We all know what a Final Girl is, right? The last surviving protagonist of a film after enduring some kind of killing spree, like a serial killer or monster. It’s a woman (obvi) and one who usually refrains from the…more entertaining aspects of life (i.e., alcohol, drugs, sex, furry conventions…). You get it. She’s a “good girl.” But I started thinking, what about those flicks where the last survivor, or maybe one of two, is a dude?
Most Memorable For a Fellow Dude, Maybe?
A couple years ago, MD contributor, Tyler Geiss, wrote up a great article about the 25 most memorable final guys in horror movies. Not only is it a great list, but I realized the movies and characters I’d thought of were completely different from Tyler’s. Well, there’s one movie we had in common but otherwise, all different dudes.
Maybe that’s because I’m coming at this list from a different perspective, one that’s been influenced based on how my sex is looked at, treated, thought of, written, and developed throughout the history of everything. Don’t get me wrong – I love me a great final girl. I love to see my sex triumph in the face of terror by kicking it in the… whatever.
But it’s become so ubiquitous that most of society forgets about the men that also come out the other side of horror, scarred but alive. So here’s my list of 10 awesome Final Guys in horror movies.
Fright Night (1985) – Peter Vincent
Here is the only similarity between my list and Tyler’s. He chose this movie but his dude was Charlie. I would like to posit that Peter Vincent is just as awesome a final dude. He starts off a coward, and a narcissistic “celebrity” to boot. But when push comes to shove, Peter digs deep and finds the courage, and faith, to help defeat Jerry Dandridge and save Charlie’s ass. Maybe there’s mutual ass saving…
House on Haunted Hill (1959) – Frederick Loren
Now, I’m not saying that Mr. Loren is necessarily a good guy. His character shows questionable behavior in how he treats his wife and how he looks down on everyone else. But being an asshole doesn’t mean you deserve to die. Luckily for him, he’s a smart asshole and figures out his wife and her lover’s plan to kill him then frame a party guest. He turns the tables on them and does the right thing in the end – surrendering to police to let the world judge him accordingly. Also, it’s Vincent Price so shut up.
Trick ‘r Treat (2007) – Billy Wilkins
There weren’t many survivors of this lovely little anthology from 2007. And if I had a great villains list, the footy-pajama’ed Sam would be at the top of it. But all that kept running through my head was the image of little loud-mouthed Billy, sitting on his porch steps, dressed as his murderous daddy for Halloween.
He rationed out poisoned candy to approaching trick or treaters while waiting for a father that would never return. Maybe that’s some kind of misplaced motherly concern spilling from a leaky valve of my blackened leathery heart, but he’s the only male who lived (if you don’t count the husband in the wrap around story). I like to imagine that Billy grows up and eventually takes revenge on the group of werewolves responsible for his father’s death.
Halloween 3: Season of the Witch (1982) – Daniel Challis
Meyers, Schmeyers. We don’t need no stinking Meyers in this movie to have a great final dude. Enter Tom Atkins as Dr. Daniel Challis. After suspecting something hinky going on with the Silver Shamrock novelty company, he and gal pal, Ellie, infiltrate the town and factory to find it teeming with automatons run by an insanely evil druid, Conal Cochran. Daniel destroys Conal and stops his evil plan to kill all the kids in the country (maybe…) without an assist from a Final Girl!
Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) – Dr. Neil Gordon
The remaining children of Elm Street are patients in a psychiatric hospital. Nancy, now a trained psychiatrist and dream researcher, signs on at the hospital to help these kids fight Freddy. Another doctor at the hospital, Dr. Neil Gordon, is skeptical at first but soon discovers the horrible truth about Kruger. He, along with Nancy’s dad, uncover Freddy’s hidden bones to give them a consecrated burial so Freddy will just fuck off already. Sadly for him, he’s left behind after Nancy’s eventual demise.
Slither (2006) – Sherriff Bill Pardy
A small town is overrun by alien slugs, possessing some people, impregnating others (blargh), eventually getting them all to create one giant morphing glob because…reasons? Anyway, the Sheriff must stop the little parasites before they destroy the whole town, and the woman he’s always loved but never had the guts to go after. Even after getting punctured by an…impregnating tentacle from the glob, Bill manages to attach it to a propane tank and BOOM! No more glob, saving his small town but also the world. And maybe finally asking Starla out on a date.
Thir13en Ghosts (2001) – Arthur Kriticos
Probably my favorite final dude of the bunch, Arthur has fallen on hard times. After the death of his wife in a horrific fire, he and his two kids struggle financially. Until one day, the lawyer of his estranged uncle arrives to tell them they’ve inherited the uncle’s full estate. So here’s your house, all the worldly goods, oh and a basement full of blood thirsty psychotic ghosts, ‘kay byyyeeee. Hidden enemies work against Arthur to open the Eye of Hell but in the end, when all seems lost, he makes a LITERAL leap of faith in order to save his family. *sniff* I’m not crying. YOU’RE crying.
Wrong Turn (2003) – Chris Flynn
Oh those whacky backwoods inbreds are always up to no good, aren’t they? Chris is racing through a God’s Country shortcut to try and make a job interview on time. Unfortunately, he and another car of four youths get in an accident and have to find help. Double unfortunately, turns out the accident was set up by a family of inbred psychos. After basically wading through hell and watching others die horrible around him, Chris makes it out alive. I don’t think he got that job, though.
Nightbreed (1990) – Aaron Boone
Don’t you hate it when your psychiatrist convinces you you’re a murdering crazy man so you think you belong in the mythological world of Midian because the monsters live there and you think YOU’RE a monster until you actually go there and find out you’re not crazy but actually it’s your doctor who’s the whack job serial killer and he’s been setting you up to take the fall this whole time in order to discover Midian and once he knows it’s real he wants to kill all the monsters there and convinces the local cops to help out but you’re actually part of a prophecy that is meant to free the monsters from hiding and fight back and basically become their folk hero and you lead them to a new home where they can flourish and not be afraid anymore? I mean, I would. But Boone seems to handle it pretty well.
SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER SPOILER!
Do NOT read any further if you haven’t seen 2025’s Sinners from Ryan Coogler!
Sinners (2025) – Sammie Moore
This is by far the most modern film I have on my list. But it’s been a long time since I’ve gone to the theater and absolutely fell in love with a movie. And while I was tempted to pick Stack as my final dude, technically he doesn’t count. Sammie really is the only character who walked away from that juke joint.
I loved his innocence, his music, and his heart that helped him survive the worst horror he’d ever seen, and what his father warned him about (not vampires specifically but just general evil of the world.) If ANYONE deserved to survive, it was Sammie. And bless his heart, he goes on to live a long and fruitful life.
So there you have it. By all means this is not a comprehensive list of 10 awesome final guys (just go read Tyler’s article for more.) But I think that many of these guys weren’t given enough credit for surviving whatever nightmare world they had to live in for 90 minutes. So I hope you enjoy showing them a little more love. (Pervs, all of you.) Who’s on YOUR list?