Texas woman goes to House of Torment. Then she calls out a paid haunted house performer for being a ‘creep’

If you're in the mood to experience heart-pumping, blood-chilling, full-body horror, haunted houses might be your jam. As spaces specifically curated to facilitate people safely experiencing primal fear, they are supposed to keep the line between a good fright and a bad night clearly delineated.

One Texas TikToker says a performer once crossed it with her when she was a kid.

‘He's … asking for my number'

TikTok user Jackie (@jackiekitty13) shares a story about a childhood haunted house visit. Her video has more than 34,000 views.

Jackie says that with Halloween approaching, she had been thinking about the experience she had when she was 13.

“I started thinking about House of Torment, and that's a haunted house in Austin,” Jackie says. “I haven't gone to a haunted house in years.”

Jackie says she went with a friend, her mom, and her stepdad, and that they were at the front of the line. As such, they were “getting all the scares first before the other people.”

She says she remembers a performer dressed as a mad scientist who decided to cross a major boundary.

“This guy just stopped scaring people, and he's, like, asking for my number,” Jackie says. “I'm 13, and I'm kind of freaked out, you know. I am freaked out, I'm a … kid.”

Jackie says her friend, who was also 13, stood up for her. However, the rest of the line hurried along to the next scare. Eventually, the performer backed off. Unfortunately, another one—also an adult—popped up and joked about being her “boyfriend.”

Jackie says both incidents have stayed with her and “just kind of ruined [her] experience.” She adds that she is willing to give House of Torment another chance, but she still thinks there needs to be a change in the status quo.

“It's not cool that the actor stopped doing his job to try to hit on a 13-year-old,” Jackie says. “They should be doing their job. And House of Torment, I hope that you hire actors that aren't creeps, and maybe I would like to come back one day.”

Is this kind of behavior common among haunted house performers?

There have only been a handful of reports about haunted house performers crossing boundaries with customers. Most incidents appear to involve the inverse dynamic.

In 2018, KTNV reported that for scare actors, “customers can be [the] scariest part of [the] job.”

“A lot of people love visiting haunted houses during this time of the year, but it turns out it can also be a ‘House of Horrors' for the people who work at them,” KTNV wrote. “As costume performers report getting pushed, punched, kicked or worse … The actors want to see you cower but say they would never cause customers any real harm. They just ask that guests return the favor.”

However, some reports have indeed implicated performers. In 2018, ABC 7 Amarillo reported on “complaints from [haunted house] visitors about being pushed onto a mattress where actors simulated [assaulting] them.” The attraction, which was at Akron Fright Fest, had advertised physical contact and “risque scenes.” Owner Jeremy Caudill said he was “shocked and appalled” and suspended the actors involved.

New Jersey criminal defense firm Villani & Deluca says that many haunted houses have no-touching rules. These typically apply to visitors as well, but adult-only attractions with waivers may allow more contact. However, when operating outside the realm of consent, actors and customers alike can legally cross into the territory of disorderly conduct.

@jackiekitty13

Subplot News reached out to Jackie via TikTok comment, and to House of Torment via email.

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