Top 10 Cannibals in Scary Movies

Back in the late 1800s, cross-country travel was much more treacherous, and when your trusty wagon broke down, you might’ve been left with... interesting food alternatives. Such is the case for F. W. Colqhoun, who first shows up at Fort Spencer with stories of a wagon train led astray and stranded in the mountains, in need of rescue. A man with an elaborate plan to back him up, he feasts on the helpful soldiers one by one only to return to the fort as the new superior officer, ready for the second course. Luckily his plans to turn the place into his personal restaurant don’t work out, but it might make you think twice about stopping at that shady cabin for a night’s rest.

Aspiring model Jesse catches the attention of several people in the industry, including makeup artist Ruby, and models Gigi and Sarah. With all the attention she’s gaining, the three ladies become quite envious of her natural beauty and seek to make it their own. The problem is these ladies subscribe to the belief that in order to gain someone’s powers - or in this case, beauty - all you have to do is make a meal of them. They say the modeling world is cutthroat, but we don’t think this is what they meant.

Every child has that moment where they wonder if they’re really related to their parents. For Michael, this is especially true when he starts to suspect his parents might be cannibals. A meat hook in the basement, a father who works with corpses, and then there’s that time he thought he saw his father biting his mother. In a perfect world, this would be a case of an overactive imagination. Maybe Michael misinterpreted the sinister image in front of him, but after a while he’s convinced - and so are we: those leftovers are not safe! Especially when it’s mystery meat loaf for the fourth time this week!

Greek island trips are supposed to be relaxing and - for the purposes of this list - full of good food, right? In this Italian film, Klaus Wortmann is a tragic figure that stalks the island inhabitants for his next meal. Yes, we said we weren’t including characters forced to eat people, but after Klaus feasted on his wife and child in order to survive a shipwreck, he found himself hungry for more. Even when faced with his own death he can’t help but go after that next bite, while the 1999 remake sees a character based off of him – Nikos – getting to go in for seconds. This is one exotic trip we can take off our bucket list.

When a killer virus wipes out most of Scotland and what’s left is quarantined behind a high stonewall, real food becomes scarce. Humans in the walled city split into groups to survive and, of course, one of those groups is a gang of human BBQ eating cannibals who’d be right at home in the Mad Max universe. Sol, their leader, is equal parts grunge rock star and insane warlord, bent on making his way over the wall to take over London, and he’s got an entire army of followers armed with tricked out cars and insatiable appetites who will help him do it.

Some people prefer living in the wilderness to avoid the busy city life. It’s nice, peaceful, and the perfect place to catch unsuspecting tourists for your next meal. This mutant, inbred family of cannibals can be found in a remote forest in West Virginia, and over the course of numerous movies they’ve made unsuspecting travelers regret their decision to step into the woods. To make things worse, the family members seem to be immune to pain and are constantly recovering from fatal injuries in favor of pursuing their finger lickin’ good targets. While several Mountain Men come and go with each installment, Three Finger is a constant threat, so when you hear his maniacal cackle you’d better run – though it’s probably too late.

Mutant cannibals don’t just live in the forests, they also live in the deserts of Nevada or New Mexico... depending on which version of the movie you watch. Mutated from exposure to government radiation testing – in 2006 remake at least - this family lies in wait for weary travelers, and when you’re in their sights, not even your pet dogs will be able to protect you. What makes this group even creepier is that their stories are based on a real life historical cannibal named Sawney Bean. Bean, from Scotland, was suspected to have killed over 1,000 people with his clan. Best to just avoid all deserts, forests, creepy gas stations and Scottish caves altogether.

These two tribes are the antagonists of this infamous found footage movie – or so we’re told. When Professor Harold Monroe and his team are sent to the Amazon to discover what happened to a missing news crew and their footage, they discover that things aren’t really that simple. For some, the movie was influential enough to warrant making a film in its honor - we’re looking at you, Eli Roth. Others found it so stomach-churning that the director was brought up on snuff film charges! Fortunately, he was able to prove that he didn’t really kill the actors and actresses involved, but we can’t blame people for thinking the gruesomeness was a bit too realistic. We suppose it’s called a holocaust for a reason.

That chainsaw and that misshapen, patchwork mask have become iconic images in the horror genre. Leatherface comes from a family of cannibals in the back roads of Texas. They have a penchant for catching their meals live, next to gas stations with empty pumps and those less than helpful attendants who tend to permeate horror stories. While Leatherface is more apt to follow his family’s orders than to outright decide to chase you on his own, that doesn’t make him any less threatening... especially since he was inspired by real life cannibal Ed Gein.

Before we clear the dishes from our horrific dinner and get to our dessert at #1, let’s serve up these honorable mentions:
- Justine & Alexia
“Raw” (2016)

- Paul & Mary Bland
“Eating Raoul” (1982)

- Donald
“Microwave Massacre” (1983)

Arguably the most infamous cannibal in cinema history, there are no tribes, deserted back roads, or inbred families here. Instead, we have a sophisticated gentleman who’s more interested in a good Chianti then chasing you with a chainsaw... of course, that wine will be served with your liver. Hannibal Lecter is so manipulative that it’s damn near charming, and there’s nothing more unsettling than actually needing his assistance. Be sure to stay on his good side... if he even really has one... and never go to his house for dinner - no matter how good that food looks.