10 Greatest Christmas Movie Villains Ever

10. Stripe (Gremlins)

Gizmo is one of the cutest creations in cinema history, so anything attempting to harm him is automatically gunning for a top spot on this list. Perhaps the meanest puppet ever created, Stripe is a demon created by a teenage boy’s negligence, teaching us the important lesson: don’t let your guard down, even at Christmas.

Revisiting Gremlins, it’s surprising just how dark and violent it is. The rogue mogwais murder a science teacher, and the humans in turn dispatch of the critters in various gruesome manners.

The malicious and menacing Stripe will surely have haunted many a young viewer’s dream from its 1984 release onwards. His reign of terror is finally ended when Billy exposes the mogwai leader to direct sunlight. In a heartwarming moment, Stripe is horrendously melted, screaming with agony until his charred corpse finally tumbles into a fountain, bereft of life. Merry Christmas!

A 15 certificate, Gremlins is literally not a kids’ film, but the misleading cuteness of the creatures will certainly have convinced many parents otherwise. It’s a safe assumption that plenty of resulting sleepless nights were caused not by anticipation of Christmas Day, but fear of a Gremlin attack.