I discovered the power of the wig late in life. I now spend countless hours looking at the heads of actors in movies and wondering how I never noticed how many hair pieces get used in Hollywood before now. When a wig is right, it is a sight to behold and influences the character. However, when they are not applied properly to the head, they are distracting and make me feel bad for the person underneath. We are in September and have seen a few wigs in trending horror films. So, I figured it was time to get to the root of these scene-stealing partners. Here are five wiggy movies of 2024 that we need to discuss right now.
Before you ask, “The Joey” is not eligible for this list because it was Melissa Barrera’s real hair. Please do not kill the messenger. Just be glad we had such a powerful hairstyle this year. I look forward to reading the countless essays dedicated to the mane that has become hair goals for many of us.
The Deliverance (dir. Lee Daniels)
Where You Can Watch: Netflix
A family’s new home might be a portal to hell that’s allowing demonic entities to terrorize them. Satan works hard, but not as hard as the wig on Alberta (Glenn Close). When the first photos dropped, I asked my friends, “What in the Rachel Dolezal is happening in this movie?” This wig tells us this character listened to tons of 90s R&B and is probably stuck in the past. It’s giving that auntie who smells like menthols. The one who never learned to cook so she brings food poisoning to the gatherings. While the actors are the only ones who attempt to save this movie, the wig chooses violence the whole time. I had hoped they would spare some holy water for it, but it might be too far gone to save with a simple exorcism.
The First Omen (dir. Arkasha Stevenson)
Where You Can Watch: Hulu
An American woman is sent to a convent in Rome and soon begins to question her faith when she stumbles upon a conspiracy to birth evil. Many of us figured this movie would be Immaculate 2.0, so we were happy our lead got to do more than the one in the other movie. However, Margaret (Nell Tiger Free) and the squad were battling lace fronts long before the evil party started. One of the biggest wig giveaways is (what I call) the Ginger Snaps part. Another is how it does not fall but trips down a character’s head. Although, the hair went through a lot in this movie so I imagine resources were stretched as thin as patience. From the pigtails it was not built for, the buckets of water being thrown at it, to the street dance throwback to Possession, the wig had places to be and things to do.
Imaginary (dir. Jeff Wadlow)
Where You Can Watch: Starz
A woman moves her new family into her childhood home and soon discovers her childhood imaginary friend is real. It also has a bone to pick with her. You can tell from Jessica’s (DeWanda Wise) wig that this woman is not in control of anything. The headpiece is big, dry, and stole focus for the entire movie. I kept hoping the monster would be living in it to make it make sense. While we did not get a Malignant reveal, we did spend the whole time wondering why she never uses a headwrap or bonnet. I hate that Wise had the weight of this wig the whole time, and they did not even give her a hair wrap to pretend to sleep. The least this mess could have done was talk to a Black person about hair just one time. I feel so bad for this actor because she seems lovely but was being upstaged by this hair monster in every scene. Choices were made, indeed!
Slay (dir. Jem Garrard)
Where You Can Watch: Tubi
Four drag queens find themselves performing for a hostile crowd as vampires attack. Leave it to drag queens to elevate the wig game in a Tubi Original. Mama Sue Flay (Trinity the Tuck), Robin Banks (Heidi N Closet), Bella Da Boys (Crystal Methyd), and Olive Wood (Cara Melle) understood the damn assignment. The wigs are secure and cute, so they don’t have to worry about them sliding off when they handle business. As a recovering theatre kid, I would never cross anyone whose wig is more stable than my home life. It could never be me! Those wigs tell us the girls are agile, and the hair will stay in place if they stop the show to fight you. I sincerely believe that if the vampires and the crowd had really looked at how the wigs were sitting, they wouldn’t have tried the squad on that fateful night.
Strange Darling (dir. JT Mollner)
Where You Can Watch: In Theaters
A one-night stand goes horribly wrong, leading to a deadly chase. The Lady (Willa Fitzgerald) wears a wig that tells you a story. I have a similar wig, so I knew from the posters that she was unbothered and not to be crossed. The bangs sit just high enough for her to look you in the eyes when she says, “ I wish you would.” This is the wig of a woman who is going to shut it down tonight. Had Laurie Strode had this wig for the first Halloween, Michael Myers would have tried someone else the night he came home. After a glance at the hair, I knew anyone chasing her had made a terrible mistake. Strange Darling has my favorite wig of the year so far because it told me everything I needed to know about that character.
These five movies with wigs strand out to me. This is the (split) end of the story. I will do my part and see myself out now. Let me know what wigs have caught your attention for the right or wrong reasons this year at @Misssharai.
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