Published Jul 5, 2026, 11:50 AM EDT
Padraig is a Senior Features Writer and has been part of Screen Rant since 2017. Padraig is a writer, editor and retired Game of Thrones extra who has been writing about movies and TV online for over a decade. He has also written for The Irish Times, Den Of Geek, Little White Lies and many more. It's pronounced Paw-rick, BTW.
30 years ago, a failed sci-fi blockbuster ended the creative partnership of Kurt Russell and John Carpenter. A look at Kurt Russell's movie CV reveals one clear fact: John Carpenter directed some of his greatest films. After years of being typecast as a Disney kid, it was Carpenter's Escape from New York that saw Russell make the leap to leading man status.
This 1981 actioner also gifted Russell with his most iconic role, that of one-eyed outlaw Snake Plissken. Carpenter and Russell actually met on a TV movie about Elvis Presley, with the latter being praised for his uncanny portrayal of the King of Rock and Roll; this TV film also began a bizarre recurring trend of Kurt Russell playing Elvis.
Other Kurt Russell and John Carpenter movies include 1982's The Thing and Big Trouble in Little China. Despite both movies being hailed as classics now, they were financial bombs upon release and met with poor reviews. Regardless of box office results, the duo consistently rank amongst Robert De Niro and Martin Scorsese, or Quentin Tarantino and Samuel L. Jackson, as an all-time great actor/director pairing.
The Ultimate · Horror Quote Challenge Name That Horror Movie “They’re coming to get you, Barbara.”
☠1960s
🔪1970s
👻1980s
💀1990s
🎭2000s
ENTER IF YOU DARE →
01
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“I am your number one fan.”
ASingle White Female (1992) BCape Fear (1991) CMisery (1990) DFatal Attraction (1987)
✓ Correct! Annie Wilkes’s obsessive declaration to author Paul Sheldon in Misery — Kathy Bates won the Oscar for this role.
✗ Not quite — it’s Misery (1990). Kathy Bates as Annie Wilkes delivers this line before things get very, very painful for her favorite author.
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02
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“We all go a little mad sometimes.”
APeeping Tom (1960) BThe Birds (1963) CWhatever Happened to Baby Jane? (1962) DPsycho (1960)
✓ Correct! Norman Bates’s unsettling confession in Hitchcock’s Psycho — the film that invented the slasher.
✗ Not quite — it’s Psycho (1960). Norman Bates delivers this chilling line to Marion Crane before the shower scene changes cinema forever.
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03
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“Here’s Johnny!”
AThe Amityville Horror (1979) BPoltergeist (1982) CThe Changeling (1980) DThe Shining (1980)
✓ Correct! Jack Nicholson’s terrifying ad-lib as he axes through the bathroom door in The Shining.
✗ Not quite — it’s The Shining (1980). Nicholson improvised this line while hacking through the door — Kubrick kept the cameras rolling.
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04
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“They’re all gonna laugh at you!”
ACarrie (1976) BThe Exorcist (1973) CThe Omen (1976) DSuspiria (1977)
✓ Correct! Margaret White’s cruel warning to her daughter before prom night turns deadly in Carrie.
✗ Not quite — it’s Carrie (1976). Piper Laurie as Margaret White torments her telekinetic daughter with this prophetic warning.
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05
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“One, two, Freddy’s coming for you.”
AFriday the 13th (1980) BChild’s Play (1988) CHellraiser (1987) DA Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)
✓ Correct! The eerie children’s jump-rope rhyme that haunts the dreams of Elm Street.
✗ Not quite — it’s A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984). The nursery rhyme warning of Freddy Krueger’s arrival. All five are iconic slashers, but only one invades your dreams.
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06
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“I want to play a game.”
AHostel (2005) BSaw (2004) CThe Collector (2009) DCube (1997)
✓ Correct! Jigsaw’s signature greeting, delivered through his puppet Billy in Saw.
✗ Not quite — it’s Saw (2004). The Jigsaw Killer’s chilling invitation before his victims face impossible choices.
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07
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“It was the boogeyman.”
ABlack Christmas (1974) BThe Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) CHalloween (1978) DWhen a Stranger Calls (1979)
✓ Correct! Laurie Strode’s terrified whisper to Dr. Loomis after surviving Michael Myers in Halloween.
✗ Not quite — it’s Halloween (1978). Laurie Strode whispers this to Dr. Loomis, who replies: “As a matter of fact, it was.”
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08
Which horror movie features this iconic line?
“It rubs the lotion on its skin or else it gets the hose again.”
ASe7en (1995) BAmerican Psycho (2000) CRed Dragon (2002) DThe Silence of the Lambs (1991)
✓ Correct! Buffalo Bill’s skin-crawling command to his captive in The Silence of the Lambs.
✗ Not quite — it’s The Silence of the Lambs (1991). Buffalo Bill delivers this disturbing line from his basement. All five films feature serial killers, but only one has this scene.
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During the 1980s, Carpenter and Russell created three defining works together, with each straddling a different genre. It also speaks to Russell's talent as a performer that he plays three very different characters in all of them. Despite remaining good pals, Russell and Carpenter haven't worked together since their biggest dud in 1996.
Escape From L.A. Is Kurt Russell & John Carpenter's Last Movie Together
They reunited once more for Escape from L.A., a belated sequel to their 1981 hit. The movie is less a sequel than a full-on remake, where Plissken is once again forced to break into a hellish prison; in this case, it's Los Angeles after an earthquake broke the city away from the mainland.
Escape from L.A. has developed a fanbase in the last three decades, and Carpenter himself has claimed he likes it more than the original. That said, it's a deeply flawed sequel. It plays like a straight-faced parody of action blockbusters, but it's never especially funny or thrilling. It also features some of the worst CGI ever committed to film, including a surfing sequence that sears itself onto the brain with how bad it looks.
That said, there is fun to be had. Russell still rocks as Snake - even if the story regularly humiliates the character - and the final ten minutes absolutely nail Snake's nihilistic persona. The sequel itself was made at Russell's insistence, since he loved the character so much and was coming off the back of several hits like Stargate.
If Escape from L.A. had been a success, Carpenter and Russell planned a trilogy capper dubbed Escape from Earth.
In Russell's mind, he was running out of time to play Plissken convincingly, and wanted to work with Carpenter and producer Debra Hill once again. Sadly, Escape from L.A. was a total loss, grossing around half its reported $50 million budget (via Box Office Mojo) and gaining downright nasty reviews.
There's Still Time For One Last John Carpenter & Kurt Russell Collaboration
Cut to 2026, and it feels like Russell is busy as he ever was. He plays a leading role on the Monsterverse series Monarch: Legacy of Monsters, and recently appeared in Taylor Sheridan's The Madison. Carpenter essentially retired following 2001's Ghosts of Mars, though he's occasionally stepped back behind the camera in the years since, in addition to becoming a music artist.
While it's been decades since they worked together, it's not out of the question that Russell and Carpenter could collaborate one final time. Carpenter has insisted he is still open to directing, but it would need to be a project with a strong script and a decent budget. Given that the director is a noted Godzilla fan, it's surprising nobody involved with Monarch has offered him an episode.
Fun as Escape from L.A. is, it's easily the weakest of the Kurt Russell/John Carpenter run. While another Snake Plissken adventure is (likely) out of the question, it feels like the pair could conjure one last great project to wrap up their creative partnership with.
Source: Box Office Mojo
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Birthdate March 17, 1951
Birthplace Springfield, Massachusetts, USA
Height 5 feet 11 inches
Notable Projects What If...?, Fast and Furious 7
English (US) ·