Strange as it may seem, Scooby-Doo, the lovable Great Dane that solves mysteries with his four human companions, continues to be a pop culture phenomenon. What began as a rather simple children’s cartoon in the 1960s has grown to a substantial media franchise.
Though many times the ghost or monster that the gang investigates turns out to be a person in a costume, and while much of the time there is good humor and lightness, more than a few times the shows and films have veered into the downright scary. It’s precisely the franchise’s ability to move between these two points that makes it such fun viewing.
When Lena And Simone Transformed Into Cat Creatures
Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island has gone down as one of the most unsettling children’s movies ever made. The funny part about it is that it’s not even the zombies that are the most terrifying thing.
Instead, it’s the two women who turn into cat creatures, surprising the gang in the process. The moment when they finally reveal themselves for what they are is a master class in the way that animation can sometimes be as horrifying as live-action.
The Witch From Witch’s Ghost
Much as the zombies were real, so is the titular ghost in this film. Summoned back to life by one of her descendants, Sarah Ravencroft sets out to destroy all life on earth as revenge for having been trapped in a magical book.
She’s one of the best villains to emerge from the Scooby-Doo universe, precisely because she’s so powerful and because she seems to have almost no qualms about using that power to destroy anyone in her way.
When Pericles The Bird Turned Into A Giant Cosmic Monster
Though it might not occur to many people to combine Scooby-Doo with Lovecraft, that’s exactly what happens in the series Scooby-Doo! Mystery Incorporated. A particularly frightening moment occurs in the very last episode when the villainous bird Professor Pericles becomes inhabited by a cosmic terror called the Evil Entity.
It is, hands down, one of the most disturbing things to ever occur in a children’s movie, and it’s only made worse when the creature devours everything in sight.
The Axe-wielding Villain In Camp Scare
In Camp Scare, the franchise largely returns to form, in that it’s finally revealed that the various creatures and villains that appear are in fact regular people up to no good. Before that, however, the sequences with the Woodsman are surprisingly frightening.
In part, this is because the animation in this film is more starkly rendered than in some of the other installments in the franchise, but it’s also because the villain does seem to genuinely want to slice and dice those that get in his way.
When It Becomes Clear That The Zombies Are Real
There’s a moment in Scooby-Doo on Zombie Island where Fred and Daphne encounter a zombie. Fred, still skeptical, insists that it must be either animatronic or someone in a costume.
When neither of those proves to be true, that it is in fact a real zombie that they are confronting, one can’t help but feel a shiver of fear at the idea that the dead have, indeed, come back to haunt the living.
When Jacques Turns Into A Cat Creature
Zombie Island is truly full of scary moments, and the instant when Jacques, the seemingly kindly ferry owner, turns into a cat creature definitely ranks up there.
The fact that he seems to be such a nice man is what makes his transformation all the more horrifying, as does the fact that his cat form is significantly taller than either Shaggy or Scooby. It’s a chilling reminder that not everyone is what they seem.
The Yeti In Chill Out
Even outside of Scooby-Doo, the Yeti is one of the more terrifying creatures in human mythology. Neither fully human nor fully animal, it straddles the divide and exists outside of human categories.
The animation in Chill Out’s version of this creature is particularly vivid, and it’s the kind of creature that one definitely would not want to encounter in the wilds of the Himalayas. The fact that it turns out to be a human in a costume doesn’t take away from the chill factor.
The Mummy In Where’s My Mummy
In keeping with the tradition of having humans in costumes turn out to be the bad guys, the mummy in this film is, in fact, Velma herself, who is trying to protect an ancient site.
Once again, however, the animation is such that her mummy disguise is truly rather frightening, and it’s almost possible to believe for most of the film that the gang really is fighting against a terrifying undead creature.
The Giant Turkey In Witch’s Ghost
Though it doesn’t hit quite the dark depths of its predecessor, Scooby-Doo and the Witch’s Ghost does it have its disturbing moments, particularly after the witch herself makes her appearance.
As a powerful witch determined to be returned fully to the realm of the living, she recruits all manner of beings to her aid, including turning a turkey into a giant version of itself. It’s a little bit silly, of course, but there’s also something more than a little scary about the thought of a giant turkey turning on humans.
The Annunaki In The Conclusion To Mystery Incorporated
Mysteries Incorporated takes many of the tried and true Scooby-Doo formula and turns them on their head. In the conclusion of the series, an entire army of alien beings called the Annunaki appears in service of the Evil Entity.
They are truly terrifying creatures, and the fact that they seem determined to bring about the destruction of all life on Earth makes them even scarier, a reminder of the many things in the universe that are beyond human comprehension.