The 10 Greatest Horror Movie Villains of the 2020s So Far, Ranked
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So far, the 2020s have been a hell of a time for horror. After the golden age that the 2010s were for the genre, this decade needed to continue that legacy of darkness and violence. So far, it has succeeded in spades. But of course, a horror film can only be as scary and as good as its villain, and fittingly, fans have been treated to some of the best horror antagonists of the 21st century throughout the 2020s.
From vampires to witches, from monsters to aliens, and from bad mothers to bad husbands, the best horror villains of the 2020s are already some of the most memorable that the genre has had over the last couple of decades. Whether they’re zany, creepy, darkly amusing, or just plain old horrifying, these are antagonists that will go down in history as some of horror’s most memorable.
10
Adrian Griffin — ‘The Invisible Man’ (2020)
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 was very much on the low end for cinema when it came to prolificity, but that doesn’t mean that that was also the case when it came to quality. As far as horror goes, the year had perhaps no better movie than The Invisible Man. Fittingly, this modern take on H. G. Wells‘s 1897 novel also has the year’s best horror villain.
In this version of the story, Adrian Griffin is a wealthy optics engineer and businessman, to whom protagonist Cecilia Kass (played by a top-of-her-game Elisabeth Moss) is trapped in an abusive relationship. Though he’s unseen for the majority of the movie’s runtime, that’s precisely what makes Adrian (played by Oliver Jackson-Cohen) such an effective villain. He’s a terrifyingly realistic embodiment of narcissistic and sociopathic abuse, and his chilling presence is felt during every single scene, even—or perhaps especially—when he isn’t there.
9
Mona Wassermann — ‘Beau Is Afraid’ (2023)
It was Hereditary, regarded by many as the most horrifying horror film of the 2010s, that really put Ari Aster on the map. Midsommar proved that he wasn’t a one-trick pony, and Beau Is Afraid proved that he wasn’t the least bit scared to experiment and pull audiences out of their comfort zone. This has one of the most convoluted plots of any horror film, but that’s a big part of its charm. Once Aster introduces the film’s villain, the protagonist’s mother, every puzzle piece falls right into place.
Mona Wasserman single-handedly sets the pace and tone for the movie’s unforgettable third act
Played by the incredible Patti LuPone, who shares exceptional chemistry with Joaquin Phoenix, Mona Wassermann is a monstrously manipulative mother who effectively satirizes intergenerational trauma and parental abuse. But darkly humorous though she may be, she’s no cartoon villain: There’s an undeniable emotional complexity to her that works wonderfully, and she single-handedly sets the pace and tone for the movie’s unforgettable third act.
8
The Mother — ‘Barbarian’ (2022)
Originally an actor and comedian best known as a founding member of the comedy troupe The Whitest Kids U’ Know, Zach Cregger made his first venture into directing horror with his third-ever film: Barbarian. This unexpected smash hit is one of the best horror movies since Hereditary, a terrifying film (with a perfect dose of humor) that does for basements what Jaws did for sharks.
In a mysterious basement under an Airbnb in a nasty Detroit neighborhood lies The Mother (Matthew Patrick Davis), a grotesque woman who’s the result of decades of incest and rape at the hands of a serial rapist and pedophile. Her tragic backstory makes her uniquely compelling and sad to watch, but that doesn’t mean that she’s any less scary. Cregger manages a perfect balance of making the audience sympathize with the monster just enough that she feels like more than just a monster, but not so much that she loses that fear appeal.
7
Abigail — ‘Abigail’ (2024)
Movies where children are villains can sometimes be pretty gimmicky, but not Abigail. This stylish vampire movie doesn’t stray too far from the genre’s typical tropes, but it transcends them thanks to an excellent cast and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett‘s balletic direction. As for the titular character, played by breakout star Alisha Weir, she’s one of the best female vampires of any recent movie.
Just like the movie, Abigail is just amusing enough to be memorable without ever losing the natural scariness of a bloodthirsty vampiric child. Like any good horror villain, she’s clever and entirely lacking in empathy, and the way Bettinelli-Olpin and Gillett frame her supernatural abilities makes for some of the most fun monster sequences of any film of the 2020s so far.
6
Jean Jacket — ‘Nope’ (2022)
With the Oscar-winning Get Out, Jordan Peele proved that he was more than just a hilarious sketch comedian: He was also one of the most exciting new voices in horror filmmaking. He reassured audiences that he still had that spark with Us, and with the alien invasion flick Nope, he made it abundantly clear that his reputation as one of the best new horror directors was entirely warranted.
It’s one of the best horror movies of the 2020s, and that’s largely due to the fact that it has such a cool and unique villain. The Jean Jacket does not kill out of malice, but instead because it is an animal incapable of differentiating between right and wrong. It’s a literal force of nature that’s entirely unpredictable, with an awesome design and an incredibly imposing presence. In a film that’s all about humanity’s addiction to spectacle, this personification of that concept sure does work wonderfully.
5
Count Orlok — ‘Nosferatu’ (2024)
Vampire movies have been all the rage throughout the 2020s, and they all owe it to one film: F. W. Murnau‘s 1922 silent horror classic Nosferatu, the very first vampire feature film ever made. Nine years before Hollywood made its own Dracula, Murnau made this unauthorized rip-off that has aged like fine wine. Over a century later, the incredibly talented horror auteur Robert Eggers tried his hand at the material, and the result is one of the best Gothic horror movies ever.
The film’s villain is Count Orlok, an even more Gothic version of Count Dracula. Max Schreck‘s original version of the character is unbeatably iconic, so Eggers and an unrecognizable Bill Skarsgård were wise in making their version of Orlok entirely unique—and absolutely chilling. It’s not just the fact that he’s physically imposing, but also the distinct voice that Skarsgård does for the character and Eggers’ way of framing him as a supernatural force of nature. It’s the kind of villain that you couldn’t forget even if you tried.
4
Remmick — ‘Sinners’ (2025)
Ryan Coogler‘s Sinners is the kind of movie that you know will be a masterpiece from the first 10 minutes, but it’s when its villain shows up that all room for doubt is squashed beyond repair. One always knows to expect complex and deeply layered thematic work from a Coogler film, and a huge portion of Sinners‘ thematic core lies in the character of Remmick, played by an impeccable Jack O’Connell.
Remmick is definitely the movie’s antagonist, but labeling him a villain is far more complicated than it may seem at first glance. He’s a complicated, nuanced, three-dimensional figure driven by loneliness, trauma as an oppressed Irishman in America, and a misguided desire to build a sense of community, which leads him to become an oppressor himself, feeding on other cultures — a cultural vampire, if you will. It’s one of the most compelling characters in Coogler’s filmography, and definitely his best-ever villain.
3
Pearl Douglas — ‘X’ Trilogy (2022-2024)
Ti West‘s X trilogy isn’t perfect, but it sure is one of the most memorable horror trilogies of the decade so far. In the phenomenal X, audiences are introduced to Pearl (Mia Goth in the role of a lifetime), an elderly woman infatuated with the youth of a group of young filmmakers shooting a pornographic film on her farm. Fascinated by the character, West and Goth immediately started writing the prequel film Pearl, and this is where the character really came into her own.
Pearl is a tragic figure, a psychopathic slasher whose descent into bloodthirsty madness is rooted in a darkly relatable yearning for fame, love, and freedom. This complexity is what makes X and Pearl two of the best psychological thrillers of the 2020s, and even the underwhelming MaXXXine manages to add more to Pearl’s character. She’s the kind of horror icon that’s guaranteed to be remembered for many decades to come.
2
Aunt Gladys — ‘Weapons’ (2025)
Weapons, Zach Cregger’s second horror film, was one of last year’s best outings in the genre, and that was largely because it had one of 2025’s best movie characters: Aunt Gladys, played by Amy Madigan in one of the most delightfully complex and over-the-top horror performances of the decade so far. Saying that thousands of people will keep dressing up as Aunt Gladys for Halloween for many years to come is the biggest compliment that one could possibly give a horror villain.
It’s true: Aunt Gladys is an instant icon. Vicious, grotesque, and cunning, she’s perfectly impenetrable and absolutely terrifying. Her dark magic powers are interesting, and her moments of more out-there behavior work marvelously, but it’s the fact that Gladys feels so strangely familiar that really makes her such an effective monster. It’s a masterclass in how to write, direct, and perform a memorable horror villain.
1
Art the Clown — ‘Terrifier’ Franchise
This one may count as a bit of cheeky cheating. After all, Art the Clown has been around since the 2008 short film The 9th Circle gave him birth, his feature debut being in the 2013 anthology film All Hallows’ Eve. It wouldn’t be until 2016 that the Terrifier franchise would kick off. However, it wasn’t until Damien Leone put out Terrifier 2 in 2022 that the franchise was catapulted into mainstream fame. Likewise, it was only then that the franchise’s villain, the demonic serial killer Art the Clown, truly became an icon.
As such, if Art feels most like the biggest horror icon of the 2020s, that’s because it’s this decade that has seen him become the next big thing when it comes to slashers. There’s really no competition here: With how popular he’s become over the last six years, it’s quite likely that within a few decades, Art the Clown will be mentioned in the same breath as legends like Michael Myers and Jason Voorhees. Fun, funny, genuinely terrifying, and played by a magnificent David Howard Thornton, Art is the face of 2020s horror, and it’ll take someone truly special to take that title from him before 2030.
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