10 Smartest Horror Movie Villains

1. Jigsaw - Saw

The movies he starred in might not be the most fiercely intelligent by any means, but their simple, irresistible hook all comes from John Kramer's genius. He is a man loaded with an unfeasible mind for plotting, an intricately creative capacity for dreaming up the worst traps but also working out how to get his "players" into them.

Kramer is also dangerous on another level to everyone else because of the nature of his evil. Because he's not entirely misguided and there's tragedy behind his transformation from a skilled civil engineer to a master manipulating, relentless and obsessive murderer: he simply wanted to teach everyone the lesson that life is precious and their misuse of their time on Earth deserves either punishment or the short, sharp shock needed to guide them in another direction.

Kramer's ability to find these people - or orchestrate his network to do so - is impressive enough, but how he comes up with his intricate, devilish traps is even better, particularly as he has to approach some of them in multiple layers like a chess master. He's basically the most impressive strategist in movie history too.

Which other horror movie villains belong on this list? Share your suggestions below in the comments thread.