Children and horror movies go together like bacon on cheeseburgers. They have been haunting us for the better part of a century, but what is it about scary kids in horror movies that keeps working? Is it the loss of innocence? Is it the stark contrast of appearance versus reality? Is it the scary kid drawings of ominous things children should not be drawing? Whatever the case may be, children continue be some of the scariest elements in horror movies. With this in mind, we put together an infographic that analyzes some of the scariest children in horror movies in chronological order.
There is quite an abundance of children in horror movies now, so we set a few ground rules. We’re only including children that are an “evil” element in the movie, so children like Cole Sear in The Sixth Sense and Carol Anne from Poltergeist aren’t included. (The Grady Sisters from The Shining are debatable, but they’re so iconic that we had to include them!) Also, we’re only listing kids so we’re not including the baby from Rosemary’s Baby or Esther from Orphan. (Hopefully that wasn’t too much of a spoiler, but the movie has been out long enough that horror fans should know this by now!) We hope you find some movies to add to your watch list or have more incentive to watch movies that you have been putting off!
Click Image for Larger View
![Tiny Terrors: The Scariest Kids in Horror Movies [Infographic]](https://images.halloweencostumes.com/infographics/tiny-terrors-scariest-kids-in-horror-movies.jpg)
Embed This Image on Your Site:
Tiny Terrors: The Scariest Kids in Horror Movies Transcript
Did you know that the child actor from Home Alone was also the antagonist in a horror movie? Have you noticed that a good portion of horror children are haunting people from beyond the grave? This infographic contains some of the scariest children in horror movies, and you can see the reasons for what made them bad. These kids may be tiny, but they're certainly terrifying!
Rhoda Penmark
Patty McCormack
The Bad Seed (1956)
- Character Age: 8
- Horror Genre: Mystery & Suspense
- Origin of Evil: Born a Sociopath
"You tell lies like that, you won't go to heaven when you die!"
David Zellaby
Martin Stephens
Village of the Damned (1960)
- Character Age: 3
- Horror Genre: Sci-Fi Horror
- Origin of Evil: Born Through a Supernatural Event
"You have to be taught to leave us alone."
Regan MacNeil
Linda Blair
The Exorcist (1973)
- Character Age: 12
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Possessed By a Demon
"What a wonderful day for an exorcism."
Damien Thorn
Harvey Stevens
The Omen (1976)
- Character Age: 5
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Son of the Devil
"Please, daddy! No, daddy, no!"
Michael Myers
Will Sanden
Halloween (1978)
- Character Age: 6
- Horror Genre: Slasher
- Origin of Evil: Has Always Been Evil
"......"
The Grady Twins
Lisa & Louise Burns
The Shining (1980)
- Character Age: 8-10
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Murdered By Their Father
"Come and play with us, Danny. Forever and Ever."
Isaac Chroner
John Franklin
Children of the Corn (1984)
- Character Age: 12
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Slasher
- Origin of Evil: Young Preacher of an Evil Cult
"A time of tribulation has come. A test is at hand...the final test."
Malachai Boardman
Courtney Gains
Children of the Corn (1984)
- Character Age: 17-18
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Slasher
- Origin of Evil: Heavily Influenced by the Preacher, Isaac
"We want to give you peace."
Gage Creed
Miko Hughes
Pet Sematary (1989)
- Character Age: 3
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Buried in a Haunted Cemetery
"I brought you something mommy."
Henry Evans
Macaulay Culkin
The Good Son (1993)
- Character Age: 12
- Horror Genre: Thriller
- Origin of Evil: Born a Psychopath
"If I let you go, do you think that you can fly?"
Toshio Saeki
Yuya Ozeki
Ju-On: The Grudge (2002)
- Character Age: 6
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Murdered By His Father
"Meoooooow!"
Samara Morgan
Daveigh Chase
The Ring (2002)
- Character Age: 8
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Born With Nensha Powers, Murdered By Her Mother
"Seven Days"
Tomás
Óscar Casas
The Orphanage (2007)
- Character Age: 8
- Horror Genre: Supernatural Horror
- Origin of Evil: Drowned in a Sea Cave
"Raspy breathing"
Sources:
IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, Wikipedia, Wikia, Complex.com
There are so many famous horror children that we couldn’t possibly list them all! Which horror child scares you the most? Are there any kids that need an honorable mention? Let us know what you think in the comments! Check out the offerings on your streaming services or your televisions, gather some of your favorite snacks (and maybe throw on a scary kids costume) and have yourselves a very scary movie marathon!
Infographic Designed by Cody Petersen
