Remakes tickle the fancy about as much as a sledgehammer to the crotch.
Often, people hate them based on principle alone. In the 2000s, horror reboots were a dime a dozen. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The Hills Have Eyes. Thirteen Ghosts. No one was safe, as Hollywood sought to introduce a new generation to the classics from yesteryear. At least the studios stopped slapping on “2000” to the title of everything, though.
In 2005, House of Wax became the next in the assembly line, as director Jaume Collet-Serra remade the 1953 film of the same name that starred the dashing and debonair master of spook, Vincent Price (although, this movie had also been a reboot of 1933’s Mystery of the Wax Museum). So, effectively, a remake of a remake. Oh, and it also featured Paris Hilton – a star of the era who was on the downhill slope of her popularity and people wanted to see about as much as a colonoscopy.
House of Wax starts off like most other horrors. On the way to a football game, teens decide to camp in the middle of nowhere, because where has a camp in the woods ever resulted in anything bad happening? After they experience damage to their vehicle, and through various plot mechanisms to find a spare part, they find themselves in a ghost town with wax sculptures all around them and the hallmark museum Trudy’s House of Wax at its center. There, the group needs to escape from the demented Sinclair brothers who want to turn people into wax sculptures and finish the work that their deceased mother had started years earlier. Some teens survive, others don’t – you know the drill here.
Warner Bros.
The film debuted to mostly negative ratings, sitting at a paltry 28% on Rotten Tomatoes. It received a lot of stick for being an unoriginal slasher but also for deviating from the source material. Critics saw it as just another teen horror in a long line of them at the time, trying to capitalize on the ’90s boom period started by Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer. In addition to the bad reviews, House of Wax received three Razzie nominations for Worst Supporting Actress, Worst Picture, and Worst Remake or Sequel. In the end, only Paris Hilton “won” for Worst Supporting Actress – and it’s unlikely that trophy sits proudly in her bathroom.
In the years since its release, the viewer sentiment toward House of Wax has warmed up. It’s a time capsule of its era, containing sensational music from the likes of the Prodigy, My Chemical Romance, Deftones, and Disturbed, as well as the who’s who of teen actors in Chad Michael Murray, Elisha Cuthbert, Jared Padalecki, Jon Abrhamas, and Robert Ri’chard. Plus, the film poster? Hang it in the Louvre!
Look, like most reviewers said, there’s nothing original about House of Wax‘s setup – it’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre without the Sawyers. All that’s been done here is to change the way that the killers operate, but the modus operandi of the plot stays the same. At its core, it’s still about a bunch of dumb teenage kids doing dumb things that see them put their lives in danger – and results in many of them being killed in gruesome ways.
Like comfort food, though, House of Wax hits the spot. It knows what it is and doesn’t try to rewrite the playbook for teen slashers. Instead, it leans into every trope and amplifies the tense atmosphere to create a fun horror that’s more theme park than Academy Awards. And hey, that’s okay, because not every piece of entertainment needs to clamor for the trophies and critical acclaim. Sometimes, big dumb fun is all that’s necessary to raise the dopamine levels.
Chad and Carey W. Hayes’ script might be as by-the-numbers as it comes, but the brothers penned a story that wasn’t short on personality. Thanks to the talented cast, the charisma drips off the page and onto the screen as the characters produce genuinely hilarious one-liners and moments that balance out the violence on display. Like any good slasher, House of Wax knows it can’t take itself too seriously; it’s in on the joke and so should everyone else watching it.
Warner Bros.
And speaking of moments, director Jaume Collet-Serra proved that he was on the right track to blockbuster filmmaking, as the film he pieced together here would serve as the first steps in a career that saw Collet-Serra direct big movies like Non-Stop, Jungle Cruise, and Black Adam. Collet-Serra understood the importance of the death scenes in a slasher, and boy, did he treat House of Wax like it’s a scorching-hot cauldron of gnarly kills. Say whatever you want about Paris Hilton’s limited acting ability, but her death scene in this movie is easily one of the best in the past 20 years.
It’s yet another reminder that everyone looks back on movies differently after two decades. What might have seemed silly in 2005 feels different in 2025. Time is the true barometer of a film’s influence, and House of Wax still burns bright in public discourse while many of its contemporaries faded away into obscurity. Is it the greatest teen slasher of all time? Absolutely not. But is it a fun movie that holds strong rewatchability qualities? Oh, yes. Despite the initial reaction to it, House of Wax never melted away from where it matters most: our hearts.
Often, people hate them based on principle alone. In the 2000s, horror reboots were a dime a dozen. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre. The Hills Have Eyes. Thirteen Ghosts. No one was safe, as Hollywood sought to introduce a new generation to the classics from yesteryear. At least the studios stopped slapping on “2000” to the title of everything, though.
In 2005, House of Wax became the next in the assembly line, as director Jaume Collet-Serra remade the 1953 film of the same name that starred the dashing and debonair master of spook, Vincent Price (although, this movie had also been a reboot of 1933’s Mystery of the Wax Museum). So, effectively, a remake of a remake. Oh, and it also featured Paris Hilton – a star of the era who was on the downhill slope of her popularity and people wanted to see about as much as a colonoscopy.
‘House of Wax’ didn’t light the world on fire in 2005
House of Wax starts off like most other horrors. On the way to a football game, teens decide to camp in the middle of nowhere, because where has a camp in the woods ever resulted in anything bad happening? After they experience damage to their vehicle, and through various plot mechanisms to find a spare part, they find themselves in a ghost town with wax sculptures all around them and the hallmark museum Trudy’s House of Wax at its center. There, the group needs to escape from the demented Sinclair brothers who want to turn people into wax sculptures and finish the work that their deceased mother had started years earlier. Some teens survive, others don’t – you know the drill here.
Warner Bros.
The film debuted to mostly negative ratings, sitting at a paltry 28% on Rotten Tomatoes. It received a lot of stick for being an unoriginal slasher but also for deviating from the source material. Critics saw it as just another teen horror in a long line of them at the time, trying to capitalize on the ’90s boom period started by Scream and I Know What You Did Last Summer. In addition to the bad reviews, House of Wax received three Razzie nominations for Worst Supporting Actress, Worst Picture, and Worst Remake or Sequel. In the end, only Paris Hilton “won” for Worst Supporting Actress – and it’s unlikely that trophy sits proudly in her bathroom.
This teen slasher is big dumb fun, and that’s not a bad thing
In the years since its release, the viewer sentiment toward House of Wax has warmed up. It’s a time capsule of its era, containing sensational music from the likes of the Prodigy, My Chemical Romance, Deftones, and Disturbed, as well as the who’s who of teen actors in Chad Michael Murray, Elisha Cuthbert, Jared Padalecki, Jon Abrhamas, and Robert Ri’chard. Plus, the film poster? Hang it in the Louvre!
Look, like most reviewers said, there’s nothing original about House of Wax‘s setup – it’s The Texas Chain Saw Massacre without the Sawyers. All that’s been done here is to change the way that the killers operate, but the modus operandi of the plot stays the same. At its core, it’s still about a bunch of dumb teenage kids doing dumb things that see them put their lives in danger – and results in many of them being killed in gruesome ways.
Like comfort food, though, House of Wax hits the spot. It knows what it is and doesn’t try to rewrite the playbook for teen slashers. Instead, it leans into every trope and amplifies the tense atmosphere to create a fun horror that’s more theme park than Academy Awards. And hey, that’s okay, because not every piece of entertainment needs to clamor for the trophies and critical acclaim. Sometimes, big dumb fun is all that’s necessary to raise the dopamine levels.
The magic lies in the macabre moments
Chad and Carey W. Hayes’ script might be as by-the-numbers as it comes, but the brothers penned a story that wasn’t short on personality. Thanks to the talented cast, the charisma drips off the page and onto the screen as the characters produce genuinely hilarious one-liners and moments that balance out the violence on display. Like any good slasher, House of Wax knows it can’t take itself too seriously; it’s in on the joke and so should everyone else watching it.
Warner Bros.
And speaking of moments, director Jaume Collet-Serra proved that he was on the right track to blockbuster filmmaking, as the film he pieced together here would serve as the first steps in a career that saw Collet-Serra direct big movies like Non-Stop, Jungle Cruise, and Black Adam. Collet-Serra understood the importance of the death scenes in a slasher, and boy, did he treat House of Wax like it’s a scorching-hot cauldron of gnarly kills. Say whatever you want about Paris Hilton’s limited acting ability, but her death scene in this movie is easily one of the best in the past 20 years.
It’s yet another reminder that everyone looks back on movies differently after two decades. What might have seemed silly in 2005 feels different in 2025. Time is the true barometer of a film’s influence, and House of Wax still burns bright in public discourse while many of its contemporaries faded away into obscurity. Is it the greatest teen slasher of all time? Absolutely not. But is it a fun movie that holds strong rewatchability qualities? Oh, yes. Despite the initial reaction to it, House of Wax never melted away from where it matters most: our hearts.