Coffin Joe

Zé do Caixão [ˈzɛ du kajˈʃɐ̃w], known in English-speaking countries as Coffin Joe, is a character created and nominally played by Brazilian writer, director, and actor José Mojica Marins. An amoral undertaker with Nietzschian beliefs, he is driven by his desire to have a son by "the perfect woman", believing that immortality is achieved through procreation, a concept he refers to as "the continuation of blood". He often resorts to murder, kidnapping, and rape to achieve his means, with his violent nature, atheism, and antagonism towards Christianity placing him into conflict with his largely Catholic neighbors. Despite his own disbelief in the supernatural, he often finds himself experiencing paranormal phenomena, including encounters with ghosts, Death, and visions of Hell.

Initially conceived of by Marins to serve as the antagonist in At Midnight I'll Take Your Soul, Brazil's first horror film, Coffin Joe has gone on to appear in nine more films, three television series, songs, music videos, and comic books. The character has been called "Brazil's National Boogeyman", and is considered a horror icon and a cultural icon of Brazil, with his popularity resulting in descriptions of him as being the Brazilian equivalent of the United States' Freddy Krueger.