There’s something about the bathroom that gets Hollywood all hyped up! Some of the scariest movies of all time have featured scenes shot in a bathroom. From Jack Nicholson's famous "Here's Johnny!" scene in The Shining to Teen Wolf’s first change in front of the bathroom mirror and Freddy Krueger coming out of bath water in A Nightmare on Elm Street, there's a whole lot of freaky bathroom cinema out there.
In the spirit of Halloween, we looked at the YouTube views for a selection of the weirdest and scariest bathroom scenes to rank a top 10 list of the freakiest just in time for the spooky season. Using data from the Rotten Tomatoes Movie Clips channel, here’s what you guys have viewed the most over the years.
1. Here’s Johnny! bathroom scene | 25 million views
The Shining (1980)
Taking the top spot is arguably one of the most famous scenes in cinematic history from Stanley Kubrick’s masterpiece, The Shining. Most of you will have seen the film and will be familiar with this particularly freaky scene and the many others in the film.
In short, the storyline is centred around Jack Nicholson’s character, Jack, losing his mind at a secluded hotel where he is staying with his wife, Wendy and son, Danny. In this particular scene, Jack has chased Wendy into the bathroom, where she is unable to escape through the window, and is breaking down the door with an axe. The line “Here’s Johnny!” is a reference to Ed McMahon's catchphrase on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson.
2. Nancy falling asleep in the bath | 7.1 million views
A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
The second most watched bathroom clip comes from the first (and probably the best) instalment of the Freddy Krueger franchise - A Nightmare on Elm Street. The film was first released in 1984 and remade again in 2010 and both versions feature this spine-tingling scene.
A Nightmare on Elm Street, which sparked controversy in the 80s for being just too scary, follows the life of Nancy and her friends who are being pursued by a knife-clawed villain called Freddy Krueger, but only in their dreams. Nancy, desperately trying to stay awake for fear of what will happen, falls asleep while taking a bath and well you can guess who she meets!
3. That shower scene | 6.8 million views
Psycho (1960)
This is probably going to be the film most people will think about when it comes to scenes shot in the bathroom. Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho, released in 1960, features a shower scene that’s gone down in history and even now 60 years later people still can’t get enough!
Psycho is the story of Marion who pulls off-the-beaten-track into the Bates Motel to rest her head after a weary journey escaping her mundane life. Unbeknownst to her she is about to encounter a young man called Norman and his dominating, knife-wielding psychopath mother, and all while she is at her most vulnerable - in the shower!
4. Gruesome double shower slaying | 4.5 million views
Friday the 13th: Final Chapter (1984)
1984 was a big year for scary movies. Also released this year was the final instalment in the original Friday 13th franchise aptly named, Final Chapter. It features this gruesome double shower slaying - possibly the bloodiest and most shocking in all the Friday 13th movies of the time.
For those who are not aware, Jason, who is the main character of the Friday 13th movies, is out for revenge after he drowned in a lake while at summer camp as a young boy. He comes back to the lake - Crystal Lake - time and time again to haunt and kill his victims. In this movie, he terrorises a group of friends staying in a house near to the lake. The scene is quite intense so proceed with caution!
5. Scott’s first werewolf change | 2.9 million views
Teen Wolf (1985)
Completing the top five is this scene from Rod Daniel’s 1985 blockbuster, Teen Wolf starring Michael J Fox in his heyday. The scene is less gory but more fascinating as we watch his weird transformation take place with pretty spectacular special effects for its time.
Teen Wolf is a film about a regular High School kid called Scott (Fox) who discovers a dark family secret. Feeling strange one afternoon, he confines himself to the bathroom where he proceeds to watch himself change into a werewolf for the very first time. An act he finds is a regular pattern for his father too.
6. Evelyn in the bathtub | 2 million views
A Quiet Place (2018)
When A Quiet Place, directed by John Krasinski, was released in 2018, I don’t think any of us were quite ready for it. Ninety minutes of suspense, terror and trauma is probably the only way to describe it, and when you get to the bathtub scene with Emily Blunt’s character Evelyn, you’ll be sitting on the edge of your seat, hiding behind a cushion and biting your nails all at the same time.
The story is about a dystopian world where creatures hunt humans and the only way to survive is to stay quiet. Evelyn is pregnant and goes into labour choosing to sit in the bathtub as the first contractions take place all while being hunted and having to stay quiet.
7. Robot zombies invade the pub bathroom | 2.1 million views
The World’s End (2013)
Next on the list is this very weird but wonderful film from Simon Pegg and Nick Frost’s vault and directed by Edgar Wright. The scene that viewers can’t get enough of is set inside the bathroom of a local pub, The World’s End and has so far amassed more than two million views.
Five friends reconnect 20 years later to embark on a pub crawl in their hometown. They begin to realise that things have changed and before long they find themselves in the bathroom of a pub fighting for their lives against robot-like zombies with blue blood. It’s a lengthy ‘brawl’ with these supernatural beings that just won’t die.
8. The end scene | 1.1 million views
Fatal Attraction (1987)
Fatal Attraction was hailed as one of the best films of its time picking up a number of awards, including Best Actress for Glenn Close and Best Picture at the 1988 Oscars. The final showdown takes place in the bathroom and it’s as chilling now as it was 40 years ago!
Dan, played by Michael Douglas, has a one night stand with Alex (Close) while his wife and daughter are away. Alex then begins to stalk Dan and it takes a sinister turn. In the final scene, after months of terror, Dan and his wife, Anne get into a fight with Alex in their master bathroom. After a struggle, Alex drowns in the bathtub but famously comes back for one last attempt to take Dan for herself! It’s the original jump scare at its finest.
9. The bath water reveals Samara | 1 million views
The Ring 2 (2005)
This American remake of the Japanese horror series sees Naomi Watts battle it out against an evil ghost child. The second instalment released in 2005 features an incredible scene with a CGI water sequence that forever sticks in the mind.
In this sequel, the story is back with Rachel (Watts) and her family as she tries to save her son from the threat of the ghost child, Samara Morgan. In the thick of the terror, Rachel finds water pouring from her bathroom door. On entering the bathroom, she finds the bath is full but water is receding out of the bath, floating in the air and covering the ceiling. She has to save her son from the bath before realising it’s not him after all…
10. Ghoulie in the toilet | 105k views
Ghoulies 2 (1987)
Completing the top 10 is one film that changed the way millions would use the bathroom for life! Hands up if you still check the toilet before sitting down… As if one Ghoulie film wasn’t enough, the sequel which was released three years later and directed by Albert Band took it to a whole new level!
The Ghoulies are back and this time terrorising everyone at an amusement park killing all who dare to mock or threaten them. In this particularly horrifying scene, a Ghoulie is hiding in the toilet when an unsuspecting man sits down and well, you’ve probably guessed what comes next!
Hopefully you made it to the end of this blog without getting scared off... I'm off to watch Paddington in Peru!
