The Final girl. The one who lives to tell the tale or dies in a blaze of glory after a last stand against the killer. The one who has the most plot armour and uses either their wit or luck to survive. From Laurie in “Halloween” to Chris in “The Last Slumber Party” there have been many final girls over the years. A necessity to horror films you might say. But are they really?  Are they a thing of the past? A relic of the 1900’s thrillers? 

To properly discuss the importance of the final girl why don’t we go back to their origin. The final girl first came about in the 1970s with Halloween and the Texas Chainsaw Massacres. Laurie and Sally are seen as the iconic and memorable first final girls. They are protected by their purity, smarts, or luck and survive the horror that happens to them. The final girl is a character that the audience cheers for and supports, that embody traits that society likes. Many horror critics have looked to final girls as a way to understand what is going on in society. In the 1970s there was importance of purity, being straight laced, school orientated and staying away from alcohol. The person who first used the term, “the final girl” suggested that the character was used as a way for male audiences to be feminine. 

In modern films the final girl has evolved in order to adapt to fit society’s values. Final girls no longer have to be pure. Or female. In the last decade we have seen a rise in Final guys featuring films such as Get Out and the Ritual.