Key Takeaways

• Freddy Krueger, Chucky, and Ghostface aren’t just scary — they’ve inspired lyrics, Halloween costumes, and memes for decades.
• The list includes both classic slashers and supernatural forces, showing the range of horror’s most memorable villains.
• Even lesser-known characters like the Creeper and Leprechaun made a cultural impact, proving fear comes in many forms.

Horror films are truly only as good as their villains. The blood, jump scares, and every bit of suspense all hinge on how believable — or downright terrifying — the antagonist is, their backstory, and the twisted acts they do throughout the movie.

Let’s get it out of the way — there are all kinds of villains out there. Some, like Ghostface and Michael Myers, deserve credit for practically defining the stalk-and-slash genre as we know it. Others, such as Freddy Krueger and Chucky, bring humor into their twisted cruelty. Then there are the villains you can’t even see — like Death in Final Destination or whatever creepy unseen spirits haunting the Paranormal Activity universe (which didn't quite make the final list).

Since there's no shortage of horrifying figures to give their flowers, REVOLT narrowed it down to 13 of the best villains in horror film history. Take a look below and let us know who we got right.

1. Ghostface in ‘Scream’

Even though a few of the later installments veered away from the formula that made Scream such an addictive franchise in the ’90s and 2000s, Ghostface remains as iconic as ever. While not as outwardly terrifying as, say, Freddy Krueger or Leatherface, the masked killer (or more often than not, killers) make up for it with wit and smarts.

2. Michael Myers in ‘Halloween’

He might move at a snail’s pace, but one thing about Michael Myers, he always catches up to his victims. Just like the franchise’s name suggests, Halloween follows the masked killer-turned-supernatural force as he terrorizes the night of Oct. 31, slaughtering anyone in his path until someone manages to temporarily stop him. Over the decades, the franchise has passed through countless directors and reimaginings, but at least in David Gordon Green’s reboot trilogy, Myers finally meets his end, or so Jamie Lee Curtis’ character and the town of Haddonfield believe in 2022’s Halloween Ends.

3. Jason Voorhees in ‘Friday the 13th’

Jason Voorhees is a lot like Michael Myers. He doesn't say much, and there's no real reason behind his killing spree. Major difference — Jason literally can't die, making him even more terrifying for anyone who crosses paths with him. Another thing Friday the 13th has over Halloween is that Voorhees has been pretty much everywhere: Manhattan, hell, and even outer space. Plus, many of us can agree he won in Freddy vs. Jason (RIP to Kelly Rowland’s character, Kia Waterson).

4. Pinhead in ‘Hellraiser’

“No tears, please. It’s a waste of good suffering!” Pinhead isn’t your typical slasher villain. He doesn’t stalk teenagers or lurk in the shadows — so long as no one solves the puzzle box, they’re safe. Once opened, though, the Cenobite brings a new definition to suffering through chains, hooks, and some seriously twisted philosophies about pleasure and pain. Alongside Butterball, The Female, and Chatterer, Doug Bradley’s haunting portrayal turned Pinhead into a horror icon.

5. Freddy Krueger in ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’

Freddy Krueger gave an entire generation another reason to dread going to sleep. He could invade his victims’ dreams — or nightmares — and if he killed them there, it meant death in the real world. Wes Craven’s brainchild gave us a villain who was both terrifying and darkly comedic, which helps explain his lasting influence in pop culture and Hip Hop. After all, that’s how we got DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince’s “A Nightmare on My Street” and Freddy’s Greatest Hits.

6. Candyman in ‘Candyman’

Say his name five times in the mirror and you’ll regret it. Fun fact: Tony Todd, who played the original Candyman in 1992 and its two sequels, was reportedly paid $1,000 for every bee sting he endured during filming. “I had a great lawyer at the time, and we got paid,” Todd told Entertainment Tonight. He was stung 27 times in total, which added up to a sweet (pun intended) $27,000.

7. Pennywise in ‘It’

Killer clowns are definitely an overused trope in horror — just look at Terrifier, Killjoy, or 31 — but Pennywise is arguably the reason we have most, if not all, of them. Even then, the Dancing Clown is just a cover-up for Pennywise's actual form, which might be a child-eating demon, a creepy clown-spider hybrid, “the Eater of Worlds,” or maybe all of the above. Whatever he is, Pennywise has given a ton of people lifelong clown anxiety.

8. Leatherface in ‘The Texas Chain Saw Massacre’

The Sawyer family is truly deranged, if you ask us. Throughout The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, Leatherface doesn’t even bother with mind games or stalking victims slowly. He just sprints at them with a chainsaw while wearing someone else's face as a mask. It’s what makes him such a memorable horror villain, even if the franchise has been a little inconsistent over the years.

9. Death in ‘Final Destination’

Although we’ve talked about chainsaw-wielding psychopaths and demonic creatures, there’s arguably nothing more terrifying than the inevitability of death itself. Death isn’t a visible force in Final Destination, but within the franchise, it’s portrayed as something impossible to escape. Whether it’s a plane of passengers exploding in the first film or Evan Lewis meeting his end via ladder in the sequel, the sense of dread keeps everyone — including the audience — anxiously waiting for what’s next.

10. Jigsaw in ‘Saw’

John Kramer — the sick, twisted, brilliant, and deeply unsettling man you are. Jigsaw subjected his endless list of victims to traps designed to push them to their absolute limits. Love him or hate him, Kramer is undoubtedly one of the smartest villains in horror history.

11. Chucky in ‘Child's Play’

A doll possessed by the soul of a serial killer is something only the ’80s could’ve given us. Chucky may look harmless at first, but don’t let his size fool you (and definitely keep him away from your kids). He and The Conjuring’s Annabelle are reason enough to skip buying dolls altogether.

12. The Creeper in ‘Jeepers Creepers’

Another underrated villain, at least compared to Voorhees and Krueger, the Creeper literally eats people to replace parts of his decaying body. He can fly, he’s terrifying to look at, and he doesn’t say a word. The good news is, he only comes back every 23 years for 23 days, so technically, everyone in the Jeepers Creepers universe has plenty of time to prepare.

13. Leprechaun in ‘Leprechaun’

Not every horror franchise takes itself too seriously, which sometimes leads to hilarious creations like Lubdan in Leprechaun. He’s probably a foot or two taller than Chucky, much uglier, and always ready to kill if it means protecting his gold. It’s one of those “so bad it’s good” series that’s also given us some truly wild moments, like Ice-T smoking weed with a leprechaun before getting his finger ripped off, and Lubdan terrorizing rappers in Leprechaun in the Hood.