Rob Zombie Celebrates House of 1000 Corpses’ Fishboy With Fan Tattoos
Rob Zombie, director of House of 1000 Corpses, shares some fan tattoos of one of the kills from the movie, colloquially referred to as “Fishboy.” Zombie began his career in music with his band White Zombie before breaking into directing horror films with House of 1000 Corpses as his debut, attended by two sequels, The Devil’s Rejects and 3 From Hell. Zombie also organized the 2007 Halloween remake as well as the upcoming The Munsters reboot.
House of 1000 Corpses follows the Fireflys, a murderous household that tortured and murdered four teenagers who pass through their gas station while travelling across the country. The first big kill scene of the film happens when Bill (Rainn Wilson) is killed by Otis (Bill Moseley) and has his legs and hands chopped off and replaced with an oversize fish body, with Otis dubbing him “Fishboy.” House of 1000 Corpses gained loyal cult status after its release due to the creativity of the kills and over-the-top mood.
On his Instagram, Zombie showed off the tattoos fans have gotten inspired by the memorable scene. He says in the caption that he’s celebrating all the Fishboy-inspired artwork by his fans, sharing 9 tattoos of the figure, followed by a screenshot of Fishboy from the movie. One such tattoo reimagines Fishboy with the head and torso of Dwight Schrute from The Office, Wilson’s most famous character.
Even though Zombie has previously spoken negatively of his work on the film, his love for the fan reception is still strong, having shared other House of 100 Corpses styled artwork in the past. Zombie’s self-served criticism stems from his naivety when making his first film, saying that when he watches the movie today he only sees problems he wishes he could fix. Despite Zombie’s dismissal of it, House of 1000 Corpses retains a strong cult following for fans of splatter horror.
Zombie’s self-criticism is a common feeling among artists, with many believing they could improve upon their earlier work with the benefit of hindsight and growth as a creator. However, once art is released into the world, it belongs to the world, and House of 1000 Corpses wouldn’t be the same without its low-budget, thrown-together charm. With House of 1000 Corpses’ 20th anniversary around the bend, Zombie has come a long way as an artist and filmmaker and has garnered enough fan support and passion to see where he goes with his upcoming remake of The Munsters.