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Jess Bradford | |
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Black Christmas character | |
First appearance | Black Christmas (1974 film) |
Created by | A. Roy Moore |
Portrayed by | Olivia Hussey (1974) Lisa Kovack (2024) |
In-universe information | |
Full name | Jessica Bradford (film) Jessica Bradley (novel) |
Occupation | Student |
Nationality | Canadian |
Jess Bradford [lower-alpha 1] is a fictional character in the Black Christmas franchise. She is the main protagonist of Bob Clark's seminal slasher film Black Christmas (1974) in which she was portrayed by actress Olivia Hussey. Hussey, known internationally at the time for her role as Juliet in Romeo and Juliet (1968), signed on to the role after a psychic told her that she would be involved in a profitable Canadian film. Despite the dark undertones of the film and the mature themes, Hussey has described shooting the film as a great experience.
In early stages of the screenplay, she was named Jessica Bradley; this remained her name in the 1976 novelization of the film. She is sourced in numerous academic materials for subverting many prior horror film tropes of the 1960s and prior decades such as the damsel in distress. The character is distinctive for her feminist focused story arc which follows her decision to have an abortion despite the opposition of her estranged boyfriend. This was particularly notable at the time as it followed the 1973 landmark decision Roe v. Wade . [1] This has led to her being a heavily discussed pop culture figure in film studies and the final girl theory. She is the first sole survivor of slasher villain Billy.
In the original Black Christmas , Jess is a member of the sorority house Pi Kappa Sig. Jess, along with her sorority sisters, began to receive disturbing phone calls from a disorientated man. During a Christmas party, Jess receives another obscene phone call and lets Barb, Phyl, Clare, and several other girls to listen to the incoherent ramblings of the disturbed caller, who does several different voices within each call he makes. The next day, Jess meets with her boyfriend, Peter, to tell him that she is pregnant and getting an abortion which causes him to get upset. Jess later attends a search party to help find a missing girl. After the girl's corpse is found, Jess heads home and receives another phone call. She calls the police, unaware that Peter is in the house until he startles her and argues with her. He leaves as the police come and tap the phone. She manages to keep the caller on the phone long enough for the police to trace the call and they tell her the man is calling from inside the house.
Jess calls for Phyl and Barb and grabs a fireplace poker and goes upstairs. She discovers the corpses of her friends and then sees the eyes of the caller who reveals himself as Billy looking at her through the door crack, telling her not to "tell what we did, Agnes..." before she slams the door on him. He then chases her downstairs and grabs her hair as she tries to unlock the front door. Jess manages to escape, fleeing to the basement with a fire poker for protection.
She locks the door just as Billy starts to bang on the door in rage. As Jess wanders the basement, she sees Peter looking into the window, and Jess kills him, believing him to be the killer. The police then hear her screams. They sedate Jess and unknowingly leave her in the house with the real killer, Billy, who is in the attic. Her fate is left ambiguous. [2] [3]
The character returns in the 1976 Lee Hays novelization although she is known as Jessica Bradley in this adaptation. The story retains the same plot as the film. [4] [5]
Hussey, who had previously garnered international fame for her role as Juliet in Franco Zeffirelli's Romeo and Juliet (1968), signed on to appear in the film after being told by a psychic that she would "make a film in Canada that would earn a great deal of money". [6] Approached by Clark to portray the lead role of Jess, Hussey agreed and left Los Angeles for eight weeks to film in Toronto, Canada in the winter of 1973. She described shooting the film as a positive experience despite the dark subject matter and stated that she worked well with Clark and two of the other leads, Keir Dullea and John Saxon. While admiring and respecting Margot Kidder as an actress, Hussey revealed she was intimidated by Kidder's straightforward and serious demeanor she had on set, causing Hussey to keep herself distant from Kidder due to their differing personalities and performing styles. [7]
As the Black Christmas films take place in a winter setting, the characters wear the apt attire. Jess begins the film in a black Christmas jumper that features two large, white hands stitched across the chest worn on top of a yellow collared undershirt and matching pants.
Later on in the film, she wears a black vest and black bell-bottom jeans over a mustard collared shirt; this outfit is the one most recognized by pop culture and horror fans. [8]
Since her first appearance in the original film, Jess has received credit from critics as establishing the "final girl" theory—a trope prevalent among slasher films. [9] Kelcie Mattson of Collider writes that Jess breaks stereotypes such as the virginal heroine. [10]
Romeo and Juliet is a 1968 period romantic tragedy film, based on the play of the same name by William Shakespeare. Directed and co-written by Franco Zeffirelli, the film stars Leonard Whiting as Romeo and Olivia Hussey as Juliet. Laurence Olivier spoke the film's prologue and epilogue and dubs the voice of Antonio Pierfederici, who played Lord Montague but was not credited on-screen. The cast also features Milo O'Shea, Michael York, John McEnery, Bruce Robinson, and Robert Stephens.
Olivia Hussey is a British-Argentine film, stage, and television actress. Her awards include a Golden Globe Award and a David di Donatello Award. The daughter of Argentine opera singer Andrés Osuna, Hussey was born in Buenos Aires but spent most of her early life in her mother's native England. She aspired to become an actress at a young age and studied drama for five years at Italia Conti Academy of Theatre Arts in London.
A scream queen is an actress who is prominent and influential in horror films, either through a notable appearance or recurring roles. A scream king is the male equivalent. Notable female examples include Barbara Steele, Sandra Peabody, Linda Blair, Olivia Hussey, Marilyn Burns, Neve Campbell, Daria Nicolodi, Dee Wallace, Jamie Lee Curtis, Mia Goth, Samara Weaving, Heather Langenkamp, Shawnee Smith, Sarah Michelle Gellar and Linnea Quigley.
Black Christmas is a 1974 Canadian slasher film produced and directed by Bob Clark, and written by Roy Moore. It stars Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder, and John Saxon. The story follows a group of sorority sisters who receive threatening phone calls and are eventually stalked and murdered by a mentally ill killer during the Christmas season.
The final girl is a trope in horror films. It refers to the last girl(s) or woman alive to confront the killer, ostensibly the one left to tell the story. The final girl has been observed in many films, including Psycho, Voices of Desire, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Halloween, Alien, Friday the 13th, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, and Train to Busan. The term was coined by Carol J. Clover in her article "Her Body, Himself: Gender in the Slasher Film" (1987). Clover suggested that in these films, the viewer began by sharing the perspective of the killer, but experienced a shift in identification to the final girl partway through the film.
Katherine Evelyn Anita Cassidy is an American actress. Following several minor television roles, she came to attention as a scream queen after starring in the horror films When a Stranger Calls (2006), as Kelli Presley in Black Christmas (2006) and as Ruby in the third season of the horror series Supernatural (2007–2008). Following a supporting role in the action film Taken (2008), Cassidy played leading roles in the slasher series Harper's Island (2009) and the remake of the drama series Melrose Place (2009–2010). She starred as Kris Fowles in the slasher film remake A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010) and had a recurring role as Juliet Sharp during the fourth season of the teen drama Gossip Girl (2010–2012).
Leonard Whiting is a British semi-retired actor and singer best known for his teenage role as Romeo in Franco Zeffirelli's 1968 film version of Romeo and Juliet, a role which earned him the Golden Globe Award for New Star of the Year – Actor in 1969.
The House on Sorority Row is a 1982 American slasher film written and directed by Mark Rosman, produced by John G. Clark, and starring Eileen Davidson and Kathryn McNeil. The plot follows a group of sorority sisters being stalked and murdered during their graduation party after they conceal a fatal prank against their house mother.
Black X-Mas is a 2006 Christmas slasher film written and directed by Glen Morgan and starring Katie Cassidy, Michelle Trachtenberg, Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Oliver Hudson, Lacey Chabert, Kristen Cloke, Crystal Lowe and Andrea Martin. The film takes place several days before Christmas and tells the story of a group of sorority sisters who are stalked and murdered in their house during a winter storm. It is a loose remake and reimagining of the 1974 film of the same name. A co-production of Canada and the United States, the film was produced by Morgan and James Wong through their production company Hard Eight Pictures, along with 2929 Productions, Adelstein-Parouse Productions and Hoban Segal Productions. It is the second film in the Black Christmas series.
Kelli Presley is a fictional character in the 2006 slasher film Black Christmas. The character, created by writer-director Glen Morgan and portrayed by actress Katie Cassidy, serves as a replacement to Jess from the original film.
The babysitter and the man upstairs—also known as the babysitter or the sitter—is an urban legend that dates back to the 1960s about a teenage babysitter who receives telephone calls that turn out to be coming from inside the house. The basic story line has been adapted a number of times in movies.
India Joy Eisley is an American actress. On television, she is known for her roles as Ashley Juergens in the ABC Family series The Secret Life of the American Teenager (2008–2013), Audrina in the Lifetime film My Sweet Audrina (2016), and Fauna Hodel in the TNT series I Am the Night (2019). Her films include Underworld: Awakening (2012), Kite (2014), and Social Suicide (2015).
Sorority Row is a 2009 American slasher film directed by Stewart Hendler and written by Josh Stolberg and Pete Goldfinger. A remake of the 1982 film The House on Sorority Row, the film stars Briana Evigan, Leah Pipes, Rumer Willis, Jamie Chung, Margo Harshman, Audrina Patridge, and Carrie Fisher. It follows a group of sorority sisters who cover up the accidental death of a fellow sister after a prank goes horribly wrong. Eight months later, a masked killer begins stalking and murdering the girls on the night of their graduation.
The Battle of the Villa Fiorita is a 1965 British drama film, based on the 1963 novel by Rumer Godden, directed by Delmer Daves. It stars Maureen O'Hara and Rossano Brazzi.
Who Killed Teddy Bear is a 1965 American neo-noir crime thriller film, directed by Joseph Cates and starring Sal Mineo, Juliet Prowse, Jan Murray and Elaine Stritch. The film was written by Arnold Drake and Leon Tokatyan.
The Sitter is a 1977 American short horror-thriller film directed by Fred Walton on which his 1979 feature film When a Stranger Calls is based. It is a suspenseful retelling of the classic urban legend of "The babysitter and the man upstairs" about a babysitter who is menaced by mysterious and frightening phone calls which are finally revealed to be coming from inside the house.
Social Suicide is a 2015 British romantic drama and psychological thriller film starring India Eisley and Jackson Bews. Inspired by William Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet, the film reunited Olivia Hussey and Leonard Whiting for the first time since the 1968 film adaptation.
Billy is a fictional character from the Black Christmas film series, first appearing in Black Christmas (1974) as a deranged murderer who taunts and kills a group of college students during the Christmas season. Created by Bob Clark and A. Roy Moore, the character was partly inspired by the urban legend "The Babysitter and the Man Upstairs", as well as a series of real murders in Montreal during the 1943 holiday season.
Black Christmas is a Canadian-American horror film series that comprises three standalone slasher films, as well as a novelization. The original film has gained a large cult following and is credited as being one of the first slasher films, inspiring many others, including the critically acclaimed hit Halloween (1978). The series centers around a serial killer that stalks and murders a group of sorority sisters. The 1974 film follows the character of Jess Bradford as she and her sorority sisters begin receiving threatening phone calls from an unknown stalker. The 2006 film explores the background and motivation for the killer and his family. The 2019 film completely abandons the first two films' killer storyline, instead focusing on a new set of characters and killers.
Black Christmas is a 2019 slasher film directed by Sophia Takal and written by Takal and April Wolfe. Part of the Black Christmas series, it is the loose second remake of the 1974 Canadian film of the same name, after the 2006 film and follows a group of sorority sisters at Hawthorne College as they are preyed upon by an unknown stalker. The film stars Imogen Poots, Aleyse Shannon, Lily Donoghue, Brittany O'Grady, Caleb Eberhardt and Cary Elwes.