Michael Villella, ‘The Slumber Party Massacre’ Actor, Dies at 84
Michael Villella, an actor known for his role in cult classic The Slumber Party Massacre, has died. He was 84.
Villella’s daughter Chloe confirmed announced her father’s death Saturday on social media. His Facebook page read: “Michael Pasquale Villella has left this world, may he rest in peace. May God welcome Michael with open arms and bring him into heaven.”
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TMZ reported he died of organ failure after about a month in the hospital.
Villella played Russ Thorn, the power-drill murderer in 1982’s The Slumber Party Massacre, which also starred Michelle Michaels and Robin Stille. Directed by Amy Holden Jones and co-written by Jones and Rita Mae Brown, the film was marked his acting debut.
Though originally intended as a slasher parody, the movie ultimately became a straight horror movie, garnered a cult following and inspired several sequels and spinoffs. Villella had a minor role in 1990’s Sorority House Massacre II and appeared in the 2010 documentary Sleepless Nights: Revisiting the Slumber Party Massacres.
Villella also has held roles in 1983’s Love Letters, 1988’s Gotham, 1989’s Wild Orchid and 1991’s Wild Orchid II: Two Shades of Blue. On television, he appeared on episodes of Amazing Stories and Getting Away With Murder.
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