The Stepfather (1987)

After murdering his entire family, a man marries a widow with a teenage daughter in another town and prepares to do it all over again.

Director:

Joseph Ruben

Writers:

Carolyn Lefcourt (story), Brian Garfield (story)

Stars:

Terry O'Quinn, Jill Schoelen, Shelley Hack

2 wins & 8 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
Terry O'Quinn	...	Jerry Blake
Jill Schoelen	...	Stephanie Maine
Shelley Hack	...	Susan
Charles Lanyer	...	Dr. Bondurant
Stephen Shellen	...	Jim Ogilvie
Stephen E. Miller	...	Al Brennan
Robyn Stevan	...	Karen
Jeff Schultz	...	Paul Baker
Lindsay Bourne	...	Art Teacher
Anna Hagan	...	Mrs. Leitner
Gillian Barber	...	Annie Barnes
Blu Mankuma	...	Lt. Jack Wall
Jackson Davies	...	Mr. Chesterton
Sandra Head	...	Receptionist
Gabrielle Rose	...	Dorothy Rinehard

Storyline

A family-values man named Jerry Blake (Terry O'Quinn) marries widows and divorcées with children in search of the perfect family. As soon as his new family members show signs of being human and not robots who will march unquestioningly to his tune, his dreams of domestic bliss begin to crumble, and he kills them. Then he alters his appearance, assumes a new identity, and skips to another town to begin the deadly ritual all over again. He marries Susan Maine (Shelley Hack), who sees him as the ideal surrogate father for her teenage daughter Stephanie (Jill Schoelen), and he is soon up to his old tricks when she proves to be too much of a troublesome teen to handle.

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Plot Keywords:

serial killer | murder of family | fake identity | shower | stepfather stepdaughter relationship | 

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Taglines:

Daddy's Home and He's Not Very Happy

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Genres:

Horror | Thriller

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Certificate:

R

Did You Know?

Trivia

John List (1925-2008) was the real-life killer who inspired the film. Like the film, List killed his family in their suburban home and went on to live under a false identity. Also similar to the film, List continued to leave the house "for work" to keep up appearances with his wife after losing his job. Unlike the film, List did not assume multiple identities, commit further murders, become a stepfather, or use disguises after becoming a fugitive. List did remarry however, claiming that his first wife had died of cancer. He was finally apprehended after 18 years in hiding, and died in prison custody.

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Goofs

When Jerry Blake gets the mail out of the letterbox, he finds a yellow envelope for Stephanie, he notices that it came from the Seattle Examiner. Looking worried, he opens the envelope to see his own photo in it. He starts to panic. Then Stephanie arrives home, and asks for her mail. He gives her a copy of Cosmopolitan, and goes inside the house. Later, he goes to a photo shop, and replaces his own photo with another man in a family photo. The man is smiling in the photo Jerry is about to put back in the yellow envelope. In a later scene, Stephanie and her friend Karen are in her room, with the photo of the family man photo Jerry replaced. The man in the photo is not smiling, as he was in the first photo we see of him.

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Quotes

Jerry Blake: Father knows best.

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Connections

References Mister Ed (1958)

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Soundtracks

Run Between the Raindrops
(1985)
Performed by Pat Benatar
Music and Lyrics by Myron Grombacher (as M. Grombacher) and Neil Giraldo (as N. Geraldo)
Published by Tyreach Music/Neil Geraldo Music Co./Rare Blue Music, Inc. (ASCAP)
Courtesy of Chrysalis Records, Inc.

User Reviews

This film is now labeled a cult classic...

watch it and see why. Terry O'Quinn is excellent as "The Stepfather" - Jerry Blake; the nemesis of his newly acquired daughter, portrayed by Jill Schoelen. Shelley Hack plays the unsuspecting mom, who does not realize what O'Quinn is capable of.

This film came out in 1987, and it is amusing to see the references to family values and security- all quaintly defined in small town suburbia. Jerry Blake (O'Quinn) is the new realtor in town, a perfect neighbor and family man; but something is awry- Dr. Bondurant is killed and strange occurrences crop up.

If you have never seen this film, it is a worthwhile suspense/thriller; there are also some beautiful scenes of the Pacific Northwest- you will enjoy this film for Halloween.

Details

Country:

UK Canada USA

Language:

English

Release Date:

5 June 1987 (USA)

Also Known As:

Stepfather I

Filming Locations:

Edgemont Village, British Columbia, Canada

Box Office

Opening Weekend USA:

$260,587, 25 January 1987

Gross USA:

$2,488,740

Cumulative Worldwide Gross:

$2,488,740

Company Credits

Production Co:

Incorporated Television Company (ITC)

Technical Specs

Runtime:

89 min

Sound Mix:

Ultra Stereo

Color:

Color

Aspect Ratio:

1.85 : 1