While just about everyone grows up playing with them, there is something inherently creepy about dolls. Dolls are so spooky that in Jaws, Quint uses dolls as a way to describe sharks, saying they have "lifeless eyes, black eyes, like a doll's eyes." Well before horror made its way to the silver screen, storytellers were weaving tales of haunted dolls that gave both children and adults nightmares. And now M3gan will be joining their ranks.

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With M3gan dancing her way into the hearts of horror fans, it's a good time to look back at the creepy dolls that have given audiences the willies over the years. From a possessed dolly in a Victorian-era style dress to a raging Good Guy that holds the soul of a serial killer, there are plenty of killer dolls in film to make everyone second guess the idea of keeping one of these plastic playthings in their home.

10 A Possessed Clown Scared A Generation Of Young Movie-Goers

Poltergeist (1982)

Tobe Hooper's Poltergeist covers the gamut when it comes to horror. Along with skeletons rising from the ground, a man ripping off the flesh from his face, and an evil spirit taking a small child hostage, the movie also features one of the scariest evil doll sequences ever put on celluloid.

While most of the evil happenings surround poor Carol Anne in the movie, the titular poltergeist does take some time out of its busy schedule to terrify older brother Robbie by possessing a clown doll and attacking him. For '80s kids, this moment left a lasting mark that made sure they would never let any clowns into their homes.

9 James Wan Introduced The World To The Evilest Doll In The World

The Conjuring Universe

Based on the lives of Ed and Lorraine Warren, The Conjuring cinematic universe is second only to the MCU when it comes to the success of interconnected movies. Director James Wan launched the series by introducing audiences to Annabelle, the evilest doll in the world. While the movies don't use a Raggedy Ann doll, which is what the real Annabelle is, the on-screen version has gained a massive fanbase.

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Along with appearing in the Conjuring movies, Annabelle has her own series of films, with the third film, Annabelle Comes Home, being the weirdest and most fun of the bunch. One thing is clear; James Wan has a thing for evil dolls. Along with introducing audiences to Annabelle, Wan directed the evil ventriloquist doll movie Dead Silence and is a producer on M3gan.

8 Billy Is The Perfect Creepy Stand-In For Jigsaw

The Saw Franchise

Another James Wan movie with an evil doll that launched a franchise, Billy is the tricycle-riding puppet that acts as a stand-in for Jigsaw when the notorious killer can't be there in person to watch his victims suffer. While Billy isn't possessed or cursed, the puppet quickly became the face of the Saw series, and with good reason.

Billy's stark white face with red lips, red spirals on the cheeks, and red eyes burned its way into the consciousness of moviegoers almost immediately. While it was Jigsaw's elaborate puzzles and traps that kept audiences coming back for more, it was seeing Billy in the trailer for Saw that got them to buy the ticket for the 2004 movie in the first place.

7 He'll Be Your Friend Till The End

The Child's Play/Chucky Series

One of the most famous evil dolls of all time, Chucky made his debut all the way back in 1988 when creator Don Mancini and director Tom Holland introduced the world to the infamous Good Guy doll that was possessed by serial killer Charles Lee Ray in Child's Play. Over the decades, Chucky has gone from a straight horror icon to a comedy horror icon across a series of movies and a TV series.

Based on the My Buddy doll, Chucky looks sweet and innocent, making it all the more creepy when the little toy pulls out a knife and starts slashing. Chucky proudly stands alongside horror icons like Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger, and Michael Myers.

6 Sometimes, Killer Dolls Can Be The Heroes

Tales from the Hood (1995)

While most killer dolls go after innocent people, there are some dolls that take out their rage on those who hold hate in their hearts. In the Tales from the Hood story "KKK Comeuppance," the souls of tortured and murdered slaves possess a group of dolls kept at a plantation to take out their revenge on the racist ancestor of their abhorrent torturer. Throughout the short story in the anthology movie, the audience gets to cheer on the dolls as they bring paranormal justice down on a US senator who also happens to be a member of the KKK.

5 Jamie Wouldn't Kill Anyone... Unless Teddy Told Him To!

The Pit (1981)

One of the stranger killer doll movies out there, The Pit focuses on a boy named Jamie and his teddy bear, Teddy, as they work to get trick people into falling into a pit full of monstrous "Trogs" who need to feed on raw meat. While Teddy never does any of the killing itself, it does convince Jamie to take on the task of finding victims for the Trogs.

A Canadian horror film, The Pit leaves a lot for the audience to decide, including if Teddy is actually talking to Jamie or not. The Pit also features one of the best twist endings in horror.

4 When A Doll Is Named "He Who Kills," You Know Things Will Go Badly

Trilogy of Terror (1975)

While it may be a TV movie, Trilogy of Terror's "Amelia" has still managed to take its place as one of the great killer doll stories. In the final part of this horror anthology, Karen Black plays the titular Amelia and is the only person to appear in the short, acting against a doll the whole time. The evil-looking wooden fetish doll, as the story explains, is possessed by a Zuni hunter named "He Who Kills," who is only held back by a gold chain that keeps the maniacal spirit from killing again.

Sure enough, the gold chain comes off, and the twisted doll comes to life, chasing Amelia through her apartment. While the gore is obviously light due to being a made for TV movie, Trilogy of Terror's "Amelia" still stands out as a classic in the evil doll genre.

3 Anthony Hopkins Put Himself Into A Ventriloquist Dummy

Magic (1978)

Based on the novel by William Goldman, who also wrote the screenplay, Richard Attenborough's Magic stars Anthony Hopkins as Charles "Corky" Withers, a struggling stage magician who becomes a big hit when he adds Fats, a ventriloquist dummy, to his act. What people don't know is that Corky has turned the dummy into a manifestation of his id. When Corky reunites with his high school crush, Fats is against the reignited love and forces Corky to go on a murder spree to keep their secret.

While Fats is never actually alive, but instead a figment of Corky's illness, the dummy is nonetheless spooky. Magic has long been a favorite in the horror genre, and recently it was announced that Sam Raimi is planning on directing a remake, which could make Corky and Fats even more iconic characters in film.

2 Dolly Wants To Play

Dolly Dearest (1991)

When toy maker and manufacturer Elliot Wade bought the Dolly Dearest factory in Mexico, he didn't realize it was next door to the Mayan tomb of Sanzia. Released from her imprisonment by an archeologist, the demonic spirit of Sanzia quickly moves into one of the dolls at the factory and befriends Elliot's daughter Jessica. Soon enough, the killings begin.

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Dolly Dearest, which surely owes its existence in part to Child's Play, is an over-the-top horror film with some clunky but great dialogue that is sure to keep die-hard horror fans smiling from beginning to end. And while Sanzia has never gotten the same level of respect as Annabelle, she certainly has her fans.

1 The Secret To Immortality Lies In Puppets

The Puppet Master Series

Without a doubt the most successful film series to come out of Charles Band's Full Moon Features, the Puppet Master saga began in 1989 when audiences were introduced to André Toulon, a puppet maker who discovered the secret of immortality before taking his own life to keep the knowledge out of the hands of Nazis in 1939. Toulon's secret would be discovered by Neil Gallagher, who calls on five psychics to come to the Bodega Bay Inn where they are terrorized by living dolls.

With sixteen movies so far, including a crossover with the Demonic Toys series and a spin-off film, the Puppet Master franchise has plenty of movies for any fan to watch, though some of them aren't as good as others. Still, these movies are a fun way to spend a rainy day on the couch with a pizza.

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