Maybe there's a good reason to be afraid of the dark. The myth of the boogeyman is one that goes back centuries: a shadowy figure lurking in the darkness, a child-hungry monster hiding in wait, or an evil spirit dwelling in one's darkest nightmares. There are more than a few reasons to give these creatures pause, and the film industry has certainly cashed in on it.
From masked murderers like Halloween's Michael Myers to mutated monsters, the horror genre has more than its fair share of boogeymen on the prowl. They might spawn from urban legends, prey on the souls or flesh of children, or simply use fear as a weapon, but they'll definitely keep viewers up at night.
Oogie Boogie (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
While certainly not the scariest boogeyman in the bunch, he's arguably one of the most famous. The dancing, jazz-singing, no-account Oogie Boogie has been the shadow of the moon at night since The Nightmare Before Christmas premiered, and he definitely has a great time doing it.
He might have a catchy song-and-dance number, but a stitched-up sack of bugs and snakes who wants to turn Santa Claus into snake and spider stew definitely comes with a serving of creep-factor. He might not be nightmare-inducing, but he's a solid first entry, nevertheless.
Wrinkles The Clown (Wrinkles The Clown)
An honorable mention, but any boogeyman featured in a documentary has to be a pretty potent entity. Wrinkles The Clown tells the uber-creepy story of a performance artist who masquerades as an evil clown to scare misbehaving kids for a price. The film itself isn't so much intensely scary, as it is grossly unsettling.
On one hand, paying a creepy clown to traumatize one's children is a bit extreme. On the other, it's something that harkens back to the ancient purpose of the boogeyman, to frighten unruly youngsters. Whether it's too much or too funny is up for the viewer to decide.
Mr. Babadook (The Babadook)
As a whole, The Babadook is a slow-burning psychological horror movie, but Mr. Babadook himself really doesn't show up on-screen as a fully-fleshed-out being that much. But when he does make a full-bodied appearance, he's definitely the textbook example of a boogeyman that goes bump in the night.
What starts out as a child's nightmare soon becomes a predatory force for a young boy's mother. Call him a figment of the imagination, a result of psychosis, or a metaphoric representation of grief, he's certainly one tough customer.
The Beldam (Coraline)
She might not be a boogeyman, but the spindly, spidery Beldam meets all the criteria for a creature of the reputation. A shapeshifting, child-eating, monster that lives in a closet and manipulates fears and desires, that's a resume that makes the Other Mother a little more than qualified.
For a villain in a kids' film, the Beldam is easily one of the scariest creatures to crawl out of an animated movie. Even some adults are unnerved by her appearance and appetite. Of course, the combination of creepy doll and deadly spider won't exactly win her a lot of friends either.
Candyman (Candyman)
Although he's not a monster per se, Candyman is a shining example of a modern boogeyman. An urban legend with deadly consequences, the hook-handed spirit of Daniel Robitallie, like every good boogeyman, thrives on those who fear him and makes examples of those who don't.
His prey of choice might be more skeptical adults than children, but he's definitely worthy of his title. Whether you think Tony Todd or Yahya Abdul-Mateen II does it best, it's a scary story come to life that will make anyone a believer.
The Lipstick Demon (Insidious)
Insidious was an interesting horror film that turned the haunted house genre on its head, but its most recognizable feature was without a doubt the infamous Lipstick Demon. A violent entity from The Further, the red-faced horror that possesses Dalton's body is certainly one of the most intense on the list.
While his target might only be one child, he's definitely the sort to lie in wait in dark places, waiting for the perfect opportunity for a jumpscare. Briefly seen, yet all too terrifying, he's practically the symbol of the first film.
Bughuul (Sinister)
Considered to be one of the most scientifically scary movies, Sinister takes from The Ring in some ways. That said, it also reinvents the myth of a child-eating boogeyman and turns him into a malevolent demon with a cult of creepy kids and a body count that makes him one of the deadliest entities created in recent years. To say he's terrifying would be putting it lightly.
Any basic boogeyman can scare, kidnap, or even eat their victims, but Bughuul takes it a step further by leaving no witnesses and no survivors. It's easy to understand why some can only watch this movie once.
Michael Myers (Halloween)
While Michael Myers might be just a man in a mask, he's more than worthy of the reputation and title of a boogeyman. While his list of victims has grown to include a variety of people, his original targets were teens, babysitters, and their young charges.
What began as a horrific murder at the Myers house in 1963 led to an urban legend spun by the kids of Haddonfield. It was only a story until the night Michael came home. He might be a boogeyman by reputation alone, but Michael is easily one of the most memorable.
Freddy Krueger (A Nightmare On Elm Street)
If there's one character more deserving of the moniker than Michael, it's Nightmare on Elm Street's own Freddy Krueger. Dealing out nightmares have been part of the boogeyman's business since ancient times, but Freddy has made it his weapon of choice to wreak his vengeance on the community that torched him all those years ago.
Freddy is more than a boogeyman, he's a pop-culture icon. Sure, he's a slasher villain with a body count list that includes a host of young children, but he's also a sadistic, silly, and over-the-top entity of dreams and darkness. It's not often a boogeyman has such a vocal fanbase.
Pennywise (It)
Tim Curry said it best: "I am every nightmare you've ever had, I am your worst dream come true, I am everything you've ever been afraid of." There is perhaps no better summary of the ideal boogeyman than that of Stephen King's creepy Pennywise.
The painted cosmic horror from the infamous It is easily one of the most horrifying characters in literature, simply due to the fact that its true form is incomprehensible. A creature able to shift into something so terrifying and horrific that it leaves viewers either driven insane or turned into clown food is more than just a normal monster under the bed.