Heather, Heather, Heather….and some curse

This is a bit left field, but one of our latest obsessions is the 1988 black comedy high school crime flick and the subsequent 2010s musical iteration. The musical is by far the superior version with some incredibly catchy songs, but the film throws up an interesting series of occurences. Some might consider it cursed…

Why are we obsessed with how people die? I mean, it’s what I get paid for so I’m a little bit invested. Maybe not everyone is invested as me, but some of the most frequent searches for celebrities are “is so and so dead?” or “how did so and so die?”. I know you people are out there, and responsible for the world’s addiction to true crime.

Let’s ask the internet. Oh is that you, AI. I didn’t see you butt in to answer for us.

Whilst Gemini might not think there is a curse (who asked it anyway?), I beg to differ. There are so many problems with this entry, not least that it mentions the tragic deaths of two cast members, then lists three cast members. Let’s go through a blow by blow of cast members as they currently stand (or not, as it may be). AI (not you, Weird Al) doesn’t know the half of it.

Veronica Sawyer (Winona Ryder)

Still a big name, most recently with Beetlejuice Beetlejuice.

Jason J.D. Dean (Christian Slater)

Alive and well, voicing himself in Archer…

Heather McNamara (Lisanne Falk)

Still around, but Heathers was her big role and she has been involved in fairly small projects since.

Heather Chandler (Kim Walker)

Retired from acting in the 1990s and sadly passed away aged 32 in 2001 from a glioma (brain tumour).

Heather Duke (Shannen Doherty)

Had a thriving career but sadly passed away in 2024 from metastatic breast cancer at the age of 53.

Peter Dawson (Jeremy Applegate)

Jeremy Applegate sadly died by suicide, aged 34.

Father Ripper (Glenn Shadix)

Glenn Shadix who played the fantastic interior designer Otho in Beetlejuice died aged 58 from blunt force trauma following a fall.

Country Club Courtney (Sherrie Wills)

Sherrie Wills passed away aged 53 from Covid-19 in the setting of early onset dementia.

Pauline Fleming (Penelope Milford)

Still alive at last count, but out of the acting game. She isn’t credited in a film since 1997.

Ram Sweeny (Patrick Labyorteaux)

Still on the go with a long career in TV, including a series of bit parts, and the odd movie.

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This film was hugely influential and has garnered a cult following and popular musical (which is the superior version, I would argue). There were only two massive names who had any staying power across the entire cast, and the number of people who came to untimely ends is eerily high. Two people in their thirties, and three in their fifties. Not to mention the number who have ceased to act in the years since.

Although it is sad, I’m glad the legacy of the film hasn’t disappeared, and continues to serve as a cultural icon to this day, while simultaneously being the only mainstream property to push croquet as a sport.