When considering the eras of the horror and monster genres, many minds fly to images of the traditional black-and-white era of the Universal Monsters, or the neon-drenched, blood-covered slashers of the '80s. Still, the beloved monster genre has had some solid entries even in recent decades.
The 2000s were an interesting time for the monster genre. It was a time when vampires sparkled and ghosts could come through your TV screen, but that doesn't mean there weren't a few seriously scary gems in the mix. Dust off your VCR and steady your nerve as we look at ten of the scariest monsters from the 2000s.
Sam (Trick r' Treat)
This little guy might not look like much of a monster, but mess with the sacred traditions of All Hallow's Eve, and you'll see just how scary this pint-sized spirit can be. He might look like a tiny trick-or-treater, but behind that burlap mask lives the spirit of Samhain who demands traditions to be upheld.
If his frequent appearances in the shadows of Trick r' Treat don't convince you, his encounter with Mr. Kreeg will. When the old man's Scrooge-ish attitude towards Halloween gets Sam's attention, Mr. Kreeg receives a visit from a hateful holiday spirit and learns the true meaning of the season.
Vampires (30 Days Of Night)
The 2000s weren't exactly the best time for vampires. When the mascot of your species is an overly-romanticized, sparkling Robert Patterson, you tend to lose a little street cred. Thanks to the infamous Twilight series, vampires were barely considered monsters. Then we got 30 Days of Night.
30 Days of Night was one of the few vampire films of the time where the creatures in question were actually monsters and not some eye-candy for young girls to swoon over. With their fiendish faces and predatory nature, these Alaskan bloodsuckers proved vampires could still be terrifying horror icons.
Samara (The Ring)
Easily one of the most iconic horror series in the 2000s has to be The Ring movies. In fact, many of us can't hear the words "seven days" without thinking about some undead entity crawling out of our screens. The series and its famous drowned antagonist have been parodied and referenced so much that they've become part of horror pop culture.
Based on the Japanese Ringu series, the movie tells the tale of a cursed videotape with a vengeful spirit of a young girl attached. What follows is a horrifying display of death and mystery surrounding the sinister Samara. Watch if you dare.
The Pale Man (Pan's Labyrinth)
Definitely more of a fantasy, but we can't deny there aren't some extremely prominent horror elements on full display in Guillermo Del Toro's masterpiece, Pan's Labyrinth. This film definitely uses both horror and fantasy tones to create its story and world, but if it's one thing Del Toro knows how to do, it's monsters.
We're giving this spot to the evil Pale Man from Ophelia's second quest. This combination of ogre and boogeyman definitely sends chills up our spine, especially with those freaky hand-eyes and ghastly shriek. Easily the stuff nightmares are made of, we have to give him a place on our list.
The Creeper (Jeepers Creepers)
If the backstory behind the film's notorious director didn't give you a panic attack, the carnivorous Creeper will. This vicious predator is a mysterious and merciless, appearing every 23 years to find new victims to consume and replenish its body. With his claws, wings, trenchcoat and hat, the Creeper is definitely one of the decade's most recognizable monsters.
The two things that make the Creeper so terrifying is his air of mystery and overall viciousness. This guy is extremely hard to defeat and definitely resilient. Think Jason Voorhees with supernatural powers. Easily one of the most powerful entities on our list, and definitely the hungriest.
Crawlers (The Descent)
The aptly named cave-dwellers in The Descent are a species of pale, ravenous humanoids who live deep within the cold, wet, crevices of the earth. They might be blind, but with their sharp teeth, batlike senses, and hunger for flesh and blood, they're definitely not a species to mess with.
When a group of women explorers goes for an expedition deep in the caves of the Appalachian mountains, they get lost in the deep caverns and soon fall prey to these bloodthirsty creatures. The film is already creepy and claustrophobic, but when these guys hit the scene, it's a regular bloodbath.
The Ghosts (Thirteen Ghosts)
Inspired by the 1960 film by William Castle, Thirteen Ghosts is a haunted house flick jacked up to 13, as the massive mansion is a giant prison for 13 different and terrifying spirits. From the First Born Son to the Juggernaut, these ghosts aren't your everyday specters.
These ghosts are used in a horrific, house-sized machine to perform a dark ritual to grant its caster unlimited power. Trapped and bound to earth, the spirits of the Black Zodiac are suffering, tragic, and definitely scary specters that resonate with viewers more than most movie ghosts.
The Beldam (Coraline)
If you don't consider Coraline a horror flick, you are what we in the business like to call wrong. Just because it has an animated exterior doesn't mean it isn't downright disturbing at times. Most of this film's scares come from the creature known as the Beldam, a monstrous Other Mother who preys on the souls of children who she lures into her lair.
Hush and shush, for the Beldam might be listening... Dolls and spiders are already creepy enough on their own, but combine them together with the stop-motion genius of Henry Selick and you get some major nightmare fuel.
Clover (Cloverfield)
How on earth can we have a monster movie list without calling on at least one Kaiju? From the mind of J.J. Abrams, we get a monster flick that definitely has its share of scares. In this found-footage take on the giant-monster story, a gigantic alien creature lays waste to New York City.
Clover is enormous, brutal, and definitely big on massively destructive activities. If Clover wasn't enough, its insect-like parasites will certainly turn a few stomachs. Its terror is only increased when we learn that this isn't even an adult, nor the only one of its kind.
Mary Shaw (Dead Silence)
The vicious ventriloquist Mary Shaw makes the top of our list thanks to one main element, sheer, unadulterated terror. A vengeful spirit who rips the tongues out of her screaming victims and can also possess a legion of evil puppets? That's got to be one of the scariest concepts devised for a horror villain in our book.
Nearly everything about this undead puppeteer is like something out of a night terror. With her collection of blood-drenched tongues, her army of dolls, and sliced up face, how can we not call her a monster? She's one character that certainly leaves us speechless.