Top 5 Worst Fathers in Horror

There are a lot of fathers that are sewn into the psyche of horror tradition. Most of them are not to be praised, and while I was compiling a list of great fatherly moments in horror, here are my top 5 worst fathers in horror for now. Just in time for Father’s day, here are my list of the top 5 worst ever!

#5 Captain Spaulding – The Devil’s Rejects, House of 1,000 Corpses – The killer clown persona takes on a whole new meaning when we are introduced to the worst father seen in a long time. The sadistic excuse for a shop owner and terror ride driver comes through firing off shots into the face of a would be killer in his first film role, then comes across as a dad trying to protect his daughter in the second. Spaulding for President is what I want my shirts to say, but alas, Captain Spaulding is a sick father who will do anything for a sick and twisted laugh. He’s not to be praised, but hey, he isn’t #1.

#4 The Stepfather – The Stepfather Trilogy – In the 1980’s a series of movies came through that took the traditional role of fatherhood and made it into a sickening place for those of us that went through divorce and had to deal with a new man in our lives. The Stepfather trilogy made us all appreciate a father that didn’t want to swindle and kill us all. The Stepfather did get a remake but the original creepster reigns supreme. Oh and how can you forget those posters?

#3 Ed Wilson – Natural Born Killers – While not a horror movie in the traditional sense, no one that saw the movie can deny that Rodney Dangerfield’s portrayal was insanity. What a scumbag and what a great role, he really put the boots to his daughter, and just made everyone uncomfortable in the theater at the time. Go back and watch it, you’ll swear it’s not the same person.

#2 Gus Gilbert – Pet Semetary 2 – Another stepfather in the list? Yeah, this is a sad state as we saw a terrible push forward, where Gus abuses and loses his sanity. He really makes for a terrible dad and well; he pays for it with gusto.

#1 Jack Torrence – The Shining – Just when you thought I was going to forget about this great portrayal of a dad that goes completely insane, I bring to you the #1 worst father in horror. Jack Torrence goes completely insane and wants to murder his family, and he is going to stop at nothing to get it done. The picture might not be as accurate as Stephen King wanted, but it is one of the iconoclasts of horror from his works.

There you have it, the worst fathers in horror. Buy the films, watch them, and appreciate your father a little more.