21. Smiling Titan (Attack on Titan)
TheSmiling Titanis the first Titan with an identity that we encounter inAttack on Titan, and Eren has a special bond with it—considering that the Smiling Titan is the one who ate his mom.
While every Titan in this anime series is creepy, horrific, and nightmarish in their own way, the Smiling Titan is one of the worst. The massive size, the dead eyes, and the huge vicious grin are enough to haunt your dreams for the rest of your life.
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20. Empty Head Girl (Parasyte: The Maxim)
Who wouldn’t be afraid if they saw a girl run by who didn’t have any eyes and was missing half of her head?
InParasyte: The Maxim,Empty Head Girlis actually Reiko Tamura after splitting her parasyte body. She lost some sense of thinking and even cracked a joke about being an empty head.
Luckily, it seems that the body loses its desire to eat humans when the head gets mangled in this way.
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19. Baby Hyakkimaru (Dororo)
This poor little baby is the product of his father’s last resort to keep his power and wealth and to save his land from famine.
Hyakkimaru became a sacrifice for the devils, who each took one of his body parts. And yet, he didn’t die—he was still born and still had to live as if cursed from the moment of birth.
Baby Hyakkimaruhas no eyes, skin, or nose. The rest of his body is covered with cloth. If he was never adopted, he’d be like a walking corpse—if he managed to survive at all.
Related:The Saddest Anime Characters With Tragic Backstories
18. Gotou (Parasyte: The Maxim)
The parasite-infected humans inParasyte: The Maximare all horrifying creatures who feed on human flesh, butGotouis totally different.
Gotou is an experimental creature who’s actually composed of not just one but multiple parasites, and each parasite takes turns leading and commanding his body.
A normal parasite-infected human is already pretty deadly in battle, but Gotou has a far superior form—one that pushed Migi and Shinichi into a corner and almost defeated them.
Related:The Best Anime Series With Human Vessels and Host Bodies
17. Black Ghost (Ajin: Demi-Human)
InAjin: Demi-Human, Ajin are people born with immortality, and these immortals have an innate ability that allows them to create Invisible Black Matter (or IBM).
This Invisible Black Matter can be manifested into creepyBlack Ghosts, which are tall and ghostly figures that look like mummies, covered with a dark bandage-like material.
The Black Ghost is like the personal bodyguard of an Ajin, meaning they’re capable fighters. But they’re only visible to Ajin, so normal people can’t see or feel their presence.
In other words, using their Black Ghost, an Ajin can eliminate anyone without others noticing them. Frightening!
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16. Pickle (Baki Hanma)
The fighters inBaki the Grappler,Baki, andBaki Hanmaare all terrifying “monsters” who are accustomed to bloodshed and death. That’s certainly true of Yujiro Hanma, the strongest on Earth.
But we’re highlightingPicklebecause he’s truly a monster to be afraid of. He’s a human who survived the age of dinosaurs and was found encased and preserved in salt-based rock.
What makes Pickle so terrifying is his primitive instinct and the enormous power that comes with it, just like a savage beast.
With this, he’s able to stand against even the strongest martial arts and fighting styles that he faces on the stage.
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15. Reaper Death Seal (Naruto)
One of the most effective sealing techniques in theNarutoseries is theReaper Death Seal.
This ability calls upon the power of a shinigami (“death god”) to absorb the soul of a target into one’s own body, then sacrifice one’s own life to seal both souls—caster and target—forever.
The shinigami that’s summoned is terrifying. Once summoned, there’s no going back. It won’t leave without the caster’s soul.
Related:The Best Naruto Jutsus and Abilities, Ranked
14. Mahito (Jujutsu Kaisen)
It’s no stretch to callMahitothe embodiment of evil. Despite his innocent-looking face, it only masks the dark, evil desires that brew beneath that facade.
His gentle way of speaking and flowery words are dangerously manipulative, to the point that even Junpei believed everything he said and turned into his pawn.
Related:Why Is Jujutsu Kaisen So Popular? Explained
13. Isaac Netero (Hunter X Hunter)
Isaac Neteroisn’t a bad guy inHunter X Hunter. He isn’t scary in the usual sense, despite holding the highest rank in the Hunter Association.
So, why did we include him on this list? His fight against the Chimera Ant King. Even after losing an arm, a leg, and most of his strength, Isaac Netero activates a weapon with a ghostly smile before he dies: a bomb that triggers when his heart stops.
That kind of ingenuity in the world ofHunter X Huntermakes him one of the most badass characters, but also one of the scariest. After all, that bomb’s explosion wiped out a huge radius!
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12. Afro (Afro Samurai)
Afrois the protagonist ofAfro Samurai, and it’s the extent of his strength, hatred, and thirst for revenge that makes him one of the most terrifying anime characters we’ve seen.
Though there are other characters in the same series who have their own scary images, we can see and feel in Afro the terror of one who lives for revenge and seethes with rage.
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11. Nanika (Hunter X Hunter)
InHunter X Hunter,Nanikahas the ability to grant a wish when someone successfully fulfills three of her demands. Those demands can be as simple as giving a piggyback ride or as intense as giving up one of your internal organs.
As if that weren’t scary enough, Nanika’s pale-white face and pitch-black eyes make her look like a creepy doll. If you came across Nanika, wouldyoudare to ask for any wishes?
Oh yeah, and don’t forget that if her demands aren’t met, a terrible fate awaits you and there’s no way for you to escape it.
Related:The Strongest Hunter X Hunter Characters, Ranked
10. Muzan Kibutsuji (Demon Slayer)
InDemon Slayer,Muzan Kibutsujiis the progenitor of the demon race and the most terrifying demon in the series. For him, humans are just his meals or people to kill for fun.
And if he isn’t in the mood to eat or kill, he can turn someone into a demon—a terrifying fate that’s permanent.
Even for his own creations, he has no qualms about killing them if he deems them as weak and/or useless. Just look at how he disbanded the Lower Moon Demons (by killing them one after the other).
Related:The Best Anime Demon Characters of All Time, Ranked
9. Souichi Tsujii (Junji Ito Maniac: Japanese Tales of the Macabre)
There are lots of horrifying themes, creatures, and characters throughout Junji Ito’s works. However,Souichi Tsujiiis one of the most disturbing and horrifying of all time.
He’s a prominent character in most of Ito’s stories, appearing as a mentally unstable character who always has something dark brewing within his mind.
It’s no wonder that no one wants to be friends with him and everyone always seems to keep a considerable distance from him.
Related:The Most Brutal Anime Series of All Time
8. Tomura Shigaraki (My Hero Academia)
Tomura Shigaraki, whose real name is Tenko Shimura, is the archvillain of theMy Hero Academiaseries. With his Quirk called Decay, he can make anyone and anything rot and vanish into ashes.
What earns him this spot on this list is his desire to destroy everything that was built up by All For One.
Tomura Shigaraki is a villain who’s the product of his tragic past, and his terrifying nature is completed by his frightening appearance—with or without the severed hands.
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7. No-Face (Spirited Away)
A lot of people thinkNo-FacefromSpirited Awayis cute. Yet while he’s something of a benign spirit overall, he’s actually pretty creepy if you think about his temperament.
No-Face is timid on the outside, but he’s so obsessed with Chihiro that he’ll go to any length just to get her attention.
His intentions are good—he feels abandoned and just wants to be friends—but he takes it in a wrong direction that’s actually kind of horrifying. (We all know someone like this, right?)
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6. Lil' Slugger (Paranoia Agent)
Lil' SluggerfromParanoia Agentis the kind of person you need to watch out for whenever you’re on the streets. He’s a kid who’ll randomly strike anyone with his gold-colored bat.
But what makes Lil' Slugger even more terrifying is that he isn’t even a real person. His existence is actually born from the paranoia of people who are experiencing extreme distress and depression.
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5. Rika Orimoto (Jujutsu Kaisen 0)
Yandere characters are ones who possess an extreme love, infatuation, or liking toward someone, to the point where they get obsessive, possessive, invasive, and destructive.
In the anime movieJujutsu Kaisen 0,Rika Orimotois just an ordinary girl who’s in love with Yuta Okkotsu. But after death, she becomes a special-grade Curse who’s undeniably powerful.
And upon this change, she becomes a yandere whose love for Yuta becomes a cursed obsession. At first, she saves Yuta from his bullies (in a very grotesque manner) but later becomes Yuta’s source of power as well as his partner in battles.
Related:The Best Yandere Characters in Anime, Ranked
4. Illumi Zoldyck (Hunter X Hunter)
An assassin by occupation and born to a family of killers,Illumi Zoldyckis one of the most terrifying characters inHunter X Hunter. Behind his pretty face is an evil that won’t hesitate to kill others.
His true evil side was shown in the scene where he’s teased by Hisoka for killing Killua. Upon hearing it, Illumi’s face turns dark and his aura oozes with bloodlust. Terrifying, indeed.
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3. Hisoka Morow (Hunter X Hunter)
Speaking of bloodlust,Hisoka MorowofHunter X Hunteris seen with a powerful bloodlust during the Hunter Exam, to the point that Gon was stopped and terrified. Luckily, Hisoka managed to calm himself down.
He’s one of the most terrifying characters in the series (along with the aforementioned Illumi Zoldyck). The fact that he has a clown character design makes him that much more alarming.
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2. Peter Ratri (The Promised Neverland)
Most horrifying anime characters aren’t out-and-out monsters or demons but rather humans with wicked intent—likePeter RatriofThe Promised Neverland.
As the head of the famous Ratri Clan and its illicit business, he grooms and sells children for demon consumption. He never once thinks about the morality of it or about stopping his family’s evil business.
Why? Because he’s drunk with greed and power. And when you think about it, that makes him one of the scariest anime characters.
Related:The Most Evil Anime Characters Who Are Ruthless and Wicked
1. Johan Liebert (Monster)
Even though it doesn’t have any characters with superhuman abilities,Monsteris one of the darkest anime series of all time. This is all thanks toJohan Liebert, a truly deplorable human being.
He may not have any special powers, but he’s a sociopath with genius-level intellect and a silver tongue that can manipulate anyone or even make them lose their mind.
Just by talking, he’s able to orchestrate murders and suicides. Knowing that this happens in the real world lends the character of Johan Liebert a level of scariness that’s realistically nightmarish.
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