10 Horror Movie Heroes Who Survived Certain-Death Situations

The nature of horror movies means they are full of deaths, but some characters emerge from them alive when their demise seems inevitable. It’s fair to say some characters absolutely should have died in horror movies, given the predicaments they found themselves in. Their survival is nothing short of a miracle.

Of course, the reason they survived is that the plot required it. Whereas other characters perish in identical or seemingly less dire situations, the main character often survives – sometimes more or less unscathed. Whether it’s when their bodies suffer injuries that should kill them, or because they fought in close combat with effectively superhuman villains, or otherwise, there are specific scenarios in which horror movie protagonists should not have come out alive.

Related: 10 Dumbest Decisions In Slasher Movies That Got Characters Killed

10 Laurie Strode In Halloween Ends (2022)

She Should’ve Died Fighting Michael Myers In The Kitchen

Halloween’s Laurie Strode was formidable. Having survived the original movie’s events, the franchise’s most recent timeline saw her having prepared for another confrontation with Michael Myers for four decades. However, she was still a slightly built woman in her 60s, so a close combat encounter with Myers in her kitchen during Halloween Ends’ end fight should have concluded in her quick demise. But somehow, Laurie survived the encounter, even overpowering the nigh-superhuman killer on a couple of occasions during the fight.

9 Dutch In Predator (1987)

He Should’ve Died Fighting The Yautja Hand-to-Hand

There’s no doubt Dutch was a robust and skilled fighter with ample combat experience, but his hand-to-hand encounter with the titular Yautja in Predator should have killed him. Truthfully, Dutch should’ve been dead before that – how he survived a hit from the Yautja’s plasma canon, which went straight through other characters’ torsos, is a mystery – but he should certainly never have survived an unarmed fight with the Predator. The Yautja was superhuman, and the backhand that sent Dutch flying several meters should have been enough to finish him off. The numerous subsequent punches he received would have likely sealed the deal.

8 Sally Hardesty In The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

She Was Unconscious All Night In The Presence Of A Cannibalistic Family

Just one survivor emerged at the end of the legendary slasher film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre after a group of friends found themselves in the clutches of a murderous and cannibalistic family in remote Texas. That survivor was Sally Hardesty, and it was unfathomable how she didn’t die. Not only did Sally find herself alone and tied up in the family’s home, but she also fainted when they cut her finger so “Grandpa” could drink her blood. She didn’t wake up until the next morning, meaning she was prone and vulnerable for half a day at their mercy. Given how ruthless they’d previously proven to be, goodness knows how she escaped.

7 Alex Browning In Final Destination (2000)

There’s No Explanation About How He Survived For Six Months

Final Destination 2 revealed that Alex Browning died following the first movie’s events after a brick fell on him. However, there was no reasonable explanation why he wasn’t already dead when Final Destination ended. Alex, Clear Rivers, and Carter Horton visited Paris to celebrate their survival and remember their lost friends at the end of the film, and Alex revealed that death hadn’t skipped him, so he hadn’t beaten it or interrupted its plan. Six months had passed since the previous scene, so it’s baffling why death left him alone for half a year when everyone else died in reasonably quick succession.

Related: 10 Most Satisfying Horror Movie Deaths

6 Ross Jennings In Arachnophobia (1990)

He Should’ve Died When His House Was Infested With Lethal Spiders

In Arachnophobia, a small California town got invaded by a lethal species of South American spider, resulting in the home of the town’s spider-fearing doctor, Ross Jennings, becoming infested with the deadly critters. Everyone in the movie until that point had died after encountering a single spider, so when the walls of Ross’ house started crawling with them, and several landed on him after descending on webs, his demise seemed inevitable. However, Ross managed to not only survive being surrounded by thousands of spiders that could kill him with a single bite, but he also came through an encounter with the massive spider queen unscathed.

5 Matt Hooper In Jaws (1975)

The Shark Should Have Got Him When He Swam To The Seabed

It was one thing that Martin Brody survived his encounter with the killer shark in Jaws, given his lack of maritime experience, but at least he remained above the water’s surface and had weapons. Matt Hooper’s cage diving scene in Jaws should undoubtedly have ended with his death. Hooper went into a shark cage with a hypodermic spear, intending to inject it with poison, but it attacked the cage, destroying it and making Hooper drop the spear. At that point, Hooper swam to the seabed and miraculously survived. The ruthless man-eating shark would easily have sniffed him out and devoured him. That he emerged unscathed after the shark’s death is almost laughable.

4 Nancy Thompson In A Nightmare On Elm Street (1984)

Nobody Should Survive Against A Murderous Reality-Warping God

This notion applies to almost every character who survived an encounter with Freddy Krueger and his dream realm powers. Still, Nancy Thompson from the original A Nightmare on Elm Street seemed like as good an example as any. In the dream realm, Krueger was essentially a god. He controlled the environment itself and everything that happened there. He was a reality-warping monster who could make things happen with a thought. He targeted Nancy and could have killed her in any of a thousand creative ways at any moment while she slept, just like he did with everyone else. The fact she survived is nothing short of plot-induced stupidity.

Related: 10 Horror Movie Characters Who Deserved Their Deaths

3 Freddy Krueger In Freddy Vs. Jason (2003)

Decapitation Should Have Killed Freddy In The Real World

It was established lore in the Nightmare on Elm Street universe that Freddy Krueger has standard human vulnerabilities in the real world; it was why his potential victims attempted to pull him out of the dream realm to kill him. However, in Freddy vs. Jason, after Lori Campbell decapitated him with Jason Voorhees’ machete, he still didn’t die. After their epic battle, Jason emerged from Crystal Lake with Freddy’s decapitated head in his hand. Freddy then winked, and his laugh could be heard in the background, leaving the winner of the iconic battle ambiguous. However, decapitation in the real world should’ve rendered him very much dead.

2 Sidney Prescott In Scream (1996)

She Should’ve Died When Billy And Stu Had A Gun

Sidney Prescott has survived more Scream movies than anyone could wave a knife at when perhaps she should’ve died several times. But that’s never been as accurate a statement as it was regarding her experience in the first movie. Ghostface killers Billy Loomis and Stu Macher had murdered several people before they cornered Sidney at the end of the film, so the fact they couldn’t finish Sidney when they had a gun is baffling. There would be no way Sidney should have survived that encounter, but she did and even managed to turn the tables on the pair by killing them.

1 Regan MacNeil In The Exorcist (1972)

She Should’ve Died When Her Head Spun 180 Degrees

One of the most baffling cases of a main character surviving a horror movie was that of Regan MacNeil in The Exorcist. The iconic supernatural horror movie depicted the possession of Regan by the demon Pazuzu, claiming to be the Devil himself, who put her 12-year-old body through a horrific ordeal. Most notably, on one occasion, Pazuzu made Regan’s head spin 180 degrees to face behind her. That should’ve killed the young girl instantly, as it would’ve broken her neck to a severe degree. Added to the other unspeakable things Pazuzu did to Regan, it was inexplicable how she came out of the experience alive.