The horror genre has never been kind to women, and for many years, it was even tougher on black women. When they were represented, it was in predictable corners of the genre: sidekick, first victim, mystical diva whose magic was solely for the use of a white hero on a heroic journey. Front-and-center characters? Inner lives? The opportunity to be complicated, frightening, or human? Not so much.
Fortunately, the horror genre has undergone a transformation. Over the years, black women have slowly claimed their position as main characters, heroes, villains, witches, survivors, or monsters on their own accord. If you have been observing the genre, you would notice the shift. In order to commemorate this, we will begin our list of the most iconic black women of horror TV shows and movies by counting down ten of them, from the bottom up, to build up the suspense, just as horror is all about!
10. Skye P. Marshall as Mambo Marie (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina)
Skye P. Marshall’s Mambo Marie injected Sabrina with something she desperately needed: cultural specificity and spiritual depth rooted outside of European witchcraft traditions. A Haitian mambo, she challenged the show’s rigid, patriarchal magical hierarchy and called out the biases baked into Greendale’s coven system. More than just visually striking, Marie’s influence helped Prudence embrace her own power and encouraged Roz to better understand her prophetic gifts. She wasn’t decoration, she was disruption.
9. Loretta Devine as Eloise (Spell)
Loretta Devine really shines when it comes to characters who seem warm right until they very much are not, and Spell puts that talent to use for some seriously chilling stuff. Eloise introduces herself as a nurturing Southern matriarch, but beneath all the smiles lies a ruthless enforcer touting folk magic, a few handmade effigies, and a whole lot of control. Devine makes Eloise terrifying without ever falling into caricature, proving that horror villains don’t have to be loud to be lethal.
8. Kat Graham as Bonnie Bennett (The Vampire Diaries)
Bonnie Bennett was the emotional and supernatural glue that held The Vampire Diaries together, even when the show refused to fully acknowledge it. Part of a long line of very powerful witches, Bonnie continuously put her safety, happiness, and even her life in jeopardy for saving her friends, many times at the highest of costs, first and foremost, personally. Despite inconsistent writing, Kat Graham imbued Bonnie with resilience, compassion, and quiet strength. Fans know the truth: The Bennett witches could’ve carried the entire series.
7. Bianca Lawson as Kendra (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)
Kendra made history when she arrived on Buffy. A ’90s genre show didn’t just get refreshed with a Black Slayer; it was groundbreaking. Bianca Lawson played Kendra as disciplined, earnest, and deeply committed to her calling. Though the character’s time was brief, her presence expanded the mythology and proved that the Slayer lineage isn’t limited to one look or background. Kendra mattered, even if the show didn’t give her the longevity she deserved.
6. Jurnee Smollett as Letitia Lewis (Lovecraft Country)
Leti Lewis was the heart of Lovecraft Country. She was fearless and uncompromising, yet loving and often reckless. She tackled both the supernatural monsters that lurked in her life and the reality of racism with the same direct intention. This was a character that required a sense of raw power from the actor playing her. That was precisely the quality that Jurnee Smollett brought to the role.
5. Octavia Spencer as Sue Ann Ellington (Ma)
With Ma, Octavia Spencer turned expectations on their head with glee. From an awkward, isolated woman needing a loving connection to something far darker, Spencer mixes horror with enough comedy to not go overboard, making Sue Ann both pitiable and terrifying. The result: a villain who instantly became an icon, memeable for eternity, and arrived at a time when Black women proved their horror chops in a way that refused to be boxed in.
4. Lupita Nyong’o (Us and Little Monsters)
Lupita Nyong’o has already established herself as one of the most interesting actors of her peer group, and her career in horror is further proof of that. In Us, she gave a phenomenal dual performance, moving effortlessly between the character of Adelaide and the chilling Red. Little Monsters saw her exude warmth and strength during a zombie apocalypse, fighting off hordes for the sake of protecting children. Whatever the genre may be, Nyong’o’s presence is undeniable on the big screen.
3. Deborah Ayorinde (THEM: The Scare)
Deborah Ayorinde is still making her way into the world of horror with a series of roles that address trauma directly. In THEM: The Scare, Ayorinde reprises her role as a homicide detective with the LAPD as she investigates a crime that escalates into something far more sinister than she could have imagined. Deborah Ayorinde brings a measure of depth to the horror genre, which frequently focuses on excess.
2. Rachel True as Rochelle (The Craft)
The Craft has one hero and heroines that are its emotional center and, in the eyes of a lot of black horror fans, the standard against which all other black witches must be judged: Rochelle. Rachel True brought a quiet strength and sensitivity to the part of Rochelle, a young woman struggling to fit in while being subjected to racism in her own coven. Today, the pertinent thing about Rochelle is the ability to survive and thrive in a threatening environment while maintaining one’s power.
1. Regina Hall (Master and Support the Girls)
Regina Hall is truly versatile. Though many love her as a comedian, her serious horror-adjacent roles demonstrate her strength as an actress. Hall stars as Gail Bishop in Master. Gail Bishop is a queer black woman dealing with racism and far more sinister tricks lurking in the halls. Hall brings Gail depth and subtlety, and is a testament to the fact that horror isn’t always loud and that it can simmer.
This leads me to the concept of the scream gap. In the horror genre, screaming has long served as a visible release of fear and trauma. However, Black women have long been denied this release and have instead had to be strong, positive, and/or silent supporters as others fall apart. With the increasing presence of Black women behind and in front of the lens, this constraint on the genre is finally starting to crack.