Rihanna’s ‘Bates Hotel’ Role Reprising The Biggest Horror Icon In Film History

The Hollywood Reporter was the first major news source to announce that Rihanna has recently agreed to appear as one of the main characters in the upcoming season five of the hit TV series Bates Motel, which is meant to serve as an extended prequel to Alfred Hitchcock’s iconic horror film, Psycho. This is already big news, as it entails what is by far Rihanna’s biggest foray yet into the world of acting, but what makes it even more exciting is the exact role Rihanna will play: Marion Crane, the woman who, in a scene that is referenced more than any other in horror cinema — and, arguably, the entirety of the filmic universe — gets stabbed to death while showering in one of the motel’s rooms.

If the scene doesn’t immediately spring to mind, this still image is sure to jog your memory.

The news of Rihanna’s huge role has only been out for a few hours, and it is already setting the internet on fire, receiving coverage at just about every pop culture news source imaginable. Before even THR could seize on the story, though, Rihanna herself made a video announcing her casting and sent it to Comic-Con 2016, where it was released to the world.

After Rihanna’s announcement video was released at Comic-Con, Carlton Cuse and Kerry Ehrin, the executive producers of A&E’s Bates Motel, issued a statement giving some detail as to why they had picked Rihanna for the iconic role.

“Rihanna was a big fan of the show,” the statement read, likely referring to statements Rihanna made about her love for Bates Motel in the November cover story for Vanity Fair.

“We were huge fans of hers, so it was the perfect collision of creativity and fate,” the statement continued.

It also said that, even before the idea of Rihanna was pitched, Cuse and Ehrin had wanted to pick an actress with a definite 21st century persona for such an identifiable character, and a modern day pop star, especially one with a young and edgy image like Rihanna’s, was an ideal find.

“We wanted to thrust the iconic role into a contemporary spotlight and redefine it in a meaningful and exciting new way.”

The Bates Motel casting director’s decision to bring on Rihanna wasn’t just an uninspired attempt to up the show’s star power, though; Rihanna has proven that she can be exceedingly creepy on camera. True, she has not been in many actual movies — Rihanna has not even appeared in a film since playing a small role in 2014’s Annie remake — but her visceral performance in several of her horror-inspired music videos shows Rihanna can bring the noise to a scary setting. The video for Rihanna’s 2015 hit, “B***h Better Have My Money,” comes to mind immediately.

As those who have seen Hitchcock’s Psycho will know, Crane’s character is not a criminal or anything that would require Rihanna to demonstrate the unadulterated brutality she does in “B***h Better Have My Money.” However, it is good that Rihanna will already be comfortable with performing in brutal environments, as that will more than likely be a big part of Rihanna’s Marion Crane role.

Besides, Cuse told Entertainment Weekly, Rihanna and Bates Motel‘s Marion Crane will not be exactly the same character as the Crane that appeared in Hitchcock’s 1960 masterpiece and was played by Janet Leigh. He instead wants Rihanna’s Crane to leave her own legacy.

“We are going to meet Marion Crane, but what we don’t want to do is create the impression that we’re redoing the movie because we’re not at all. She’s a very different person in the movie and her story plays out in a different way,” Cuse said.

.@rihanna has been cast in Janet Leigh's iconic #Psycho role on #BatesMotel. https://t.co/rJKRi3Co6q pic.twitter.com/9Nul5S0BYv

— Entertainment Tonight (@etnow) July 23, 2016

This is a huge step for Rihanna, but she obviously has quite the outstanding performance to live up to. Rihanna will have to put in work if she hopes to do Marion Crane justice. If you understood the pun there, congratulations.

Sadly, it was also confirmed at the panel that the fifth season will definitely be the last for the show, which means that, whatever happens, Rihanna’s ultimate fate on the show will probably be the same as Leigh’s. Let’s hope Bates Motel, headed by Vera Farmiga and, now, Rihanna, can go out with a bang, whether literally or figuratively.

Are you excited to see Rihanna in her first major TV role? Do you have high hopes for her performance? Rihanna fan or not, make yourself heard in the comments section below!

[Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP Images]