While it’s easy to become invested in horror movie characters and want them to survive, that isn’t always the case. When the final girl is left standing, they’re often dealing with the terrible trauma of what they just went through, and things couldn’t feel any darker. Vague and ambiguous endings have become trendy and commonplace in the horror genre. It’s often likely that a horror film ends with the promise of a sequel.
Sometimes, a horror movie’s ending is actually hopeful. It seems like life is going to get better for the characters who have made it through. Throughout the past few decades, there have been a few horror movies that have endings that make audiences feel a sense of optimism.
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When A Stranger Calls (1979)
When reflecting on thehistory of horror movie phone calls, the late ’70s filmWhen A Stranger Callsstarted this trend. Jill Johnson (Carol Kane) is stalked by a killer when babysitting and years later, he comes back. Now that Jill is married with kids, she’s terrified that her children won’t be safe.
Thankfully, Jill is able to stop Curt Duncan (Tony Beckley) from hurting her or her family. While slashers aren’t known for their happy conclusions, this one definitely ends on a more positive and hopeful note than usual. Jill knows that the terror is finally over as Curt is dead and she can move on, although of course she will always remember how terrifying this experience was.
Scream (1996)
While theScream 6trailer shows gore, andScreamis one of the best slasher franchise out there, the firstmovie actually has a hopeful ending. It’s easy to imagine Sidney Prescott’s (Neve Campbell) story wrapping up here. The Ghostface killers Stu Macher (Matthew Lillard) and Billy Loomis (Skeet Ulrich) have been caught and they’ve died from their injuries. Sidney has saved her dad Neil (Lawrence Hecht). And all seems to be well. The final scene shows Gale Weathers (Courteney Cox) reporting from Stu’s house, sharing that this horror story has concluded.
Sidney is one of thesmartest horror movie protagonistsand if the franchise had concluded here, Sidney’s story would be a happy one. She would still be haunted by these events and miss her mom, but she wouldn’t have to fight Ghostface for years.
Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark (2019)
Scary Stories To Tell In The Darkfollows friends who discover a book of horror stories and who see these tales come true. While Stella Nicholls (Zoe Colletti) is fine, Chuck Steinberg (Austin Zajur) and Auggie Hilderbrandt (Gabriel Rush) are in danger. The Pale Lady has taken Chuck and a corpse steals Auggie when searching for the big toe that they have lost. The movie ends with Stella vowing to help save her friends and figure out how to get them back into the real world.
These characters are some of thebest horror movie kidsbecause it’s sweet to see how close they are and how much they care about each other. While there is no telling what will happen to Chuck and Auggie and if it’s actually possible to bring them back, Stella is so determined that it’s easy to believe that she can help out. This is most hopeful than most horror movie endings.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism (2022)
My Best Friend’s Exorcismis likeMean Girlsin the sense that both movies explore female friendship and popularity. While Gretchen Lang (Amiah Miller) and Abby Rivers (Elsie Fisher) have a terrible time during the movie, the film wraps up with the characters in a good place. Although it’s sad that Gretchen is moving away, Gretchen and Abby tell each other that they’ll always be close friends.
Since Abby goes through so much to save Gretchen, who has been taken over by a demon, it’s a sweet conclusion that feels cheerful. Gretchen treats Abby horribly as a result of what going on. Audiences want to see the friends making up and realizing how much they care about each other and it’s satisfying to see that everything works out alright in the end.
Halloween Ends (2022)
There has beencriticism of Halloween Ends, especially when it comes to Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell). But ultimately, the ending is filled with optimism as Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Allyson Nelson (Andi Matichak) look forward to a better future.
With Laurie having finally won against Michael Myers, she can sit back, relax, and enjoy her life in Haddonfield, Illinois. The movie ends with Allyson moving away to start a new life and Laurie and Deputy Hawkins (Will Patton) sharing a moment on Laurie’s front porch. These characters can put the nightmare of a past behind them and start fresh.
