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Like big, scary slashers and creepy, little girls, possessed, haunted, walking and talking dolls have always been a thing in horror. There's nothing like noticing a doll move out of the corner of your eye or finding out it's been possessed by someone or something - or learning the doll who's been talking for weeks never got batteries put in him.
All this and more is what happens when dolls are the stars of films - whether they're of the horror genre or not. From some horrifying dummies to killer clown faces to a bad guy trapped in a Good Guy, some dolls in films will never not be creepy.
Chucky - 'Child's Play' (1988)
When you think of scary dolls, the first one that comes to mind is always Chucky. Child's Play came out in 1988 and saw serial killer Charles Lee Ray transport his soul into a doll, later to be owned by a little boy, who he would kill everyone to sacrifice.
Chucky went on to star in several films and a TV series as Brad Douriff brought this tiny but merciless killer's voice to life. And as cute as his striped shirt and blue overalls and frizzy red hair are, Chucky will always be the most famous doll in horror.
Annabelle - 'The Conjuring' (2013)
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Annabelle is a century-old Victorian China doll who has haunted six films since 2013. She possesses every family who finds her after accidentally being turned into an evil demon by devil worshipers.
But the most terrifying part of Annabelle is the fact she's based on a real-life doll. A Raggedy Ann doll is said to inhabit the spirit of a deceased girl named Annabelle, and after exhibiting strange behavior, it was given to the now-closed Warrens' Occult Museum in Connecticut.
Robbie's Clown - 'Poltergeist' (1982)
One of the scariest moments in 1982's Poltergeist was courtesy of Robbie's clown doll. This clown would sit in a chair across from Robbie's bed, staring at him with a seemingly happy face, but it seemed Robbie never bought it.
When Robbie notices the clown go missing from the chair one night, he checks under the bed just before the clown appears from behind him, his cheery smile now swapped for a malicious grin. The doll wraps its arm around Robbie's neck and pulls the boy under the bed right in front of his little sister.
Jigsaw - 'Saw' (2004)
Jigsaw is the well-dressed and creepy-faced little tricycle-riding doll that became the mascot for the Saw movies, starting with his film debut in 2004. The doll has since appeared in eight other films, including a photo cameo in 2021's Spiral.
Jigsaw is sometimes known as Billy and ultimately known as John Kramer, the twisted mastermind behind the evil games played in the Saw films. While John Kramer is creepy as a human, the white dummy face and beady red eyes of his alias Jigsaw remain one of the scariest dolls in horror.
Brahms - 'The Boy' (2016)
You may be used to watching Lauren Cohan take on zombies on The Walking Dead, but in 2016, she battled an evil doll named Brahms in the supernatural horror The Boy.
After being hired as a Nanny, Cohan's character Greta learns it's not a child she'll be looking after, but a life-size porcelain doll that a couple treats like a son. Brahms appears to come to life and tortures his new nanny until he reveals his human form has been hiding in the walls and causing all the mischief.
Benson - 'Toy Story 4' (2019)
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Toy Story 4 may not be horror, but the Pixar film is filled with creepy toys and callbacks to scary movies. Not only does the film feature several references to The Shining, but it also stars some scary toy dolls.
While Gabby Gabby has her terrifying moments, it's her dummy minions named Benson who take home the award for the scariest Toy Story characters. These dummy dolls resemble Slappy from Goosebumps, running wildly around the antique shop in order to catch Woody and Forky on Gabby Gabby's orders.
Young - 'Squid Game' (2021)
Technically a robot shaped like a doll, Young-hee from Netflix's Squid Game became a rising creepy character from the hit 2021 series, and her "red light, green light" game scene quickly became a fan favorite.
Young-hee stands double the Squid Game players' heights and hosts a simple round of the school-yard game Red Light, Green Light. Except in her game, when someone doesn't stop at the red light in time, they get shot to death.
Blade - 'Puppet Master' (1989)
Puppet Master came out in 1989 and spawned several films starring killer dolls and puppets, but the most famous of them all is Blade.
If his terrifying white face wasn't scary enough, Blade comes equipped with a knife for one hand and a hook for the other, possessing the soul of a German doctor who betrayed the Nazis and was eventually stabbed to death.
Slappy - 'Goosebumps' (2015)
Whether it was in the books, the films, or the TV shows, the most memorable character of R.L. Stine's children's horror series Goosebumps is, without a doubt, Slappy, the ventriloquist puppet.
Slappy takes on a different face in every version of his story, but one thing they all have in common is how undeniably creepy he is. When this puppet comes to life, he stalks whoever brought him to life and forces them to become his slave.
Tiffany - 'Bride Of Chucky' (1998)
Chucky may be a scary killer doll, but sometimes, he doesn't hold a candle to his love interest, Tiffany. When Tiffany isn't possessing the human body of actress Jennifer Tilly, she lives in a murderous doll who kills along with her man.
Tiffany is known to have just as gruesome kills as Chucky in both the films and the Chucky TV series. And it all began with her movie debut in 1998's Bride of Chucky when a fight between lovers ends with Tiffany getting killed and having her soul transported into a doll at the little plastic hands of her boyfriend.