10. Chucky from Child's Play series: Serial killer Charles Lee Ray, after being shot-down, uses a voodoo spell to transport his soul into the body of a "Good Guys" doll, and then stalks a young boy named Andy, trying to place his soul in Andy's body. Although this character is more funny than he is scary, he still has left an impact on the horror genre, and the "killer doll" sub-genre. Even though none of the Child's Play films amount to anything more than guilty pleasures or dumb fun, Chucky still manages to scare many people. I've never personally found him scary, but I guess many people still do. Brad Dourif (One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, Lord of the Rings) does the voice perfectly, and you can tell he has fun playing the character. Even though the series has now gotten so stale it's become straight-to-Bluray fare (Curse of Chucky), Chucky is still a lot of fun to watch, and he's pretty funny, too, for a serial killing doll.
9. Ghostface from Scream series: This character was originally two different killers masquerading as one, and has now become a series of murderous duos who have taken on the mantle of "Ghostface", who all want to kill Sydney Prescott (Neve Campbell) and her friends. Although the Scream series is more like a mix of comedy, teen romance, and horror, the killer in the films is still really effective and threatening. He has a really cool voice, provided by voice actor Roger L. Jackson. Jackson has a really sinister and awesome voice, and he sounds like he's having the time of his life playing the ruthless and sadistic killer. Jackson is also famous for voicing Mojo-Jojo on Powerpuff Girls, after learning that, I don't think I'll ever think of that show the same. Anyway, the Ghostface killer possesses nearly superhuman strength and stealth, despite always being the average human being, and those two abilities make him a force to be reckoned with, and he's responsible for injuring and even killing off beloved Scream characters in nearly every movie. He's one of the few horror killers on this list to really seriously injure or even kill recurring characters in his respective series.
8. Norman Bates from Psycho series: Norman is a handsome but shy and very awkward and lonely young man who manages his family business, the Bates Motel, located off a dark highway. He lives with his aging and sick mother, who seems to control her son, and force him to do evil things for her benefit. Anthony Perkins delivers a fantastic performance in all the films, playing the disturbed and lonely Norman Bates. You take pity on him in much of the film, as his evil tendencies are brought on by a split personality named "Norma", which was brought on by years of abuse from his controlling and strict mother. Norman is one of the most influential horror killers ever, influencing everyone from Alex in A Clockwork Orange, to Buffalo Bill in The Silence of the Lambs (in fact, they were based on the same real-life person: Ed Gein).
7. The Firefly Family from the Rob Zombie films (House of 1,000 Corpses, The Devil's Rejects): This sick, sadistic, and completely insane family enjoys torturing, raping, and inhumanely killing random, innocent people, including children. Led by Captain Spaulding, a killer clown; Otis B. Driftwood, a crazed "artist" and serial killer; and Baby, the beautiful but evil daughter of Spaulding and half-sister of Otis, this clan of inbred psychos was eventually killed off, ending their brutal reign of terror. The performances are fantastic in the two films, and the actors really do a great job bringing these insane and inhumane characters to life.
6. Pinhead and the Cenobites from the Hellraiser series: Despite this series not really being a slasher franchise per se, Pinhead and his small, but fiercely loyal group of sadomasochistic demon followers are terrifying. The creations of horror writer Clive Barker, they are extradimensional entities who travel through time and space to claim victims (those who accidentally unlocked an ancient puzzle box), no one can reason with them or escape, once you are caught, you are subjected to an eternity of a twisted mix of excruciating pain and divine pleasure. They themselves are victims of the puzzle box, who were claimed throughout time, and have lost memories of their past selves. Tragic but eerie figures, these S&M monsters have become a staple of pop culture, and a favorite among horror fans. Doug Bradley has played Pinhead in every single film, even the direct-to-video ones, and he really does a great job portraying the emotionless and ruthless leader of the Cenobites. These characters and the films they exist in were creepy enough to get Stephen King to label Clive Barker as "the future of horror fiction".
5. Jigsaw from the Saw series: Despite this franchise being more of a torture porn/violent crime-thriller series, you can't deny Jigsaw's impact on pop culture and the horror genre. An aging and diseased man, John Kramer (aka The Jigsaw Killer, portrayed by Tobin Bell) plays twisted "games" with people he views as not appreciating their lives, which usually involve them being gruesomely tortured mentally and physically through intricate traps, and shedding some of their blood, and the blood of others, to stay alive. As Jigsaw does not every directly kill anyone, he cannot be considered a "slasher" or serial killer, but he, like many others, has become a beloved horror icon and has become one of the more recognizable horror villains (even though he technically is an "antihero", as he does what he does to "better" the world around him). Just like Ghostface, Jigsaw is actually a line of killers trained by the original. John Kramer is actually only alive during the first 3 films, and is seen throughout the other 4 in flashbacks and on videotapes, but his role is still very important and prominent. Tobin Bell also gives a really good performance as Kramer, who, like many cinema psychos who kill for a "good cause" (like in Seven), defends his actions with sound logic.
4. Jason Voorhees from the Friday the 13th series: Even though Jason actually didn't appear in the first film, and his hockey mask didn't show up until part three, Jason is still one of the most recognized and popular horror characters of all time. Despite not having much of a personality (being a lumbering, mute zombie), he still is very memorable for his inventive and brutal kills, signature look, and trademark machete (even though he sometimes uses a hatchet). Jason has been played by many different actors but I believe the three most memorable ones who really pulled it off were Kane Hodder (who played Jason in four films, from part six-part ten), Ken Kirzinger (Freddy vs. Jason), and Derek Mears (the 2009 reboot). The song of a crazy mother-turned-murderer, Jason is a tragic character who was a deformed child who was teased constantly, and who drowned in a lake at summer camp. Returning from the grave as a hulking zombie behemoth, Jason took to killing anyone who entered his territory, the abandoned Camp Crystal Lake. Showing off his now superhuman strength, stealth, and endurance, Jason is unstoppable and comes back from the dead time and time again to wreak havoc on the teens who invade his home.
3. Leatherface, aka Jedediah "Jed/Bubba" Sawyer, aka Thomas Hewitt, from the Texas Chainsaw Massacre series: Now, two versions of the character actually exist: the original, played by many actors (originally it was Gunnar Hansen), who, while large and strong, is nothing more than a "big baby" (according to director Tobe Hooper), who obeys his family's demands and is taught to fear strangers, and sees what he does as self-defense (the baby behavior is also due to his mental retardation, which was possibly brought on by inbreeding). The remake version (portrayed by Andrew Bryniarski), while still mentally disabled, appears to be a much more brutal and sinister figure, with an even scarier mask to boot. He is now basically a superhuman giant with a tragic backstory and a bad skin condition who obeys his family, but also has his own goals, even if they are minor ones. Leatherface, no matter which portrayal you prefer, will always be very scary because he feels real. There's nothing about the character that seems fake, cheesy, or over-the-top, you actually believe the actor portraying him may be a mentally disturbed murderer, and that's pretty scary to think about.
2. Michael Myers from the Halloween franchise: Another character with two distinct versions, I'm gonna go with the classic version, because, as much as I respect Rob Zombie and like his work, the remake version is total fucking garbage, it ruins the whole character. The original incarnation of Michael is not huge or excessively brutal and certainly doesn't talk, (Seriously, why did he talk in the remake series, what the fuck was that?) he's just a normal-looking guy with some serious issues. Murdering his teenage sister on Halloween night in 1963, he was taken to a mental ward as a child and escaped on October 30th of 1978, 15 years later. Now a grown adult, he took out his anger and rage on a group of promiscuous teens on Halloween night in the fictional city of Haddonfield, Illinois. But, instead of getting really angry like Leatherface or being really aggressive like Jason, Michael Myers stalks his victims very stealthily, and takes them out with surgical precision, and doesn't overdo it, he does what he needs to do and moves on, like an assassin or hitman. Michael Myers has gained some enemies over the years, including teenage babysitter Laurie Strode (played by Jamie Lee Curtis) and his psychiatrist Dr. Sam Loomis (played by Donald Pleasance), as they are about the only two people who have ever escaped him. Michael Myers was the first true slasher villain and the "silent, stalking murderer" become the basic character type for all slasher villains to come... all until 1984.
1. Freddy Krueger from the A Nightmare on Elm Street series: A sadistic child murderer who was killed in a building fire, this scarred and burned, wise-cracking murderer now haunts the dreams of teens and adolescents, waiting for the right moment to strike. Now, as much as I love the other characters on this list, Freddy is #1 because he is one of the few slasher villains to have a really distinct face and voice, where most other villains are masked and silent (Myers, Jason), or masked and rarely speak coherent words (Leatherface). Freddy not only has a distinct and somewhat mismatched outfit (which the series has sometimes self-mocked), but he has a funny and original personality. Nobody before 1984 ever thought a slasher villain would spew bad one-liners and puns every time he killed a victim. Freddy also has some of the most unique kills ever put to film, as, since he invades his victims' dreams, he can do almost anything. Now, the remake version was good, too (that version was portrayed by Jackie Earle Haley), but I'm mainly focusing on the original version, portrayed by Robert Englund, who portrayed Freddy so well he stayed on as the character throughout every film except the 2010 remake. The series may have gotten a little too cheesy and over-the-top after a while (until New Nightmare and Freddy vs. Jason came out), but Freddy always remained consistently entertaining to watch. Robert Englund and Wes Craven really were able to bring this character to life. Freddy's personality, striking and distinct appearance, inventive and gruesome kills, and bad puns and jokes make Freddy the number 1 slasher villain of all time.
Runner-ups: The Leprechaun from Leprechaun (didn't make it because the character isn't all that influential and the series is kind of stupid), The Creeper from Jeepers Creepers, Victor Crowley from Hatchet, Candyman from Candyman (not really a slasher), Pennywise the Dancing Clown from Stephen King's IT (not a slasher), Xenomoprh from Alien, Predator from Predator, Pumpkinhead from Pumpkinhead, and Dr. Hannibal Lector from the Hannibal series (not really a slasher villain).
(Images: horror-movies.wikia.com, BeyondHollywood.com, Wikipedia, lookatmissohio.wordpress.com, ign.com, comicvine.com, halloweenmovie.wikia.com)
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