Why You Don't See These Horror Stars Anymore

John Franklin rose to prominence in the world of horror cinema when he starred as Isaac, the creepy young cult preacher in Children of the Corn. He went to land a small role in Child's Play and later played Cousin Itt in The Addams Family and Addams Family Values. Franklin easily could have continued acting, but the unexpected loss of two loved ones caused him to question whether or not he really wanted to keep working in the entertainment industry — and after the events of September 11, 2001, he realized that he needed to take his life in a new direction.

"I seriously looked in the mirror and went, 'What is my legacy?,'" Franklin told OWN, adding, "I've entertained millions through the years, but is that all that I want written on my tombstone or my obituary? I just decided then, I need a break, I need to get away." Shortly after this realization, Franklin responded to an ad for a teaching job and spent over a decade in the classroom, combining his passions by teaching English and screenwriting, among other subjects. Today, Franklin is slowly returning to acting by taking on roles as they fit, but he isn't pursuing acting full time.

Adrienne King, who played Alice Hardy in Friday the 13th, had a horrifying offscreen experience that pushed her out of the public eye — and subsequent acting roles — for years. King had no idea that shortly after rising to fame, she would be forced to deal with a real situation that was far scarier than anything in her film. For a year and a half, she was followed by a persistent stalker who pursued her for a bizarre reason: he claimed that King reminded him of someone who had wronged him in the past. Unfortunately, the authorities initially dismissed King's claims, and King has stated that the police even attempted to place the blame on her for acting in such a frightening movie.

King eventually spoke with the director of Friday the 13th Part 2 and arranged for her character to be killed off. "I couldn't handle doing another film and dealing with what no one else seemed to want to deal with," King told Uproxx, adding, "It really kind of spun me into a very weird place." King eventually pivoted to voiceover work so she could keep acting without appearing onscreen; today, she primarily works as a winemaker and artist.

Linda Blair was a relatively unknown actor with little experience under her belt when she landed the role of Regan in the classic horror hit The Exorcist. Watching Blair depict the possessed, disturbed Regan onscreen is enough to genuinely make your skin crawl, and Blair appeared poised to use that experience as a stepping stone to break into other horror films.

But these days, Blair has a new set of priorities, dedicating most of her time to animal rights activism. She became a vegetarian in 1988, and eventually adopted a vegan diet in 2001. She's rescued many stray dogs, and says she feels a kinship with these misunderstood animals because of the way the media portrayed her after the release of The Exorcist. "I realized these dogs are being portrayed the same as I was — as a monster," Blair told The Sydney Morning Herald. "There was prejudice, misunderstanding and it was being lied about. So I became quite a forceful speaker on their behalf.” Blair does lament the fact that most journalists only want to talk to her about The Exorcist rather than her work with animal welfare, stating that the lack of interest makes her feel "sad."

Daveigh Chase may have popped up in your nightmares after portraying the murdered orphan Samara in The Ring. The creepy image of a young girl with her black hair hanging in front of her face could easily haunt you for days — and make you dread picking up the phone whenever it rings.

While Chase didn't strictly pursue parts in horror films during the years following The Ring, she definitely stayed busy, returning to her role as Lilo in Lilo & Stitch: The Series and playing Rhonda Volmer on the HBO series Big Love. But recent legal troubles have left Chase with an empty schedule for the past couple of years. In November of 2017, she was arrested when she was caught driving a stolen car. In 2018, she was arrested again — this time, for the possession of illegal drugs. Whether or not Chase chooses to return to acting, hopefully, she'll be able to get back on her feet again.

Sandra Peabody starred as Mari Collingwood in The Last House on the Left, the movie that marks Wes Craven's directorial debut. This gruesome and gory exploitation horror film follows two teenaged girls who are tortured by a gang in the woods. It was eventually remade in 2009, but the original still holds up.

Peabody took on roles sporadically for some time after The Last House on the Left was released, and she was especially inclined to working on horror films, including movies like Voices of Desire and Massage Parlor Murders. But in 1974, Peabody officially appeared in her final film, Teenage Hitchhikers, and began working as a screenwriter and producer instead. Today, she has also branched out into coaching, a career that finds her working with beginning actors to help them polish up their skills. Her former students, like actor Alicia Lagano, have described her as "open and real."

In The Evil Dead, a group of college students on vacation in an isolated cabin fall victim to demonic possession. Ellen Sandweiss played Cheryl Williams, who is violently assaulted by demonic trees in one of the most disturbing scenes of the film. Although no one who has seen The Evil Dead could forget her performance, Sandweiss herself wasn't so keen on the idea of living her life in the public eye.

Even while she was working on The Evil Dead, Sandweiss has said she'd already decided she didn't want to make a living acting. She even admitted that she hoped the film "would never be seen," because she didn't want to deal with the publicity. She ended up studying arts administration in graduate school and working in management positions for non-profits. But decades later, Sandweiss is impressed with the unexpected success of The Evil Dead, and even returned to her role as Cheryl for two episodes of the television series Ash vs. The Evil Dead.

If you've ever seen the cult classic Killer Klowns From Outer Space, you may recognize Suzanne Snyder as Mike Tobacco's girlfriend Debbie Stone. But this movie wasn't Snyder's only foray into the horror genre: she had already appeared in Night of the Creeps, Retribution, and the slasher film Prettykill. She also played Brenda Herzog in Return of the Dead Part II. But Snyder gradually began taking on fewer film roles, and today, she's working in a completely different industry.

Originally, Snyder had always planned on working in medicine in some capacity, but she gave up on her initial plans to enroll in a pre-med program because she became too busy with modeling and acting jobs. She eventually realized her dream in a different way: Today, Snyder works in the health and wellness field, offering her clients services like hypnotherapy, aromatherapy, yoga, and meditation. Snyder structures her teachings around the concept of bio-individuality — basically, she feels that everyone needs a custom approach to healing and living a healthy lifestyle. She is also the mother of seven children, and she states that motherhood, grief, and loss have all informed her approach to the healing arts.