Top 10 Scariest Supernatural Movie Moments

You’ll find throughout this list that true terror is sometimes derived from what you don’t see. This scene from “The Others” is a prime example, as single mother Grace starts to hear noises upstairs. She tries disregarding them at first, but the sounds eventually become too daunting to ignore. When the sounds evolve into lingering whispers emanating from all around, it becomes clear to Grace that she and her children aren’t alone. What remains unclear is who’s haunting the mansion and what will happen when they take the curtains down.

The original “Paranormal Activity” builds great tension as an unseen demonic being makes its presence known, interacting with inanimate objects and leaving footprints behind in powder. The movie reaches another level of fright when the demon makes physical contact with our main characters, dragging Katie out of bed. The fact that the demon preys on Katie when any person would be most vulnerable only makes this scene more identifiable and therefore scarier. Even if we don’t see everything, Katie’s screams and bite-marks are enough to give us the heebie-jeebies.

Most people get through horror flicks by telling themselves, “It’s only a movie. It can’t hurt me.” “The Ring” shatters the audience’s sense of security by demolishing the wall between real life and the TV’s interior. This chilling scene starts off slow as Noah’s television turns on and a creepy girl climbs out of a well on its screen. The closer the girl comes to the screen, the more paralyzed with fear Noah and the audience become. Once she finally crawls into reality, prepare to jump behind your couch.

“The Exorcist” has no shortage of bloodcurdling imagery, from little Regan’s incident with the crucifix to her spinning her head 360 degrees. Perhaps the film’s most disturbing visual though is the one that didn’t even appear in the original cut. The scene establishes that the possessed Regan isn’t solely restricted to the bedroom. She walks downstairs in the most horrifying fashion possible: backwards like a spider while blood leaks from her mouth. Although people still argue whether or not the spider-crawl should’ve been included in the extended edition, it’s definitely an unnerving image that’ll stay with us forever.

When young Cole tells Malcolm that he sees dead people, his constant state of dread engrosses the entire audience. We feel all of his distress as he hides from the things that go bump in the night. Cole can’t even find solace in his fort, however, as the clothespins above come undone and a ghostly girl makes her vomiting presence known. Cole understandably runs away, but he soon realizes the only way to overcome his fears is by confronting them face-to-face. Maybe these dead folks aren’t that scary after all.

What makes “The Blair Witch Project” such an unsettling experience is the authenticity captured through its cinematography. Sure, the camera is nauseatingly jerky and you can’t always see everything going on, but that’s exactly why it shakes us to the core. This especially rings true in the movie’s ending where Heather explores a basement and finds an unresponsive Mike facing the wall. Heather is then hit on the head, and drops her camera. As the footage ends, the theater will go so silent that you can hear a pin drop.

When you’re a child, the only thing scarier than having a monster in your room is the idea that your parent might be the real monster. “The Babadook” ingeniously keeps us guessing whether there really is a malevolent presence or not. In this scene, Amelia, Sam and their furry companion meet the supernatural entity for the first time and let's just say it's the type of introduction you'll never forget. No matter how old you are, you won’t be sleeping afterwards and that’s exactly what the Babadook wants.

This scene from “Poltergeist” plays with three fears that often plague young children: the dark, their toys coming to life, and, of course, clowns. Throughout the film, the audience keeps waiting for something terrifying to happen with a motionless clown toy. When the clown at last makes its move on the slumbering Robbie, it doesn’t disappoint. Granted, it’s still curious as to why Robbie owns such an eerie clown doll to begin with. In any case, this is one clown that will leave you screaming rather than laughing.

Although we were tempted to go play with those sinister-looking sisters forever and ever, we couldn’t resist that bathing beauty in room 237. “The Shining” builds up the unspeakable horrors waiting in this mysterious hotel room. When Jack checks it out, he goes from being seduced by paranoia to being seduced by lust. The mood is killed, however, as Jack looks closer to find the woman is older, fouler, and deader than initially thought. Whatever the meaning behind room 237 is, all we know for sure is that it’s menacing.

Before our top pick scars us for life, here are a few honorable mentions:
- Evil Presence in Cellar
“The Evil Dead” (1981)
- Wardrobe Jump
“The Conjuring” (2013)
- Girl in Closet
“The Grudge” (2004)
- The Grave
“Carrie” (1976)

Since Satan is the epitome of everything evil, the idea of him actually coming up to Earth is the single scariest idea imaginable. Unless you’re one of his followers, Lucifer is the last being you’d want touching you. Roman Polanski realizes this spine-chilling premise to its full potential in “Rosemary’s Baby” as the devil himself rapes our dazed leading lady. Fiery colors, the chanting of her naked neighbors, and a glimpse of Satan’s eyes only make the antichrist’s conception more hellish, easily cementing this as our scariest supernatural movie moment.

Do you agree with our list? What supernatural movie scene freaked the bejesus out of you? For more entertaining Top 10s published every day, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.