A snuff film, snuff movie, or snuff video is a theoretical type of film, produced for profit or financial gain, that shows, or purports to show, scenes of actual homicide. The victims are supposedly typically lured to their murders by false pretenses and their murder is then filmed and the video depicting it is sold to buyers.
The evil clown, or creepy clown, also known as the killer clown if their character revolves around murder, is a subversion of the traditional comic clown character, in which the playful trope is instead depicted in a more disturbing nature through the use of horror elements and dark humor. The modern archetype of the evil clown was popularized by the DC Comics supervillain Joker starting in 1940, and again by Pennywise in Stephen King's It. The character can be seen as playing on the sense of unease felt by sufferers of coulrophobia, the fear of clowns.
The House by the Cemetery is a 1981 Italian horror film directed by Lucio Fulci. The film stars Catriona MacColl, Paolo Malco, Ania Pieroni, Giovanni Frezza, Silvia Collatina and Dagmar Lassander. Its plot revolves around a series of murders committed by a ghoulish and demonic serial killer taking place in a New England home that happens to be hiding a gruesome secret within its basement walls.
Copycat is a 1995 American psychological thriller film directed by Jon Amiel and starring Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, and Dermot Mulroney. The score was composed by Christopher Young. The film follows a criminal psychologist and a homicide detective who must work together to find a serial killer who is committing copycat crimes modeled after notorious murderers.
Robert William Pickton, also known as the Pig Farmer Killer or the Butcher, was a Canadian serial killer and pig farmer. After dropping out of school, he left a butcher's apprenticeship to begin working full-time at his family's pig farm, and inherited it in the early 1990s.
A copycat crime is a criminal act that is modeled after or inspired by a previous crime. It notably occurs after exposure to media content depicting said crimes, and/or a live criminal model.
Child's Play is an American slasher media franchise created by Don Mancini. The films mainly focus on Chucky, a notorious serial killer who frequently escapes death by performing a voodoo ritual to transfer his soul into a "Good Guy" doll. The original film, Child's Play, was released on November 9, 1988. The film has spawned six sequels, a television series, a remake, comic books, a video game, and tie-in merchandise. The first, second, and fourth films were box office successes with all of the films earning over $182 million worldwide. Including revenues from sales of videos, DVDs, VOD and merchandise, the franchise has generated over $250 million. It also won a Saturn Award for Best Horror Franchise.
Killer Pickton is a 2006 American horror film loosely based on the crimes of Canadian serial killer Robert Pickton.
David Owen Brooks was an American convicted murderer and accomplice of serial killer Dean Corll, who, along with Elmer Wayne Henley, abducted, raped, tortured, and murdered at least 28 boys and young men between 1970 and 1973 in Houston, Texas. The crimes, which became known as the Houston Mass Murders, came to light after Henley fatally shot Corll.
New York Confidential is a 1955 film noir crime film directed by Russell Rouse starring Broderick Crawford, Richard Conte, Marilyn Maxwell, Anne Bancroft and J. Carrol Naish. Produced by Edward Small for release by Warner Bros., the film was inspired by the 1948 book New York: Confidential! by Jack Lait and Lee Mortimer.
Long Pigs is a 2007 comedy-horror mockumentary film about two documentary filmmakers who follow a serial killer who has a taste for cooking with human flesh. The story is conveyed via found footage. Acting and special effects were provided by Chris Bridges, whose other credits include Saw III, 300, and the remake of Dawn of the Dead.
Bride of Chucky is a 1998 American black comedy slasher film written by Don Mancini and directed by Ronny Yu. The fourth installment in the Child's Play franchise, it stars Jennifer Tilly, Brad Dourif, John Ritter, Katherine Heigl, and Nick Stabile. Unlike the first three films, Bride of Chucky takes a markedly humorous turn towards self-referential parody. It also departs from the Andy Barclay storyline of the first three films, focusing mainly on series villain Chucky, a doll possessed by a serial killer, and his former lover and accomplice Tiffany, whose soul is also transferred into a doll.
Tyrese Darnell Gibson is an American R&B singer and actor. His self-titled debut album, released in 1998, featured the single "Sweet Lady". The record peaked at number twelve on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. His second and third albums, 2000 Watts and I Wanna Go There, were released in 2001 and 2002, respectively. The latter contained the lead single "How You Gonna Act Like That", which became Gibson's highest-charting single, reaching number seven on the Billboard Hot 100. On his fourth album, Alter Ego (2006), Gibson explored hip hop under the rap alias Black-Ty. Gibson was nominated for the Grammy Award for Best R&B Album for his fifth album, Open Invitation (2011). Gibson's sixth album, Black Rose (2015), debuted at number one on the U.S. Billboard 200, becoming his highest-charting album. He has sold over 4 million records in the United States.
Ronnie Gene Blevins is an American character actor. He is best known for his role as small-time criminal Willie Russell in the 2013 film Joe, directed by David Gordon Green.
House of Bodies is a 2013 American horror film directed by Alex Merkin and written by Eddie Harris. It stars Terrence Howard, Peter Fonda, George Katt, Alexz Johnson and Queen Latifah. The film was released worldwide on Netflix on April 19, 2013.
Cold North Killers: Canadian Serial Murder is a 2012 Canadian non-fiction book written by Lee Mellor and published by Dundurn Press. It documents the lives of sixty Canadian serial killers, with the earliest being Edward H. Rulloff and the most recent being Russell Williams. The book uses Katherine Ramsland's interpretation of what constitutes a serial killer—someone who has killed at least two people on two occasions, and who attempted to or likely would have killed again—as outlined in her 2007 book The Human Predator. Cold North Killer's own definition of what constitutes a Canadian serial killer includes both Canadians who committed murder abroad and non-Canadians who committed murder in Canada.
Bloodline Killer is a 2024 American slasher film directed by Ante Novakovic and written by Anthony and James Gaudioso. It stars Bruce Dern, Tyrese Gibson, Shawnee Smith and Taryn Manning.
Boneyard is a 2024 American crime thriller film directed by Asif Akbar, produced by Colin Bates, Asif Akbar, and Vincent E. McDaniel, and starring Mel Gibson and 50 Cent. It is based on the West Mesa murders.
Bosco is a 2024 American biographical drama film written and directed by Nicholas Manuel Pino. It is based on the memoir Chasin' Freedum by Quawntay Adams. It stars Aubrey Joseph, Nikki Blonsky, D.C. Young Fly, John Lewis, Theo Rossi, Thomas Jane, Tyrese Gibson, and Vivica A. Fox.
