20 best badass women of horror movies

14. Helen Lyle (Candyman)

As already evidenced by Edith Cushing, braininess does not disqualify you from the ranks of badasses. In some situations, it may even make a character stronger, braver, and perhaps more likely to survive.

Of course, sometimes that intelligence can also blind a character to the dangers around them. They may also be so intrigued by a mysterious figure or dark, menacing passageway that they simply can’t help but investigate. Still, you have to give these particular characters credit for their intellectual prowess and steely resolve.

One such character is Helen Lyle (Virginia Madsen), the protagonist of the first Candyman film. She’s a graduate student in Chicago, researching urban legends. In particular, she’s interested in the gruesome “Candyman” figure. It’s whispered that people who chant his name three times while staring into a mirror will be greeted by the ghostly figure … and his wickedly sharp meathook.

Helen’s research takes her into the infamous Cabrini-Green housing projects. These real-life apartments eventually became one of the roughest neighborhoods in Chicago. Residents (who were typically African-American) were assailed by gang violence and indifferent city officials. Oftentimes, living conditions there could be quite grim, to say the least. The last Cabrini-Green buildings were demolished in 2011.

In the world of Candyman, however, Cabrini-Green continues to dominate the narrative. Helen attempts to interview some of the residents there, who are understandably reluctant to interact with her. Still, she befriends at least one resident, a woman named Anne-Marie. And while Helen continues her research, she learns that Candyman isn’t just an urban legend created to cope with the intense poverty and violence of the housing project. He is very, very real.

Despite the mounting fear, Helen continues in her quest and eventually saves Anne-Marie’s young child from a fire while also apparently banishing the Candyman. However, she dies of her burns and in turn becomes part of local legend.