Adults are dangerous, true, but the real threats come from the next generation. The concept of a little kid trained to end lives has been employed many times across films, games, comics and more. Little girls and boys raised from birth to slay are vicious beasts, bereft of the moral qualities that adults have. Here are some of the most violent, dangerous, killer children in pop culture.
Killer Children In Pop Culture
Hanna hits DVD this week, and to celebrate we thought we'd go back and take a look at some killer children in pop culture who have been trained to eliminate targets with no remorse.
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By K. Thor Jensen September 6, 2011 |
Credit: Lionsgate
| 11 | Hit-Girl |
Sure, all of the protagonists of Kick-Ass are underage, but it's Hit-Girl who is one of the deadliest killer children. Damon Macready was a cop who lost his job when he dared to go up against organized crime in the city. His instrument of vengeance is his daughter Mindy, who he has been training to be the brutal vigilante known as Hit-Girl. While the titular Kick-Ass is a bit of a schlub, HG is the real deal - she slices, dices and shoots her way through criminals with an aplomb that is a little unusual for an 11-year-old girl. In the sequel, she's seemingly hung up her costume, but we're sure that's only temporary.
Credit: 20th Century Fox
| 10 | Henry Evans |
You always had a feeling that Macaulay Culkin had a dark streak in him - after all, some of his traps for the robbers in Home Alone could have caused permanent physical harm. But it wasn't until 1993's The Good Son that he was declared one of the deadliest killer children, in a film that may have killed his career. As Henry Evans, Culkin is a menacing little bastard intent on ruining the life of his cousin Mark (played by Elijah Wood) and killing anyone who stands in his way, including his own brother and mother.
Credit: DC Comics
| 9 | Cassandra Cain |
I don't want to act like killer children can't be rehabilitated, so here's a great example from the wacky world of comics. Cassandra Cain was the daughter of two of the world's greatest assassins, David Cain and Lady Shiva. Naturally she was raised to follow in the family business. Her dad subjected her to insanely torturous training, including being raised without any verbal communication. Her mind developed in other ways, allowing her to flawlessly read body language and other nonverbal cues. Thankfully, Batman and his crew managed to rehabilitate her and, for a while, she worked as the vigilante known as Batgirl.
Credit: DreamWorks Pictures
| 8 | Samara |
The horrible antagonist of the Ring films proves that kids don't even have to be alive to be creepy. Samara was the adopted daughter of a couple on a small island in Washington State who died at the bottom of a well - and boy, is she pissed. Now anybody who watches a mysterious videotape is cursed by her ghost to die in seven days. That's kind of an indirect way to kill people, but she is still one of the deadliest killer children.
Credit: Atlus
| 7 | Lieselotte Achenbach |
Known as the "Crimson-Eyed Criminal," Lieselotte Achenbach is one of the deeply unusual player characters from the Arcana Heart series of fighting games. Her entire family was brutally murdered, leaving 10-year-old Lieselotte on her own in the hard, cruel world. Naturally, she decided to support herself by becoming an assassin. Her primary weapon is the life-size puppet of her dead sister that she carries around in a briefcase. That's unusual, but she's still one of the deadliest killer children.
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