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It’s prime time watch horror movies on repeat. And while we all love a good villain, there’s something just as alluring about a final girl. The “final girl” is the last woman standing after confronting the main villain and living to tell the story, as defined by writer Carol J. Clover in her book Men, Women, and Chain Saws.
She might be bookish, or athletic. She’s clever, and notices small details other people miss. And she’s resilient above all else, fending off several opponents throughout a film; sometimes her own partner or family. And watching her handle every one of those attackers keeps us captivated.
But who’s the number one final girl? We asked the horror film fans on Reddit to weigh in on their favorite last ladies, and their answers are the perfect viewing guide for your Halloween season.
Erin Harson, You’re Next
Played by Sharni Vinson
Her survivalist upbringing helps Erin beat seven (six if you want to get technical) attackers and end You’re Next as the sole survivor. What started as a plan to use Erin as a pawn went quickly awry as she not only figured out who the conspirators were at the family gathering, but also that her own boyfriend was part of the mission. The unanswered last question about whether Erin goes to jail for the killings, makes us root for her even more, and wonder why we don’t see Sharni Vinson in way more horror films.
Grace MacCaullay, Ready or Not
Played by Samara Weaving
Grace’s story starts off like most of the final girls, the underdog, a kid in the foster system with few family members. And that makes her a great target for the deadly rituals of her new in-laws. Though Grace’s official body count is pretty low, she spends the film warding off an entire family of attackers, and asking for a divorce just before watching her new husband die in spectacular fashion.
Tree Gelbman, Happy Death Day
Played by Jessica Rothe
Its take on the iconic premise of Groundhog Day already has us hooked, but Tree’s mean girl character arc keeps us captivated throughout the entire film. Poor taste in men gets Tree locked into reliving her life and death over and over until she can stop her killer. But her realizations along the way – that each death makes her more empathetic, that Carter was the right guy all along, and that her roommate wasn’t the friend she thought she was – make Tree an antihero.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre trio
Sally Hardesty, played by Marilyn Burns; Erin Hardesty, played by Jessica Biel; and Vanita “Stretch” Brock, played by Caroline Williams
It’s impossible to talk about iconic final girls without digging into The Texas Chainsaw Massacre movies, and it’s impossible to pick just one. Marilyn Burns sets the archetype as Sally Hardesty. Yes, she survives, but that final scene of her breaking down after her ordeal is horror film canon.
But Jessica Biel deserves her flowers as Erin Hardesty, the 2003 version of the Sally character, with a backstory that makes it more understandable why she would fight back against attackers, rather than just crumple at a threat.
Where Sally and Erin take opposing final girl characteristics, Stretch from TCM 2 turns the story around completely, surviving because she is Leatherface’s psychological match.
They all earn their spot in top final girls.
Ellen Ripley, Alien
Played by Sigourney Weaver
Ellen is one of the characters Carol J. Clover was thinking about when she coined the term “final girl.” Ellen personifies the archetype by spending the movie being hunted down and watching her friends die horrible deaths around her, only to find the strength to fight back, defeating the Xenomorph as the sole survivor.
Sidney Prescott, Scream
Played by Neve Campbell
If Ellen Ripley is one of the archetypes of the final girl trope, Sidney Prescott emblazoned it in our minds. No matter how many times she’s betrayed or experiences trauma, we want to watch her succeed. Sidney gave us a final girl who fought back against boyfriends, friends, half-brothers and, seemingly, everyone else in her life who held a vendetta against her family. The movie ends not just with her survival, but reclaiming her power.