Most fans know Donald Pleasence as Dr. Sam Loomis from the Halloween franchise, a role the veteran actor played for almost two decades, bringing a certain gravitas to the part of killer Michael Myers' psychiatrist. A venerated stage actor, he brought his considerable talent in the theater to all his films, most notably elevating genre movies with his total commitment to roles no matter how small.

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Though he could play sympathetic characters, such as the blind forger in the prison break movie The Great Escape, his intensity made him a natural when it came to horror. Like contemporaries Christopher Lee or Vincent Price, he excelled at the most important part of the genre -- convincing audiences of the terror they were seeing on the screen. In his best horror movies, he took his roles completely seriously, continuously turning in performances often beyond the material he was given, making them truly frightening and memorable decades later.

Halloween (1978) - Available On Prime

Dr. Loomis in Halloween

HalloweenThe movie that started it all. In order to properly convey the power of one of the genre's most iconic villains, Michael Myers needed an adversary, as the only person who could understand --and give context to-- the boogeyman. What could have been a two-dimensional role of a simple narrative foil for Myers as he terrorized Laurie Strode became a tragic hero, obsessed with thwarting a killer he could seemingly never stop.

Pleasence was the most experienced actor in a film of mostly unknown young performers, and his presence provided a foundation of legitimacy. Despite having just 18 minutes of screen time, he became one of the best characters in the franchise. Aside from continuing to play Dr. Loomins for several more installments in the series, he appeared in many more films in the '80s and '90s from the popularity of it alone.

Halloween II (1981) - Available On Prime

Dr. Loomis (Donald Pleasence) in Halloween II

Picking up directly where the first film left off, Halloween II completes the storyline and marks the final time John Carpenter would be involved in any capacity with the franchise. Michael Myers again pursues Laurie Strode after she's been hospitalized, with Loomis returning in hot pursuit.

Pleasence refined his performance in the second installment in the franchise, shaping Loomis into a more complex hero, and helping to build the mythos of Myers as he became an increasingly complicated antagonist. If Myers is the ultimate evil, then Dr. Loomis is the ultimate force for good, standing up to the forces of darkness with kindness in his heart, over and over again.

Prince Of Darkness (1987) - Available On Peacock

The priest (Donald Pleasence) clutching his bible in Prince of Darkness

Were it not for Pleasence's priest poking around in an old church cellar, the Prince of Darkness might not have been released upon an unsuspecting public. Working with the top scholars and scientists, the priest tries to find a way to stop Satan from turning everyone into a zombified monster and unleashing hell on earth.

After forging an amicable relationship on the set of Halloween, it's not surprising that John Carpenter turned to Pleasence again for his underrated horror classic Prince of Darkness as his priest, the anchor character for the entire plot. The actor's ability to blend complete seriousness with camp is the secret ingredient to this --or any horror movie's-- success.

The Flesh And The Fiends (1960) - Available On Prime

William Hare (Donald Pleasence) conferring with Dr. Knox (Peter Cushing) and William Burke (George Rose) in The Flesh and the Fiends

When a law limits the study of dead bodies to criminals who have been recently executed, legal cadavers become incredibly hard to come by. Desperate for a means to continue his research, a doctor turns to two grave robbers to procure him bodies, a choice which eventually escalates to acts of murder.

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Pleasence's pedigree in horror stretches all the way back to this 1960 classic, which sees him star as one of two greedy grave robbers under the command of horror icon Peter Cushing as Dr. Knox. Cushing was originally one of two actors (the other being Christopher Lee) whom John Carpenter wanted to cast as Dr. Loomis in Halloween. 

Circus Of Horrors (1960) - Available On Prime

Vanet (Donald Pleasence) looking shocked in Circus of Horror

A disgraced plastic surgeon hides out in a circus, befriending the owner after successfully operating on his young daughter. Eventually, the owner dies, allowing the doctor to take over, and with no one to curtail his bloodlust, he continues operating on female victims, drawing morbid crowds.

As the circus owner and protective father, Pleasence is once against playing a worthy protagonist standing up to the face of evil. As is so often the case with the actor, the earnestness he channels so easily makes what his nemeses do all the more despicable and gruesome. He also fights a bear!

Death Line (1972) - Available On Prime

Inspector Calhoun (Donald Pleasence) enjoying his tea in Death Line

A mild-mannered, tea-sipping police inspector studies a series of disappearances around a particular London tube station, finding to his horror that riders are being abducted and taken into a labyrinth of tunnels existing behind a portion of where the station caved in. Survivors of the cave-in, which dates back to the early 20th century, became isolated and inbred, one descendant eventually reaching the surface and stealing subway passengers.

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Even with a plot as bizarre as Death Line (or Raw Meat as it's sometimes known), Pleasence brings decorum to the part of Inspector Calhoun and gets to share the screen with horror legend Christopher Lee as an imperious MI5 agent.

Doctor Crippen (1964) - Available On Prime

Dr. Crippen (Donald Pleasence) embracing his lover in Dr. Crippen

Based on a true story, Doctor Crippen chronicles the real trial of Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen, who in London in 1910 stood to be convicted of murdering his wife in order to run off with a much younger woman. The spellbinding historical drama is largely anchored by Pleasence, who slowly becomes unglued over the course of the court proceedings.

Part of what makes this forgotten true crime movie so frightening is that throughout the entire trial, Dr. Crippen seems like a man who couldn't possibly have poisoned his wife, largely because of the fact that it's Pleasence playing him. He uses audience association against them to make them feel compassion for a man with sinister tendencies.

Wake In Fright (1971) - Available On Prime

Doc Tydon with coins over his eyes in Wake in Fright

After wrapping up the school year, a teacher just wants to get away with his girlfriend, but a gambling spree leaves him penniless shortly before they can be reunited in Syndey. Stuck in an outback mining town, he's persuaded by the locals to take part in a violent kangaroo hunt. Every time he tries to leave town, something happens to keep him there until he's finally driven to thoughts of taking his own life.

One of the drunk, violent men is Pleasence as "Doc" Tydon, who's committed to making the down-on-his-luck teacher just as drunk and violent as he is, and he's never been more terrifying. Not only is Wake In Fright an example of chilling Australian filmmaking, it's also a psychologically intense horror movie with a plot that focuses on the perils of toxic masculinity in Australian cultural identity.

Cul-de-Sac (1966) - Available On Prime

Teresa (Françoise Dorléac) and George (Donald Pleasence) standing on the battlement in Cul-de-sac

A crook and his partner go on the lam in a seaside castle, taking the remote residence over from a weak retiree and his lustful wife. The criminals think they've achieved a major coup, only to find themselves sucked into the strange couples' isolated world that isn't all that it appears to be.

Cul-de-sac presents Pleasence with a chance to do a sinister role with a flair for comedy, and his enjoyment of the part is obvious. His gusto is infectious, and he proves how utterly unnerving and frightening a villain who's constantly smiling can be.

Dracula (1979) - Available On Prime

Dr. Seward (Donald Pleasence) and Abraham Van Helsing (Laurence Olivier) using alantern to light their way in Dracula (1979)

Dracula got a sexy makeover in 1979 when Frank Langella donned the collared cape and fangs, leaving Transylvania behind to come to England and seduce first Mina Van Helsing, and then her friend Lucy Seward. Professor Van Helsing must team up with Dr. Seward to save Lucy's before she falls under Dracula's seductive spell.

Langella is an intellectual performer, and thus his Dracula has an erudite air that fits perfectly with Pleasence's performance as Dr. Seward alongside Sir Laurence Olivier's Van Helsing. Truly a gothic horror romance, this version walked so Francis Ford Coppola's  '90s version could run.

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