Horror movie antagonists are as varied as the films they appear in, from sophisticated psychopaths to mute slashers to more creative killers. Their appeal and impact varies greatly but one of the most interesting to watch, at least in my opinion, are horror movies centred on psychotic families. It’s always intriguing to me to see horrific people operating as a family unit, particularly if they still behave like a typical family outside of their crimes.
For the purposes of this list, I’m not limiting it to just murderous families however it has to feature multiple family members operating at the same time (so Pamela and Jason Voorhees will not be eligible).
10. The Tethered Tyler Family – Us
Members: Dahlia, Tex, Io, Nix
2019 Monkeypaw Productions
While Us provided two possibilities for this list, I selected the Tyler Family tethered rather than the tethered incarnations of the protagonist family, the Wilsons. The Tylers take out their alternatives in a coordinated group attack and unlike the Wilsons’ Tethered, we get a chance to see some individual personalities particularly with Dahlia and Tex. In comparison, the Wilsons’ Tethered are largely overshadowed by their matriarch Red and they opt to take on their alternates in individual locations. The Tethered Tylers are nonverbal but the audience gets a chance to see the sadistic delight with which they operate. Tex takes pleasure in teasing a bleeding victim and Dahlia preens while keeping a prisoner. Unfortunately their screen time is too limited to place them any higher on the list.
9. The Buckner Family – Cabin in the Woods
Members: Pa, Ma, Judah, Matthew and Patience
2011 Lionsgate
The Buckner Family is one of the many monsters kept tucked away by The Facility and are the ones selected to wreak havoc on the sacrificial offerings at the titular cabin. While they only appear in their zombified state in the film, the diary that summons them makes it clear that they were just as sadistic in their human life. The Buckners follow a religion of pain, attacking travellers and eventually one another. They use a number of interesting weapons to take out their victims, including a bear trap on a chain, and have a reputation in The Facility for being 100% successful. Special mention goes to the oldest brother, Matthew who is described as being the most sadistic, getting aroused by the act of violence, and who is feared by the rest of the family.
8. The Armitage Family – Get Out
Members: Dean, Missy, Jeremy and Rose
2017 Universal Pictures
The Armitage Family are a more calculated type of evil than some of the other families on this list. They operate as a unit to abduct and auction off black men and women, using them as host bodies for their rich friends. They’re presented as friendly at first and manage to transition from this to a more sinister demeanour without it being too abrupt or jarring. The only slight exception to this is Jeremy, who is a little too aggressive to really maintain the façade. They make use of a honey trap and hypnosis in order to subdue their victims rather than more aggressive means. Special mention goes to the Rose, who is portrayed as a full-fledged psychopath, effortlessly switching between emotionless to tears as she tries to manipulate the situation.
7. The Largo Family – Repo! The Genetic Opera
Members: Rotti, Amber, Luigi and Pavi
2008 Twisted Pictures
This family is one of the most flamboyant on the list, but that is to be expected given the film is a musical. The Largos are the elite in this dystopian universe, meaning they are able to indulge in whatever unpleasant behaviour they want. This varies wildly between the three children, with spoiled Amber being the least evil. Luigi is tempermental and the most outwardly violent, while Pavi is narcissistic womanizer who wears female faces over his own. Pavi has also been confirmed as a rapist by the film’s creators and it’s certainly telling when the homicidal brother is actively ushering the young protagonist away from him. The patriarch of this family is Rotti, who finds his children’s behaviour abhorrent but is just as murderous, however he is more manipulative and subtle about it.
6. The Lenz Family – Black Christmas (2006)
Members: Constance, Billy and Agnes
2006 Dimension Films
This one is an interesting family to look at. It’s headed up by Constance, an abusive mother, who is cruel to her jaundiced son Billy. She is an adulterous murderer who, following her husband’s death (at her hands), locked her son in the attic. Constance further cements her presence on the list when she uses her twelve year old son to impregnate herself. Her children are just as disturbed as she is. Billy abducts and mutilates his daughter-sister, Agnes, before murdering and eating his mother. The two children then go on to become serial murderers and cause Christmas themed carnage in a sorority house over the course of the film. While technically only Agnes and Billy actually work as a family, the Lenz family as a whole provide an interesting look at a more inherited type of evil.
5. The Stone Family – The Loved Ones
Members: Eric ‘Daddy’ and Lola ‘Princess’
2009 Screen Australia
This is the smallest family on the list. The father and daughter duo target very specific people for their sadistic intentions, namely any boy who has shunned the teenage Lola. They also follow a pattern in the methods of their torture, involving branding with Lola’s initials before lobotomizing their victims with a drill and boiling water. The young men who fall into their clutches are then kept as feral beasts beneath the floor of their home. There’s an element of attraction between father and daughter in this family, with Lola being the aggressor, however it’s not full blown like some of the families on the list. It’s worth noting that there is also a mother to this family, known as Bright Eyes, who is another victim of the amateur lobotomies.
4. The Cleek Family – The Woman
Members: Chris, Belle, Peggy, Brian, Darlin’ and Socket
2011 Modernciné
The Cleeks are probably one of the least known families on this list, which suits them as they’re also one of the few who don’t broadcast evil to everyone in the vicinity. On the surface, they’re respectable members of their community with lawyer Chris as the patriarch. However, further examination reveals a deeply dysfunctional group. Seemingly charming father Chris is a raging misogynist who is abusive towards his wife, Belle, and impregnates eldest daughter Peggy. His son is shaping up to be just as twisted. It gets significantly worse when Chris captures the titular woman and attempts to ‘civilise’ her. These civilisation attempts largely include torturing her and raping her, both acts his son participates in as well. Belle isn’t as evil however she stands by when her husband is torturing the woman and assists in keeping her prisoner. Oh and they keep their deformed daughter, Socket, as a feral pet in a barn with aggressive dogs. Who they feed people to. The only relatively normal member of the family is youngest daughter, Darlin.
3. The Sawyer/Slaughter/Hewitt Family – Texas Chainsaw Massacre series
Members: Various
1986 Cannon Films
Texas Chainsaw Massacre has a deeply convoluted timeline and the family has been reshaped and rebooted a number of times. The only constant is Leatherface and even he is subject to various name changes. They are consistently portrayed as cannibalistic murderers however some of the incarnations also add either elements of rape or incest into the mix. The level of violence and sanity also varies between portrayals, with some members of the family being able to act as nearly regular members of society and run businesses, while others make no attempt to hide their deranged nature. This family is one of the most well known, most likely due to a combination of the many films they feature in and the iconic nature of the cannibalistic family.
2. The Chandler Family – The Girl Next Door
Members: Ruth, Donny, Willie and Ralphie
2007 Modernciné
The Chandlers are a unique example on this list. The four family members take out their sadism on only two people, their niece/cousins, Meg and Susan. While other families have targeted family members, this is usually just done as a warm up to a more varied rampage. However, the limited victims does nothing to diminish the horrific actions perpetrated by the Chandlers. Spearheaded by sociopathic matriarch Ruth, who encourages her three sons as well as local boys, to participate in sadistic torture and rape of the two vulnerable girls. The full list of what the girls are subjected to, are too horrific to recount and what makes it even worse than any of the other entries on this list is that it is based on real events.
1. The Firefly Family – House of 1000 Corpses, The Devil’s Reject and 3 from Hell
Members: Captain Spaulding, Otis, Baby, Mother, Tiny, Rufus, Grandpa Hugo, Dr Satan, The Professor and Foxy Coltrane
2005 Lions Gate Films
It was difficult to decide who should occupy the number one spot on this list. The Firefly family take delight in their slaughter, with Otis and Baby being two of the worst culprits (and also the only two who are present throughout all three films). In addition to murder, they engage in torture, rape, cannibalism and potentially both necrophilia and incest. I opted for them to occupy the top spot because as well as having the highest body count and most varied list of crimes, they work as a team and there are moments that portray them with genuine familial affection. Despite their psychotic nature, they truly care for each other and act like a family. When one is threatened, the others will attempt to protect them and while on the run, they bicker like siblings and enjoy each other’s company. Otis and Baby also manage to carry the two sequels and make the viewer almost root for them, despite their despicable nature.