Jordan Peele Nerds Out on Horror, Shares Some of His Favorites and Assembles His Horror “Avengers”

Over the last few years Jordan Peele has made quite the name for himself in the horror world. While he was previously best known as a comic, his love for the horror genre shines through in his 2017 film Get Out, his upcoming film Us, and his upcoming reboot of “The Twilight Zone. ” In a recent interview with The Wall Steet Journal, Peele dives deeper into his love of horror as part of their “Nerding Out” series and here’s what we learned.

Peele Isn’t Afraid of Jason

In the opening of the interview Peele reveals that Jason Voorhees isn’t scary to him, instead Peel reveals he is more afraid of the “spindly dudes.” Sorry Kane Hodder!

Peele’s First Horror Film Memory is of David Cronenberg’s The Fly

In the interview, Peele reveals that the 1986 film The Fly was the first horror film that really got to him. “So scary, so inappropriate for how old I was, and yet I was able to watch it and understand it and by the end, I felt less scared,” said Peele, adding that The Fly really showed him the power of a horror movie.

The Theme to A Nightmare On Elm Street Is Peele’s Favorite Song From A Horror Movie Soundtrack

When asked about his favorite horror soundtrack, Peele chose the theme to A Nightmare On Elm Street. “It just gets me,” says Peele. “It’s so creepy.”

Critters Is His Favorite B Horror Movie

Timely in his response, Peele says his favorite B horror movie is the 1986 film Critters. Critters is seeing a bit of a renaissance at the moment with a new series debuting on Shudder on March 21st and a new film rumored to have just wrapped for SYFY.

Peele’s Avengers-style Crew of Villains Might Surprise You

When asked to assemble his list of an Avengers-style crew of horror villains, Peele didn’t got for the usual Jason, Freddy, Michael Myers, Leatherface, and Pinhead team we see so often in art and in toys. Instead, Peele got a bit more obscure and included a weapon from a film as well as an alien sandworm. Check out his list below:

• Freddy Krueger
• Candyman
• The Sentinal Sphere’s From Phantasm
• Chucky
• A Graboid from Tremors

Peele’s Favorite Final Girl Is Jada Pinkett Smith

Though her character dies almost immediately in Scream 2, Jadda Pinkett Smith outlived the rest of the cast in the 1995 film Tales From The Crypt: Demon Knight. Initiated as a key guardian at the end of the film, her character outwits the film’s villain, destroying him and ultimately becoming what many believe to be the first, black, final girl.

Peele’s Favorite Horror Performance Is In The Shining

When asked what his favorite horror movie performance was, Peele revealed that Shelley Duvall’s performance in The Shining is an “all-time touchstone horror movie performance.” “She did a perfect job of committing to the fear and from that brought the horror to the movie,” says Peele.

For more of Peele’s thoughts on the horror genre, check out the full interview below.