patricia Arquette – Arquette starred in the horror movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors” (1987), in which she played a character who can enter and control dreams.
7. Demi Moore – Moore appeared in the horror movie “Parasite” (1982), in which she played one of a group of scientists who discover a deadly parasite.
8. Tom Hanks – Hanks starred in the horror-comedy “The ‘Burbs” (1989), in which he played a suburbanite who becomes convinced that his neighbors are part of a Satanic cult.
9. Laurence Fishburne – Fishburne had a small role in the horror movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors” (1987), in which he played one of the teenagers who is tormented by Freddy Krueger.
10. Viggo Mortensen – Mortensen appeared in the horror movie “Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III” (1990), in which he played one of the hitchhikers who encounters the notorious cannibalistic family.
11. Nicolas Cage – Cage starred in the horror movie “Vampire’s Kiss” (1988), in which he played a literary agent who becomes convinced that he’s turning into a vampire.
12. Keanu Reeves – Reeves starred in the horror movie “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” (1992), in which he played the young lawyer Jonathan Harker, who becomes embroiled in a battle with the infamous vampire.
13. John Goodman – Goodman appeared in the horror movie “Arachnophobia” (1990), in which he played an exterminator who is called in to deal with a deadly infestation of spiders.
14. Jennifer Connelly – Connelly starred in the horror movie “Phenomena” (1985), in which she played a young girl who possesses the ability to communicate with insects.
15. Gary Oldman – Oldman starred in the horror movie “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” (1992), in which he played the infamous vampire himself, Count Dracula.
16. Charlize Theron – Theron appeared in the horror movie “Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest” (1995), in which she played a young woman who becomes embroiled in a battle with a cult of children who worship a malevolent deity.
17. eff Goldblum – Goldblum starred in the horror movie “The Fly” (1986), in which he played a brilliant scientist who accidentally transforms himself into a monstrous insect.
18. Arnold Schwarzenegger – Schwarzenegger appeared in the horror movie “Predator” (1987), in which he played a tough-as-nails special forces soldier who battles an extraterrestrial predator in the jungle.
19. Bruce Willis – Willis starred in the horror movie “The Sixth Sense” (1999), in which he played a psychologist who tries to help a young boy who claims to see dead people.
20. Winona Ryder – Ryder starred in the horror movie “Bram Stoker’s Dracula” (1992), in which she played the love interest of the protagonist, who becomes embroiled in a battle with the infamous vampire.
21. Harrison Ford – Ford starred in the horror movie “What Lies Beneath” (2000), in which he played the husband of a woman who becomes convinced that their house is haunted by a vengeful ghost.
22. Bruce Campbell – Campbell starred in the horror movie “Evil Dead II” (1987), in which he played the protagonist, Ash, who battles a demonic presence in a remote cabin.
23. Michelle Pfeiffer – Pfeiffer starred in the horror movie “Wolf” (1994), in which she played the love interest of the protagonist, who becomes a werewolf.
24. Sigourney Weaver – Weaver starred in the horror movie “Aliens” (1986), in which she reprised her role as Ellen Ripley, the sole survivor of the first film, who returns to the alien-infested planet to battle the creatures once again.
25. Michael Keaton – Keaton starred in the horror-comedy “Beetlejuice” (1988), in which he played the titular character, a mischievous ghost who helps a newly deceased couple haunt their former home.
26. Barbara Crampton – Crampton appeared in several horror movies during the 80s and 90s, including “Re-Animator” (1985), in which she played the love interest of a mad scientist who discovers a way to reanimate the dead.
27. Anthony Hopkins – Hopkins starred in the horror movie “The Silence of the Lambs” (1991), in which he played the infamous serial killer and cannibal, Dr. Hannibal Lecter.
28. Jack Nicholson – Nicholson starred in the horror movie “The Shining” (1980), in which he played a writer who becomes increasingly unhinged while staying at a remote hotel.
29. Heather Langenkamp – Langenkamp starred in the horror movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984), in which she played the protagonist, Nancy Thompson, who battles the infamous dream killer, Freddy Krueger.
30. Heather Langenkamp – Langenkamp starred in the horror movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984) and its sequels, in which she played Nancy Thompson, a high school student who battles Freddy Krueger in her dreams.
31. Drew Barrymore – Barrymore starred in the horror movie “Scream” (1996), in which she played a high school student who becomes the first victim of a serial killer who uses horror movie tropes to stalk and murder his victims.
32. Tim Curry – Curry starred in the horror movie “It” (1990), in which he played the malevolent clown Pennywise, who terrorizes a group of children in a small town.
33. Robert Englund – Englund starred in the horror movie “A Nightmare on Elm Street” (1984) and its sequels, in which he played the iconic horror villain Freddy Krueger, a vengeful spirit who haunts the dreams of his victims.

It’s That Easy

You can actually prompt ChatGPT to keep on listing actors, and many more would come. So, there you have it: even a robot can tell you that horror has never been “the realm of C-list actors, ham-fisted dialogue, and predictable plots”.

It has always been the bedrock upon which social commentary is built with love by crafts people of all kinds, from little independent movies to huge blockbusters.

So, next time you’re about to take a dump on 3 decades of art, do yourself a favor: ask a robot.

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