Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022): The 9 Best Characters
Slashing its way through Netflix beginning February 18, 2022, Texas Chainsaw Massacre is the latest iteration in the long-running horror franchise. A sequel set in the modern-day of fame-seeking social media influencers, the film traces a new collection of young characters who unwisely return to the grisly site of Leatherface's sinister slaughter made so infamous back in 1974.
While horror movies tend to feature young brainless characters who seem happy to throw themselves in the face of necessary danger, Texas Chainsaw Massacre included, the film also features a bevy of strong, compelling, and relatable characters who are easy to root for.
9 Melody
Despite her willingness to gentrify a Texas ghost town for her own financial gain, Melody (Sarah Yarkin) proves to be one of the most badass characters in the film. The self-actuating businesswoman is a model of female empowerment, Melody vows to protect her little sister Lila at all costs, feeling guilty she brought her to Texas in the first place.
Evading Leatherface's grisly carnage time and again while protecting Lila in the process, Melody shows her bravery by risking her life to get the car keys from Richter so they can flee town safely. However, her most heroic moment comes when revving the mighty chainsaw on Leatherface in the final act and leaving him for dead.
8 Mrs. MC
Longtime horror actress Alice Krige makes an unrecognizable turn as Mrs. Mc, an elderly woman who claims to own the orphanage that Dante and Melody wish to purchase. Lending an ominous warning of things to come, Mrs. Mc is a creepy character meant to reinforce the eldritch ramifications of Leatherface's reign.
Indeed, once Mrs. MC is rushed to the hospital for a heart attack, the film delivers one of its first twist-scares when Leatherface emerges from the ambulance to exact some grisly wetwork. Despite her short appearance, Mrs. Mc makes a lasting impression and becomes a Leatherface mask.
7 Leatherface
If a horror movie is only as scary as its chief villain, then Leatherface is, was, and will always be among the best characters in a Texas Chainsaw movie, even if it's a geriatric version harboring a 50-year-old grudge. Played for the first time by Mark Burnham, his iteration of Leatherface is nowhere near as terrifying as Gunnar Hansen's original, but it's certainly more effective than several others in the horror movie franchise with several reboots.
Aside from the air of menace he exudes, skin masks that he sports, the sad droopy Leatherface mask, and the barbarous violence he inflicts, it's the soulless dark glimpse in the killer's eye in conjunction with his rigid body language that makes him so unnerving. Of course, dancing a jig with a decapitated head in tow certainly helps.
6 Ruth
Although she doesn't last very long, Ruth's horrifying trauma in the ambulance is one of the most upsetting parts of the film. As Dante's girlfriend there to support his business endeavors, Ruth is the first character to witness Leatherface's carnage. It's through her vicarious eyes that viewers see Leatherface's penchant for wearing the faces of his victims as a mask, making her wildly sympathetic.
Once Ruth witnesses Leatherface murder Mrs. Mc and don her face like a mask, she's helplessly left to experience the inevitable as he slowly ambles towards with tension and suspense. Luckily, Ruth was smart enough to radio for help before being attacked, and her text messages about Ruth helped Melody keep Lila safe.
5 Dante
Dante (Jacob Latimore) is a shrewd businessman who partners with Melody to turn Harlow, Texas into a booming millennial town. He's friendly to Lila and is also in an interracial relationship with Ruth, which indicates his open-mindedness and lack of prejudice. He's a strong character insofar as he provides sarcastic commentary on Texas' regressive ways.
Alas, Dante is no match for Leatherface, who treats him quite rudely when accosting him at the orphanage. While he does manage to sustain a gruesome injury for a lengthy period and show genuine care for the others, Dante can't quite match his heartfelt feelings with heroic actions.
4 Catherine
Catherine (Jessica Allain) is a powerful business investor who accompanies a busload of potential buyers to Harlow to meet with Dante and Melody. Strong, proud, and confident, Catherine manages to help Lila board the bus as a temporary safe haven.
Later, Catherine and Richter find a profusely bloody Dante outside the orphanage and they do their best to help him. However, Catherine's most sympathetic moment comes when facing Leatherface during the bus ride massacre that turns shockingly graphic. Despite being there to help pad the kill count, Catherine makes the most of her limited screentime.
3 Richter
At first blush, Richter (Moe Dunford) appears to be an intolerant Texas mechanic rightly upset with the young influencers gentrifying his town. Over time, Richter reveals hidden layers as a handyman who helps Lila protect herself physically and emotionally. Without Richter's support, Lila would not have gotten over her fear of guns so easily.
Moreover, Richter still manages to show concern for Mrs. Mc, shown when he confiscates the girls' keys until he knows that her body has really been removed from the orphanage. Richter not only leads the search, but he also sacrifices his life to protect Catherine.
2 Sally Hardesty
Fans of the original TCM are sure to be thrilled by the return of Sally Hardesty, the iconic horror movie final girl and lone survivor of Tobe Hooper's all-time best movie. Although played by a different actress (Olwen Fouere), the connective tissue between the original and sequel provides a satisfying sense of closure in the story. Other than Lila, she's the absolute best.
Much like Laurie Strode in the new Halloween films, Sally is now a battle-scarred weapons expert who works as a local Texas ranger. Upon hearing of Leatherface's fresh assault, Sally takes swift action to protect the young influencers, including a shotgun she uses to save Lila and Melody from Leatherface's attack and later gives to Lila to protect herself. Sally even procures the car keys that allow the sisters the attempt to flee Harlow.
1 Lila
Without question, the most likable and sympathetic character in the film is Lila (Elsie Fisher), the kind-hearted photographer who is dragged by her sister Melody from San Francisco to Texas to help her with a venal business deal. The moral compass of the cast, Lila knows right from wrong and uses her superior intellect to outlast the others as the lone survivor.
Whether befriending Richter, dealing with her traumatic past as a school shooting survivor, overcoming her fear of guns to chase Leatherface with a shotgun, or witnessing her sister's grisly fate, Lila is the one character who does right and never deserves the violence aimed at her. As she did in Eighth Grade, Fisher plays the part with such heartfelt pathos that Lila's impossible to root against.