It’s a tale as old as time: Horny teenagers in a horror movie getting hacked to pieces by a masked madman with a big ass weapon. Unless it’s meta commentary or a winking subversion, most slashers more or less follow this formula. It’s part of what we love about them—there’s a campy comfort in knowing what’s coming.

But love them though we may, it’s worth noting how the genre reserves special disdain for women, especially the ones who defy norms. If they love sex or exist on the fringes of society or challenge the patriarchy in any way, they’re fit for damnation. Or, as is the case for the female characters on this list, they’re perfect models for feminist heroism. Because in horror, sometimes the bad girls burn brighter.

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