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* SoreLoser: At the beginning, playing chess on a computer, MacReady would rather destroy the game than lose it-- which is what he does at the end of the movie, [[spoiler: burning down the camp in order to deny the Thing victory]]. This was noted in an article in Script Magazine.
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* HilariousInHindSight: He says that the alien being alive is "Voodoo bullshit", a lot funnier when you remeber who Keith David played later in ThePrincessAndTheFrog.
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*** Actually the flamethrower (and the fire alarm) where his response after hearing the dogs going nuts in the kennel. MacReady remembered how the Norwegian helicopter was filled to the brim with flameables, and how they'd burnt the two face body at their camp.
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*** Actually the flamethrower (and the fire alarm) where his response after hearing the dogs going nuts in the kennel. MacReady [=MacReady=] remembered how the Norwegian helicopter was filled to the brim with flameables, flammables, and how they'd burnt the two face body at their camp.
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* NiceHat: Wears one whenever he leaves the outpost.
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*** Actually the flamethrower (and the fire alarm) where his response after hearing the dogs going nuts in the kennel. MacReady remembered how the Norwegian helicopter was filled to the brim with flameables, and how they'd burnt the two face body at their camp.
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** Mind you, before this he was calm, detached, and overall a reasonable fellow.
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** BadassLonghair
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* NoBiochemicalBarriers: The Thing can infect Earth life just as easily as it did alien life. It's not clear how long this took or what the alien was like. Actually lampshaded in the [[WhoGoesThere original novel]], where it's potential to infect us (or carry some alien disease) was initially dismissed based on the otherwise logical assumption that all of Earth's life forms, including plants and fungi, are more closely related to us than the Thing is, and their diseases can't affect us.
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* NoBiochemicalBarriers: The Thing can infect Earth life just as easily as it did alien life. It's not clear how long this took or what the alien was like. Actually lampshaded in the [[WhoGoesThere [[Literature/WhoGoesThere original novel]], where it's potential to infect us (or carry some alien disease) was initially dismissed based on the otherwise logical assumption that all of Earth's life forms, including plants and fungi, are more closely related to us than the Thing is, and their diseases can't affect us.
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* BigBad
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* NonMaliciousMonster: It doesn't do all these stuff for malice. It's just trying to survive and remain alive.
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* NoBiochemicalBarriers: The Thing can infect Earth life just as easily as it did alien life. It's not clear how long this took or what the alien was like.
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* NoBiochemicalBarriers: The Thing can infect Earth life just as easily as it did alien life. It's not clear how long this took or what the alien was like. Actually lampshaded in the [[WhoGoesThere original novel]], where it's potential to infect us (or carry some alien disease) was initially dismissed based on the otherwise logical assumption that all of Earth's life forms, including plants and fungi, are more closely related to us than the Thing is, and their diseases can't affect us.
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** AnimalisticAbomination: It also spends most of the time disguised as a dog, and in the 2011 prequel it first surfaces as an insect/arachnid like thingie that may or may not be a distorted form of the alien pilot. [[spoiler: In Campbell's novel, it is also implied it assimilated an albatross, and is now flying towards us.]]
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See topic on discussion page.
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* RedHeadedHero
** FieryRedhead
** FieryRedhead
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** FieryRedhead
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/rj_macready_the_thing_7387.jpg]]
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[[quoteright:350:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/the_thing_the_thing_8830.jpg]]
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* {{Badass}}: All the other characters get more and more paranoid and scared, while [=MacReady=] just gets more determined to kill the creature. He never freaks out and screams when he sees it, instead spouting some humorous one-liners.
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* {{Badass}}: All the other characters get more and more paranoid and scared, while [=MacReady=] just gets more determined to kill the creature. He never freaks out and screams when he sees it, instead spouting some humorous one-liners.one-liners and getting [[{{Determinator}} more and more determined to kill it]].
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* {{The Big Guy}}: It's even stated in the script that he is 6'4. Keith David is close enough.
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* PrettyBoy: Somewhat younger and more effeminate than the rest.
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Due to being a CharacterSheet, spoilers are below.
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Due to being a CharacterSheet, spoilers '''spoilers are below.below'''.
* TheAssimilator: The entire ''modus operandi'' of the alien entity. [[ParanoiaFuel Also, quite possibly,]] [[{{BodyHorror}} the most frightening example]].
* AsteroidsMonster: Every cell of the Thing is an independent organism. At various times during the film, it gets parts chopped off it, which grow new appendages and scuttle off.
* CannibalismSuperpower: This seems to describe the Thing quite well.
* ClippedWingAngel: Oddly enough, the Thing. What with all the [[KillItWithFire flamethrowers]] in the Antarctic base, any piece of the Thing which takes an easily recognizable form on-screen is immolated relatively quickly. The ''real'' problem is [[VoluntaryShapeshifting in finding who it is in the first place.]]
* AsteroidsMonster: Every cell of the Thing is an independent organism. At various times during the film, it gets parts chopped off it, which grow new appendages and scuttle off.
* CannibalismSuperpower: This seems to describe the Thing quite well.
* ClippedWingAngel: Oddly enough, the Thing. What with all the [[KillItWithFire flamethrowers]] in the Antarctic base, any piece of the Thing which takes an easily recognizable form on-screen is immolated relatively quickly. The ''real'' problem is [[VoluntaryShapeshifting in finding who it is in the first place.]]
* DecapitationRequired: Subverted horribly. Decapitation does absolutely nothing to the Thing. When its head is removed [[LosingYourHead it acts as an independent organism]] and tries to escape.
* FaceStealer: The Thing steals people's identities by absorbing them.
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** ShockAndAwe: Both ''WhoGoesThere'' and the unmade sequel miniseries have using electricity as a promenient way to deal with The Thing.
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** ShockAndAwe: Both ''WhoGoesThere'' ''Literature/WhoGoesThere'' and the unmade sequel miniseries have using electricity as a promenient way to deal with The Thing.Thing. One of the Boss-Things in the [[VideoGame/TheThing videogame]] was killed through electricity.
* LosingYourHead: Decapitating the monster doesn't work, in one instance the head grows legs and walks away.
* LosingYourHead: Decapitating the monster doesn't work, in one instance the head grows legs and walks away.
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* NighInvulnerability: To destroy the Thing completely, not one single cell can be left alive, since even one cell is an independent organism with the power to assimilate an entire host body. The group burns them to ash, but realistically this would be unlikely to kill every single cell.
** Which is why they haul the remains outside where they can freeze.
** During the scene where Blair is examining the dog-Thing, A deleted line had him mentioning that it was still alive. [[spoiler: It's implied that this creature is the one that eventually got Blair. Unless he was infected during the autopsy]].
** Which is why they haul the remains outside where they can freeze.
** During the scene where Blair is examining the dog-Thing, A deleted line had him mentioning that it was still alive. [[spoiler: It's implied that this creature is the one that eventually got Blair. Unless he was infected during the autopsy]].
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* NighInvulnerability: To destroy the Thing completely, not one single cell can be left alive, since even one cell is an independent organism with the power to assimilate an entire host body. The group burns them to ash, but realistically this would be unlikely to kill every single cell.
** Whichcell - which is why they haul the remains outside where they can freeze.
**freeze. During the scene where Blair is examining the dog-Thing, A deleted line had him mentioning that it was still alive. [[spoiler: It's implied that this creature is the one that eventually got Blair. Unless he was infected during the autopsy]].
** Which
**
* OneWingedAngel: Whenever the Thing is exposed, it assumes very dangerous, monstrous forms to attack the protagonists with. Particularely noteworthy when it confronts [=MacReady=] at the end, and the Thing turns into a huge monster shapeshifter mash-up. Also an example of ClippedWingAngel.
* TomatoInTheMirror: Discussed. The survivors wonder, if the Thing perfectly mimics who it copies, does it even know it's a fake? The novel claims it does, absorbing the memories and personality of the thing, and Carpenter in the commentary agrees that if it did, it wouldn't matter - it'd use their personality to react accordingly. Given that the Thing-imitations take several actions to frame unassimilated humans, and one of them is secretly building a hovercraft, it seems probable that they know what they are. That said, the actor playing Norris mentions in the commentary that he played his character as being worried that he might be the Thing without knowing it. ( He's very much correct.) Note his reaction when offered Gerry's gun - "I'm not up to it.".
* YouAreWhoYouEat: The Thing absorbs other people so it can assume their identity, leading to paranoia as to who is a thing or not. The alien can either consume a person in one go, but its individual cells also have the ability to slowly do this to an infectee, literally eating them from the inside out.
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* YouWillBeAssimilated: The entire ''modus operandi'' of the alien entity.
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* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]]: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler:He is found as a charred corpse. There was no reason for the Thing to kill him off instead of assimilating him, so it's safe to assume that he set himself on fire in order to avoid being assimilated.]]
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* GenreSavvy: Proposes to [=MacReady=] that everyone should prepare their own meals and eat from cans to avoid being assimilated.
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]]: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler:He is found as a charred corpse.There was no reason for Nauls immediately suspects the Thing to kill him off instead of assimilating him, so it's safe to assume that he set did it purposefully, but others suspect Blair did it himself on fire in order to avoid being assimilated.assimilated. Being separated from the group long enough for the others to consider killing him on sight makes it murky.]]
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]]: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler:He is found as a charred corpse.
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* OhCrap: When he realizes that [[spoiler:he dropped the keys that let the Thing get to the blood]].
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* DangerouslyGenreSavvy: It knows it wouldn't stand a chance against a united camp (especially after nearly being killed already), so it sets out to spread paranoia, covertly destroy any equipment and cause sleep-deprivation until enough of its enemies are out of the picture.
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This page is for tropes related to characters appearing in Creator/JohnCarpenter's ''Film/TheThing''.
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This page is for tropes related to characters appearing in Creator/JohnCarpenter's ''Film/TheThing''.
''Film/TheThing1982''.
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* [[spoiler:FinalBoss]]
* ProperlyParanoid: His fear of the thing is completely justified.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The last time we see him, he's walking down some stairs. The original script had him getting attacked by a jack-in-the-box like alien, only they cut the scene as the special effects didn't look real enough, and Carpenter liked leaving it ambiguous anyway.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: [[spoiler: The last time we see him, he's walking down some stairs. The original script had him getting attacked by a jack-in-the-box like alien, only they cut the scene as the special effects didn't look real enough, and Carpenter liked leaving it ambiguous anyway.
anyway.]]
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* {{Badass}}
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* {{Badass}}{{Badass}}: He's the only one tough and smart enough to [[spoiler:make it to the end with [=MacReady=].]]
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* ScaryBlackMan: He's the only one tough and smart enough to [[spoiler:make it to the end with [=MacReady=].]]
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* ScaryBlackMan: He's the only one tough and smart enough to [[spoiler:make it to the end with [=MacReady=].]]
ScaryBlackMan
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This page is for tropes related to characters appearing in Creator/JohnCarpenter's ''Film/TheThing''.
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!R.J. [=MacReady=]
-->'''Played by:''' KurtRussell
-->'''Played by:''' KurtRussell
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' KurtRussell
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* CoolShades
* {{Jerkass}}
** JerkWithAHeartOfGold
** JerkWithAHeartOfGold
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!Dr. Blair
-->'''Played by:''' Wilford Brimley
-->'''Played by:''' Wilford Brimley
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' Wilford Brimley
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!Nauls
-->'''Played by:''' TK Carter
-->'''Played by:''' TK Carter
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' TK Carter
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* UncleTomfoolery
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!Palmer
-->'''Played by:''' Devid Clennon
-->'''Played by:''' Devid Clennon
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' Devid Clennon
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* CloudCuckooLander
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!Childs
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* {{Badass}}
* BaldOfAwesome
* {{Jerkass}}
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!Dr. Copper
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* [[spoiler: CruelAndUnusualDeath]]
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!Vance Norris
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!!Vance Norris
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!George Bennings
-->'''Played by:''' PeterMaloney
-->'''Played by:''' PeterMaloney
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' PeterMaloney
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!Clark
-->'''Played by:''' RichardMasur
-->'''Played by:''' RichardMasur
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' RichardMasur
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* BadassBeard
* [[spoiler: BoomHeadshot]]
* FriendToAllLivingThings
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!Garry
-->'''Played by:''' DonaldMoffat
-->'''Played by:''' DonaldMoffat
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-->'''Played
->'''Played by:''' DonaldMoffat
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-->'''Played by:'''JoelPolis
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-->'''Played by:''' ThomasGWaites
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* DirtyCoward
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!The Thing
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!!The Thing
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* FromAsingleCell: In theory, all it takes is one Thing cell to infect someone. Alan Dean Foster, in [[RecursiveAdaptation the novelization]], seemed to think this is implausible, and has Blair talk in detail on the subject. [[spoiler:Of course, that depends on whether you think Blair was still trustworthy at that point.]] Ultimately it's left up to fans to decide what pseudoscience to believe.
to:
* FromAsingleCell: FromASingleCell: In theory, all it takes is one Thing cell to infect someone. Alan Dean Foster, in [[RecursiveAdaptation the novelization]], seemed to think this is implausible, and has Blair talk in detail on the subject. [[spoiler:Of course, that depends on whether you think Blair was still trustworthy at that point.]] Ultimately it's left up to fans to decide what pseudoscience to believe.
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** ShockAndAwe: Both ''WhoGoesThere'' and the unmade sequel miniseries have using electricity as a promenient way to deal with The Thing
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** ShockAndAwe: Both ''WhoGoesThere'' and the unmade sequel miniseries have using electricity as a promenient way to deal with The ThingThing.
* ManipulativeBastard: The Thing knows that paranoia only makes the situation worse for the humans and does what it can to spread that paranoia even more than it already does by nature alone.
* ManipulativeBastard: The Thing knows that paranoia only makes the situation worse for the humans and does what it can to spread that paranoia even more than it already does by nature alone.
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-->'''Played by:''' WilfordBrimley
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-->'''Played by:''' WilfordBrimley
Wilford Brimley
* FourTemperamentEnsemble: Melancholic.
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* SanitySlippage
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-->'''Played by:''' TKCarter
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-->'''Played by:''' TKCarter
TK Carter
* SoulBrotha
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-->'''Played by:''' DevidClennon
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-->'''Played by:''' DevidClennon
Devid Clennon
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* FourTemperamentEnsemble: Melancholic.
*FourTemperamentEnsemble: Phlegmatic.
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* PerpetualFrowner: Though he was shot at the beginning of the film.
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* FourTemperamentEnsemble: Choleric.
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* RedHeadedHero
** FieryRedhead
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*TheChick
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* FourTemperamentEnsemble: Sanguine.
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* TheLancer
* FourTemperamentEnsemble: Melancholic.
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This page is for tropes related to characters appearing in Creator/JohnCarpenter's ''Film/TheThing''.
Due to being a CharacterSheet, spoilers are below.
----
!R.J. [=MacReady=]
-->'''Played by:''' KurtRussell
The camp's helicopter pilot, and TheProtagonist.
----
* {{Badass}}: All the other characters get more and more paranoid and scared, while [=MacReady=] just gets more determined to kill the creature. He never freaks out and screams when he sees it, instead spouting some humorous one-liners.
** BadassBeard
** BadassLonghair
* GenreSavvy:
** He figures out how the Thing operates quite quickly and begins making very rational decisions to help stop its spread and identify it. Everyone else is quick on the uptake of the concept and generally avoid being GenreBlind.
** He also {{Defie|dTrope}}s the NotQuiteDead trope and insists that even corpses be tested for being the Thing.
** His first reaction upon hearing that something "Weird and pissed off" is in the dog Kennels? Call for the guy with the flamethrower.
!Dr. Blair
-->'''Played by:''' WilfordBrimley
The camp's Biologist.
----
* AxCrazy: With more emphasis on the Axe.
* ChairmanOfTheBrawl: Blair attacks with a chair when the rest of the team rushes him in the radio room.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: When he discovers just how dangerous The Thing is, he goes completely bonkers.
!Nauls
-->'''Played by:''' TKCarter
The camp's cook.
----
* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The last time we see him, he's walking down some stairs. The original script had him getting attacked by a jack-in-the-box like alien, only they cut the scene as the special effects didn't look real enough, and Carpenter liked leaving it ambiguous anyway.
!Palmer
-->'''Played by:''' DevidClennon
The camp's assistant mechanic.
----
* DeadpanSnarker
* TheStoner: Openly smokes marijuana joints in front of the whole group, spouts off on how aliens are real and "taught the Incas everything they know." [[spoiler:His generally non-threatening and comical personality might be why the alien assimilated him, because he didn't draw much suspicion.]]
!Childs
-->'''Played by:''' KeithDavid
The camp's chief mechanic.
----
* ScaryBlackMan: He's the only one tough and smart enough to [[spoiler:make it to the end with [=MacReady=].]]
!Dr. Copper
-->'''Played by:''' RichardDysart
The camp's Physician.
----
* [[spoiler:DeathByAdaptation]]
!Vance Norris
-->'''Played by:''' CharlesHallahan
The camp's Geologist.
----
* [[spoiler:DeathByAdaptation]]: In ''Literature/WhoGoesThere'', he [[spoiler:even says the story's last lines.]]
!George Bennings
-->'''Played by:''' PeterMaloney
The camp's Meteorologist.
----
* [[spoiler:SacrificialLamb]]: [[spoiler: His assimilation and subsequent death is what clues the others in on The Thing's abilities.]]
!Clark
-->'''Played by:''' RichardMasur
The camp's Dog Handler.
----
* [[spoiler:RedHerringMole]]
!Garry
-->'''Played by:''' DonaldMoffat
The Leader of the camp.
----
* MoeGreeneSpecial: He shoots the rifle-toting Norwegian through his eye.
* SuddenlyShouting: Garry has just [[spoiler:been proved to be human and not a Thing]], and he is ''very'' annoyed.
-->'''Garry:''' I know you gentlemen have been through a lot, but when you find the time, I'd rather not spend the rest of this winter ''tied to this [[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] couch''!
!Fuchs
-->'''Played by:'''JoelPolis
Dr. Blair's Assistant.
----
* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]]: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler:He is found as a charred corpse. There was no reason for the Thing to kill him off instead of assimilating him, so it's safe to assume that he set himself on fire in order to avoid being assimilated.]]
!Windows
-->'''Played by:''' ThomasGWaites
The camp's radio operator.
----
* DeadpanSnarker
* HeroicBSOD: When he sees [[spoiler: the Palmer-Thing]].
!The Thing
TheAntagonist, who tries to kill the heroes and make copies of them.
----
* AlienBlood: Every cell of The Thing will try to defend itself, as opposed to regular human blood, which is inert. This is part of the basic nature of the Thing; even when it's replaced multiple people, each individual will act independently. In essence, every cell of the Thing ''is'' the Thing as a whole. In the original short story, people repeatedly make the mistake of assuming that you can't be a Thing if you attack a Thing.
* EldritchAbomination: The Thing either aproaches this or embodies it completely.
** HumanoidAbomination: The thing spends most of it's time looking like a good ol' homo sapien. It's even clever enough to act like us perfectly. [[ParanoiaFuel Until it's got you alone.]]
* FromAsingleCell: In theory, all it takes is one Thing cell to infect someone. Alan Dean Foster, in [[RecursiveAdaptation the novelization]], seemed to think this is implausible, and has Blair talk in detail on the subject. [[spoiler:Of course, that depends on whether you think Blair was still trustworthy at that point.]] Ultimately it's left up to fans to decide what pseudoscience to believe.
* HarmlessFreezing: The original Thing was frozen for around 100,000 years. When it's thawed, out it's completely fine. Childs even points out how impossible this sounds, to which Mac points out that it's from outer space and different from us. After the Thing abandons its plan to escape, its new goal is to kill all the survivors and simply freeze itself again until new hosts wake it up.
* HissBeforeFleeing: The Thing hisses and moans when it's currently in an imperfect copy of its host. The blood also finds a way to scream when it jumps from the petri dish.
* KillItWithFire: Fire is the only thing the characters have on hand that can kill the thing. Since it's a shapeshifter, shooting it would barely inconvenience it and it can survive for thousands of years frozen. Luckily, ice stations have handy flamethrowers.
** ShockAndAwe: Both ''WhoGoesThere'' and the unmade sequel miniseries have using electricity as a promenient way to deal with The Thing
* NighInvulnerability: To destroy the Thing completely, not one single cell can be left alive, since even one cell is an independent organism with the power to assimilate an entire host body. The group burns them to ash, but realistically this would be unlikely to kill every single cell.
** Which is why they haul the remains outside where they can freeze.
** During the scene where Blair is examining the dog-Thing, A deleted line had him mentioning that it was still alive. [[spoiler: It's implied that this creature is the one that eventually got Blair. Unless he was infected during the autopsy]].
* NoBiochemicalBarriers: The Thing can infect Earth life just as easily as it did alien life. It's not clear how long this took or what the alien was like.
* ParanoiaFuel: InUniverse. The Thing is all about creating this in the camp and turning everyone against each other, thus making it even easier to infect them all.
* PartialTransformation: It is sometimes caught in partial transformation.
* ShapeShifterMashup: Twice.
* StarfishAliens: There really is not a word other than "The Thing" to call it, because no one even really knows what it is. It is capable of perfectly replicating anything it has ever come in contact with, and every single cell of its body is a separate, hostile organism. It's so utterly alien that people aren't even sure if it has a true form or not, even the huge, grotesque monstrosity it forms in the end.
* TheyLookLikeUsNow: Played for all the ParanoiaFuel it's worth.
* TheVirus: Possibly the ultimate example. [[ExtremeOmnivore It can consume and imitate any life]]. Someone infected, assimilated and replicated by the Thing is such a perfect imitation that they never break character until either an opportunity arises for it to kill a bunch of people or it gets exposed. Even if other people get exposed as a Thing, a still-in-disguise Thing will remain in-character and even attack the other of its own kind, just to keep up the act. Worse yet, the monster apparently retains the knowledge of everything it's eaten (one isolated one is trying to build a spaceship to escape) and can even mix-and-match parts from the various creatures it's assimilated.
* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm: Nobody knows what the original Thing is or even what it looks like. Even John Carpenter notes that one could go crazy even thinking about it.
* YouWillBeAssimilated: The entire ''modus operandi'' of the alien entity.
Due to being a CharacterSheet, spoilers are below.
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!R.J. [=MacReady=]
-->'''Played by:''' KurtRussell
The camp's helicopter pilot, and TheProtagonist.
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* {{Badass}}: All the other characters get more and more paranoid and scared, while [=MacReady=] just gets more determined to kill the creature. He never freaks out and screams when he sees it, instead spouting some humorous one-liners.
** BadassBeard
** BadassLonghair
* GenreSavvy:
** He figures out how the Thing operates quite quickly and begins making very rational decisions to help stop its spread and identify it. Everyone else is quick on the uptake of the concept and generally avoid being GenreBlind.
** He also {{Defie|dTrope}}s the NotQuiteDead trope and insists that even corpses be tested for being the Thing.
** His first reaction upon hearing that something "Weird and pissed off" is in the dog Kennels? Call for the guy with the flamethrower.
!Dr. Blair
-->'''Played by:''' WilfordBrimley
The camp's Biologist.
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* AxCrazy: With more emphasis on the Axe.
* ChairmanOfTheBrawl: Blair attacks with a chair when the rest of the team rushes him in the radio room.
* GoMadFromTheRevelation: When he discovers just how dangerous The Thing is, he goes completely bonkers.
!Nauls
-->'''Played by:''' TKCarter
The camp's cook.
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* WhatHappenedToTheMouse: The last time we see him, he's walking down some stairs. The original script had him getting attacked by a jack-in-the-box like alien, only they cut the scene as the special effects didn't look real enough, and Carpenter liked leaving it ambiguous anyway.
!Palmer
-->'''Played by:''' DevidClennon
The camp's assistant mechanic.
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* DeadpanSnarker
* TheStoner: Openly smokes marijuana joints in front of the whole group, spouts off on how aliens are real and "taught the Incas everything they know." [[spoiler:His generally non-threatening and comical personality might be why the alien assimilated him, because he didn't draw much suspicion.]]
!Childs
-->'''Played by:''' KeithDavid
The camp's chief mechanic.
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* ScaryBlackMan: He's the only one tough and smart enough to [[spoiler:make it to the end with [=MacReady=].]]
!Dr. Copper
-->'''Played by:''' RichardDysart
The camp's Physician.
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* [[spoiler:DeathByAdaptation]]
!Vance Norris
-->'''Played by:''' CharlesHallahan
The camp's Geologist.
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* [[spoiler:DeathByAdaptation]]: In ''Literature/WhoGoesThere'', he [[spoiler:even says the story's last lines.]]
!George Bennings
-->'''Played by:''' PeterMaloney
The camp's Meteorologist.
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* [[spoiler:SacrificialLamb]]: [[spoiler: His assimilation and subsequent death is what clues the others in on The Thing's abilities.]]
!Clark
-->'''Played by:''' RichardMasur
The camp's Dog Handler.
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* [[spoiler:RedHerringMole]]
!Garry
-->'''Played by:''' DonaldMoffat
The Leader of the camp.
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* MoeGreeneSpecial: He shoots the rifle-toting Norwegian through his eye.
* SuddenlyShouting: Garry has just [[spoiler:been proved to be human and not a Thing]], and he is ''very'' annoyed.
-->'''Garry:''' I know you gentlemen have been through a lot, but when you find the time, I'd rather not spend the rest of this winter ''tied to this [[PrecisionFStrike fucking]] couch''!
!Fuchs
-->'''Played by:'''JoelPolis
Dr. Blair's Assistant.
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* [[spoiler:HeroicSacrifice]]: {{Implied}}. [[spoiler:He is found as a charred corpse. There was no reason for the Thing to kill him off instead of assimilating him, so it's safe to assume that he set himself on fire in order to avoid being assimilated.]]
!Windows
-->'''Played by:''' ThomasGWaites
The camp's radio operator.
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* DeadpanSnarker
* HeroicBSOD: When he sees [[spoiler: the Palmer-Thing]].
!The Thing
TheAntagonist, who tries to kill the heroes and make copies of them.
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* AlienBlood: Every cell of The Thing will try to defend itself, as opposed to regular human blood, which is inert. This is part of the basic nature of the Thing; even when it's replaced multiple people, each individual will act independently. In essence, every cell of the Thing ''is'' the Thing as a whole. In the original short story, people repeatedly make the mistake of assuming that you can't be a Thing if you attack a Thing.
* EldritchAbomination: The Thing either aproaches this or embodies it completely.
** HumanoidAbomination: The thing spends most of it's time looking like a good ol' homo sapien. It's even clever enough to act like us perfectly. [[ParanoiaFuel Until it's got you alone.]]
* FromAsingleCell: In theory, all it takes is one Thing cell to infect someone. Alan Dean Foster, in [[RecursiveAdaptation the novelization]], seemed to think this is implausible, and has Blair talk in detail on the subject. [[spoiler:Of course, that depends on whether you think Blair was still trustworthy at that point.]] Ultimately it's left up to fans to decide what pseudoscience to believe.
* HarmlessFreezing: The original Thing was frozen for around 100,000 years. When it's thawed, out it's completely fine. Childs even points out how impossible this sounds, to which Mac points out that it's from outer space and different from us. After the Thing abandons its plan to escape, its new goal is to kill all the survivors and simply freeze itself again until new hosts wake it up.
* HissBeforeFleeing: The Thing hisses and moans when it's currently in an imperfect copy of its host. The blood also finds a way to scream when it jumps from the petri dish.
* KillItWithFire: Fire is the only thing the characters have on hand that can kill the thing. Since it's a shapeshifter, shooting it would barely inconvenience it and it can survive for thousands of years frozen. Luckily, ice stations have handy flamethrowers.
** ShockAndAwe: Both ''WhoGoesThere'' and the unmade sequel miniseries have using electricity as a promenient way to deal with The Thing
* NighInvulnerability: To destroy the Thing completely, not one single cell can be left alive, since even one cell is an independent organism with the power to assimilate an entire host body. The group burns them to ash, but realistically this would be unlikely to kill every single cell.
** Which is why they haul the remains outside where they can freeze.
** During the scene where Blair is examining the dog-Thing, A deleted line had him mentioning that it was still alive. [[spoiler: It's implied that this creature is the one that eventually got Blair. Unless he was infected during the autopsy]].
* NoBiochemicalBarriers: The Thing can infect Earth life just as easily as it did alien life. It's not clear how long this took or what the alien was like.
* ParanoiaFuel: InUniverse. The Thing is all about creating this in the camp and turning everyone against each other, thus making it even easier to infect them all.
* PartialTransformation: It is sometimes caught in partial transformation.
* ShapeShifterMashup: Twice.
* StarfishAliens: There really is not a word other than "The Thing" to call it, because no one even really knows what it is. It is capable of perfectly replicating anything it has ever come in contact with, and every single cell of its body is a separate, hostile organism. It's so utterly alien that people aren't even sure if it has a true form or not, even the huge, grotesque monstrosity it forms in the end.
* TheyLookLikeUsNow: Played for all the ParanoiaFuel it's worth.
* TheVirus: Possibly the ultimate example. [[ExtremeOmnivore It can consume and imitate any life]]. Someone infected, assimilated and replicated by the Thing is such a perfect imitation that they never break character until either an opportunity arises for it to kill a bunch of people or it gets exposed. Even if other people get exposed as a Thing, a still-in-disguise Thing will remain in-character and even attack the other of its own kind, just to keep up the act. Worse yet, the monster apparently retains the knowledge of everything it's eaten (one isolated one is trying to build a spaceship to escape) and can even mix-and-match parts from the various creatures it's assimilated.
* YouCannotGraspTheTrueForm: Nobody knows what the original Thing is or even what it looks like. Even John Carpenter notes that one could go crazy even thinking about it.
* YouWillBeAssimilated: The entire ''modus operandi'' of the alien entity.
