Fear Street: Why Sam Gets Nosebleeds After Seeing The Witch

Warning: Major spoilers ahead for Fear Street Part 1: 1994!

Sam Fraser (Olivia Scott Welch) has a history of nosebleeds after seeing visions of the Witch in Fear Street Part 1: 1994, and the side effect might have an interesting connection to Stranger Things. 1994 marks the first installment of the Netflix trilogy based on the horror series by author R.L. Stine. Director Leigh Janiak wastes no time in confirming the curse that has overtaken the town of Shadyside since the execution of a witch, Sarah Fier, in 1666. Throughout 1994, Sam ends up becoming the Witch’s latest victim with the help of the teen’s blood.

Following the vigil for Heather (Maya Hawke) in nearby Sunnyvale, the Shadysiders are on a bus back to town when Sam’s new boyfriend, Peter (Jeremy Ford), pursues the group, as Deena (Kiana Madeira) attempts to get payback with a cooler of Gatorade. She loses a handle on the cooler, sending it falling into Peter’s car, which results in a crash. Sam, who is also in the car, has the most severe injuries, bleeding from her nose, forehead, and hand. As she drops out of the car and crawls away, she sees a vision of Sarah Fier, initiating the curse and putting a target on Sam’s back. To make matters worse, when Deena and her friends attempt to put Sarah’s grave at the crash site to rest, Sam makes contact with the Witch’s bones with her own bloody hand, strengthening the connection and presumably allowing Sarah to fully possess Sam.

Aside from shared cast members like Maya Hawke and Sadie Sink, the Fear Street trilogy shares connections with Stranger Things, including the nosebleeds. Stranger Things‘ Eleven (Millie Bobby Brown) often got nosebleeds after exerting her telekinetic powers. Like the Netflix series, 1994 seemingly uses bloody noses to show something is being drained out of the person with the nosebleed. The blood coming from Sam is clearly a result of her connection to Sarah Fier, but the actual nosebleeds could be a reversal of Eleven’s situation.

Eleven’s nosebleeds in Stranger Things were self-inflicted since they resulted from her controllable powers, whereas Sam’s occurs when the Witch is deepening the curse on the innocent teen. Sam first gets one right after the car crash as she’s crawling over the unmarked grave when the first vision of Sarah comes through. Though she later coughs up blood, Sam gets another nosebleed when she returns to that same location as if Sarah is pulling the blood out of her to fulfill the ritual. Sam’s blood is clearly important to the Witch, seeing as she sends her possessed crew of killers to track Sam down with the scent of the young woman’s blood. It’s almost as if the Witch causes the nosebleeds like a beacon, so the killers are attracted to her current location.

Granted, the nosebleeds could also be seen as a warning in the Fear Street trilogy. Before Sam is involved in the car crash, Deena gets a nosebleed on the bus. It’s possible the Witch latches onto Deena first as she’s nearby the gravesite, but Sam ends up being the one to spill her blood on the death site. Perhaps, the nosebleeds in both characters are their bodies’ way of indicating they are in danger. Unfortunately for Welch’s character, Sarah Fier gets complete control, and the Witch is now using Sam as one of her “wicked slaves” mentioned in the poem. But if Fear Street Part 1: 1994 makes one thing clear, it’s that the presence of nosebleeds spells doom for the victim.

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Kara Hedash
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Kara Hedash is a features editor and writer for Screen Rant. From time to time, she dives into the world’s most popular franchises but Kara primarily focuses on evergreen topics. The fact that she gets to write about The Office regularly is like a dream come true. Before joining Screen Rant, Kara served as a contributor for Movie Pilot and had work published on The Mary Sue and Reel Honey. After graduating college, writing began as a part-time hobby for Kara but it quickly turned into a career. She loves binging a new series and watching movies ranging from Hollywood blockbusters to hidden indie gems. She also has a soft spot for horror ever since she started watching it at too young of an age. Her favorite Avenger is Thor and her favorite Disney princess is Leia Organa. When Kara’s not busy writing, you can find her doing yoga or hanging out with Gritty.

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