With movies like Prey, released in August 2022, the horror industry continues to remind audiences that monsters are horrifying creatures to be feared, hated, and killed. However, not all horror movies preach this malice towards monsters and there are many famous frightening features that cast creeps and creatures as romantic leads.

Although recent movies and TV series have frequently romanticized vampires and werewolves, monsters have actually been pulled from the darkness and into a more loving light since the genre began. Whether they are genuine loving souls or simply finding a means to an end, there are several instances where horror has a heart.

The Beast (La Belle Et La Bete)

The Beast stands behind Belle in 1946's Beauty and the Beast

Although not a horror movie in the strictest sense, the original take on Beauty and the Beast was a gothic monster masterpiece that came with incredible visuals, haunting sequences, and a love story that is a tale as old as time. Jean Cocteau's 1946 fantasy feature meant to adapt Jeanne-Marie Leprince de Beaumont's original take on the tale, and ended up creating one of the most beautiful films shot in black-and-white.

The film follows the plot of the classic fairytale, but its Beast is certainly one of its standout features. Before Disney had their adaptation, heavily inspired by this version, the 1946 adaptation gave the world a heartbroken Beast whose only hope to break his curse is to win the love of the titular Belle.

Frankenstein’s Monster (The Bride Of Frankenstein)

Bride of Frankenstein

In terms of character development, Frankenstein's monster truly didn't come into his own until the sequel to the original Universal monster movie. Although his reanimated bride shrieks in terror of him, the monster himself learns how to think, feel, love, and hurt.

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It is here where the monster becomes the most sympathetic character in the movie, being rejected by both humanity and the mate that was made for him. It's truly a heartbreaking concept that lives on in horror history. Although they don't have the relationship that characters like Herman and Lily Munster have, the monster and his bride have become fixtures of the genre and the trope ever since.

Leon (Curse Of The Werewolf)

Oliver Reed stars in The Curse Of The Werewolf

Hammer horror films always have the habit of reimagining Universal's monster movies, and Curse of the Werewolf is the studio's answer to The Wolf Man. However, Oliver Reed's interpretation of the famous lycanthrope is far more romanticized and muscular than Lon Chaney Jr.'s snarling creature of the night.

Cursed at his birth, the handsome Leon is condemned to be a werewolf with a taste for blood. The focus of the film's plot is the tortured soul trying to find love while battling the beast within, ultimately ending with an angry mob chase and a bottle in his gigantic furry farm. Although it's somewhat cliché, it fits the Hammer horror standard.

Brundlefly (The Fly)

Jeff Goldblum becoming The Fly.

It's one thing to fall in love with a monster, but it's another to watch someone's partner turn into one. That is precisely the plot of David Cronenberg's remake of The Fly, and the metamorphosis from man into monster is indeed a disgusting thing to behold. It's certainly a harrowing experience for Ronnie, as she watches the man she loves become a vomiting and vile insect hybrid.

As noble as it is to support a partner's scientific pursuits, watching them transform into something unspeakable is the ultimate relationship test -- especially if the effects of the experiment mutate the mind as well as the body. Sometimes love is found within, and sometimes it's a giant fly monster.

Candyman (Candyman)

Tony Todd plays Candyman

In retrospect, it might be better to call Helen's feelings towards Candyman more of an obsession than actual romance, but the way Tony Todd commands that role with such a sensual and hypnotic delivery while he stalks her with that long black coat flowing behind him is absolutely spellbinding. He's certainly a touch more seductive than his literary counterpart in The Forbidden.

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Candyman is not the type of vengeful spirit to rely on gratuitous jumpscares, although he does have a handful. Instead, he stalks his prey, inviting them with the haunting refrain of "be my victim." His tone, delivery, and methods lend him a sort of gothic vibe seen with characters like Dracula or the Phantom of the Opera, rather than the stereotypical slasher.

Dracula (Bram Stoker’s Dracula)

Gary Oldman as Count Dracula in 1992's Bram Stoker's Dracula

From Bela Lugosi to Claes Bang, a certain romantic flavor tends to go into just about every portrayal of Count Dracula, but few understood the assignment better than Gary Oldman. Taking huge inspirations and themes from the original novel, Bram Stoker's Dracula was a horror movie that blended both the romantic and the terrifying in true cinematic fashion.

Oldman's interpretation of Dracula was the textbook definition of romanticized horror, but that was the point. Instead of looking for another damsel to join his host of brides, Dracula seeks to be reunited with the soul of his beloved Elizabeth whom he lost centuries ago. Crossing oceans of time to find her, this adaptation of the count truly has more heart than those that came after him.

Edward (Edward Scissorhands)

Johnny Depp as Edward Scissorhands

Although he isn't a monster in the strictest sense, Tim Burton's Edward Scissorhands essentially follow the bare-bones methods of Dr. Frankenstein by creating a man from non-living matter and exposing him to a world that sees him as a monster. However, Edward does have the advantage of finding someone that truly loves him and whom he loves in return.

There's a common trope in horror movies about the misunderstood monster, and to say Edward isn't the living embodiment of the idea would be untrue. Although he isn't chased out with torches and pitchforks, he does have a few things in common with his reanimated inspiration, save for the much happier ending.

Emily The Corpse Bride (Corpse Bride)

Emily the Corpse Bride smiles in the moonlight.

Zombies aren't usually the most lovable creatures but, as displayed with Edward Scissorhands, Tim Burton has a gift for making the strange and unusual absolutely intoxicating. Case in point, Emily, the titular Corpse Bride, with whom both Victor and the audience soon fall in love.

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As the saying goes, beauty is only skin deep, and Emily's presence, personality, and lust for life, despite her undead status, is what truly makes her a more compelling love interest. Her love story isn't the most conventional, but that's to be expected in a story from Burton's vivid imagination.

The Phantom (The Phantom Of The Opera)

The Phantom looks on from The Phantom of the Opera

The romantic nature of the character depends entirely upon the Phantom Of The Opera adaptation and/or the audience in question. The Phantom represents a rare case of being romanticized more by the audience than the actual script. However, that's not to say that this factor hasn't bled over into the world of film and stage.

With actors like Charles Dance and Gerard Butler stepping into the role, of course, there's room for a romantic interpretation, but the idea behind the Phantom is that he is loved for his musical genius and little else. Therein lies the tragedy and the appeal of the character. The tortured artist motif will never go out of style, and the Phantom has been utilizing it for decades.

The Amphibian Man (The Shape Of Water)

Fish Monster and Elisa in The Shape of Water

The best example of a monster-turned-lover in modern media might be the Amphibian Man in Guillermo del Toro's The Shape of Water, simply due to the amount of attention and detail that went into making the creature such a tailor-made love interest. From his chiseled features to his bright eyes and his role in the overall narrative, the Amphibian man was practically born to reinvent conventional love stories.

The romance comes from the chemistry between the film's leading lady, a cleaner named Elisa, who rescues him from a government facility. Despite their lack of verbal communication, the two are able to build a relationship and a romantic love affair that challenges conceptions of both the horror and romance genres, a feat certainly worthy of a few Academy Awards.

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