2024’s Most Terrifying Images: Viral Photos That Shook The Internet
The closer people get to Halloween, the more likely they are to be in the mood for a little thrill. While people don't always enjoy being scared, there's a big difference between a startling sight that people seek out themselves and the ones they happen to come across while minding their own business.
After all, it's easier not to get too scared when you're powered by morbid curiosity. Based on the popularity of these photos, that curiosity is more common than it may seem.
Maybe the kid should have the iPad for a while
While these are certainly eye-catching drawings that would seem to herald the events of a horror movie, Reddit user Coldinthenorth is actually quite proud of them. That's because their daughter drew this after the uploader took away her screen time for a week.
While these drawings would've convinced a lot of commenters to give her the iPad back, Coldinthenorth was actually encouraged by their daughter's creativity and was happy to accommodate her when she insisted they post it on the internet. Hopefully, she didn't say that to spread a curse.
New fear unlocked
As creepy as it can be to see strange figures or wake up to an unexplained doll in the house, it's easy to underestimate how scary it can be when the human body randomly decides to turn on you.
For instance, this photo shows a person's iris growing over their pupil. Whether it's from out-of-control blood vessels or specific kinds of heterochromia, there are multiple ways that a person can be at risk of this condition that most people wouldn't have ever imagined.
This better not be real
There's no way to make this image not seem unsettling but there are varying degrees to how unsettling this scenario can be. The worst is the possibility that a real person is hanging from this tree in a strange cocoon, which would at least make it hard not to hope they're doing it on purpose.
Granted, even that would leave most people with more than they'd want to unpack. At the same time, it would be hard to know (or even want to know) why this is here if someone left a sculpture hanging in the woods.
It was as scary to wear these as it was to see them
Even without their horrific context, these gas masks from World War I have such an unnerving and haunting look to them. Part of that is likely due to their use in various horror movies throughout the decades since then but their bug-eyed designs have their own effects.
How did these not look scary at the time?
It can be baffling to see how dramatically tastes change over the decades. Although it's hardly impossible to find an old clown doll that now seems much creepier than it did when it was made, there's clearly a reason why so many horror stories involve unnerving children.
These are probably very wholesome stories, but that doesn't change the fact that Georgie looks like he has sinister plans for Grandpa or that the girl on the right looks like a supernatural creature in a human disguise. At least the homunculus seems to like kindergarten.
This isn't what people want dangling from their houses
It's understandable that someone would be confused and creeped out if they walked out the door only to see this film and its passengers hanging from their eaves trough. At first glance, it may seem like a bird of prey left the grisly remains of its lunch dangling here.
However, the truth is that both of these slugs are still alive. Instead, this sticky scene is actually what it looks like when slugs mate. Apparently, it's about as messy as when we do it.
They were probably sore later, but it looks worse than it is
When people see an old photo without context, it's often not hard to read horrific implications into it. That vintage feel and the black-and-white photography can make a scene like this all the creepier.
However, this isn't some mass demonic possession or some bizarre act of sadism against these young men, though some of them may see it that way. Instead, they're just doing calisthenics together in a gym. Apparently, they're doing them in sync as well.
They don't look so innocent anymore
For those wondering why online phenomena like the Five Nights At Freddie's game series or Don't Hug Me, I'm Scared were so intent on making puppets terrifying, scenes like this should provide a compelling answer.
As it turns out, it takes a surprising amount of upkeep to ensure brightly colored puppets like these stay adorable to children. Once they're left neglected for as long as the ones in this abandoned daycare, they don't take that long to start looking creepy.
It's like a horror movie came to life for this person
While Reddit user Lamoimdepressed was rifling through the basement of the school he works at, he came across this sight that scared the wits out of him. He was all alone in a dark, creepy basement and was confronted by a pair of glowing eyes.
However, it turns out he was truly alone in that basement. As he told it, it seems that some prankster had left a pair of reflective eyes hanging on the wall. whoever this person was, they got him good.
That would be a chilling sight after a tough night
For the most part, people know not to underestimate the power of tornadoes. Not only can they be deadly, but they're known to cut a path of destruction through entire states, even if they miraculously don't hurt anyone.
This is a particularly striking example of the storms' raw power. Anyone who lives near a wind farm knows how massive these turbines are. Still, it looks like they're not big enough to avoid getting twisted beyond recognition when a twister appears.
The "kill it with fire" reactions are understandable
While there are certainly many sights that most people wouldn't want staring them in the face, this one is hard to beat in sheer creepiness. Its alien appearance, soulless eyes, small mouth, and weirdly big teeth all contribute to the horror here.
Apparently, the methods behind this thing's construction are no less creepy. Apparently, this is a taxidermy deer's butt that somebody got disturbingly creative with. Unless they were trying to invent a new movie monster, it's hard to understand.
Believe it or not, these are perfectly safe to eat
Although there are many foods that would take the average person some serious convincing before they worked up the courage to try them, even familiar foods can turn weird at times. Even those who know what animal parts go into sausages might be unnerved to see this pink gunk pouring out of them.
So, what exactly is going on here? Apparently, the makers of cheap sausages add beet juice to them to keep them from appearing in an unappetizing gray. However, a gray sausage may look tastier than one that looks like it has Pepto Bismol leaking out of it.
This is a little more than a simple fixer-upper
While it's unclear how much the seller wants for it, they were at least honest enough to put this place on a real estate listing website without any lies about how run-down it is. Still, they may be a little more cagey about one unsettling detail.
Namely, what is that large stain on the floor? It would be bad enough if it were mold, but is it the remaining evidence of a brutal crime that took place here? Is the humanoid shape of it a coincidence?
Only dentists can look at this without wincing
Considering how sensitive people's teeth can be, it's understandable that many people would look at this photo with curled toes and an uncomfortable expression. However, the procedure that involves cutting these grooves into the teeth is more common than it may seem.
These weird grooves are the proper way to prepare teeth for veneers. That's because the grooves that are shaved into the teeth serve as a guide for the rest of shaving. If a dentist goes deeper than these grooves, they risk damaging the crowns. That doesn't make it any easier to look at, though.
This is better news than it seems
After Reddit user RoyalHaza moved into a new house, they went digging in the garden only to make a startling discovery. It turned out that a large tooth had been buried under their property for who knows how long.
However, if they were worried that their new home is now a crime scene, it seems they don't have to be. That tooth is way too big to belong to a human and likely came from a pig. That raises further questions, but at least they aren't legal ones.
Everything about this is pretty disturbing
When Reddit user Readous found this growth in their garden, it was hard not to regard it as some vicious alien creature or a real-life Audrey II. After all, it looks like it has some sharp teeth and very evil intentions for them.
However, even the realization that this is a mushroom doesn't alleviate the creepy factor. After all, the uploader said it looks like it's full of blood when someone cuts into it as if it wasn't weird enough already.
Some things just give off a weird vibe
Normally, there wouldn't be much in this picture to write home about, but when a circle like this seems unnaturally perfect, it can be oddly jarring to witness. It's one of those things that seems impossible to explain to those who don't get that eerie feeling.
However, this isn't some portal to another world, as it may appear to be. Instead, it's the impressive work of Finnish artist Antti Laitinen. Even if that circle isn't technically perfect, it definitely looked hard to cut into the trees so cleanly.
This house is definitely not for picky eaters
How disturbing this picture is to a given person will depend a lot on their culture. Throughout North America and Western Europe, this sight is probably horrifying and confusing all at once. It's clear this man is eating something, but what?
However, those who hail from Eastern Europe or the Middle East are more likely to shrug their shoulders and answer that it's a sheep's head. If anything, they might wish they were there since this apparently quite the scrumptious dish if you can get past the disturbing first impression.
Ever seen any of those Evil Dead movies?
Taxidermy is a much more delicate art than people realize. When it's done right, a preserved animal can look as respectable and striking as it did in life. However, photos like these show how easy it is to get it wrong.
While it's not impossible that this was made this way as an homage to the possessed mounted deer head in Evil Dead 2, it's more likely that this is just a mistake. Kudos to whoever can put this up in their house without having nightmares.
Not all of the world's scares happen on purpose
When Reddit user RandomNamesOW woke up in this dark room, the jarring sight before him definitely ensured he wouldn't be going back to bed. Although some commenters thought it looked like Samara from The Ring was real, the uploader thought it was a demon.
However, it turned out that he had worked himself up into a frenzy over nothing. That's because this was just a pile of jackets his wife had left hanging on a chair.
As if this place wasn't already scary enough
Due to their dark, twisting nature and the human bones strewn throughout the place, it's no surprise that fans of the macabre are always fascinated by the infamous catacombs that sit underneath Paris, France.
However, visitors who feel a sinking, anxious feeling are likely to let out some blood-curdling screams when they run into this figure. Fortunately, it's just a sculpture called Le Passe-Muraille, but tell that to their soiled pants. The artist was very mischievous about this one.
Do they know how creepy they can sometimes be?
One thing that parents quickly learn is how weird kids often are. Whether they're crying about something that's hard to understand or finding unusual ways to entertain themselves, it gets a little easier to appreciate why some parents struggle to understand their kids.
However, it's also easy to underestimate how scary that weirdness can be at times, especially when a parent sees their toddler hovering by their bedside like a Paranormal Activity character on their baby monitor footage. Ironically, it's likely because the child is scared herself but is hesitant to wake her parents. Poor scary sweetie.
A perfectly normal picture except for one little detail
While Reddit user fwunnyvawentine was hiking in the mountains, they came across this stone structure standing near a beautiful clearing. Naturally, they took pictures, but since they had old-school sensibilities, they used a film camera.
That means it wasn't until they got the film developed that they realized what else was going on during their hike. Although there's supposed to be a drop-off to the woods below, that apparently didn't stop someone from lurking behind the pillar. Their peeking hand is the only evidence.
Strange sights can make our imaginations cruel
When Reddit user menotyoutoo came across this unusual sight, their confusion made their mind take the information they were processing in a macabre direction. Specifically, they were fearful that they had witnessed a terrible tragedy through this window.
Although a more rational mind would realize that this would be a weird setup for that worst-case scenario, only the uploader could explain what this actually was. Apparently, this is a chandelier that someone started to set up without removing the packaging. That's a relief.
This might be even scarier in Japan than in America
It's not something a person realizes until they experience it on their own, but a lonesome hot air balloon bearing someone's stoic face can be pretty unnerving when it seems like it's staring right into the soul.
However, this sight doesn't necessarily get any less creepy to those familiar with Japanese culture. After all, the famous horror writer Junji Ito has a story about people with faces matching the balloon dying once they witness it. That fright must be someone's desired effect.
The image looks scary, but the context is so much sadder
It can already be unnerving to come face to face with a human skull, but that's especially true when one looks warped and damaged in such a bizarre way. Unfortunately, that's appropriate because the condition that causes this is as horrifying as it seems.
It's true that there's no type of cancer anybody wants to have. That said, this haunting image makes it abundantly clear how painful and destructive bone cancer can be. The effects of the disease are horrifying and excruciating.
Some pictures make people more worried than scared
While it's natural for some images to trip up people's sense of self-preservation, that's not the only way to frighten them. Despite how the world may seem, people can often be quite empathetic. That makes a photo like this stress-inducing for an entirely different reason than many of the others shown here.
Not only does hanging off the back of a bus seem ridiculously unsafe, but doing so in heels also seems like a terrible accident waiting to happen. Apparently, this is fairly common practice in some cultures, but it's almost unthinkable in many of them.
It's not quite as creepy as it looks
Naturally, a lot of people get pretty squeamish around bugs. For them, there are few things quite as unnerving as peeling back some brush only to find a group of them clustered together and in one big, quivering mass.
However, there's actually a pretty mundane reason why this is happening. And no, the bugs aren't mating with each other. Instead, both the grasshoppers and the slugs in this picture have simply found a nice mushroom to munch on.
Art isn't always so pretty
While it's true that artists can bring people's most beautiful and wholesome visions to life, art is also very provocative and has gotten morbid so many times throughout human history. And Christina Bothwell had a particularly haunting approach to this piece.
After securing a taxidermy deer, she built this haunting addition to the creature. It's clear that she expressed the idea of the deer giving up the ghost, but her execution of the concept is what makes this particularly special.
There's a reason why her stare is so haunting
Even at first glance, the way this little girl stared as she scribbled on the board in chalk can make the viewer uncomfortable. However, this is a case where the backstory is far more horrifying than the actual image.
This girl's name was Tereska, and after World War II, she was relocated to a home for "disturbed children" in Poland after growing up in a German concentration camp. When this photo was taken in 1948, someone had asked her to draw "home," and this was the result.
Not knowing what's going on only makes it worse
While it's unclear how they came across it, this image made Reddit user SnooPears8080 morbidly curious enough that they had to find out the origin. That may seem like it would unlock a terrible curse, but curiosity can be hard to satisfy.
Fortunately, it turns out this image isn't quite as sinister as it seems. There's an independent horror game called Poppy Playtime, and this is apparently fan art for the main antagonist, Huggy Wuggy. At least it's creepy on purpose.
There could be a logical explanation but maybe there isn't
When people come across an unexplained sight in the right setting, the mystery of what they saw can stay with them. That's especially true when it seems like a lot of effort went toward an unclear purpose.
For instance, it's not exactly unheard of to see shoes dangling from a power line by their laces. However, it's a lot more understandable to feel weirded out when you come across a tree that has a bunch of boots nailed to it. That's a lot of dedication for this not to seem like some strange ritual.
They couldn't make this spookier if they tried
When someone comes across this strange structure in the woods, they'd be forgiven for thinking it was some kind of occult hut. It doesn't help that the crevice in the center of the tower looks like a scary, moaning face.
However, it turns out that this is all a coincidence. This was once a normal chimney that was part of a normal house, but decay made that house fall apart. As a result, only the chimney was strong enough to remain standing, even if it looks pretty gnarly now.
Trail camera footage can get really eerie really quickly
It's common practice for hunters to leave trail cameras out overnight so they can track the movements of deer and other game. However, it's also true that those hunters can often find their cameras capturing some other strange sights.
For instance, an understandable knee-jerk reaction to seeing this furry, bipedal beast walk around would involve assuming the hunter finally found clear footage of Bigfoot. However, it's more likely that this is just a bear standing on its hind legs.
If a horror movie hasn't been shot here, it should be
As Reddit user zZagreus explained, they're a recently graduated doctor who started a new job at a clinic for older and psychiatric patients in northern Italy. However, this facility also has a long and likely dark history as an asylum.
That can already make the grounds spooky and haunted, but one particular photo they posted seems like it came straight out of a horror movie. It's always eerie to see an abandoned wheelchair and that goes double when that wheelchair is at a former asylum.
What came first, the slashers or the abandonment?
Although some abandoned buildings can be beautiful and even a little sad, it's also true that decay can turn many of them scary. That's especially true with a house like this, which has two mysterious figures standing on the porch.
In a way, it almost makes it less scary to see that they're Michael Myers and Freddy Kruger. Those may not be characters you've ever want to meet in real life, but they're a sign that somebody with a sense of humor discovered this place first. Either that, or they're trying to scare people away from it like Scooby Doo villains.
There is no way on Earth to talk me into this
Sometimes, the scariest photos don't need monsters, sinister figures, or abandoned buildings to be utterly gripping. Instead, some just confront the viewer with a situation they would never want to be in. It's amazing the people in this photo did this voluntarily.
After all, it's hard to think of a more nerve-wracking feeling than waking up in a precariously balanced cot on the side of a sheer cliff during a climb. If the act of climbing wasn't so exhausting, it would be tempting not to try and sleep at all.
There's a reason why this anglerfish looks different
With their ghastly visages, sharp teeth, and deceptive lights on their heads, anglerfish serve as a popular example to illustrate how terrifying deep sea creatures often are. However, this photo actually demonstrates that they get even more unnerving when they mate.
Considering how vast the deep seas are, it can be hard for male and female anglerfish to find each other. But when they do, they essentially fuse together, with the male losing his eyes and most of his internal organs. They then share a bloodstream for the rest of the resulting unit's life.
Don't worry, nobody died here
When we come across something this inexplicable and disgusting, it's pretty easy to assume the worst. However, it's worth noting that this isn't anyone's brain, the results of anyone's bowel movement, or some bizarre new form of alien life.
Gross and bizarre as this viscous mass may be, it has mundane origins. This is supposed to be a foundation that includes sunscreen, but something caused the makeup to go bad in a jarring way. Whether it's old or was just stored improperly, it seems right to call it expired.
Some eerie pictures feel as saddening as they are scary
When Reddit user blennit-medescue found this old photograph in an antique shop in Texas, they felt conflicted about it. The photo creeped them out and seemed to depict a deeply sad scene, but they were also deeply curious about it. Who was this person, and why was he in chains?
However, the name Frank Wendt turned out to be an important clue to solving this mystery. He was the photographer, and he had a penchant for taking pictures of circus performers. Thus, this is likely a sword swallower who used the chains to add a degree of challenge to his act.
The crazy part is that somebody bought this voluntarily
When Reddit user CD421DoYouCopy bought this at a yard sale, even the previous owner had no idea where it came from. What they did know, however, is that the doll's eyes were made from freshwater pearls, and the hair was real human hair.
That detail seems to affect how people see this doll a lot. On the one hand, the human hair is yet another reason why this was a baffling purchase that seemed to invite some bad omens. On the other hand, it's an endearing sign that someone from long ago scraped together what they had to make a well-loved toy for their child.
You never know what can be scary in the right context
For those who are unfamiliar, there's an internet community based around sharing scary stories — called "creepypastas" — with each other. For whatever reason, a common cliche in these stories involves someone buying a mysterious video game only to find out that it's cursed or programmed by a serial killer or something.
Those stories often seem ridiculous, but that feels less true now that Reddit user Purple_Accountant_73 has come across this utterly inexplicable Game Boy game with a scary face as its cover. The store's owner was no help either, as he just said, "You'll get accustomed to it." It's a good thing the uploader doesn't have a Game Boy.
They better stay perfectly still
It's unclear why this is often so true of mobility aids like wheelchairs and prosthetic legs, but it seems that the older they are, the creepier it is to find them lying around. Since their user clearly needed them, perhaps this anxiety is based on worries about what befell those people.
Except in the case of a literal miracle or a simple replacement, there seems to be only one morbid reason why the owner of these prosthetic legs no longer needed them. After all, if they were replaced, why leave them standing like this?
Sea creatures can be so weird even when they make sense
When Reddit user MLCarter1976 came across a tidal pool in the Pacific Northwest, they largely found all the barnacles, kelp, mussels, and sea anemones they expected. However, this strange, softball-sized mass was a notable exception. Between its slimy grippers and its odd green "eye," it's just unnerving to look at.
However, it turns out this sea anemone isn't as different from the others in this area as it may seem. So, why does it look like this? Apparently, the anemone is known to retreat into itself to prevent itself from drying out.
It's unnerving and educational!
For those wondering why this skull has so many teeth, the answer is that almost all of us had skulls that looked like this at some point. It's just that there's a bone in the way that keeps this inner part of the skeleton from being shown.
Whenever people lose their baby teeth, they're really just replacing them with teeth that were already there all along. Indeed, it turns out that when we were kids, our skulls were a lot more crowded than we would have imagined.
