Top 10 Horror Monsters Of The 80s and 90s

We are starting my list of the top 10 horror monsters of the 80s and 90s with a bit of an obscure one. Cellar Dweller is a 1988 movie about an artist who draws a monster that eventually comes to life. I love this monster – it is not only very dangerous, but it is also very smart. It looks like a big werewolf type monster and I have always loved its design.

This is a movie that has stuck with me since I saw it when I was a kid, as it was one of the first movies that I saw where the monster wins in the end. It is a really coolly-designed monster and one that I do not see talked about a lot, so I wanted to show this hairy smart dude a bit of love on my list. If you have not seen this and love 80s horror movies, I highly recommend you check it out!

I would put 1990’s Tremors up there with the best stuff that Kevin Bacon has ever done! This is such a fun movie, and it feels like a real throwback to the monster movies of old. Even though as I write this, Tremors is over 30 years old, the movie holds up and is still a lot of fun.

The Graboids are awesome; these giant worm-like creatures with their little snake-looking things that come out of their mouth are a blast! These are all practical effects as well so the fact that they actually made this is really incredible. While Tremors is super cheesy, that is exactly what I love about this movie. The sequels never managed to capture the charm of the original, that is for sure, but they do introduce some fun new Graboids such as the Ass Blasters!

I knew that Pinhead would be on my top 10 horror monsters of the 80s and 90s list as this is a monster/villain that actually creeped me out as a kid. The reason I have specified Hellraiser II is that this was the first movie in the franchise that I saw, and Pinhead and the other Cenobites shocked the “hell” out of me.

This whole film was just so creepy and while I got a kick out of blood and gore when I first got into horror, Hellraiser II was probably the first movie that actually scared me! I would not say that Hellraiser II is my personal favorite, Hellraiser: Bloodlines is. However, the impact that seeing Pinhead and the rest of the Cenobites left on me ensured that they had to be on this list. Also, I want to give a shoutout to the most recent Hellraiser movie, that new Pinhead was really cool!

We are looking at the lighter side of horror here with The Leprechaun, the titular villain from 1993’s Leprechaun and the first in a series that would see this little fellow go to space and even the hood! I am a massive fan of Warwick Davis and while he is best known for Star Wars, his role as The Leprechaun is just so much fun.

This villainous little guy can go from a maniacal killer to making you laugh when you see him on his little tricycle. Granted, the series just got more and more crazy as it went on, but these have so much charm and always get a laugh out of me. Warwick Davis does such a great job of bringing this little guy to life. Plus, that first movie is interesting as it was the first “big” role for Jennifer Aniston, which is a neat bit of movie trivia!

Is an alien a monster? I think that it is more than fitting to be on this list and now that I think about it, by that logic, The Predator should be on this list as well. Consider this also an honorable mention for The Predator!

Anyway, the Alien franchise and its original Xenomorph got its start in the world of horror. The first film is certainly a horror more than a sci-fi flick, in my opinion. I do prefer Aliens and I am one of the few people who love 1997’s Alien Resurrection.

However, we can all agree that the Xenomorphs are awesomely fearsome. With their H.R. Giger design, the Xenomorph is one of the most easily recognizable horror monsters of all time. These are just pure killing machines and I would probably put them close to the top of the list of monsters that I would not want to try and survive a night against.

Related: Screams Of The 70s: Ranking The Decade’s Top 10 Horror Movies

I am kind of cheating on my top 10 horror monsters of the 80s and 90s list here. Kind of like what I did with Hellraiser, I am lumping all of The Ghoulies together. However, if I did have to pick a favorite, it would be the Rat Ghoulie. These are some of the best monster puppets/animatronics of all time.

I remember seeing the first Ghoulies on the shelf at my local video store and it just captured my attention right away. These movies are just so much fun and they always make me laugh. If I had to pick a favorite, believe it or not, I would go for the third one, as I get such a kick out of the Ghoulies being at a college.

These are always a fun time and I am surprised more merch has not been made of the Ghoulies! If you want a horror movie that has great practical monster effects but is also going to make you laugh, you cannot go wrong with any of these.

I had to have Jason on this list and when I think of what my favorite version of Jason Voorhees is, it is his portrayal in 1986’s Friday the 13^th Part VI: Jason Lives. I am one of the many who consider Part V to be pure garbage, but with this one, they brought Jason back and this was like Super Jason.

He was faster, stronger, meaner, and just more amazing than he had ever been before. When I think of Jason going on a killing spree, it is his antics in this movie that always comes to mind. If I am ever in the mood to watch a random Friday the 13^th movie, it is always this one! Also, I love how we not only get the best version of Jaso here, we also get the ultimate version of Tommy Jarvis here too.

Remember how I said that Pinhead and the Cenobites were monsters that scared me? The same can be said about Pumpkinhead from 1988. We have Lance Henrikson playing the role of a father who has lost his son, and then calls forth the demon/monster Pumpkinhead to get revenge on the teenagers who were responsible for his death.

I freaking love the Pumpkinhead monster. It is such an awesome monster design, truly one of the top 10 horror monsters of the 80s and 90s! It looks so creepy and dangerous, the kind of thing that nightmares are really made of. I will also give the sequel a little mention. It is nowhere near as good as this, but I have always had fun with it. Hopefully, this rumored reboot will actually happen one day so Pumpkinhead can scare a whole new generation.

Related: Jamie Lee Curtis’ Ten Best Movies

Out of all the iconic 80s and 90s slasher villains, Freddy Kruger has always been my favorite. The way that Robert Englund was able to bring this character to life is truly amazing. His performance along with those amazing prosthetics that he wore created one of the most amazing villains of all time.

When it comes to Freddy, it is Dream Warriors Freddy from 1987 that is my favorite. I love the mini trilogy of 3, 4, and 5 in this franchise, and with this third movie, we started to see the wise-cracking Freddy and his creative kills (him being a puppet master is still my favorite) are all things that the character would go on to be known for in the 90s and even to this day. Freddy is a truly horrific and dangerous character, but he can also make you laugh!

As soon as I started putting this top 10 horror monsters of the 80s and 90s list together, I knew that Pennywise from It was going to be my number 1! Tim Curry is just incredible as Pennywise. I would accept the argument that Bill Skarsgård is “scarier,” however, there is just something so creepy and mesmerizing about the way that Tim Curry brings Pennywise to life.

The thing with Pennywise in the original It mini-series is that we do not actually see him rip anyone apart like we do in the two recent It movies. A lot of the terror here is left to your imagination and it is that which makes this so creepy. It is the greatest mini-series of all time and I know it is easy to look at that terrible stop-motion spider from the end of the movie and laugh. However, there is no denying that as Pennywise the Dancing Clown, It is truly the stuff that nightmares are made of.