!Super 8

[[foldercontrol]]

!The Film Crew

[[folder:Joe]]
!!Joseph 'Joe' Lamb
->'''Played By:''' Creator/JoelCourtney

* BadassPacifist: Joe gets the alien to leave Earth just by using empathy.
%%* BadBadActing
* CallingTheOldManOut: Calls out his dad for making him stay away from Alice without getting to know her.
* CharacterDevelopment: Becomes more assertive and finally accepts his mother's death.
* {{Determinator}}: Nothing stopped Joe from going to rescue Alice from the alien.
%%* DoggedNiceGuy
%%* TheHero
%%* MissingMom: She died prior to the film and her loss has had a deeply effect on him.
* NiceGuy: The most mature and well-mannered of his friends.
* ParentalNeglect: Joe's father can't wait to shovel him off to a camp for the summer. He's terrified of being left alone with Joe.
* TookALevelInBadass: Part of his {{character development}} has him letting people walk all over to standing up for himself and others. Also, he entered a flesh-eating alien's lair, something that Joe probably wouldn't do in the beginning.
* TragicKeepsake: His mom's locket.
* WouldHitAGirl: But hesitantly and only because it was the only way to wake her up [[spoiler:so that they could run for their lives]].
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Alice]]
!!Alice Dainard
->'''Played By:''' Creator/ElleFanning

* AbusiveParents: Of the neglectful, alcoholic kind, though her father does care about her.
* DamselInDistress: Gets kidnapped by the alien near the end.
%%* DefrostingIceQueen
%%* HiddenHeartOfGold: To deal with her abusive father and the guilt she feels for his indirect role in the death of Joe's mother.
* LovableAlphaBitch: She's snarky, blunt, and quite popular if the boys' opinion of her is anything to go by. But she's not actually a bad person, being friendly to Joe in particular and agreeing to play in Charles's film even though she's got no real reason to.
* MissingMom: Alice's mother left them at some point.
%%* ParentalNeglect
* SinsOfOurFathers: Jack Lamb doesn't like Joe being with her because she is the daughter of the drunken idiot who got Mrs. Lamb killed.
%%* SixthRanger
* TheSmurfettePrinciple: The only girl in the main cast.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Charles]]
!!Charles Kaznyk
->'''Played By:''' Creator/RileyGriffiths

* BigEater: Mocked by Cary.
--> '''Cary:''' Excuse me, can I have another order of fries? Because my friend here is fat.
* TheBigGuy
* ControlFreak: He takes the production of his film VERY seriously.
* DeadpanSnarker
* HotBlooded: He's somewhat abrasive and short-tempered.
* IJustWantToBeLoved: Part of the reason he takes his budding film career so seriously is that he's self-aware enough about how fat and ugly he is that he knows he needs to do something impressive with his life if Alice or any other girl is ever going to like him.
* InsufferableGenius
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He and Joe's friendship is strained through the movie, with Charles mostly the aggressor, but he ''does'' care for Joe. At the climax of the movie, when the group have to split up, Charles's immediate concern is whether Joe will be alright without him. He also tries to calm Dr. Woodward after the train crash, at first believing it to be an accident.
* LargeHam: "GOD, MOM, I'M COMING!"
* PrimaDonnaDirector
* SirSwearsALot
* VitriolicBestBuds: With everyone, but especially Cary.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Cary]]
!!Cary
->'''Played By:''' Creator/RyanLee

* AxCrazy: A heroic example.
* BracesOfOrthodonticOverkill: Charles even calls him Chompers during an argument.
* EverythingIsBetterWithExplosions: The script even makes a note that "this kid enjoyed the crash."
* {{Keet}}: He's pretty hyperactive and easily excitable.
* PyroManiac: Has a fixation with fireworks and has taken them apart to make his own.
* MadBomber
* MaliciousMisnaming: Calls Martin Smartin, despite Martin telling him he doesn't like being called that.
* SirSwearsALot
* TagalongKid: He's the only one out of all of Joe's friends to enter the alien's lair with him to save Alice.
* VitriolicBestBuds: With Charles, but also with Martin and Preston.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Martin]]
!!Martin
->'''Played By:''' Creator/GabrielBasso

* ButtMonkey: Culminating in him breaking his leg in the climax.
* CowardlyLion
* DirtyCoward
* TheLancer
* NervousWreck: While all the boys are shaken after the train crash, Martin is most obviously freaking out. He vomits due to terror at least twice during the film.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Preston]]
!!Preston
->'''Played By:''' Creator/ZachMills

* DeadpanSnarker
* OutOfFocus: He is left behind while the rest of the group sneak back into town.
* TheSmartGuy
[[/folder]]

!Residents of Lillian, Ohio

[[folder:Jack]]
!!Jackson 'Jack' Lamb
->'''Played By:''' Creator/KyleChandler

* BerserkButton: The Dainards are this to him until the end of the film.
%%* DespairEventHorizon
%%* DressingAsTheEnemy
%%* FantasyForbiddingFather
* HerHeartWillGoOn: Heavily implied after he, in his own way, forgives Louis.
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: The "jerk" part comes from planning to send his son away because he didn't know how to talk to him and forbidding Joe from spending time with Alice because of her being the daughter of Louis. The "heart of gold" comes from him forgiving Louis and saving his son.
* MoralityChain: A non-villainous example. It seems Jack's wife was this for him to prevent him from being vindictive towards Louis even before the accident due to his bad reputation as the town drunk, however, after his wife died, Jack blames Louis for her death and becomes hostile towards him as a result, which even exceeds to Louis's family as well, such as his daughter Alice.
%%* PapaWolf
%%* NotSoStoic
* SupportingProtagonist: Some of Joe's and his friends' escapades are told from his viewpoint.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Louis]]
!!Louis Dainard
->'''Played By:''' Creator/RonEldard

* AbusiveParents: Of the neglectful kind.
* TheAlcoholic
* AlcoholicParent
* TheAtoner
* DespairEventHorizon
* HiddenHeartOfGold: Acts like an asshole mostly due to his wife abandoning him and Alice, as well his guilt over making Mrs. Lamb cover for him at work, which lead to her death.
* SurvivorGuilt: All Louis wanted to do was apologize to Jack for indirectly causing his wife's death.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Woodward]]
!!Dr. Thomas Woodward
->'''Played By:''' Creator/GlynnTurman

* TheAtoner: For his part in experimenting on the alien.
* BadassTeacher
* ButtMonkey: He's never seen in a single normal situation. He's always being grabbed, or hurt, or tortured...
** Except when he frees the alien from the train.
* DefiantToTheEnd: [[spoiler:Tells Nelec exactly what he thinks of him.]]
* HiddenHeartOfGold: He maintained a cover as a SternTeacher at the town's middle school, while he works out a plan to free the alien.
* NotQuiteDead
* PsychicLink
* ReassignedToAntarctica
* SternTeacher: Gained an infamous reputation as this to a point students thought he was a SadistTeacher.
* YouHaveOutlivedYourUsefulness
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Pruitt]]
!!Sheriff Pruitt
->'''Played By:''' Creator/BrettRice

* BackForTheDead
* ItWillNeverCatchOn: Sort of. He's disdainful of portable music because he thinks it's a 'slippery slope'. [[spoiler:Indeed, the guy he chides for it fails to overhear Pruitt being attacked.]]
* KilledMidSentence
* MauveShirt
* TheSheriff: Of Lillian.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Donny]]
!!Donny
->'''Played By:''' Creator/DavidGallagher

* ChekhovsGunman: His first scene establishes his crush on Jen, which Joe then uses to convince him to drive her brother and his friends back to town to save Alice.
* DeadpanSnarker
* JerkWithAHeartOfGold: He actually treats the kids pretty respectfully and even shows some concern, despite being massively stoned at the time, when they all disappear on him after he passes out in the car.
* PrecisionFStrike
* TheStoner: He's the town's local pot dealer, and is more often high than not.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:The Kaznyks]]
!!Mr & Mrs Kaznyk
->'''Played By:''' Creator/JoelMcKinnonMiller & Creator/JessicaTuck

* GoodParents: Undoubtedly the best example in the film.
* HappilyMarried: They're never seen arguing, and seem like a team when it comes to dealing with their many kids.
* [[NiceGuy Nice Guy and Girl]]: They never say anything bad about anyone and are consistently kind and caring.
* ParentalSubstitute: They make it clear they're fully prepared to be there for Joe.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Jen]]
!!Jen Kaznyk
->'''Played By:''' Creator/AmandaMichalka

* BrattyTeenageDaughter: Hates her babysitting job and wishes she could leave it and go to parties.
%%* MsFanservice: Due to her role.
[[/folder]]

!The Air Force

[[folder:Nelec]]
!!Colonel Nelec
->'''Played By:''' Creator/NoahEmmerich

* AssholeVictim
* BadBoss: [[spoiler:He murders his former employee Dr Woodward in cold blood, and sends his [[TheDragon Dragon]] into a practically suicidal situation.]]
* BigBad: Nelec is the true villain of the story; all the horrible events that plague Lillian can be traced back to his initial actions.
* DirtyCoward: [[spoiler:He sends his own men up against the alien basically to serve as canaries down the mine, and when he's confronted he tries to escape by opening the cage he kept the kids in. Subverted in a personal KnowWhereToFoldEm, but DefiantToTheEnd moment when he chooses to FaceDeathWithDignity when he runs out of ammo. Also, his attempt to open the cage could be a PapaWolf PetTheDog to free the kids from his captivity so they could all escape from the alien's wrath.]]
* ExactWords: He gently promises he will 'take care' of Woodward...but Woodward knows what that means.
* KarmicDeath: [[spoiler:Ripped apart by the alien he brutally tortured.]]
* JustDesserts: [[spoiler:He's killed and eaten by the alien.]]
* SociopathicSoldier
* TheStoic
* TortureTechnician: [[spoiler:He was responsible for torturing the alien, and also tortured Woodward for info.]]
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Overmeyer]]
!!Master Sergeant Overmeyer
->'''Played By:''' Creator/RichardTJones

* TheDragon: To Colonel Nelec.
* KilledMidSentence: [[spoiler:He's ripped out of the bus by the Alien as he's trying to clarify an order from Nelec.]]
* PunchClockVillain: He's following orders, and otherwise doesn't seem like all that bad a guy with the exception of his KickTheDog moment when he confiscates Joe's TragicKeepsake and places in his uniform's breast pocket as though he now makes it his property after catching him and his friends at their middle school outside of the town's quarantine zone.
* OhCrap: [[spoiler:He understandably looks terrified when Nelec orders him to tag the creature.]]
[[/folder]]

!Other Characters

[[folder:Cooper]]
!!The Alien/'Cooper'
->'''Played By:''' Creator/BruceGreenwood

* BeingTorturedMakesYouEvil: [[spoiler:When he first crashed, all he wanted was to go back to his planet. Nelec and the military subjected him to cruel experiments and inhumane conditions amounting to torture. Angry and in agony, he kills humans freely after escaping.]]
* BigEater: Of humans.
* BizarreAlienBiology
* CapturedSuperEntity
* GeniusBruiser
* ImAHumanitarian: Humans become his source of food.
* ImmuneToBullets: The combined might of the Air Force doesn't impact him much. [[spoiler:Nelec unloads an entire magazine into his face and it doesn't slow him down.]]
* ItCanThink
* NoNameGiven: We never learn his true name, or the name of his race.
* PsychicLink: With whoever he touches, seemingly by choice.
* TunnelKing: He gets about by tunneling underneath the town, able to come and go as he wishes.
* WoobieDestroyerOfWorlds: Yes, he goes on a deadly rampage and kills multiple people, but he's only doing so [[spoiler:because the military have captured and experimented on him for years. All he really wants to do is get home]].
[[/folder]]