What would a horror movie be without a terrifying monster to torment the main characters and make us all afraid of being in the dark after the credits roll? Every horror movie has a monster of some kind that makes the movie scary. While some of them are scarier than others, it’s hard to deny that each horror movie monster is pretty terrifying in its own way.
It seems like new horror movies are being released all the time. And while all these new movies have some seriously creepy monsters featured in them, it can be fun to revisit the classics and watch some older horror movies. The 2000s was a decade that had a ton of really scary horror movies that are a lot of fun to go back and watch even now. To see 10 of the scariest horror movie monsters of the 2000s, ranked from least to most scary, keep reading!
Esther (The Orphan)
Some of the best horror movie monsters are the ones that we don’t realize are monsters right away. When the villain seems like a totally normal person or creature and then, the movie takes a huge twist to reveal the fact that they’re evil, it’s totally terrifying.
Orphan was released in 2009 and follows a couple that recently lost their child. In order to help deal with their grief, they decide to expand their family by adopting a 9-year-old girl from Russia named Esther. But, when Esther starts behaving strangely, it becomes clear that she’s not the innocent young girl she appears to be.
Toby (Paranormal Activity)
Although we didn’t actually know this demon’s name until later in the series, we were first introduced to Toby in the 2007 found footage film Paranormal Activity. This film follows Katie and Micah after they move into their new home and put up cameras in order to catch evidence of the strange activity happening in their home.
Later on in the series, we learn that “Toby,” whose real name was never revealed, is a demon that made a deal with a group of witches in the 1930s. As part of the deal, Toby wanted the soul of the first born male in Katie’s family in exchange for wealth and power. The fact that this demon was so unknown to the characters and absolutely relentless to the entire family made him pretty terrifying.
The Creeper (Jeepers Creepers)
The Creeper is the main antagonist of the Jeepers Creepers series, a trilogy of movies that came out in 2001, 2003, and 2017. The Creeper is an ancient demon that, according to the myths and legends, wakes up every 23 years and has 23 days to hunt and eat its victims.
As if eating its victims for nearly a month every two decades isn’t bad enough, The Creeper is a pretty messed up monster. It’s clear in these three horror movies that The Creeper enjoys hunting down its victims almost as much as it enjoys eating them. Because of this, it’s a pretty scary monster that we want nothing to do with.
Kayako (The Grudge)
Kayako is the main monster in the 2004 horror movie The Grudge and the Japanese film, Ju-On: The Grudge, that inspired this film. In both versions of the film, Kayako is portrayed as someone who was once a housewife before she was attacked and killed by her husband in a moment of jealousy.
The story of The Grudge involves the way that people die. It’s said in these films that if someone dies during a moment of high emotions like fear, anger, or sorrow, then they leave behind a restless spirit. Kayako is the restless spirit that her untimely murder left behind and she won’t rest until she gets revenge on everyone that enters her former home.
Mary Shaw (Dead Silence)
Is there anything creepier than a scary doll? How about the vengeful spirit of a woman that once owned a very creepy doll? Dead Silence was released in 2007 and answers that question for us with a resounding yes. In the movie, a couple receives a creepy ventriloquist doll as a gift. After something approaches one of them and makes her scream, her tongue is cut out by an unknown force.
In order to find out what happened to his wife, Jamie sets out to research the mysterious doll and where it came from. He learns that it once belonged to a famous ventriloquist named Mary Shaw who was publicly humiliated by a young boy who wasn’t into her act. After being blamed for that young boy’s death, Mary Shaw’s spirit seeks revenge.
Dollface, Man In The Mask, & Pin-Up Girl (The Strangers)
Can humans be monsters? In the case of the three masked assailants in The Strangers, a 2008 horror film that claims to be based on true events, the answer is absolutely yes. This movie follows a couple that should be on a romantic vacation to a quiet rural home, but the awkward circumstances of their trip are made worse when a group of people start terrorizing them.
As if being bothered by a group of dangerous strangers isn’t bad enough, the fact that Dollface explains to Kristen, one of the unsuspecting victims, that they’re at that house because the two of them happened to be home makes them even scarier. Although they’re not supernatural in the way most horror movie monsters are, their actions make them monsters.
Leatherface (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre)
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre was first released back in 1974, but like any truly scary horror movie, there have been sequels and remakes throughout the years. In 2003, a remake was released and rejuvenated interest in this classic slasher franchise because of how truly terrifying Leatherface proved to be.
The movie is set back in the 1970s like the original film was, which definitely adds a bit of creepiness to the entire atmosphere of the film. Just like the original, it follows a group of friends who run into trouble while traveling through Texas and find themselves at the mercy of Leatherface: a terrifying monster that wears his victims’ faces as masks.
George Lutz (The Amityville Horror)
Part of what makes each remake of The Amityville Horror so creepy is the fact that the films are allegedly based on real things that happened to a family while staying in this infamous home. Whether or not you believe the Lutz family was really the victim of supernatural torment, it’s hard to deny that these movies are eerie.
In 2005, Ryan Reynolds played the role of George Lutz in a remake of the film. Throughout the movie, we see George transform from a husband and father to a cold, unfeeling monster as the paranormal energy in the house takes over his mind.
Samara Morgan (The Ring)
The Ring is an American remake of a series of terrifying Japanese horror movies in which a journalist sets out to investigate a strange VHS tape that seems to kill anyone who watches it. In the movie, we learn that the tape was created by a young girl named Samara Morgan.
Samara was adopted by Anna and Richard Morgan, a pair of famous horse breeders living off the coast of Washington. Samara’s abilities drove her parents and the horses they bred insane until Samara was pushed into a well and, in order to get revenge, she took the lives of anyone who watched the tape she created with her unusual and terrifying abilities.
Death (Final Destination)
The Final Destination franchise is one that started in 2000 and has been going stronger than expected. In each of these movies, a group of people escapes death in some way, only to have it catch up to them later in a terrifying and gruesome way.
Although Death is technically not a monster in the traditional sense, it’s the force that chases the characters in these movies and cannot be escaped, which is terrifying. These movies made us all afraid of things like tanning beds or driving behind semi trucks.
Next: 10 Most Frightening Horror Movie Soundtracks That Still Give Us The Creeps
