He took her advice and didn't try writing again for many years. So the movie's a creative sublimation for Mr. Williamson, and probably for a lot of the rest of us who had lousy teachers we can still recall vividly. Mr. Williamson is a writer of popular horror movies as well as spoofs of horror movies. Scary movies have been popular for dating teenagers since monster movies first encouraged the girl to cuddle up to the guy. Movie theaters once advertised that nurses, doctors and ambulances would be available for patrons frightened by Dracula and Frankenstein.
Audiences like to be scared.
He kills her anyway. No statistics suggest that states that allowed the scene had a higher murder rate of little children than those who didn't. It's relatively easy to argue that sympathy for the child gave a moral dimension to the film. But the times, they have changed. It's certainly possible that the media saturation of violence desensitizes vulnerable boys and men who are looking for outlets for their anger.