Jamie Lee Curtis was born a horror movie heiress, thanks to her mother Janet Leigh's iconic performance as Marion Crane in Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho. Curtis followed in her mother's footsteps, not only becoming an actor, but one whose career is noted for horror movie roles. While Curtis has proven herself in comedies, dramas, and action flicks, she always seems to return to the genre that made her a household name.
Curtis' most beloved horror role, of course, is Laurie Strode in the Halloween franchise. John Carpenter's 1978 film, a low-budget slasher about a deranged serial killer named Michael Myers, remains one of the best scary features of all time. Curtis has applied her knowledge playing Michael Myers' cursed sister to many other horror films, making her one of the most celebrated "scream queens" to date.
Halloween: Resurrection (2002) - 4.0
The eighth installment in the Halloween franchise is one of the least liked among fans and critics alike. Directed by Rick Rosenthal, who also helmed 1981's Halloween II and Halloween: Resurrection, merges reality TV camera work with regurgitated genre plotlines — a combination critics did not find compelling.
The events of the film pick up three years after the events of 1998's Halloween H20. Jamie Lee Curtis appears in the first 20 minutes of the movie, reprising her role as Laurie Strode. The rest of Resurrection involves a group of college kids who spend the night in the Myers family home after winning a competition to appear on an internet show called Dangertainment.
Virus (1999) - 5.0
Virus is a critically derailed sci-fi horror film based on the comic book of the same name by Chuck Pfarrer. The film is seen as nothing more than an attempt to capitalize on the popular alien invasion trope — an addition to the genre that lacks any originality whatsoever. Even Curtis speaks badly about Virus. "It's just dreadful," she shared with IGN.
Curtis co-stars with William Baldwin and Donald Sutherland as crew members of an American tugboat who stumble upon an abandoned Russian vessel. Guess what's inside? An alien lifeform that wants to subjugate humanity.
Prom Night (1980) - 5.4
Prom Night is the first in a series of Canadian slashers that went on to become a popular franchise in its own right. The original film stars Jamie Lee Curtis as Kim Hammond, whose prom night is thwarted by a masked killer seeking vengeance for an accidental death at the school six years earlier. Leslie Nielsen co-stars as Kim's father.
The film turned out to be a huge success in American theaters, earning $15 million over its $1.5 million budget. Like many '80s slashers, Prom Night hasn't aged well with time, mostly thanks to its brutal depictions of violence against female characters.
Halloween H20: 20 Years Later (1998) - 5.8
H20 is a controversial addition to the Halloween franchise, one fans either love or hate. While it pales in comparison to the original, it's the first Halloween film to see Curtis return at Laurie Strode since 1981's Halloween II. Curtis technically has an uncredited speaking role in Halloween III: Season of the Witch, but H20 is considered her comeback.
H20 is a sequel to the first two Halloween films, ignoring the storylines from the rest of the franchise. Laurie Strode is headmistress at a private school in California, living under an assumed identity with her son, played by Josh Hartnett in his feature film debut. 20 years after her brother Michael Myers supposedly died in an explosion at Haddonfield Memorial Hospital, he tracks his long-lost sister down in search of a bloody reunion.
Terror Train (1980) - 5.9
Like Prom Night, Terror Train is another Canadian slasher. Curtis is a member of a group of medical students who decide to attend a New Year's Eve costume party onboard a party train. What's the worst that could happen? As it turns out, there's a killer on board, taking the gang out one by one. The killer eludes capture by donning the costume of each subsequent victim.
What's unique about this horror film is that acclaimed British cinematographer John Alcott adds a stunning visual element to what would otherwise be an uninspiring contribution to the genre. Alcott is known for working with Stanley Kubrick on 2001: A Space Odyssey, A Clockwork Orange, The Shining, and Barry Lyndon.
Halloween II (1981) - 6.5
Although Halloween co-creators John Carpenter and Debra Hill did not direct the follow-up to their breakout horror film, they wrote and produced it. Rick Rosenthal, in his directorial debut, picks up the story late on Halloween night, 1978, as Laurie Strode recovers in Haddonfield Hospital after a night of carnage instigated by her brother, Michael Myers. Like Curtis, Donald Pleasence returns in the sequel to play Dr. Sam Loomis, Michael's psychiatrist.
Dr. Loomis continues to pursue Michael through town as he inches closer and closer to the hospital, where he hopes to finish off his poor sister. Halloween II did well in theaters, but many view it as a fall from greatness after its masterful predecessor.
Road Games (1981) - 6.6
Curtis shares the screen with Stacy Keach in this road-bound thriller. Keach plays Quid, a truck driver traveling through Australia with his dingo as a serial killer slaughters female hitchhikers around him. Quid picks up Curtis' character, Pamela, and the two decide to create a trap for the murderer, who continues to elude police.
Road Games bombed in theaters, but Curtis and Keach received attention for their engaging performances and on-screen chemistry. As Hitchcockian as it tries to be, Road Games doesn't manage to move beyond its slasher origins.
Halloween (2018) - 6.8
A popular move in the Halloween franchise is to sidestep most of the films and make follow-ups to the first two. David Gordon Green's 2018 revival disregards all but the 1978 original, starting its story 40 years later as Michael Myers escapes Smith's Grove Sanitarium to hunt down his sister and her family on Halloween night, 2018.
As an older Laurie Strode, Curtis plays a hardened, functional alcoholic who has spent her life preparing for her brother's return. Strode has a tense relationship with her daughter Karen (Judy Greer), and she only remains in contact with her granddaughter Allyson (Andi Matichak). All the Strode women are forced to contend with their deranged relative once Michael Myers slashes his way back into the family. Green's Halloween will be followed up by two forthcoming sequels, Halloween Kills and Halloween Ends.
The Fog (1980) - 6.8
The premise of John Carpenter's The Fog sounds a bit hokey: the ghosts of shipwrecked mariners descend upon a small California town 100 years after meeting their end off the coast. However, The Fog is an atmospheric, moody film thanks to the titular fog that precedes the apparitional invasion. Carpenter's synth-heavy soundtrack adds to the film's eerie vibes, too.
Curtis plays another hitchhiker in this feature, a young woman named Elizabeth Solley, who is unfortunate enough to find herself in the midst of the mayhem. Curtis' mom, Janet Leigh, also co-stars in the film.
Halloween (1978) - 7.8
Curtis made her feature film debut in John Carpenter's directorial debut, a low-budget exercise in terror, carnage, and family trauma. While babysitting on Halloween night, 1978, Curtis' Laurie Strode is stalked in Haddonfield, Illinois, by a masked man who turns out to be her brother Michael Myers — the very same Michael who slaughtered their sister Judith 15 years earlier when he was only six.
Halloween, although coming after other slashers like The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, ushered in a new wave of horror films that focus on teenage victims being pursued by deranged killers. With its camera angles from the perspective of Michael and use of a theme song for his entrance into scenes, Halloween set the standard — one rarely met by subsequent knock-off films.