It’s time to lean in really close and admit that you may be drawn to monsters of all sorts. There’s nothing wrong with admitting if you feel that way. Many of us horror fans have found ourselves pulling at our collars over the villains or antagonistic figures who should be scaring us. Across the many decades of horror media, we’ve gotten more than a few horror monsters to think about and, as this is a safe space, we can admit that been presented with a lot of hot horror monsters.
Instead of embarking on an extremely long journey by focusing on all of horror's hotties, we’re going to just home in on some underrated hot horror monsters. Therefore, we won’t be discussing Michael Myers, Pinhead (Doug Bradley), Xenomorphs (yes, you read that correctly), the Predator, Jennifer Check (Megan Fox), Ellie (Alyssa Sutherland), most of the Interview with the Vampire vampires, Count Orlok (Bill Skarsgård), the Creature (Jacob Elordi), or anyone else that has popularity status. Why? Because there’s always plenty of other dangerous and hot monsters to focus on. Maybe you’ll discover a new favorite horror monster — though beware, because there are some minor spoilers ahead.
Countess Zaleska (Dracula’s Daughter, 1936)
We all know about Dracula (Bela Lugosi), but what about his daughter, who doesn’t want to be a vampire? Countess Zaleska (Gloria Holden) is not only Dracula’s daughter, she’s also a repressed queer woman, who wishes to rid herself of her vampirism (which also serves as an allegory to her queerness). Her style, effortlessly sensual appeal, and overall presence as a character is difficult to ignore. She’s not mentioned nearly enough in most conversations, therefore she deserves a mention in this list.
Julia Cotton (Hellraiser, 1987; Hellbound: Hellraiser II, 1988)
Oftentimes when discussing Hellraiser, people immediately think about Pinhead as the main focus. Meanwhile, Pinhead isn’t nearly as present as Julia (Clare Higgins) is in Hellraiser or Hellbound: Hellraiser II. It’s hard not to find yourself pulled into Julia’s web because of the way she uses seduction to lure victims for Frank in the first film. She even has a pull in the second film, which may sound a bit alarming once you see her, but it’s true all the same. There’s not many people that can pull off the looks she does, nor be able to literally slay in them.
Ruby Knowby (Ash vs. Evil Dead, 2015-2018)
The world of Evil Dead is quite bonkers, but there’s more than just Ash (Bruce Campbell) to focus on with the TV show. In the canonical series, we meet a number of characters that we either love or we hate. Ruby Knowby (Lucy Lawless) is primarily an antagonist who tries to ruin everything for Ash and co., as well as destroy the world — though she did so with such a flare and hotness. At the end of the day, it’s hard not to find Ruby hot, and not just because she’s played by Lucy Lawless.
Dracula/the Dark One (Van Helsing, 2019-2021)
While Van Helsing may not be widely known, it’s still a horror show worth checking out. The series doesn’t introduce Dracula (Tricia Helfer) until much later in the series, but she’s everything you likely wouldn’t have expected. Having Dracula be a seductive femme vampire, instead of a very masculine vampire, is such a welcoming sight. Dracula also has brides in the show, which only adds to how queer the show is in general. Overall, she’s the type of sexy evil vampire that you’d be giving a double take.
Most of the Villains (Castlevania, 2017-2021)
It’s safe to say that nearly all the villains in Castlevania — the animated series based on the Konami video game of the same name — are scorching hot. The animation is gorgeous and the monsters are enticing. Listing everyone off would be quite the task, but let’s just say most of the villains (especially the antagonistic vampires) are hotter than the sun. Whether it’s Dracula (voiced by Graham McTavish), Carmilla (voiced by Jamie Murray), or many others.
Pinhead (Hellraiser, 2022)
Hellraiser is an iconic horror film that delights in body horror, the taboo, pain, as well as pleasure. While the 2022 remake may not be everyone’s favorite, we did get a new Pinhead out of it. It’s not to say Doug Bradley isn’t still an icon, but the remake using Jamie Clayton as Pinhead still remains a tremendous choice. Despite how the film is less about pleasure and more about pain, there’s still a sensual pull with Pinhead (Jamie Clayton). She may not be promising pleasure for those who get more than they bargained for, but her presence is appreciated all the same.
Cecilia (Sissy, 2022)
Just like slasher villains are monsters, whether they’re supernaturally inclined or not, Cecilia (Aisha Dee) certainly counts in Sissy. There’s no harm in having a “monster” be human for this list in the slightest. Cecilia is such an interesting character, who is also Black and subtextually queer, which all add complex layers to her as a character. And she has an effortless appeal to her, which is only amplified the more unhinged she becomes throughout Sissy.
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