Uploaded October 2013 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Often sound elements for one film will end up in a film studio's sound library and will be repurposed for other movies. One such element, a post-production looping track that was originally recorded for the 1951 film "Distant Drums", found it's way into the Warner Brothers sound library and has been used in movies and TV shows ever since.
It's known as "The Wilhelm Scream", because of a character in the 1953 Western "The Charge at Feather River" named Private Wilhelm, who gets shot with an arrow and falls off his horse.
Most people are now fairly convinced that the voice actor who did the scream was Sheb Wooley, who had the 1958 hit record "Purple People Eater". Wooley was an uncredited actor in "Distant Drums", and had been on the session to record the post-production screams. The scream was originally used for the reaction of a man who was attacked and pulled underwater by an alligator.
It's been used in many movies and TV shows ever since. Even acclaimed Sound Designer Ben Burtt, has used the Wilhelm scream in most of the films he's worked on, including the Indiana Jones and Star Wars movies.
Often sound elements for one film will end up in a film studio's sound library and will be repurposed for other movies. One such element, a post-production looping track that was originally recorded for the 1951 film "Distant Drums", found it's way into the Warner Brothers sound library and has been used in movies and TV shows ever since.
It's known as "The Wilhelm Scream", because of a character in the 1953 Western "The Charge at Feather River" named Private Wilhelm, who gets shot with an arrow and falls off his horse.
Most people are now fairly convinced that the voice actor who did the scream was Sheb Wooley, who had the 1958 hit record "Purple People Eater". Wooley was an uncredited actor in "Distant Drums", and had been on the session to record the post-production screams. The scream was originally used for the reaction of a man who was attacked and pulled underwater by an alligator.
It's been used in many movies and TV shows ever since. Even acclaimed Sound Designer Ben Burtt, has used the Wilhelm scream in most of the films he's worked on, including the Indiana Jones and Star Wars movies.
