4 years ago
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"If you think this story has a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention."
So, I'm ready to admit something about myself. I'm easily freaked out.
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures
But at the same time...I kind of like being scared? Which means I pretty much always love a good TV villain, even when they're bone-chillingly creepy.
The WB
Here are 22 of the creepiest TV villain scenes I could think of...in case you didn't want to sleep tonight!
🚨🚨WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD! Also, some gore, with I've put a "click to reveal" over.🚨🚨
1. When Homelander killed Stillwell on The Boys:
Amazon
Everything Homelander does is super creepy, but I love this scene in particular because even for him, it's extra creepy. Stillwell is the only person he has any kind of relationship with, and he kills her. It's even worse because you know it's coming since she lied to him.
2. When Angel confronted Buffy as Angelus on Buffy the Vampire Slayer:
The WB
GOD, I LOVE THIS SCENE. This is the first time Buffy really meets Angelus knowing it's him, and boy, does it deliver. Angelus is a complete 180 of the Angel Buffy knows and loves, and that's shown perfectly in this scene, as is his obsession with hurting Buffy. It's such a great taste of things to come.
3. Negan's baseball scene on The Walking Dead:
AMC
This is seriously one of the best villain introductions and one of the most chilling scenes from the entire series. Negan is such a great, terrifying villain, and Jeffrey Dean Morgan really shines in this scene.
4. When Shawn meets Mr. Yang on Psych:
USA
I was more of a casual Psych viewer, but damn, the Yin and Yang episodes GOT me. Mr. Yang in particular was so bone-chillingly frightening that this scene has stuck in my memory for years. She's such a great match for Sean. Ally Sheedy is always great at playing an unhinged character, but she's especially good in this role.
I can't find the scene, but you can watch it near the end of Season 3, Episode 16 on Peacock.
5. When Walt let Jane die on Breaking Bad:
AMC
Hear me out — Walt isn't necessarily that creepy of a villain. Still a great villain, but not really creepy. But there are a few moments – like this one — that are just so chilling to watch. You can see every emotion and thought on Bryan Cranston's face as he goes from his instinct to help Jane to his cold, calculated decision not to. It's harrowing.
6. And also when Walt basically lost it after realizing Skyler used up a bunch of his money:
AMC
Another example of Walt being creepy! He basically seems to have lost his mind here, and it's one of my fave episode endings ever. Laughing over his impending doom in the crawlspace is Disney villain-levels of creepy, and I love it.
7. When Kilgrave showed up at the police station and controlled everyone but Jessica on Jessica Jones:
Netflix
What makes Kilgrave such a great villain is that he truly thinks he loves Jessica and is doing this all for her, and this scene is such a great representation of that. He's obsessed and unhinged, and it's so fun to finally see him come face to face with Jessica in present day. David Tennant killed it here.
8. When Moriarty revealed himself to Sherlock in Sherlock:
BBC
Moriarty has to be one of the best villains in all of literature and in all of television, and it's certainly not easy to do him justice. However, Andrew Scott truly did. He was delightfully unhinged, creepy, and diabolical, and this is probably my favorite scene of his.
9. Basically anything with the nogitsune on Teen Wolf, but especially this scene:
MTV
Give Dylan O'Brien all the awards!! He's lovable in every season, but his turn playing a villain in Season 3 turned a campy show about high school werewolves into a legitimately creepy and compelling saga about dark spirits. Every scene with the nogitsune is perfect, but this is definitely the best one.
10. On Pretty Little Liars, when Ian tried to kill Spencer:
Freeform
Ah, back when PLL was good. I actually found Ian to be a much more compelling villain than pretty much any other villain on the show. His motivations made sense and he could be real creepy when he wanted to be. It's almost as if he believes Spencer killed Ali when he tries to kill her in the bell tower.
11. On Game of Thrones, when Joffrey forced Sansa to look at her father's dismembered head:
HBO
A classic. Joffrey is one of the most infamous villains of all time, and for good reason. He does plenty of cruel things, but him reveling in his cruelty towards Sansa in this scene really makes it stand out from the others.
12. On Game of Thrones, when Ramsay tortured Theon:
HBO
Basically all of the torture scenes, but especially this one. I'm not even going to screencap any more of it because I have refused to fully watch any of the Ramsay torture scenes since I saw them. Iwan Rheon played a villain so well that I honestly think I'd run the other way if I saw him IRL.
13. On The Magicians, when Reynard bit off Marina's finger and then ate her cat in front of her:
Syfy
I HATE THIS SCENE, partly because of the car, but also just because it's so terrifying. Still, I have to admit Reynard is a damn terrifying villain and this was the creepiest he'd been yet.
I can't find the above scene on Youtube, but it occurs in Season 2, Episode 3. You can watch the show on Netflix.
14. On Lost, when Ben was trying to convince everyone he was Henry Gale, who'd crashed his hot air balloon on the island:
ABC
What makes Ben so creepy is that he's not often outright evil — he's being sneaky and suspicious. So it makes sense that my fave scene of him is before he's even revealed to be Ben. Here, he's "Henry Gale," but you can still tell there is something REAL creepy about this guy. Benjamin Linus basically invented the word "creepy."
15. On Hannibal, when Hannibal drugged Mason and told him to cut his face off and feed it to Will's dogs, which he did:
NBC
In a show about a guy who eats people, you'd think the creepiest scene would be with him, but no. Mason is a horrifying villain, and I literally cannot stand to watch this scene. It makes me nauseous.
16. On American Horror Story: Freak Show, when Twisty the Clown attacked the picnicking couple:
FX
I can't stand clowns, and this scene is basically the embodiment of the fear of clowns, so there's no surprise it's on this list. Twisty may be a man of few words, and his costume and makeup help him be creepy, but it's his physicality and face too, and he's never creepier than in this scene. (Though, okay, he's almost as creepy in every other scene, too.)
17. On Twin Peaks, when Bob crawled over the couch toward Maddy:
ABC
Another scene where the villain doesn't talk, because he doesn't need to. Bob is one of the scariest villains of all time, and this scene literally haunts my nightmares.
18. On Orange is the New Black, when Piscatella held Red and her family hostage and then cut off Red's hair:
Netflix
Piscatella is such a messed up villain, from the start, and he just gets worse as time goes on, so it makes sense that one of his last scenes would be the creepiest. He basically scalps Red in front of her prison family, and it's one of the hardest to watch TV scenes ever. God, I hate this man.
19. When Nate had a breakdown on Euphoria:
HBO
I'm counting this scene for both Nate and Cal. For the first time, we see Nate lose control, and it is both extremely compelling and extremely creepy to hear his head banging against the floor as he screams. Equally creepy is Cal literally just walking away and sitting down in his office as he listens. What a messed up family.
20. And also when Nate threatened Jules:
HBO
In contrast to the last scene, the way he speaks in this scene is so calm and collected that it makes it even creepier. The way he compliments Jules is so unsettling, not only because you get the feeling he means it, but because you also get the sense he'd like to hurt her (which makes sense since he seems to hate Jules but also be attracted to her). Jacob Elordi does an incredible job at playing such a hated character.
21. And finally, on The X-Files, when Scully and Mulder met the mom who lived under the bed and carried on incestuous relationships with her children in "Home":
Fox
I didn't even know about this episode before I worked at BuzzFeed, and now I've mentioned it in so many articles...truly, if you haven't seen it, don't watch it. It'll scar you for life. It is the epitome of creepy and disturbing, and I'd be remiss not to include it here.
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