10 Terrifying Horror Movie Villains Hiding In Plain Sight

As one of the more famous examples of this trope, Alien set the bar extraordinarily high with its sneak peak of the Xenomorph before we even knew what it was we were looking for. The seminal horror movie brought something completely new to the table in its monster design, with H. R. Giger's artwork bought to life in the most stomach-churning way - and you can catch a glimpse of the thing far earlier than you think if you know where to train your eyes to.

After the Nostromo intercepts a mysterious transmission, bring a face hugger aboard their ship, and accidentally manufacture a Xenomorph threat that they have no hope of fighting against - Brett goes to find Jones the cat to make sure he's safe. Good. As he searches in the cargo hold, the Alien can be spotted swinging from the chains amongst the machinery - not attempting to hide itself in any way.

The Xenomorph relies on its completely alien (duh) appearance and our lack of knowledge for what one of these creatures should look like to be as brazen as possible in its hiding place, if it can even be called that, making rewatching all the more rewarding when you do spot the giant, swinging monster in the middle of the screen.

Of course, it should be noted this particular example is largely seen in the uncut version.