20 Scariest Horror Movie Moments Of The 21st Century

This layered and psychological tormentor needles the mind by way of its restless creepiness, and the searing dread it generates. William Friedkin stated that he’d never seen a more terrifying film than The Babadook, and being able to say you’ve horrified even the esteemed director of The Exorcist is quite the claim to fame.

We start to feel a lot like the grief-addled mother Amelia as she’s terrorised throughout the film by the titular entity, and perhaps the worst moment comes when the Babadook pays her a visit in the dead of night.

Spooked by ominous bumps in the night, Amelia’s fears are only temporarily subsided by the appearance of her adorable dog, Bugsy. The strange sounds soon continue worse than ever, and Amelia retreats to the safety of her bedsheets when it becomes clear that something else entirely is in the bedroom.

Hiding under the covers won’t save her, however. The otherworldly sounds the Babadook makes from somewhere above her are absolutely monstrous, and so is the way it rapidly slithers across the ceiling when she dares to peek her head out from under the sheets. By the time it shows its nightmarish face and plummets towards her, we’re already scared out of our wits.