‘You’re Next’ Serves Up One of Horror’s Strongest Final Girls [The Lady Killers Podcast]

“Listen, I’m sorry things got so out of control. But, uh, how were we supposed to know that you were, um, really good at killing people?”

The final days of November plunge us into a strange liminal space where the leaves have mostly fallen from the trees, but the first snowfall may be weeks away. Mariah Carey has yet to descend with her aggressive brand of seasonal cheer, but Halloween seems like a distant memory. Nestled in the middle of these well-defined seasons is Thanksgiving, a day reserved for gathering around the table with family and reconnecting over plates of delicious food. Though many celebrate this day with cherished family traditions, others experience a time of stressful reunions and awkward conversation. But no matter how awful our own Thanksgiving celebrations were, they likely won’t compare to the hell that unfolds as the Davisons gather for a family dinner in Adam Wingard’s mumblegore classic You’re Next. 

Erin (Sharni Vinson) is excited to meet her boyfriend’s family for the first time. We first meet this fan-favorite character while driving with Crispian (AJ Bowen) out to his father’s rambling vacation estate to join his siblings in celebrating their parents’ 35th anniversary. They’ve just sat down to an extravagant dinner, when an arrow crashes through the dining room window and into the forehead of one of the guests. The frightened family panics as a trio of masked assassins descend on the house with booby traps, crossbows, and macetes, intent on picking off the Davisons one by one. Thankfully Erin grew up in a survivalist camp and knows how to defend herself against these home invaders, but she may be no match for a more sinister threat lurking within the wealthy family. 

In the latest episode of Bloody FM’s The Lady Killers Podcast, co-hosts Jenn Adams, Sammie Kuykendall, Rocco Thompson, and Mae Shults discuss the skeletons (and assassins) hiding in the closets of this dysfunctional clan while celebrating one of the genre’s strongest final girls. Is it actually weird that Erin knows how to defend herself? Why does everyone dismiss Aubrey (Barbara Crampton)? Is Zee (Wendy Glenn) a perfect fit for this devious family and can all blenders be used as tools of murder? They’ll answer these questions and more while sorting through the leftovers of this cult classic film.

Stream below and subscribe now via Apple Podcasts and Spotify for future episodes that drop every Thursday.

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