Ensemble Dark Horse: The first responders Beth and Tom are only in one scene (and one additional Deleted Scene) but are very well-liked for being among the more likable and relatively level-headed characters while still having some hilarious Freak Out moments as they flee from the bear. Tom in particular gained a lot of popularity due to being played by Scott Seiss, who is best known for his "Angry IKEA Guy" TikTok videos.
Esoteric Happy Ending: While it's ultimately not the bear's fault that cocaine ended up in the forest, the movie plays up her survival as a happy ending, even though it's very likely anyone who goes into the forest will have to contend with (and likely die to) the still-murderous bear. Not to mention that her cubs have also become addicted, meaning there are now three murderous bears in the forest, and those cubs will only get stronger as they grow into adults.
While "evil" is a strong word, the eponymous Cocaine Bear is a bear. On a cocaine-fueled rampage. The movie's called Cocaine Bear, and the murderous bear is a huge draw— doubly so since it shows real tenacity and sympathetic traits once its (also cocaine-addicted) cubs are revealed.
Syd White may be an Asshole Victim, but the tenacity he displays in hunting down the Cocaine Bear— alongside the menacing performance of Ray Liotta— marks him as a proper opponent for the bear, especially as he grows more deranged throughout the final act.
With Barbie (2023), especially on Twitter, where both films were on people's must watch lists of 2023.
With M3GAN, as both are Black Comedy-tinged horror films with high-concept premises that were released within a month of each other, are both produced by Universal Pictures (with Blumhouse Productions coproducing M3GAN and Toho coproducing Cocaine Bear), have formidable but sympathetic titular antagonists, and much of their appeal came from marketing-based hype built up months before their respective releases.
Also with The Americans, due to the presence of Keri Russell, Matthew Rhys, and Margo Martindale in both.
He's Just Hiding: Liz, Beth, and Tom all feel like they might have potentially been able to survive their injuries in the ambulance sequence, and Liz does in fact show up alive in the alternate ending.
As likable as the human characters may be, the real draw of the movie is the insanity of the eponymous Cocaine Bear, an unnaturally murderous bear whose action scenes produce utter gorn as it lays waste to everything in front of it.
There are quite a few people who are here to see one of Ray Liotta's final performances (and most likely his last big budget film appearance).
Love to Hate: Syd White is a vile character who is nothing but evil, but the charm with which he's played and his sheer greed eclipsing everything else in the film means it's incredibly fun to watch him show down with the bear.
Memetic Badass: The titular Cocaine Bear got this perception the moment the trailer premiered, with the internet immediately latching on to the absurdity of such a concept. Considering that the bear and her cubs survive the entire film, many people went wild with depicting the bear as an unstoppable force of nature that can kill literally anything after ingesting enough cocaine.
Cocaine Cat.note A news story about a serval (a type of wild cat native to Africa and frequently kept as an exotic pet) found in Ohio with cocaine in its bloodstream went viral after the movie released, leading many people to suggest that as the plot of a spinoff or sequel.
Devilweed Owlbear note The Dungeons & Dragons fandom was also quick to jump on the bandwagon, with a mock poster being made and circulated on TikTok and Twitter.
Narm Charm: The film basically oozes this, being an incredibly gory and darkly comedic horror film with a concept that could easily be considered schlocky and low-brow by those with higher-brow sensitivities. And yet, it's so loud and unrepentantly revels in its silliness so much that it's a blast to watch.
Older Than They Think: The concept of a horror movie about a wild animal going on a drug fueled rampage was first visited with Jerry Landi's Krackoon, about a crack addicted raccoon killing people in the Bronx.
Out-of-Genre Experience: While there are several gruesome deaths either on screen or off, all have a fairly dark comedic tone to them. However Paul being having his leg chewed off while dangling upside down is absolutely horrifying. The fact that the bear and his leg are slightly off screen leaving us to only see the blood splattering and his horrified facial expressions makes it all the more terrifying.
Rooting for the Empire: Literally moments after the first trailer came out, it became clear that many were absolutely pulling for the eponymous bear due to the sheer Rule of Cool of a bear on a cocaine-fueled rampage. The movie absolutely leans into this— while the bear kills innocent people, it's an animal driven to violence by cocaine and the movie ultimately has it come to protect its cubs from the Asshole Victim that is Syd White, before surviving the film's events.
The death of Bob. He dies alone on the roof of a gazebo after being shot by Syd and learning that Reba was working with him.
Olaf losing his fiancee Elsa to the titular character is also pretty sad. He spends the rest of the movie weeping inconsolably, and when he tries to help Sari find Dee Dee, he gets mauled to death by the bear himself.
The Disney Death of the titular Cocaine Bear can qualify, as she was a mother to two cubs who are now crying for her, thinking she's dead. Thankfully, she gets better.
Win Back the Crowd: Elizabeth Banks' career as a director seemed to have been damaged after Charlie's Angels (2019), which was largely considered to be a bland and forgettable film at best. After this movie was released, many reviewers gladly embraced this film's wacky premise and off the rails execution, and in doing so helped restore Banks' reputation as a director.
The Woobie: Most of the victims can qualify, given that most of them absolutely did not deserve to die so horribly.
