Scream Queen
A prominent actress in the horror film genre
Example
Jamie Lee Curtis is the ultimate scream queen, right?
Probs. The longevity of Laurie is amazing and she has a fantastic scream
Scream queen definition by Slang.net
This page explains what the slang term "Scream queen" means. The definition, example, and related terms listed above have been written and compiled by the Slang.net team.
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A scream queen is an actress that fans and critics of horror films revered as an integral influence in the genre. The scream queen may have earned her reputation from the number of horror films she appeared in or the quality of her performance(s).
Often, horror films focus on terrorizing young and attractive females, creating the final girl trope. The final girls may become scream queens, forever living on in fans' memories.
Notable scream queens include:
Origin of scream queen
The slang term "scream queen" originated in the 1930s as a play on the "Screen Queen" label when the press referred to Fay Wray's performance as Ann Darrow in King Kong (1933). Since then, people have applied the label to women with a healthy set of lungs (for screaming), attractiveness, and acting chops who have starred in notable horror films.
Movie critics and cinephiles typically use the term. However, Ryan Murphy made it even more mainstream when he created the comedic Scream Queens TV show, which aired from 2015 to 2017. The male version of scream queen is "scream king."