Mad Monster caught up with Leatherface himself, R.A. Mihailoff. R.A. portrayed Leatherface in Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. I took the opportunity to discuss with him his thoughts on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise and how he would rank the movies.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise consists of eight films. The first film was released in 1974, and the latest movie was released in 2017. Starting with his most favorite to least favorite, here is how R.A. Mihailoff, Leatherface, ranks The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise.
1) The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)
Synopsis: Two siblings and three of their friends en route to visit their grandfather’s grave in Texas end up falling victim to a family of cannibalistic psychopaths and must survive the terrors of Leatherface and his family.
2) Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990)
R.A. Mihailoff: I’m going to have to say, because it’s so personal to me, Leatherface, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre Three has to be number two. I know I’m going to get blowback on that.
Sgt. Horror: That’s actually the way I rank it too.
Synopsis: A California couple and a survivalist encounter Leatherface and his family.
3) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003)
R.A. Mihailoff: Actually I thought the remake was pretty good, if there was ever a movie I wanted to hate, it was the 2003 remake because they didn’t even call me up to see if I was still alive. That really bothered me. But when I did finally see it, I thought it was pretty good, and I’ve actually gone and looked at the house in Texas.
Synopsis: After picking up a traumatized young hitchhiker, five friends find themselves stalked and hunted by a deformed chainsaw-wielding loon and his family of equally psychopathic killers.
4) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006)
Synopsis: Before being sent to serve in Vietnam, two brothers and their girlfriends take one last road trip, but when they get into an accident, a terrifying experience will take them to a secluded house of horrors, with a chainsaw-wielding killer.
5) The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986)
R.A. Mihailoff: Texas Chainsaw Massacre Two, for a simple reason, I just don’t like comedy in my horror, you know what I mean?
Sgt. Horror: Exactly!
R.A. Mihailoff: It’s okay to have a few comedic moments just to lighten the intensity. But that to me was just too much tongue in cheek. I thought Bill Moseley was brilliant, and the chasing across the bridge was excellent.
Synopsis: A radio host is victimized by the cannibal family as a former Texas Marshall hunts them.
6) Texas Chainsaw 3D (2013)
Synopsis: A young woman travels to Texas to collect an inheritance; little does she know that an encounter with a chainsaw-wielding killer is part of the reward.
7) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1995)
Synopsis: A group of teenagers get into a car crash in the Texas woods on prom night, and then wander into an old farmhouse that is home to Leatherface (Robert Jacks) and his insane family of cannibalistic psychopaths.
8) Leatherface (2017)
R.A. Mihailoff: It wasn’t a bad horror movie, but it just had no business being part of the franchise.
Synopsis: A teenage Leatherface escapes from a mental hospital with three other inmates, kidnapping a young nurse and taking her on a road trip from hell, while being pursued by a lawman out for revenge.
Let us know in the comments how you rank films in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise.
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