Movies
Our Favorite Bi Coded Characters in Horror
Representation of bi folks has been difficult over the years. There is still resistance to the idea that bi people are real and not a mythical creature made up by those who are simply confused. And there is still the struggle to recognize that one’s relationship does not necessarily change or define their sexuality. Representation has gotten better, especially in television. These characters have more time to develop, grow, and date multiple partners. But saying that bi, bi-coded, or other people identifying as sexually fluid (pansexual, demisexual, polysexual, queer, etc.) have not been represented throughout film history would be misleading. Horror is a haven for queer-coded characters, so here is a list of our favorite characters with such characteristics.
Representation of bi folks has been difficult over the years. There is still resistance to the idea that bi people are real and not a mythical creature made up by those who are simply confused. And there is still the struggle to recognize that one’s relationship does not necessarily change or define their sexuality. Representation has gotten better, especially in television. These characters have more time to develop, grow, and date multiple partners. But saying that bi, bi-coded, or other people identifying as sexually fluid (pansexual, demisexual, polysexual, queer, etc.) have not been represented throughout film history would be misleading.
For the purpose of this piece, “bi” is used to define those who show attraction to their gender and those of other genders. Not often is it explicitly said, and many do not engage in sex. But plenty is coded when it comes to the spectrum of sexual fluidity.
Horror is a haven for queer-coded characters, so here is a list of our favorite characters with such characteristics.
Our Favorite Bi Coded Characters in Horror
Lee – Bones and All (2022)
Timothée Chalamet portrays another bi character who enjoys feasting on human flesh. While the story centers on the blossoming romance between Lee and another cannibal, Maren (Taylor Russell), Lee does have sexual relations with a male carnival worker whom he later feasts upon.
Theodora – The Haunting (1963)
Shirley Jackson’s Haunting of Hill House, is a classic queer coded story. The 1999 adaptation makes Theodora come off as sexually promiscuous, but in the 1963 version, she has an intimate relationship with Eleanor (Julie Harris), and it alludes to a relationship with a woman back home. She also flirts with others in the house like Luke (Russ Tamblyn) which makes Eleanor jealous.
James – Crash (1996)
Many characters in this J.G. Ballard adaptation show sexual fluidity. But there’s a focus on the protagonist James (James Spader) and the car crash sex cult leader Vaughn (Elias Koteas). There is initially resistance, it culminates in a particularly passionate and violent sexual encounter.
Jennifer – Jennifer’s Body (2009)
Jennifer is one of the few who make their identity clear, announcing, “I go both ways” by the film’s end. Meghan Fox has made her bisexual identity clear, so it is no surprise her character does the same. Jennifer seduces multiple men along with her best friend Needy (Amanda Seyfried) who she kisses in one of the steamier scenes. She’s a monstrous femme and queer horror icon.
Valeria – Huesera: The Bone Woman (2022)
This recent Mexican folk horror focuses on Valeria (Natalia Solián) whose pregnancy puts increasing strain on relations with her husband. This puts her back into the arms of former lover Octavia (Mayra Batalla), leading to a memorable passionate sex scene.
Phillip – Rope (1948)
This queer coded classic focuses on Brandon (John Dall) and Phillip (Farley Granger) who kill a friend to prove they can commit the perfect crime. Granger specifically identified as bisexual. The murder is intimate and has the weight of a forbidden sexual encounter. Phillip is a nervous wreck throughout the film, much like someone uncertain about their identity.
May – May (2002)
May (Angela Bettis) just wants a lover. She is infatuated with Adam (Jeremy Sisto) but he pushes her away. This leads her to Polly (Anna Faris). But Polly wants an open relationship, which sends May spiraling. May is less concerned about gender than she is about commitment.
Josef – Creep (2014)
There is a level of intimacy Josef (Mark Duplass) has with his victims. First Aaron (Patrick Brice) and then Sara (Desiree Akhavanin) in the sequel. There is a focused and sexually charged nature to it. The announcement of The Creep Tapes show also happened during Pride month. Coincidence? Perhaps. Maybe more will be revealed in the show.
Miriam – The Hunger (1983)
Vampires are the queerest of horror monsters. Eternal life would be bland without a bit of exploration. Miriam (Catherine Deneuve) is a serial monogamist but she cannot give eternal life, she can only extend it. When her current lover John (David Bowie) begins to die she looks for her next relationship. She ultimately finds a sexual connection with Sarah (Susan Sarandon).
Trapper – Godzilla x Kong (2024)
For queer kaiju lovers, we understand what Wingard is throwing at us. Not only do we get a kaiju throuple; Godzilla, Kong, and Mothra the human story mirrors it. This centers on Trapper (Dan Stevens), who is always bathed in bisexual lighting, pairing him with former lover Ilene (Rebecca Hall) and a blossoming connection with Bernie (Brian Tyree Henry).
Tomie – Tomie (1998)
Fans of Manga artist Junji Ito may not know that his series Tomie has been adapted into 9 films since the late 90s. Bi-coding is in many of the films but especially in this first entry where Tomie (Miho Kanno) haunts and steals the boyfriends of her former best friend Tsukiko. This acts as a way to get closer to Tsukiko, much like Jennifer does to Needy in Jennifer’s Body.
Dr. Frank-N-Furter – Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
There is surely a better label for this fluid alien from Transexual, Transylvania, but Frank (Tim Curry) seems ready to pounce on anyone who catches his eye. Which forces others to question their sexuality such as; Brad (Barry Bostwick), Eddie (Meatloaf), and Rocky (Peter Hinwood). Few pleasures are off the menu in this cult classic.
Jackie – Love Lies Bleeding (2024)
One of the newest entries to the bi club is Jackie (Katy O’Brian) a central character in this sapphic thriller. While her relationship with Lou (Kristen Stewart) is an all encompassing kind of love, Jackie does engage in sex play with JJ (Dave Franco). But as we know, just because you are in a sapphic love story does not mean your bi identity gets erased.
One of the best things about film is fluid interpretations, much like sexuality and gender. There are plenty of other characters that could make this list and in the future we can only hope that more are out and proud and less coded.
We are finally in the midst of Shudder’s 61 days of Halloween! There are so many horror movies to consume and 31 days simply isn’t enough. Use the long Labor Day weekend to kick off your horror movie countdown and add these movies to your Shudder queue. Here is a list of what I would recommend checking out to ease into the Halloween spirit right before going into full blown premature trick-or-treating mode.
The Best Movies to Stream on Shudder This Month
The Yeti (2026)
A large creature has captured people in a remote Alaskan town in the 1940s. The sheriff has put together a search-and-rescue monster hunting party to bring back the captives. It sounds like the premise of a Cold Iron Studios co-op video game in the same vein as Aliens: Fireteam Elite. The stylization from co-directors Gene Gallerano & William Pisciotta in the trailer makes me think they have cooked up a story that blends action, horror, and wilderness survival. Sign me up, sheriff!
Leave (2022)
Hunter was found as a baby abandoned in a cemetery wrapped in a cloth covered with satanic symbols. She has been searching for answers her whole life about where she came from. Her journey to find her parents takes her down a mysterious path, and she is being warned by something from the beyond to leave this mystery alone. Can she trust who this investigation is leading her towards? It’s a mysterious, supernatural, culty film that will give you chills.
Penny Lane is Dead (2026)
One crazy night in Australia with perhaps a dash of revenge. Shudder’s latest original looks to be packed with blood and violence in this story of girls just trying to have fun until the crazy cousin drugs the party and invites dangerous people to play. The trailer promises lots of body horror (trigger warning, there may be SA or threat of it). I’m not saying it will be Evil Dead level, but there’s definitely something in the Aussie water with Lee Cronin pumping out his gory deadites and mummy films, and now Mia Kate Russel with this one.
The Others (2001)
This is a PSA to the younger readers of Horror Press; stop what you’re doing and watch Nicole Kidman go 100 miles per hour in this classic ghost story with a twist. Dreary weather, massive estate, confusing corridors, creepy house servants you don’t know if you can trust, and sad British kids. The ending is an all-timer and spoilers should be avoided at all costs. It has exactly what you need to get right into the cozy, spooky mood for 61-days of Halloween.
Dark Harvest (2023)
If The Hunger Games and The Purge had a baby and raised it during Oktoberfest. Teenage boys are tasked with hunting and killing the entity known as Sawtooth Jack on Halloween night, or it could mean certain peril for their town. Of the movies I have listed here that I have not seen, this is going to be at the top of my watchlist. Teens fighting for survival on Halloween night and the battle setting is in a cornfield?! Say less. I am there with my Sam Adams seasonal in hand. Another perfect movie to cannonball me right into the Halloween spirit.
This list has been carefully curated to watch in a specific order to gear up for a Halloween marathon. Start with the wintry monster movie, move on to a macabre supernatural thriller, followed by a ramp-up in blood and gore, to then be lulled into a spooky, bump-in-the-night classic, all to end on a ritualistic hunt taking place on Halloween night. This is just getting things started for the first 30-days. Looking forward to sharing the next list to get you through October.
Anyone who follows legendary horror author Stephen King on social media or reads the back of books knows one thing. It’s harder to find something that King hasn’t blurbed than something that he has. The dude is a voracious consumer of genre media, and he finds a lot to love. It’s an admirable quality. But, speaking as someone who saw American Ultra after he praised it, you can’t always trust his recommendations. Today, I’ll cut some of the wheat from the chaff and break down the best modern horror movies he’s recommended.
Three notes: First, I have decided to define “modern” as “2001 or later.” Second, King practices good social media hygiene and has deleted many of his old posts. A lot of them are archived elsewhere. However, it’s more or less impossible to make a truly comprehensive list of his recommendations. I’ve synthesized multiple different sources and done my best to truly encapsulate the breadth of his recommendations. Third, I have not included any adaptations of his own work. He may be outspoken about the ones he doesn’t like, but he’s still obviously biased in that department.
#10 Snakes on a Plane (2006)
To quote King himself (defending putting 2012 among his top 2009 movies), “no filmgoing diet is complete without some cheese.” Snakes on a Plane is a does-what-it-says-on-the-tin movie, delivering high-flying serpentine thrills. However, it’s also a remarkably faithful resurrection of the atmosphere of old 1970s airplane thrillers.
#9 Final Destination 5 (2011)
In his Best of 2011 entry on Final Destination 5, King called it “the best since the first,” and he’s absolutely right. While the sequels probably peaked with the highway prologue in Final Destination 2, the fifth installment is pound-for-pound the most thrilling entry. Between the bridge collapse, the laser eye surgery, and the nail-biting sequence where a screw falls pointy-side-up on a balance beam, there’s no denying there’s real power here. And that’s not even mentioning the fun final twist!
#8 A Quiet Place: Day One (2024)
In a since-deleted Tweet, King called Day One “the rare ‘big Hollywood film’ that is both intimate and textured.” It’s true. A Quiet Place: Day One is a mini miracle of horror filmmaking. An IP-drenched prequel to a duology of good-not-great post-apocalyptic popcorn blockbusters shouldn’t be this genuinely stirring. Plus, relative newcomer Joseph Quinn holds his own against the awe-inspiring Lupita Nyong’o, resulting in an all-timer two-hander.
#7 The Strangers (2008)
After watching The Strangers, King took to Entertainment Weekly to pontificate about what makes good horror. If you inspire someone who literally wrote the book on horror to think about it more, you’ve done something right. Bryan Bertino’s home invasion movie is one of the grimmest movies of the 2000s, but its desperate existential dread is terrifying and perfectly in line with King’s best works.
#6 Splice (2009)
King included Splice on his Top 10 list for 2010, particularly praising the “talented actors… who take the material seriously.” How did this grotesque genetic-experimentation horror movie directed by the guy who made Cube land Adrien Brody and Sarah Polley? Who knows. But they breathe life into some already super solid material. What Brody in particular gets up to feels even more twisted because it’s the guy from The Pianist doing it.
#5 Smile (2022)
In a since-deleted Tweet, King called Smile a “good, scary horror film.” He added that “the real surprise is Sosie Bacon as Rose. What a hell of a performance.” Bacon really was a revelation, but so was debut director Parker Finn. His control over tone and pacing leads to some of the best scare sequences of the 2020s.
#4 The Rule of Jenny Pen (2024)
King’s not fucking around about the New Zealand horror film The Rule of Jenny Pen. It’s one of just two horror movies on his New York Times ballot for the best of the 21st century. The underseen movie is a real corker, too. It follows a judge (Geoffrey Rush) recovering in a care home after a stroke. However, his relaxation is ruined by a sadistic retiree (John Lithgow) who is obsessed with his baby doll puppet. Lithgow’s performance is stunning, and his thrillingly dark energy commands the screen every second he’s in front of the camera.
#3 Barbarian (2022)
In a since-deleted reply to a fan’s Tweet about Barbarian, King said “Yeah, that movie blew me away. It was crazy! Crazy GOOD!” This movie contributed what is perhaps the definitive scary basement in horror, which is no small feat. That’s all thanks to director Zach Cregger’s control over onscreen darkness (one of his many skills). The man must be a shadowmancer of some kind.
#2 Train to Busan (2016)
Train to Busan is the only other horror movie on King’s NYT ballot. It has received a lot of international recognition over the years. Perhaps more than any other non-Parasite movie from South Korea. That’s because it’s flipping amazing. Its crackling energy makes it one of the scariest fast-zombie movies in history. But it also marries that with a compelling father-daughter story. There’s really nothing Train to Busan can’t do.
#1 The Descent (2005)
King put The Descent on his 2006 best-of list, calling it “the best horror movie of the year.” Forget that. It’s one of the top horror movies of the century so far. It’s a bloody good monster movie nestled into a skin-crawlingly claustrophobic spelunking movie.
Honorable Mentions:
The Autopsy of Jane Doe (2016) – I’ve never seen it, so I can’t in good faith recommend it
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006) – A masterpiece, but it’s not really “horror”
Obsession (2026) – We gotta let this one sit, in order to avoid recency bias
