There are those who would say that portraying a monster in costume is easy—just put on the mask and become the character. But make no mistake, there is method (acting) behind the madness. It takes a certain skill to make a killer seem both sympathetic and frightening, or vengeful and soulless. Some petrify us with their gleeful grunts and groans, others, with their terrifying silence and stillness. All of these fine actors have left their marks on their victims, and upon our collective psyche.

10. Peter Cowper as Harry Warden in My Bloody Valentine (1981)

9. Ari Lehman as Jason Voorhees (child) in Friday the 13th (1980)

8. Skeet Ulrich as Billy Loomis aka Ghostface in Scream

7. Robert Englund as Fred Krueger in A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

6. Rory Calhoun as Vincent Smith in Motel Hell

5. Doug Bradley as Pinhead in Hellraiser

4. Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight

3. Gunnar Hansen as Leatherface in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)

2. Tony Moran as Michael Myers in Halloween (1978)

1. Tim Curry as Pennywise in “It”

Cindy Davis would be smart enough to run if she saw any one of these muthafuckas coming.

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