10 Terrifying Horror Movie Villains Ruined By Terrible Backstories

Horror villains come in all shapes and sizes, and all carry with them different ways in which they send out the scares. From the hacking and slicing of slasher baddies to the supernatural scares of found footage and more paranormal franchises, the creativity and imagination within the horror community has certainly led to the creation of some truly unique characters over the years.

However, having a basic idea for a villain's appearance or means of killing won't always see them through to the end of a movie franchise. Explaining how these characters have found themselves in a horror movie, weapon in hand and ready to commit some atrocities can be a bit of a stumbling block for even the most experienced of writers.

Whether it's just trying to shoehorn something in to justify a sequel, explain how they haven't died or just move things along with the plot, there are plenty of examples of a chilling horror movie villain being let down by a terrible backstory. From the lazy to the absurd, here are ten terrifying horror movie villains with some of the worst backstories ever put to film.

As soon as Valak revealed itself to be the true mastermind behind The Conjuring 2's events, horror fans knew they had a seriously terrifying villain entering the game. The idea of a demon taking on the form of something like a Nun was such a masterstroke for James Wan's series, and Bonnie Aarons' portrayal just helps sell the scares even more.

And whilst The Nun was certainly a mixed bag that didn't fully cash in on all the potential it had, there's no denying that Valak was once again absolutely terrifying whenever it turned up.

One thing most fans could have done without however was the backstory given to the baddie over the course of the film. Besides being an evil demon that wants to possess things and wreak havoc, there's not a whole lot more people want from their killer Nuns after all.

Instead, The Nun spends far too much time going into how the demon was summoned by dark magic after a Romanian Duke set up shop and began dabbling with Satanism. After the Vatican closed off the demon's ability to traverse into this world, the 'bombs of World War Two' (of all things) apparently opened things back up and allowed the demon to roam free again. Not only is this convoluted backstory unnecessary for Valak, but it actually ends up taking away from the terror of the character by stripping away that unstoppable omniscient power it carries and giving a clear cut guide on how exactly the demon's going to be stopped.

Take away this cat-and-mouse series of locking away and sudden breakouts between a castle and evil Nun and actually show the audience more of said castle and evil Nun and there could be a better film on the cards.