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From happy accidents to brilliant improvisation, horror's most memorable moments weren't always planned! Join us as we count down the most shocking, terrifying, and brilliant unscripted moments in horror cinema. Our countdown includes Jack Nicholson's iconic "Here's Johnny!" from "The Shining," the Chestburster scene from "Alien," and that unforgettable line about needing a bigger boat from "Jaws"!
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00:00welcome to watchmojo and today we're counting down our picks for the top 20 classic iconic
00:13and memorable moments from horror movies that were ad-libbed or not in the script beware of spoilers
00:19number 20 howie sees the wicker man the wicker man to investigate a girl's disappearance sergeant
00:36howie travels all the way to a remote island in summer isle what he finds there is absolutely
00:42disturbing these islanders have abandoned christianity for paganism there are fertility
00:48rituals public sexual displays and nude dances all which howie finds disturbing he's asleep
00:56i don't like to use it on him really the lad said we're to take no chances didn't he but what he
01:03doesn't realize is his true purpose on the island towards the end howie discovers he'll be sacrificed
01:10for a bountiful harvest and his outrage is palpable
01:13the beauty of this moment lies in its authenticity edward woodward tried to keep his character in the
01:27dark as much as possible during filming he reportedly limited his exposure to the wicker man statue
01:33never seeing it in its entirety or up close that helped make his stunned look and reaction to the
01:39reveal of the effigy all the more genuine number 19 santanico pandemonium snake dance
01:46from dusk till dawn in robert rodriguez's cult horror brothers seth and richie gecko unwittingly walk
01:53into a vampire nest
01:55not long after they settle in the club's star stripper takes the stage for an unforgettable dance
02:11fans know the scene but not many realize that the dance was improvised salma hayek had a deep fear of
02:18snakes and was terrified to perform with one after weeks of hypnotherapy she faced her fear and delivered
02:24that career-making performance
02:26there was no choreographer just hayek locked in a hypnotic communication with the snake she reportedly
02:39didn't even know about the reptile when she signed on left with no choice she leaned into the moment
02:45channeled her inner power and created one of cinema's most iconic dances number 18 the helicopter crash
02:52attack of the killer tomatoes this parody film plays on the idea of tomatoes revolting against humans
02:59the film's budget is almost as wild as the story itself shot for about 100 000 a staggering 60 000
03:16went to renting a helicopter for a single scene the plan a dramatic landing what did they get a real crash
03:23it happens during a field showdown between cops and killer tomatoes a helicopter swoops in spins out of
03:30control and crashes behind the actors the crew kept rolling and that jaw-dropping incident stayed in the
03:37final cut my god did you see that a tomato you didn't see anything you didn't do anything
03:43forget about the pilot amazingly no one got seriously hurt and that moment turned an already ridiculous
03:51film into a filmmaking legend now the scene's both scary and hilarious once you know how badly things
03:57could have gone number 17 the ending witch finder general this 1968 folk horror film features a truly
04:06brutal ending matthew hopkins a so-called witch finder is hacked to death by richard marshall enraged at
04:13hopkins treatment of his fiancee sarah
04:19he's stopped only when trooper swallow shoots him the sequence is disturbingly relentless yet it doesn't play
04:28exactly as planned originally trooper swallow was meant to shoot both hopkins and marshall ending the carnage the
04:36problem in the previous shot he had only one pistol making that impossible without breaking continuity
04:42instead the film ends with hopkins slain marshall losing it and sarah screaming
04:48you took it from me you took it from me you took it from me
04:54the result is an eerie abrupt finish that somehow makes the climax even more haunting
05:00number 16 the bloody bed geyser a nightmare on elm street when you're making a movie about a villain who
05:07kills in dreams you expect some real life nightmares one struck on wes craven's set during the infamous
05:14scene where glenn's killed and a torrent of blood erupts to the ceiling to pull it off craven used a
05:20rotating room with the bed strapped to the ceiling they expected the blood to fall neatly down to the
05:25ceiling turned floor for the camera instead it hit the studio light shorted it out and caused
05:32sparks while the room began to spin out of control
05:40crew members got drenched equipment got soaked but the chaos created a swirling dream-like effect
05:47yep that happy incident turned production error into one of horror's most unforgettable shots
05:53number 15 shifting hump young frankenstein with its clever jokes witty dialogue and amazing cast
06:00it's no wonder mel brooks's comedy remains a timeless classic what a filthy job could be worse
06:08how could be raining
06:14brooks and gene wilder truly crafted one of those rare comedies that both cinephiles and casual fans
06:20will always treasure marty feldman he's undeniably one of the film's charms who could forget igor's
06:26moving hump perhaps i could help you with that hump what happened the best part it wasn't even scripted
06:33feldman brought his own mischief to the set by constantly moving the hump without anyone noticing
06:38when the crew caught on it was worked into the script remember the scene where frankenstein notices
06:43the hump has moved to another side of his shoulder yeah it's especially funny because feldman acts totally
06:48clueless about it didn't you didn't you used to have that on the other side what you're uh
06:56oh never mind number 14 mostly improvised wreck watching wreck unfold from the first person
07:03perspective is terrifying enough it feels like you're trapped in the building with the rest of the
07:08characters now imagine actually being there without knowing what's coming next that's exactly the
07:24nightmare the cast faced since they weren't given the completed script they probably didn't know where
07:29the infection would spread or who would turn next so their panic wasn't just acting add to that being
07:46trapped in a cramped apartment block then you have almost documentary level realism so when something
07:52terrifying bursts out in a scene that shock you see is totally real what you see at the ending of the
07:57film is also as real as it gets number 13 nancy's fear invasion of the body snatchers philip kaufman's
08:05remake of the 1956 classic builds on the idea of aliens replacing humans with emotionless copies
08:12donald sutherland plays matthew who uncovers the truth and struggles to survive
08:28in the end the film flips the script by having him become one of the pod people apparently we weren't the
08:34only ones floored by that twist veronica cartwright who plays nancy was too because kaufman had kept the
08:41ending a secret from the ending a secret from most of the cast only telling sutherland a night before
08:53according to kaufman he wasn't even sure cartwright knew so when matthew points and lets out an eerie
08:59scream nancy's shock is completely real
09:02he kept the actors in the dark for a pure unfiltered reaction number 12 most of it the blair witch project
09:16to create a film where the fear doesn't feel acted daniel mirik and eduardo sanchez gave actors the
09:22bare bones of the story right from the audition actors knew most of the film would be improvised
09:27instead of a traditional script they got instructions hidden in film canisters at gps
09:34marked locations at night the crew amped up the tension by orchestrating strange noises to spook these
09:40actors i'm scared to close my eyes i'm scared to open them alone in the woods with only cryptic messages as
09:50their guidelines the actors were probably never fully sure what was real some actors were even real
09:56townspeople others were planted actors but the main cast didn't know who was who so what you see on
10:03screen is genuine fear captured in the moment and it's utterly unbelievable
10:17number 11 pea soup spray the exorcist this 1973 horror classic is packed with moments designed to make
10:25viewers squirm and the projectile vomit scene is certainly one of them as father caris questions
10:31the demon inside reagan it spews green soup all over him in contempt
10:40here's an interesting detail that might change the way you view this scene the projectile vomit didn't
10:46go as planned the plan was for it to hit jason miller's chest which was what happened during rehearsals
10:52while shooting the scene due to a malfunction the vomit spilled all over miller's face and
10:57mouth so that disgusted look mixed with anger you see on caris's face is genuine
11:06what started out as an accident became one impressive scene because of how it played out
11:11number 10 the pomeranian it chapter 2 comedic moments in horror movies sometimes work really well
11:18while other times they fall completely flat thankfully the next entry on our list is courtesy
11:27of saturday night live alum bill hader who delivers a hilarious unscripted reaction to a not very scary
11:34little dog the sequence occurs when hader and co-star james ransone are looking at three devilishly
11:43trap doors from pennywise the clown first the scary jump happens and the actor responds according to
11:49the script then a cute little pomeranian appears a callback to a joke haters richie tozier made earlier
11:55in the film and the jokes start to fly the actor's reactions to the dog were improvised so as to make
12:01the humor feel authentic and we think it totally works that's a good boy it's actually super that's
12:06a good boy good boy you know next time we just go with regular scare number nine improvathon
12:19sean of the dead a little improv worked wonders in it but a lot of it was positively hilarious in this
12:26scene at the winchester pub from edgar wright's sean of the dead have a nice cold pint and wait for all
12:31this to blow over the titular sean has just been dumped by his girlfriend so his best mate ed is
12:37doing his best to cheer him up the improvathon occurs when ed played by nick frost rattles off
12:42backstories for all of the assorted characters in the bar strangled his first wife with a draft
12:48and invented the mobile disco the reactions from simon peg as sean are genuine as wright allowed frost to
12:55work off the cuff for the stretch of dialogue this loosening of the script helped this early
13:00scene in the film not only deliver the laughs but also assisted in fleshing out the cast
13:07number eight stew scream matthew lillard isn't exactly known for his resume of horror movie roles
13:13but one big one has to be his portrayal of stew macher in the first scream film surprise sydney
13:19macher has a number of notable lines during scream's critical third act when it's revealed that both
13:24stew and his buddy billy loomis have been performing double duty as the film's iconic killer ghostface
13:29yeah we put out of our misery because let's face it sydney your mother was no sharon stone one that's
13:34both humorous and unscripted occurs when billy and stew are fumbling with a telephone with bloody
13:39messy hands skeet ulrich's billy attempts to toss the phone to stew but ulrich accidentally drops it on
13:45lillard the actor rather than breaking character decides to instead go with it and utter the now famous
13:51unscripted line number seven licking lips the silence of the lambs sure we can debate until the
14:00cows come home as to whether or not the silence of the lambs was a horror film or a thrilling crime
14:05procedural but one thing's for sure sir anthony hopkins performance as dr hannibal lecter is
14:10absolutely terrifying apparently lois had murdered a transient and done things with the skin the
14:20brilliant cannibal killer installed himself almost immediately into the annals of horror with his
14:25speech about eating liver with fava beans and a nice chianti but did you know that the not so good
14:29doctor's quick intake of breath and licking of his lips wasn't in the script i ate his liver with some
14:36fava beans and a nice chianti the act is sudden unnerving and performed off the cuff but it adds so
14:46much menace to the lecter character to the point where we can't imagine the scene without it you fly
14:51back to school now little starling
15:00number six jesus wept hellraiser the box you opened it we came andrew robinson's career as
15:09a character actor has been full of iconic and memorable roles but he was pulling double duty
15:13on hellraiser playing both nice guy dad larry cotton and a later version of his sleazeball brother frank
15:19god knows i don't really understand myself robinson's ability to move back and forth between
15:26personality extremes serves the movie well particularly when frank now wearing his
15:31dead brother's skin is caught by the cenobites after a trap is laid by his niece kirsty frank's
15:37final line in the script was a generic expletive but robinson instead decided to go biblical uttering
15:42this verse jesus wept number five laurie's song halloween sometimes it's all about the little things
15:53laurie what's the boogeyman jamie lee curtis's laurie strode sings an improvised song to herself
15:59early on in john carpenter's 1978 horror classic the song was composed on set as an unscripted piece by
16:06curtis carpenter and producer deborah hill an otherwise innocuous little ditty that's an interesting
16:11character piece i wish i had you all alone what makes the song even cooler however was its callback
16:19in david gordon green's 2018 sequel green had a band compose and perform a version of that song to be
16:25used as a source cue during the scene when the father and son are returning from a hunting trip
16:30now that's what we call doing your homework is dance class that important to you yeah it is more time
16:35in the woods go hunting fishing on weekends i'll do it with you dad like i really love spending time
16:39with you but right now dancing is my thing you know and it really hits me in the heart number four
16:43piper's pit they live rowdy roddy piper was a pro wrestling legend long before he appeared on the
16:49silver screen as a horror and action hero there are no limits it figures would be something like this
16:56that said piper's natural charisma and ability to ad-lib during wrestling promos translated well to the
17:02world of cinema particularly with this iconic line from john carpenter's 1988 cult hit i have come here
17:11to chew bubblegum and kick ass and i'm all out of bubblegum piper enters a bank wearing a fresh pair
17:22of alien sunglasses that enable him to see the hidden subliminal messages placed in the world around him
17:27then cool as a cucumber he busts out with this unscripted gem honestly in the hands of anyone
17:32else this line might have come across as hokey but piper's confidence ensures it hits another level
17:38of effortless cool number three congratulations it's a chestburster alien pop quiz which is better
17:46alien or aliens trick question they both rule and feature some super memorable unscripted moments as well
17:52that's it man game over man it's game over bill paxton's game over line as private hudson was
17:59the result of a little bit of character building from the actor while the first film's iconic
18:03chestburster scene was something else entirely the actors in question knew something was going to happen
18:08when the alien made its appearance but they weren't told exactly how it was going to make its grand
18:13entrance the first thing that i'm going to do when i get back is to get some decent food director ridley scott
18:19was determined to generate genuine reactions from his actors and he got exactly that particularly
18:25from veronica cartwright who reportedly passed out after her horrified reaction was caught on camera for
18:30posterity number two bigger boat jaws making a movie is never easy and making jaws really wasn't easy
18:41for then fledgling director steven spielberg who had yet to become the household name he is today
18:46as a result spielberg often butted heads with producers david brown and richard zanuck who reportedly
18:54weren't particularly generous with funding for this troubled production
19:01soon a running gag was being joked about by cast and crew ribbing zanuck and brown that they were
19:05gonna need a bigger boat roy scheider liked the line so much that he tried to fit it in wherever he could
19:11eventually finding that perfect sweet spot that we love to quote each and every time we watch the film
19:16you're gonna need a bigger boat before we continue be sure to subscribe to our channel
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19:32on notifications number one it's hatchet time the shining stanley kubrick was both famous and
19:39infamous for his perfectionist tendencies an obsession that would often lead the director to require
19:44what felt like endless amounts of takes from his actors the shining was one of those films an
19:49experience that reportedly pushed some of its cast including shelley duvall to the breaking point
20:01speaking of breaking the scene when jack nicholson's jack torrance smashes through a door to a cowering
20:06duvall featured one of horror's most quoted lines of all time of course nicholson was only quoting
20:12ed mcmahon's famous line from the tonight show starring johnny carson but the decision was also
20:17unscripted and improvised a happy accident within what's otherwise a dark and disturbing horror classic
20:26which of these unscripted moments is the most impressive let us know in the comments
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