Sam – Trick r’ Treat

This devious little guy already has a cult following thanks to 2007s Trick r’ Treat and the comics of the same name, but he hasn’t reached the status of an icon just yet. But the impending sequel may be what he needs to put him in the ranks of Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger. With his childlike stature and cute yet creepy visage, he’s got the right stuff. Unlike other classic horror characters, Sam doesn’t need to be the center of attention. Trick r’ Treat was an anthology film of multiple stories, with Sam serving as a binding figure to connect each story. He watches from the sidelines to ensure Halloween is respected. Failing to do so earns perpetrators a grizzly fate. In another film, he may show Michael Myers who really rules Halloween night.

Art the Clown – Terrifier

Art earned massive cult status with his outing in 2016’s Terrifier when he too laid claim to Halloween night in the grisliest fashion. Murdering anyone who crosses his path, this mime-like clown does so without ever making noise and takes the utmost delight in his work. His black and white outfit demonstrates the amplification of carnage as he dawns more and more of his victim’s blood. He works against a menacing score, painting him as a man one could meet on any other night. He’s a character that could have easily been blown off as generic, but the haunting performance of actor David Howard Thornton makes Art into one of the most terrifying (pun intended) and memorable killers to date. Terrifier 2 is expected sometime this year, with Arts lore to be expanded upon. Director Damien Leone has also expressed interest in two more sequels afterward, so it looks like Art is here to stay.

The Creep – Creep, Creep 2

The Duplass brothers struck gold when they made this nameless psychopath. These films center around Mark Duplass as an eccentric serial killer, often in black clothing, who gets his unsuspecting victims to video record themselves and him before he takes their lives. He’s creepy as hell, but he doesn’t try to hide it as he takes different identities. In fact, he revels in his target’s discomfort, coming off first as unsuspecting while gradually dropping tidbits to get his objectives second-guessing his character. There’s no music to either of the Creep films, but Mark can go from cheerfully pleasant to ominously unnerving at a moment’s notice. The use of found-footage style has never been utilized as realistically in any other film as what the viewer sees and feels like it could very well be found in someone’s cabinet. A third film is reportedly in the works, but so far, the first two have been exclusive to Netflix. With a wider audience, this killer could be the modern-day Patrick Bateman.

The Grabber – The Black Phone

Although we do not yet know who this man is, it took only the first image of Ethan Hawke in the mask to know that he’s going to be a nightmare walking. The character checks more than half the boxes on what attributes of a horror icon, having a creepy face/mask, long hair, a unique outfit, and strange movements. The Black Phones plot centers on every parent’s worst nightmare: The abduction of children. The child this film focuses on has help from the ghost of victims past, giving him the tips he’ll need to make it out alive. From the look of Hawkes character, that’ll be no easy feat. The Grabber looks both like the man down the road with the dark secret, and a dark figure out of fairy tales. Perhaps there will be a supernatural element to him. Most horror films don’t have the nerve to target kids, so this film may be harrowing to watch. Ethan Hawke’s acting prowess may see the Grabber become a new icon that will remind kids everywhere why they shouldn’t talk to strangers.