What seems to be done to death these days in horror films is the trope of the creepy kid. Almost every single movie from Japan (and naturally, the US remakes) happen to have some kid that you’d probably want to leave in the shallow grave they’re buried in. Before it became hackneyed, the creepy kid theme was about as strong as any horror cliche you could think of and there are definitely some genuine creeps that couldn’t ride on a rollercoaster within the history of the genre. Here’s just three of who we think are the creepiest of the creepy. VOTE in the poll below to show your favorite pint-sized nightmare some love.
Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris), Halloween 4 and 5
Halloween is a ground breaking masterpiece of horror. It’s sequels…not so much (except for Halloween 3 because Tom Atkins is the shit). With Halloween 4 they brought back the masked killer Michael Myers but in a unique way, as a little girl.
Not really, but little Jamie Lloyd is possessed by the spirit of Michael Myers and this leads to some creepy scenes such as her dressed in the clown costume getting ready to murder someone and seeing things from her point of view made for some suspenseful moments. It was an interesting choice and I feel that it worked and made the series fresh.
Samara (Daveigh Chase), The Ring
One of the more underrated aspects of a good horror movie is its use of children in the plot. Sure, you can have a knife-wielding psychopath, but when children become possessed by evil, it adds an extra level of creepiness that can’t be topped. That is why I chose Samara from the American version of The Ring as my No. 1 creepiest horror movie kid.
Samara’s best quality is that she makes your skin crawl without speaking. Her introduction in the movie is already a level 3 on the creepy scale, but the increasing levels of creepiness throughout the movie, which climax with her crawling out of the TV, put her light years ahead of other horror movie children. Everything from her look to the sound that plays when she appears on screen induces a goosebump effect that I haven’t felt in many recent horror films. She is one of those characters that once you see her you never forget her, and that a testament to her creepiness. The only negative is that now I avoid any children with dark black hair and pale skin that I see walking down the street, and I apologize to any kids in Wednesday Addams costumes this Halloween.
Gage Creed (Miko Hughes), Pet Sematary
Miko Hughes is a lot of things to a lot of people. If you were growing up during the early 1990’s, he was Aaron Bailey, the wise-cracking friend of Michelle’s on Full House. If you loved Kindergarten Cop, he was that kid wise beyond his years in terms of his knowledge of basic anatomy. And if you are a fan of horror, he’s the most evil little kid that wasn’t spawned by Satan.
Kids, to single people, are pretty scary, especially when you’re a big fan of getting black out drunk and raw-dogging some strange, but pregnancy scares usually don’t end quite this frightening. Of course, Gage wasn’t always a threat to everyone around him. Before the truck turned him into some hillbilly’s next meal, Gage was an adorable 2-year-old with not a care in the world.
That’s what makes Gage more terrifying than, say, Damian from The Omen. Sure, Damian was the devil spawn (I think), but we always knew something was kind of off with the kid. Plus, with that bad 1970s haircut, Damian was just never that cute. With Gage, you at least got the opportunity to see him before he went evil. It’s kind of like seeing the transformation of those girls on Girls Gone Wild: the transformation is half the story.
EDITOR’S NOTE: In the interest of full disclosure, I’d like to point out that not only have these kids grown up to be far less creepy, they’ve each grown up to be good-looking. While Miko Hughes looks like a poor man’s Adam Levine, both Danielle Harris and Daveigh Chase have grown into two beautiful women.
Who’s your choice for creepiest horror kid? Vote in the poll below or comment on this article with your answer.
The Main Damie 
GAGE!!!