In Popular Culture
In Ingmar Bergman's film The Seventh Seal (1957), a knight returning from the Crusades during a time of plague plays chess with Death, ostensibly in a hopeless attempt to win his own life, but in fact to distract Death from other people for a time. This portrayal of Death has often been referenced or parodied, for example in The Dove (1968), Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey (1991) and Last Action Hero (1993).
Death is the main antagonist in the horror movie series Final Destination. In the films Death is portrayed as an omnipresent, malevolent force which has a determined plan for all living beings.
Death is a recurring (supporting) character in the Discworld novels, and the main focus of six novels, starting with Mort.
Death is the main character in the films Death Takes a Holiday, and its remake Meet Joe Black.
The Grim Reaper is spoofed in the film Monty Python's The Meaning of Life (1983), when he appears at a dinner party. He then reveals to the hosts they are all dead, and takes their souls (and their cars) to the Afterlife.
The Grim Reaper appears in Conker's Bad Fur Day as a character with the name, Gregg.
The Grim Reaper appears in The Sims series and he comes to collect a Sim that dies in the game
The Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy features the Grim Reaper as a main characters named Grim.
Death is also a recurring character in Family Guy.
Death takes on a satirical role in Dave Hunter's Reapers inc.
Death is also one of the main characters in the anime/manga Soul Eater.
Death appears as one of the four Horsemen in the American television series, Supernatural.
In the novel "The Book Thief" Death is the narrator.
In a YouTube video advertisement series for the video game Dishonored, it is described that Piero received the idea to base Corvo's mask on a human skull when he saw Death himself in a dream.
Read more about this topic: The Grim Reaper
Famous quotes containing the words popular and/or culture:
“We live under continual threat of two equally fearful, but seemingly opposed, destinies: unremitting banality and inconceivable terror. It is fantasy, served out in large rations by the popular arts, which allows most people to cope with these twin specters.”
—Susan Sontag (b. 1933)
“The first time many women hold their tiny babies, they are apt to feel as clumsy and incompetent as any man. The difference is that our culture tells them they’re not supposed to feel that way. Our culture assumes that they will quickly learn how to be a mother, and that assumption rubs off on most women—so they learn.”
—Pamela Patrick Novotny (20th century)