History Characters / TheCabinInTheWoods

* StrawNihilist: Becomes this in the end when he is unwilling to die to save the rest of the world. He knows he'll die anyway if the ritual isn't completed and the Ancient Ones are allowed to rise, but he's willing to drag the rest of the world down with him. He claims it'll be better for the world to "start over", but the Director has already explained that there will be nothing left to restart AfterTheEnd.

* ConsummateProfessional: Be it overseeing the day-to-day grind of appeasing the elder gods with ritual sacrifice or running like Hell to jury rig a remote tunnel collapse with two seconds to spare, Sitterson takes it all in stride.

* DirtyOldMan: He's a man old enough to be balding whose work includes following the SexSignalsDeath horror trope, so he willingly or unwillingly has to watch two youngsters having sexual intercourse. Not so unwillingly.

%%* DeadpanSnarker: She speaks Sitterson's and Hadley's mother language. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; a specific example please)

%%* AliensAreBastards: Right in the name. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; this trope only applies to aliens that are sapient and actively malicious, do we know that it is?)

%%* CombatTentacles: Its roots are used as this. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; how more specifically do they use the roots for combat?)

%%* MonsterClown: As pure an example as any. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample)
* ShoutOut: To ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. The costume/design used is the same one from Xander's nightmare from the first season.
%%** To ''Literature/{{It}}'' by Creator/StephenKing. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; how is it a shout-out to ''It'' specifically beyond just being a MonsterClown?)

* EyeScream: Closeups reveal that their eyes have been sewn shut.

%%* TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether: Similar to their source inspiration. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; examples should be able to stand on their own instead of referring to a different work, do we actually know ''these'' ones are family, or are we just making assumptions?)

* {{Expy}}: The director has revealed that he is inspired by ''Film/WeNeedToTalkAboutKevin'', being a normal-looking but dangerously violent young man named Kevin.
%%** He may also be this of Kevin from ''ComicBook/SinCity''. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample)
* NothingIsScarier: In the film, we don't know what he does. The novelization says he approaches a guard to "exsanguinate him in a second."
%%* StepfordSmiler (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample)

* ArtifactOfDoom: It's summoned, presumably to dig its teeth into its would-be victims like it ends up doing to Hadley, when someone blows the conch shell lying around in the cellar.

* MightyGlacier: Due to being an aquatic being, the merman is adapted to operate in the water and relies on ambush strategies to hunt its prey. Due to being on land at the time of the riot, the merman is only able to kill Hadley, who is disorientated by a grenade explosion and caught off-guard when the monster kills him.
* OurMermaidsAreDifferent: Sporting a huge fanged mouth, long tangled hair, webbed fingers, a fishtail, and a blowhole, the Merman seems only ''vaguely'' human at best. It is also carnivorous and resembles a blobfish after the fish has been taken out of its natural habitat.

%%* TheCameo: Joss Whedon just had to include another of his works! (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; this doesn't mean anything to a reader who doesn't know what the reavers are)

* OurWerewolvesAreDifferent: We never see it in its human form, for one thing. It's also a WolfMan-type biped.

* PowerFloats: Appear as floating wraiths.

* YourSoulIsMine: As seen in the Purge, the witches prefer to dispatch their victims by devouring their souls. According to the novel, this allows them to [[LifeDrinker rejuvenate themselves]].

* HorrorHunger: Given their mundane clothing, they are most likely the kind of zombie that's compelled to eat humans by a virus infecting it.

%%* ColdBloodedTorture: A fine pastime for the whole family, who do it in the name of the pain-centered ReligionOfEvil they follow. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; whom do they torture, and how?)

%%** Matthew Buckner's bear-trap attached to a chain. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; how is it inefficient?)

%%* GiantMook: Matthew. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample)

** Patience Buckner, she too in search of more victims, eventually finds her way down the ritual chamber and kills the Director with a hatchet to the head, before falling to her doom herself. This doesn't ''really'' fix anything, since her actions inadvertently save Marty, but essentially doom him and the rest of the world a few minutes later... but since Marty is TheHero and the Director is the BigBad, it rather feels like a fix.

%%* {{Patricide}}: Matthew murdered not only his father but also his brother and sister. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; in what context/for what reason?)
* ReligionOfEvil: They all follow "Great Pain", based around inflicting and suffering pain. Patience's diary mentions her brothers "proving their devotion" on some travellers, which, judging by what the family is like in death, probably involved torturing said travellers to death.

* ShoutOut: A similarly aggressive Native American spirit appeared in [[Recap/BuffyTheVampireSlayerS4E8Pangs in an episode of ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer.'']]

* {{Serial Killer}}s: It's not known if fire is their modus operandi or if they are more open-minded, but given that the whole point of their existence is going after the Organization's sacrifices to kill them, it's surely neither their first time nor their last casually burning people alive.

* BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor: All he wanted was to see a merman in messy action, not to be face smashed by him.

* WickedWitch: With even the regular EeriePaleSkinnedBrunette appearance.

* HorrorHunger: They eat humans, of course.

* ShoutOut: To ''Film/{{Nosferatu}}''.

* SmallRoleBigImpact: It's just another one of the released monsters but it randomly shows up just in time to stop Dana killing Marty and completing the ritual.

* EvilOldFolks: Up until they start eating people's souls.

* ArtifactOfDoom: The musical box -- but only if it was allowed to play to the end.
* ButterFace: Has the body of a ballerina, but her face is just a large lamprey's mouth.
* CreepyChild: What appears to be a ballerina, once a FaceRevealingTurn happens shows to have as its only facial feature a large mouth.

* FluffyTheTerrible: Does this name appear to be HumanoidAbomination?

* BewareTheSillyOnes: Who knew a gentle animal could be so bloodthirsty?
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Uses its horn for it.

* BaldOfEvil: Like their inspiration Count Orlok.
* LeanAndMean: Blood probably doesn't have too many calories.

* HazmatSuit: Most of the mutants wear these, minus the signiature helmets.
* InstitutionalApparel: The few who don't wear biohazard suits -- like the one Marty shoots -- wear hospital gowns and scrubs.

* TheCameo: Joss Whedon just had to include another of his works!

!![[ScaryScarecrows The Scarecrow Folk]]

* SerialKiller: Appears stabbing a guard.

* SerialKiller: And pretty one-notes ones given their name.

* LudicrousGibs: "Dude, be thankful. Those things are terrifying. And the cleanup on them's a nightmare." As shown with Hadley's death, the blood comes out of the blowhole.
* MightyGlacier: Due to being an aquatic being, the merman is adapted to operate in the water and relies on ambush strategies to hunt its prey. Due to being on land at the time of the riot, the merman is only able to kill Hadley, who was disorientated by a grenade explosion and caught off-guard when the monster killed him.
* OurMermaidsAreDifferent: Sporting a huge fanged mouth, long tangled hair, webbed fingers, a fishtail, and a blowhole, the Merman seems only ''vaguely'' human at best. It is also carnivorous and resembles a blobfish after the fish had been taken out of its natural habitat.

* ArtifactOfDoom: Apparently, a large chest of bottles and vials containing unknown substances, complete with an antique gas mask. At present, it's not known if the bottles had to be opened or the gas mask had to be worn (or both at once) in order to summon the mutants.
* BaldOfEvil: Some may consider it not one of the worst parts of their mutation.

* OurGhostsAreDifferent: The victims intended for the Japanese ritual ''somehow'' managed to fight back and [[SealedEvilInACan contain her spirit inside a happy frog]].
* StringyHairedGhostGirl: She is an ''onyro'' clearly inspired by Sadako from ''Film/TheRing''.

* AIIsACrapshoot: He ''is'' a KillerRobot.
* ArtifactOfDoom: He is summoned by a buzzsaw, hidden somewhere in the cellar.
* MechanicalMonster: The only explicitly artificial creature.
* ScaryScorpions: He's basically a SpiderTank made with another arachnid. And [[ChainsawGood saws]] in his limbs...
* YouWillNotEvadeMe: He launched grappling hooks at two guards and dragged them close and eviscerated them with his fast rotating buzzsaws.

* TerribleTrio: There are three Klansmen- two ones dressed in white and one in red. The red one is presumably the leader, as is accurate to how the Klan operate.

* AllOfTheOtherReindeer: Apparently, the Merman has never been chosen for the Ritual during Hadley's tenure.
* ArtifactOfDoom: A conch shell, which has to be blown in order to work.
* BrickJoke: After desiring to see a merman in action and expressing dismay that it wasn't chosen, Hadley finally comes face to face with it and becomes the merman's first and only victim during the riot.
* ADayInTheLimelight: During the [[MonsterMash Purge]], when it kills Hadley.
* GracefulInTheirElement: In its only scene, the Merman has great difficulty moving on dry land, and was only able to kill Hadley because he'd been knocked to the ground by an explosion. However, judging by the presence of a lake near the cabin, it presumably would have fared better there had it been chosen for the ritual.

* {{Serial Killer}}s: It's not known if fire is their modus operandi or if they are more open-minded, but it was surely neither their first time nor their last.
* ShoutOut: To ''Film/TheStrangers''.

!![[BatOutOfHell DragonBat]]

* GiantFlyer: As big as a human.

* ShoutOut: To ''Film/TheBirds''.

* ArtifactOfDoom: A puzzle, almost exactly identical to the Lament Configuration (except it's a sphere instead of a cube).
* BaldOfEvil: He might have bathed in acid.

* HellBentForLeather: The BDSM standard clothing;
* HumanoidAbomination: His love for receiving and giving pain has turned him into both a literal and a figurative abomination.

* TortureTechnician: "Bondage and pain", after all.

* MixAndMatchCritters: The giant snake has both a cobra's hood and a rattlesnake's rattle.

* FlayingAlive: How he kills his victims.
* MagicalNativeAmerican: One who likes to scalp.

* ArtifactOfDoom: The Film Reel, see NothingIsScarier below.
* {{Expy}}: He's seemingly inspired by ''Film/WeNeedToTalkAboutKevin'', and/or Kevin from ''ComicBook/SinCity''.
* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: Quite a presence, for someone who qualifies for this.

* SpecialPersonNormalName: His entire role revolves around this.
* StepfordSmiler: From WordOfGod.
* TheyLookJustLikeEveryoneElse: The novel describes him as "a quiet, normal-looking person with a small smile on his face".

!![[DeadlyDoctor The Doctors]]

* DeadlyDoctor: It is safe to say that the oath of Hippocrates is not their motto.
* DressedToHeal: Both of them are dressed in bloodstreaked hospital scrubs, aprons, surgical caps, and masks. Close examination reveals that these clothes have been crudely stitched onto their bodies.
* EvilDuo: They are united by their professional duties.

* MadDoctor: It's not established if the Doctors are motivated by [[ForScience scientific curiosity]], [[ObliviouslyEvil a misguided desire to help their victims]], or [[ForTheEvulz pure sadism]] -- it's not even certain if they have any real desires of their own. Whatever the case, regardless of what drives them, they are this trope from beginning to end.
* MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate: Healing is not their intent...

* ArtifactOfDoom: Appropriately, their artifact of choice is a porcelain mask.
* ColdBloodedTorture: Appear taping, binding and preparing to burn a guard.

* TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether: Similar to their source inspiration.
* MalevolentMaskedMen: To the point their intro is EmergingFromTheShadows focused on the masks.

* TheHyena: It may be a dark mockery of a real clown but it would be a mockery of a MonsterClown as well if it didn't chuckle non-stop as if it is programmed to do so.
* ImmuneToBullets: In the film, getting shot three times in the chest doesn't even slow him down; the novel features him easily shrugging off several shots to the face as well.
* MonsterClown: As pure an example as any.
* ShoutOut: To Literature/{{It}} by Creator/StephenKing. Also to ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. The costume/design used was the same one from Xander's nightmare from the first season.

* ShoutOut: And some time before the Evil Dead remake in that!

* PintsizedPowerhouse: They dismember people with their bare hands so it's safe to say that they are stronger than they look.
* SlasherSmile: [[http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/thecabininthewoods/images/5/56/Dismembermentgoblins.png/revision/latest/scale-to-width-down/480?cb=20121024131234 Just look!]]

* DangerTakesABackseat: While his children go about trying to break into the Cabin, Pa Buckner stows away in the back of the Rambler and waits until Holden and Dana try to escape in it.
* TheFamilyThatSlaysTogether: However they also slay together each other showing that such a family wouldn't last very long...unless they can return as putrid corpses through black magic.
* GiantMook: Matthew.
* TheHeavy: Collectively, due to their ArtifactOfDoom being the one activated. The surviving ones even do some things in the third act.

** Patience Buckner eventually finds her way down the ritual chamber and kills The Director with a hatchet to the head, before falling to her doom herself. This didn't ''really'' fix anything, since her actions inadvertently saved Marty, but essentially doomed him and the rest of the world a few minutes later... but since Marty is TheHero and The Director is the BigBad, it rather feels like a fix.
** Previously, Judah's cut hand [[HelpingHands grabs a soldier that came to finish off Marty]], foiling the Organization's first attempt at finishing the ritual.
* OurZombiesAreDifferent: They are a "Redneck Zombie Torture Family", incomparable to regular zombies as an elephant is to an elephant seal. Mostly they are {{Revenant Zombie}}s, clearly retaining their intelligence and motivated by the desire to torture and murder rather than some instinct to eat.

* ReligionOfEvil: The "Great Pain", based around inflicting and suffering pain.
* ToThePain: They practice a ''[[ReligionOfEvil religion]]'' based around pain.
* UndeadChild: Patience. Albeit one nearing adolescence.

* ArtifactOfDoom: WordOfGod states that the Fortune Teller Machine in the back of the cellar would have summoned the clown.
* GigglingVillain: All his dialogue is creepy laughter.

* ShoutOut: To ''Film/TheBlob1958''.

* TheCameo: They are explicitly the monsters from VideoGame/Left4Dead.

* AntagonisticOffspring: Matthew, who not only murdered his father but also his brother and sister.
* AnArmAndALeg: Patience had her arm cut off and [[IAmAHumanitarian eaten]] by her family, forcing her to write the rest of her diary (and wield a hatchet...) with her non-dominant arm.
* ApocalypticLog: Patience Buckner's diary, which is also an...
* ArtifactOfDoom: Specifically the Latin words at the end of the book.
* AxCrazy: Yup, it's a family trait and proud tradition to kill ForTheEvulz.
* BigScrewedUpFamily: Apart from the casual emotional abuse and sadomasochism meted out on a daily basis while they were alive, the Buckners eventually went from murdering travelers to mutilating and killing each other. In short order, Pa tortured Ma to death by cutting her belly open and filling it with hot coals; Matthew killed Judah; one of Patience' arms was cut off and fed to the rest of the family; Matthew killed Pa, specifically by mutilating his jaw; finally, he presumably killed Patience.
* CannibalClan: A possibility. They certainly didn't have any qualms about hacking off Patience's arm and eating it.
* ColdBloodedTorture: A fine pastime for the whole family.
* CoolButInefficient: Matthew Buckner's bear-trap attached to a chain. Ditto Ma Buckner's saw, which is most effective when the victim's being held down.
* CombatSadomasochist: All of 'em. Matthew is undoubtedly the worst, however: according to Patience, he is ''literally'' aroused by torture and self-mutilation -- to the point of getting "a husband's bulge."

* ShoutOut: To the original ''Film/TheEvilDead1981''.

* PsychopathicManchild: The Controllers have to do exactly what they want how they want it, and if they don't, they'll require lots of blood [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt or else they get it themselves.]]
* WalkingSpoiler: Moreso than any other character in the film, including the Controllers and even the Director, the very existence of the Ancient Ones is a major twist.

* AlwaysChaoticEvil: If they weren't, what could they be possibly doing there? Justified, for some, because if they weren't depraved they would not have become monsters.

* AxCrazy: The ones who [[WasOnceAMan used to be humans]] became this due to their character. Most sapient ones could qualify anyway though.
* BlueAndOrangeMorality: One possible motivation for what they do.
* EvilIsOneBigHappyFamily: [[DownplayedTrope Downplayed]]: there's no real communication between them, but after being released they all rampage through the facility they exclusively attack humans and are never seen fighting each other, even the more bestial ones.
* ForTheEvulz: Another possible motivation, one often encountered among the more humanoid creatures like the Dolls and the Suffocators.
* GreatEscape: From their point of view, ''this'' is what the movie is really about.
* KillAllHumans: They don't attack each other, only regular people.
* OurMonstersAreWeird: Those of them who don't represent classic horror archetypes, anyway.

* AlienBlood: Seems to bleed yellow as the attacking guard fights black.
* AliensAreBastards: Right in the name.

* CombatTentacles: Its roots are used as this.

* SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum: She throws one together with Marty by refusing to be a part of a HeroicSacrifice, having been so traumatized by the tortures they've been subjected to that they decide that humanity deserves to die at the hands of {{Eldritch Abomination}}s if it needs to keep practicing such cruel rituals to appease them in order to survive. It should be noted, though, that she does point a gun at Marty and has to be mangled by a werewolf to drop said gun (and we only have her word for it that she would not have shot him when she's bleeding out and about to die with Marty no matter what happens to the world).

->'''Played by''': Creator/AmyAcker

* DeadpanSnarker: She speaks Sitterson's and Hadley's mother language.

->'''Played by:''' Tim De Zarn

* ConsummateProfessional: He takes the job very seriously, staying in-character and speaking in flowery language even as he contacts the Organization to give updates on the group's movements. He only breaks character briefly in frustration over his co-workers ridiculing him for how seriously he takes his job.
* CreepyBlueEyes: He has piercing, bloodshot ice-blue eyes, which definitely helps him in selling his role to the group.
* CreepyGasStationAttendant: What he poses as, as a part of the ritual. But he also has the additional task of spying on the group and making sure they reach their destination.
* HarbingerOfImpendingDoom: "The Harbinger" is even his ''job title'', and it is the part of the ritual he is supposed to fulfill; the group of sacrifices is supposed to make the choice to go to their doom willingly, so his job is to give them a vague warning about strange and dangerous things happening around the cabin, which the youngsters are supposed to ignore because he just comes across as a somewhat unhinged, weird old man. Ironically, he also turns about to be the Harbinger for his co-workers, as he gravely warns them not to take their job too lightly, because they risk incurring the Ancient Ones' wrath by doing so, as well as of the fact that Marty is much smarter than he seems and could turn out to be a SpannerInTheWorks, but they just laugh at him and ignore his warnings. Mordecai turns out to be entirely correct about both things.
* PurpleProse: How he speaks when in-character, which he is most of the time due to him being a ConsummateProfessional. Sitterson and Hadley relentlessly make fun of and mock him for this.

* BlueAndOrangeMorality: They sleep until the ritual and they need some sacrifices and presumably milk and cookies before they go back to sleep.
* CreatureOfHabit: They demand the same scenario every time to be appeased. If they don't get it, [[TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt things go crazy.]]
* DevilButNoGod: It's doubtful that there are any Gods who are satisfied with a romantic comedy scenario.
* EldritchAbomination: All of them, whoever "they" are.

* HeWhoMustNotBeSeen: Except for a giant human-looking right arm at the end at the end of the movie, we have no idea what they look like.
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: They are pretty clearly a metaphor for the audience, especially of horror movies.
* MonstrousHumanoid: The only thing we see of them is a giant human right arm, much bigger than the titular cabin, with dark skin and [[VolcanicVeins veins reminiscent of lava.]]
* OutsideContextVillain: The Organization, Dana and Marty, and the audience either knew about them from the beginning or eventually learn about them before they strike, but to all the others who thwarted their own rituals, they defeated some unspeakable evil, only to be suddenly killed out of nowhere by some unmentioned {{Eldritch Abomination}}s.

* KillerGameMaster: Well, it's basically his job to ensure those people brought to the cabin die, so he will "write" a way for them to bite it.

* PunchClockVillain: Doesn't really have anything against the kids; he's only having them die at the hands of the organization's horrors because his company's trying to prevent the world's destruction.

* DeathByIrony: After spending the entire film wishing he could see a merman, Hadley is finally done in when a merman enters the control room and chews his face off. Hadley is pretty aware of the irony, too; his last words are "Oh, ''come on!"''
* InUniverseNickname: "Aquaman," used around betting time as a reference for Hadley's desire to see a merman in action.

* PoliticallyIncorrectVillain: Pretty vocal in his dislike of the Japanese.
* PunchClockVillain: As with majority of the other organization employees, he's only having the kids killed simply to stop the world from ending.

->'''Played by''': Brian White

* AudienceSurrogate: He feels lots of pity about the kids. Also, as a new recruit in security, he gets his answers responded about how the Organization works.
-->'''Daniel:''' Monsters, magic...
* CovertPervert: During Jules' sex scene, Truman can be seen making a few discreet but noticeable glances in the direction of the screens. He also is notably holding a clipboard in front of his crotch in that particular scene
* CruelAndUnusualDeath: He gets disemboweled by the Scarecrows but luckily his grenades cut it short and gave him a merciful demise.
* HeroicSacrifice: Inasmuch as a PunchClockVillain can have one, anyway: he takes an armed grenade and blows himself up with the Scarecrows in a bid to allow Hadley to escape.
* NaiveNewcomer: Despite getting the job, he doesn't know very much about how the Organization works until Wendy and the others gave him an explanation.
* PunchClockVillain: He isn't happy with the Organization's line of work but he still accepted working there.
* TakingYouWithMe: He turned the Scarecrows into stacks of hay, which is by all accounts impressive.

As a note: we can't really get into the tropes without '''spoiling damn near the entire film.''' No spoilers are tagged below to avoid a page of white.

* NecessarilyEvil: There aren't many multiple murderers with an argument as solid as theirs about the consequences of not doing what they do.
* PunchClockVillain: The Organization as a whole. Pretty much all of its employees bear no ill-will whatsoever towards the unfortunate co-eds (at least until Marty and Dana begin to become a gradually more serious problem and then even an active threat to them) and in fact largely treat the whole situation with the same professional distance as pretty much any other average Joe would treat their boring day job. But that is not to say that the employees are entirely without scruples, in fact, it is made clear that they are all painfully aware that what they are doing is deeply DirtyBusiness, but they know it is the only way to keep the whole of humanity safe from the wrath of the Ancient Ones.

->'''Played by''': Creator/SigourneyWeaver

* BigBad: She is the ''direct'' cause. She leads a team to make sure a rite of sacrificing a specific group of young people following rules and stereotypes of horror movies is done correctly. All because to appease the fury of the Ancient Ones and prevent an End of the World scenario.

* BaldOfEvil: Not much of a difference compared to the others, just one likely connected to his age.

-->'''Gary:''' FUUUUUCK YOU! Fuck you, fuck you, fuck you, fuck you!
* ConsummateProfessional: Be it overseeing the day to day grind of appeasing the elder gods with ritual sacrifice or running like Hell to jury rig a remote tunnel collapse with two seconds to spare, Sitterson takes it all in stride.

* DirtyOldMan: His work includes following the SexSignalsDeath horror trope, so he willing or unwillingly has to watch two youngsters having sexual intercourse. Not so unwillingly.
* ImpaledWithExtremePrejudice: Accidentally done by Dana when he escaped through the tunnels. That was the most merciful death an Organization employee could have instead of being devoured or tortured, although also perhaps the most directly [[KarmicDeath karmic]].

* AntiVillain: What they do to the sacrifices year after year is absolutely horrible. But if they don't do it, the world will be destroyed and far more people will die. That said, the staff at the facility seem to take an undue amount of satisfaction from watching the kids get slaughtered, but this heavily implied to be a coping mechanism.

* IndustrializedEvil: Their purpose is killing people in basically a sacrifice, and what an incredible infrastructure and organization they have to achieve so.

* FinalGirl: An EnforcedTrope. She's designated as "The Virgin", so Sitterson and Hadley push her to survive the longest. However, based on her actual situation, she's actually "The Whore", having just had an affair with her professor.

* SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum: She throws one together with Marty by refusing to be a part of a HeroicSacrifice, having been so traumatized by the tortures they've been subjected to that they decide that humanity deserves to die at the hands of {{Eldrich Abomination}}s if it needs to keep practicing such cruel rituals to appease them in order to survive. It should be noted, though, that she does point a gun at Marty and has to be mangled by a werewolf to drop said gun (and we only have her word for it that she would not have shot him when she's bleeding out and about to die with Marty no matter what happens to the world).

%%* JerkJock: Pushed into it, but he's actually more of a LovableJock. Even though he fills the role of "The Athlete" for the Controllers, being a Sociology major makes him "The Fool". (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample; how does he act like a jerk as opposed to lovable?)

* NiceGuy: He's shown at the beginning of the movie to be a funny, intelligent and all around good guy who's very supportive of his friends.
** His niceness seems to make him the center of the group. He knows Marty and Holden from different social areas, is dating Jules, who's friends with Dana.
* SenselessSacrifice: His attempt to leave for help with a dangerous bike stunt backfires. [[InvisibleWall Hilar]][[BlackComedy iously]].
* WrestlerInAllOfUs: When fighting the Redneck Torture Zombies.

[[caption-width-right:350:''"Soviet Economic Structures"? "Aftermath of the Cul-..." No! We have a lake! And a keg! No more learning!'']]
->'''Played by''': Anna Hutchison

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: She gets [[OffWithHisHead decapitated]] by the Buckners [[GoryDiscretionShot offscreen]] in front her boyfriend Curt.

* LovableAlphaBitch: She's not normally the AlphaBitch, and is loved by everyone who knows her. Dana in fact refuses to leave the cabin without Jules until she gets confirmation that she's dead.
* MsFanservice: Enforced by the technicians; it's pointed out by Marty that she normally doesn't act like this.
* SlashersPreferBlondes: Having dyed her hair blonde at the start of the film, she's locked as the first victim. Notably Kristen Connolly is a blonde and she dyed her hair red to play Dana.
* TeamMom: Her original role, considering her disapproval with Dana's affair with a professor. Unfortunately, the Controllers already were altering her into a DumbBlonde MsFanservice before the film starts, so only hints of this appear.

* AcquiredPoisonImmunity: An example of this happening unintentionally. The Organization's chemistry-team forgot to account for Marty's home-made bong (as it was disguised as a coffee mug) when they tried to lace his stash with the intelligence-dampening drugs. As a result, Marty was given a constant, but only minor dose of the drug, which allowed him to build up some resistance against the mind-controlling drugs, leading to him gradually getting more and more clear-headed and see through the Organization's deception.
* BigDamnHeroes: Saving Dana at the end of the movie.
* BreakTheComedian: Characterized by the Organization as "The Fool," and fits the role through a mixture of whimsical rambling and dedicated bong-smoking. Being put through the wringer gradually eats away at his humour, until he's too traumatized to even employ it as self-defense mechanism. For good measure, the ending destroys what little idealism he possesses, leaving him in a position in which he ''could'' be able save the world - but thanks to everything he and Dana have suffered, he doesn't think it's worth saving anymore.
* TheCoatsAreOff: WordOfGod is that the reason he dresses in many layers and isn't shirtless in the lake scene is because Kranz was in as much shape as the other leads, and they wanted him to seem weaker. When he gets his BigDamnHeroes moment, he's stripped to form-fitting clothes showing off a more muscular physique for his transition into TheHero.

* CrouchingMoronHiddenBadass: Despite being high for the entire movie, he was the only one to actually ''win'' a confrontation with the Buckners.
* TheCuckooLanderWasRight: Marty was surprisingly on the money about a lot of things even before they started to go to hell. Apparently, his pot has made him mostly immune to the controllers' attempts to control him.
* DeadpanSnarker: Likely due to being an EruditeStoner.
* TheFool: Marty is called this by many, but he surprisingly fits into the Tarot archetype beyond just being a hippie stoner—he manages to succeed where others fail, often by pure luck. Shoehorned into being "The Fool" by the Controllers, he's actually "The Virgin", having never gotten over his love for Jules. This is re-enforced by him being one of the last survivors with Dana, the False Virgin.
* GetARoom: Tells this word by word to Holden and Dana.
* TheHero: More or less becomes this by the film's third act, throwing the movie OffTheRails and foiling the organization's plot.
* HiddenDepths: He's shown to be astoundingly philosophical during the final scene. Before that he proves to be both great at thinking on his feet and a surprisingly adept fighter. In fact, his introduction presents him as being close friends with Curt, the guy with a full academic scholarship for sociology, so they likely met through class.
* ImprobableWeaponUser: He used a bong as an improvised weapon, twice. Offscreen, he uses a trowel to dismember a zombie.
* KilledOffscreen: Subverted. He's incapacitated and dragged offscreen by one of the Buckners to be killed, and the Controllers assume he died a gruesome death. It turns out that they ''really'' should have made sure, because during that time he dispatched the zombie, found an entrance to the Organization's HQ, mucked up the tunnel's demolition by fiddling with the wiring, and went back to save Dana from Pa Buckner. No offscreen inertia here, folks.
* TheLancer: In a way, given Dana is the one getting the most focus and he's her support.
* NotQuiteDead: He seemed to have died, until his BigDamnHeroes moment when he saves Dana.
* OffscreenMomentOfAwesome: When one of the Buckners attacked and apparently killed him, he had not only survived, but neutralized the zombie by dismembering him with a trowel, offscreen. And of course this was a surprise to everybody, [[OhCrap including the people in the Control Room]].

* SpannerInTheWorks: He singlehandedly ruins the entire AncientConspiracy simply by staying alive until sunrise. Not to mention he saved Dana, and helped unleash a whole lot of ironic death upon the controllers, mostly due to dumb luck.

* StonersAreFunny: Which serves as a RedHerring; you think he's the PluckyComicRelief when he's actually TheHero.
* StrawNihilist: Becomes this in the end when he is unwilling to die to save the rest of the world. He knows he'll die anyway if the ritual isn't completed & the Ancient Ones are allowed to rise, but he's willing to drag the rest of the world down with him. He claims it'll be better for the world to 'start over,' but the Director already explained that there will be nothing left to restart AfterTheEnd.
* WrongGenreSavvy: Although, even after encountering the Buckner zombies, Marty finds a hidden camera and concludes, "I'm on a reality TV show!" But it's a JustifiedTrope, really. Imagine being assaulted by what appears to be zombies and then discovering a hidden camera in your in room. The ''logical'' conclusion would actually be to assume that it all is a part of some weird CandidCameraPrank.

->'''Played by:''' Jesse Williams

* BadassDecay: Invoked. He's in college on a full athletic scholarship for football, and is in amazing shape. The organization forces him into the role of the nerd, sidelining his physical prowess. Although the Controllers made him "The Scholar", he's really more of "The Athlete".

* CruelAndUnusualDeath: Especially in the novel, where Holden is still alive, and in pain, after being stabbed in the neck as he drowns.
* DangerTakesABackSeat: How he dies.
* TheGenericGuy: Almost no personality. Intentional since he's introduced as a jock who's forced to become a nerd.
* TheGlassesGottaGo: {{Inverted|Trope}}. He starts wearing reading glasses after the intelligence-enhancing drugs begins to work on him, and it is implied that he was compelled do so to make him look more intellectual and nerdy to fit the role designated to him.
* LovableJock: Less so than Curt.
* NiceGuy: Even prior to being manipulated into being a nerd, he was originally amiable to all of his friends.

* WeHardlyKnewYe: Very little screentime and personality. Notable in managing to pull this off while lasting an hour in the movie.

* TheDeterminator: He gradually turns into this. [[DeconstructedTrope It gets him killed.]]

* JerkJock: Pushed into it, but he's actually more of a LovableJock. Even though he fills the role of "The Athlete" for the Controllers, being a Sociology major makes him "The Fool".

->'''Played by''': Creator/KristenConnolly

* ActionSurvivor: She goes through some seriously horrific events and manages to emerge for the grand finale. Hadley even admires her will to live.
* AlmostKiss: With Holden, before Marty interrupts.
* ApologeticAttacker: To Marty, when she's about to shoot and kill him to save the world.
* BewareTheNiceOnes: Dana is a nice young lady, but she was still willing to kill Marty, albeit for the greater good.

* BrokenBird: Deconstructed. Dana being broken so heavily ''directly'' leads to TheEndOfTheWorldAsWeKnowIt.
* ButtMonkey: Is the only one to be left alive (until Marty also emerges none the worse from being dragged away by chains) and witnessed her friends' deaths to the point where it breaks her spirit, causing her to allow the world to end.
* CombatPragmatist: If she wasn't she wouldn't manage to go far enough to become the FinalGirl, knowing how to quickly end any scuffle she finds herself in.
* CovertPervert: After switching rooms with Holden because he decided to reveal the two-way mirror, she watches Holden getting shirtless before having a similar attack of conscience and covering the mirror.

* DespairEventHorizon: By the end of the film, she's left utterly broken psychologically to the point that she's fine with letting the world end, deciding that humanity isn't worth preserving over a few sacrifices.
* FinalGirl: An EnforcedTrope. She's "The Virgin", so Sitterson and Hadley push her to survive the longest. But based on her actual situation, she's actually "The Whore" having just had an affair with her professor.
* TheHero: One of the two who survive their ordeal to the end, and ultimately makes the decision to end the world rather than continue the HumanSacrifice rituals (granted, she did point a gun at Marty after hearing what the Director said on how the sacrifices are necessary).
* HeroicBSOD: Dana is rendered borderline catatonic after watching most of her friends being murdered and being swung around by the largest zombie. But snaps out of it to push the BigRedButton...
* HumansAreBastards: At the end of the film, having learned what it takes to keep the human race alive, she tells Marty that it's time to give someone else a chance.

* OneLastSmoke: At the end of the film with Marty.

* SuicidalCosmicTemperTantrum: Does this to the ''entire world''. It should be noted though that she did point a gun at Marty and had to be mangled by a werewolf to drop said gun (and we only have her word for it that she would not have shot him when she's bleeding out and about to die with Marty no matter what happens to the world).
* TookALevelInBadass: PlayedWith. This girl went from helplessly screaming as Mr Buckner nearly makes quick work out of her, to a dagger-wielding fighter who stabs one of the workers in the organization who orchestrated the demise of her and her friends. Unfortunately, she ends up catatonic over everything and allows the world to end.

->'''Played by''': Creator/ChrisHemsworth

* TheAce: Curt is handsome, athletic, intelligent and an all-round competent guy. He probably could have led them all out of danger if it wasn't for the various manipulations put in place to stack the deck against him.
* BadassBiker: [[HopeSpot If it wasn't for that]] InvisibleWall, he might have actually pulled off that jump.

* DeadpanSnarker: A little friendlier than some guys in the organization but he still points out some wry remarks to his friends.

* AntiVillain: What they do to the sacrifices year after year is absolutely horrible. But if they don't do it, the world will be destroyed and far more people will die. That said, the staff at the facility seem to take an undue amount of satisfaction from watching the kids get slaughtered, but this could be a coping mechanism.

* DespairEventHorizon: Hits this in her last scene.