The Babadook
7-year-old Noah Wiseman gives a remarkable debut feature film performance in upcoming Australian horror The Babadook, as Samuel
– a young boy whose dreams are plagued by a sinister monster he believes is coming to kill him and his mother, Amelia (Essie Davis).
Over the years, we have seen some super creepy kids in horror movies, and we take a look at some of the best as The Babadook hits the big screen this weekend.
Hayley Joel Osment – The Sixth Sense
Hayley Joel Osment will probably always be remembered as the kid from the Sixth Sense who creeped everyone out when he whispered the now iconic phrase, ‘’I see dead people’’ from his hospital bed.
We actually feel quite sorry for the poor lad – the emotional baggage of ghosts is far too much to deal with when you should be concentrating on your homework. However, it was not all doom and gloom for the young lad, as he had Bruce Willis on his side as the only person who truly believed him.
The Sixth Sense is a terrifically creepy watch, with some great central performances from Osment, Willis, and Toni Collette with a fantastic twist. This also remains the best movie from director M. Night Shyamalan.
Aged just 11, Osment was nominated for several awards for his role as Cole Sears, including Best Supporting Actor at the 2000 Oscars - this proved to be the breakthrough performance and role for the young actor.
Isabelle Furhman – Orphan
Anyone who has seen this terrifying film will know that we’re bending the rules a little with this one. Nonetheless, praise must be given to Isabelle Furhman for her incredible performance in this unsettling horror, which she filmed when she was just 12 years-old.
Furham plays Esther – a 9-year-old orphan who is adopted by Kate and John Coleman. Kate soon realises that there’s something wrong with Esther, but can she prove that her family is in danger before it’s too late?
Orphan was only the second feature film role of Furhman, and was the movie and performance that helped put her on the map.
While the film itself doesn’t really live up to its potential, - it really fails to truly scare - but it is Fuhrman’s performance that is the stand out one, despite he being one of the least experienced stars on the cast list.
Dakota Fanning – Hide and Seek
Dakota Fanning flies the ‘’creepy kid’’ flag in 2005’s Hide and Seek, as Robert De Niro’s troubled daughter Emily.
When Emily and her father David move to a new city following the death of her mother, David is desperate for her to make friends, but when Emily announces that she has a new friend called Charlie, things take a sinister turn.
David becomes increasingly concerned as creepy incidents, which soon become violent, start to occur around the house. As no one apart from Emily has ever seen Charlie, no one believes her when she insists that he is the culprit.
This is by no means the best horror movie that you will ever see, but Fanning and de Niro’s performances are strong, and they do save it from the brink of disaster.
Jacob Kogan – Joshua
A kid who dresses in a suit and tie everyday like a full-grown man is always a bit creepy, but Jacob Kogan excels at making our skin crawl in this 2007 thriller Joshua.
9-year-old Joshua Cairn is a highly talented pianist and child prodigy but when his parents bring home his newborn sister Lilly, his behaviour goes from being just distant and odd, to manipulative and sadistic.
If a granny-killing, sister-kidnapping, suit-wearing 9-year-old doesn’t deserve a place on our creepy kid list, we don’t know who does!
Joshua is a movie that mixes smart and suspenseful as well as being eerie and disturbing from start to finish - I think you may never look at your kids in the same way again after watching this movie.
Chloe Grace Moretz – Let Me In
Chloe Grace Moretz is a creepy kid in disguise in 2010 horror Let Me In. She may look like an innocent girl of around 12-years old, but as her new friend, Owen soon finds out, newcomer Abby is actually a bloodthirsty vampire.
The two soon build a friendship, with Abby going to gory lengths to protect Owen from the local bullies. But however nice she is to Owen, there is no denying that Abby is one hell of a scary child.
The relationship between Abby and Owen is what really drives this movie, and both Moretz and Kodi Smith-McPhee give two great performances. While Abby may not be your average kid, she and Owen are two lonely youngsters who find something in each other.
While Let Me In is a horror film, friendship is really what is at the heart of this great movie - which is a remake of the 2009 film directed by Tomas Alfredson and based on the book by John Ajvide Lindqvist.
The Babadook is in UK cinemas now!