Scariest Horror Movie Villains of All Time

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Candyman (Candyman)

The 1992 horror flick follows a graduate student completing a thesis on urban legends who encounters the legend of Candyman, a son of a slave who was murdered and his hand replaced with a hook. Candyman can teleport, has superpowers, and an army of bees.

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Captain Spaulding (House of 1000 Corpses)

Come on down! Captain Spaulding was first introduced in House of 1000 Corpses as a terrifying clown who lured people to a murderous family. The character, portrayed by Sid Haig, also appeared in the thriller The Devil's Rejects.

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Chucky (Child's Play)

One of the most iconic horror villains ever, Chucky starts out in 1988's Child's Play as Charles Lee, a serial killer obsessed with voodoo. After being shot by police, Lee transforms his soul into the body of a Good Guy doll and continues to terrify and kill in an attempt to avoid the afterlife. Chucky reappears in sequels Bride of Chucky, Seed of Chucky, and Curse of Chucky.

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Dracula

Pop culture’s most well-known vampire, Dracula, was first introduced in Bram Stoker's 1897 Gothic novel Dracula. The character has been portrayed in countless films including the original 1931 Dracula and 1936’s Dracula’s Daughter. 

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Frankenstein's Monster

Dr. Frankenstein’s monster was first introduced in Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein. In the novel he has no name, but in movie adaptations, the creature becomes known as Frankenstein. Frankenstein became most well-known from the 1931 movie Frankenstein, with Boris Karloff portraying the creature.

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Ghostface (Scream)

One of the most recognizable villains in pop culture, Ghostface first appeared in 1996's Scream as a disguise used by characters Billy and Stu during their killing spree in the movie. The mask is based on "The Scream" painting by Edvard Munch. In the sequels that follow the original, the mask is used by characters as a disguise during their killings.

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Michael Myers (Halloween)

Beware teens! Michael Myers, the masked murderer in Halloween, first appeared in the original 1978 flick as a young boy who murders his older sister, then returns home fifteen years later (having escaped from a mental asylum) to murder more teenagers. Myers has been portrayed by Nick Castle, Tony Moran, and Tommy Lee Wallace.

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Hannibal Lecter (The Silence of the Lambs)

First introduced in 1986 in Manhunter, Hannibal Lecter is a forensic psychiatrist and cannibalistic serial killer. The character continues on in Red Dragon, The Silence of the Lambs, Hannibal, and Hannibal Rising and was portrayed by Anthony Hopkins and Gaspard Ulliel.

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Pinhead (Hellraiser)

Well, this is creepy. Pinhead, who was once a human, was taken by hell and had nails placed in his head which gave him no memory of his former life. He was then punished and put into a statue where he had to eat flesh in order to free himself.

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Pennywise (IT)

Okay, Pennywise might be the scariest clown ever. The red-haired bozo is the antagonist in Stephen King's famed horror flick IT. Pennywise disguises himself as a child-loving clown to lure in children so he can capture and kill them.

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Jason Voorhees (Friday the 13th)

Born deformed, Voorhees is the terrifying unstoppable killer in horror series Friday the 13th. In the original 1980 film, Voorhees’ mother is the killer and he is believed to have drowned as a bullied child, but returns as an adult to avenge his mother's death at Camp Crystal Lake. Voorhees trademark hockey mask didn’t appear until Friday the 13th Part III.

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The Creeper (Jeepers Creepers)

The Creeper is the frightening flesh-eating demon who feasts on humans for 23 days every 23rd spring in 2001 flick Jeepers Creepers and the 2003 sequel Jeepers Creepers II. 

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Jigsaw (Saw)

John Kramer, also known as Jigsaw, is the fictional character from the Saw franchise, named after his horrifying practice of cutting victims into puzzle-piece shapes. The villain was portrayed by Tobin Bell sequels Saw II, III, IV, V, VI, and 3D. Jigsaw uses an equally terrifying puppet named Billy the Puppet to communicate with his victims. 

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Lubin (Leprechaun)

Lubin is a greedy and sadistic leprechaun who was kidnapped by a greedy American looking for a pot of gold who will use any weapon available. Lubin can only be killed by touching a four-leaf clover.

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Freddy Krueger (Nightmare on Elm Street)

Yikes. Nightmare on Elm Street's Freddy Krueger will haunt your dreams forever. Portrayed originally by Robert Englund, Krueger had been a child murderer who was burned by angry parents in a power plant shed.  This boogeyman — armed with a glove on his right hand featuring five deadly razors — kills his victims in their dreams, which results in their real-life deaths.

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Norman Bates (Psycho)

Another character inspired by real-life murderer Ed Gein, Psycho’s Norman Bates suffered severe emotional abuse as a child and kills his mom after becoming jealous of her boyfriend following his dad’s death. After forging her suicide note, Bates takes on her personality to cope with her death. Bates lives on in sequels Psycho II and Psycho House as well as in TV adaptation Bates Motel.

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Sam (Trick 'r Treat)

Boo! Sam, played by Quinn Lord, at first appears as an innocent masked trick-or-treater wearing orange pajamas, but turns out to be a demon who acts as the enforcer for Halloween rules and traditions in horror flick Trick 'r Treat.

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Leatherface (Texas Chain Saw Massacre)

Leatherface, aka Jedidiah "Jed" Sawyer, wears a mask of human skin and murders — then eats — human beings with his inbred family. The fictional killer is said to be based off real-life Wisconsin killer Ed Gein.

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Damien (The Omen)

Damien is an evil child surrounded by satanic forces in 1976’s The Omen. He reappears at age 13 in 1978 sequel Damien: Omen II.

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Samara Morgan (The Ring)

Ah! Samara Morgan was pushed down a well by her adoptive mother Anna. Before her death, a cursed video tape was made in which she appears and anyone who watches the tape gets a mysterious phone call and then dies seven days later. Samara appears in The Ring and The Ring Two.

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Jack Torrance (The Shining)

Portrayed famously by Jack Nicholson in 1980, Jack Torrance is based on Stephen King’s character in the 1977 novel by the same name. In the famed horror flick, Jack is a writer who, after his son is able to see spirits from the past and future, becomes possessed by demonic spirits at the Overlook Hotel.