8 Shocking Facts About Horror’s Most Memorable Deaths
7. “Psycho”—The Shower Scene
The classic shower scene in the 1960s thriller flick Psycho is one of film history’s most famous moments. Alfred Hitchcock devoted a full week—one-third of the movie’s shooting schedule—to perfecting it. Janet Leigh filmed the iconic close-up of her eye 26 times, and Hershey’s chocolate syrup stood in for blood thanks to the black-and-white format. Reversing a shot of a syrup-covered knife against Leigh’s stomach achieved the stabbing effect. Hitchcock’s meticulous attention to detail made this brief sequence an enduring masterpiece.
8. “Alien”—The Chestburster Scene
The gory chestburster moment in Alien relied almost entirely on genuine surprise to sell the scene. The cast apparently had no idea what was coming, and they definitely weren’t prepared for a realistic blood fountain coming out from Kane’s chest, not to mention the lil’ alien animatronic. Ridley Scott used cuts of meat and a hydraulic ram to create the desired effect. Veronica Cartwright outright passed out on the set when the blood hit her, and Yaphet Kotto ran to his room in a panic. Now that’s how you do a horror scene!
