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Comic Books
On TV, I saw a movie about a monster. No. An alien. It was good. Scary. It taught me... the monster not seen is... scarier.
Yes, we... we heard a noise in the back. And to be honest, we both thought it was Peter. Because Peter uses the back entrance most of the time. But Ben called out to him... and he didn't answer. I right then -I don't know why- but right then I knew something was wrong. I knew that someone was in our house. I could - I could just tell by the kind of silence.
— Aunt May, Ultimate Spider-Man
Fan Works
Now you might be asking yourself why I'm not allowing you see who I am Lucius. If you think about it, I'm sure you will recall the power of the fear of the unknown, from your time hiding your face behind that white mask, all the while under the Imperius of course. You're frightened of me now, and will be even more frightened of me in the future. I've proven I can reach out and take you at anytime, no matter where you are, from your magnificent home to your private club.
Cautiously and dramatically, Calvin opened the door again and peeked inside.
The others leaned over his shoulder and peeked inside as well.
The mirrors were reflecting back everything in the darkness, adding that nice little bit of terror to the otherwise mundane room.
"I don't see anything weird," Calvin whispered.
"Nothing?" Hobbes asked. "Are you sure?"
"Nope."
"Awwww, but I put on my scary face and everything!"
"I know, I know..."
Cautiously, they crept into the room and looked around.
All they saw were their own reflections.
There were no strange dark figures running around in the background this time.
"Nobody sees anything, right?" Socrates asked.
"Nothing," Andy replied.
"Okay..."
There was a pause as Socrates looked around nervously.
"So why is that fact making this walk even more terrifying than before?" he moaned.
"The brain is a strange thing," Sherman mumbled, his eyes clamped shut.
The others leaned over his shoulder and peeked inside as well.
The mirrors were reflecting back everything in the darkness, adding that nice little bit of terror to the otherwise mundane room.
"I don't see anything weird," Calvin whispered.
"Nothing?" Hobbes asked. "Are you sure?"
"Nope."
"Awwww, but I put on my scary face and everything!"
"I know, I know..."
Cautiously, they crept into the room and looked around.
All they saw were their own reflections.
There were no strange dark figures running around in the background this time.
"Nobody sees anything, right?" Socrates asked.
"Nothing," Andy replied.
"Okay..."
There was a pause as Socrates looked around nervously.
"So why is that fact making this walk even more terrifying than before?" he moaned.
"The brain is a strange thing," Sherman mumbled, his eyes clamped shut.
But time is not on her side. The carrion attracts scavengers, which every day attract more attention. Above the glade, turkey vultures ride the thermals in wide loops, waiting for their chance to dive down and grab a scrap of flesh. All this commotion calls out to darker appetites within the forest. And one day the trees sway as something rough and huge slouches between them. Beyond the trees, the lush undergrowth blocks sight beyond more than a few feet, but the timberwolves can smell the new arrival. It stinks of rot and bones and the sharp, sour tang of magic, loose and wild and hungry.
The pack assembles at the edge of the glade. Behind them, a few curious cockatrices poke their heads out of the fountain’s basin, and just as quickly retreat. The wolves growl and snarl and puff themselves up, but the ones at the back begin to edge away. The ground trembles beneath their dandelion paws as the intruder nears.
It stops just out of sight. The bushes rattle and the trees bend, and a huge shadow drinks the light out from the forest. A sickening, cloying scent stuffs their muzzles.
The standoff lasts for only a minute. Too many wolves, or perhaps the unseen beast catches sight of the cockatrices. Or perhaps it simply isn’t hungry. Regardless, the trees sway again as it turns and lumbers away. The air slowly clears of the stench of death.
The pack assembles at the edge of the glade. Behind them, a few curious cockatrices poke their heads out of the fountain’s basin, and just as quickly retreat. The wolves growl and snarl and puff themselves up, but the ones at the back begin to edge away. The ground trembles beneath their dandelion paws as the intruder nears.
It stops just out of sight. The bushes rattle and the trees bend, and a huge shadow drinks the light out from the forest. A sickening, cloying scent stuffs their muzzles.
The standoff lasts for only a minute. Too many wolves, or perhaps the unseen beast catches sight of the cockatrices. Or perhaps it simply isn’t hungry. Regardless, the trees sway again as it turns and lumbers away. The air slowly clears of the stench of death.
—Natural Histories, "The Fountain"
That creeping feeling crawled back up her spine. She boosted her light instead, shining a searchlight around herself, looking. She stopped short when she heard the growl. It rumbled through her, low and deadly, a dire warning. A vague shape hung on the very edge of her light.
There was a special kind of fear that came with the sudden realization that something had been watching you. Not out there anymore, somewhere in the vague darkness, but right here, in this place. With you. Twilight swallowed past a rapidly drying tongue.
There was a special kind of fear that came with the sudden realization that something had been watching you. Not out there anymore, somewhere in the vague darkness, but right here, in this place. With you. Twilight swallowed past a rapidly drying tongue.
—Nine Days Down, Chapter 7: "Wandering"
The funny thing about horror is that there doesn’t necessarily need to be something frightening present for someone to get scared. The human mind is a breeding ground for bad thoughts, and it fills all the vacant gaps where order should have been, terrifying its host on all its own.
—0 People's Waltz, a Ride the Cyclone fanfic.
Film — Animated
It was the very witching hour of night that Ichabod pursued his travel homeward. The sky grew darker and darker as, one by one, the stars winked out their lights, and driving clouds obscured the moon from sight. Never had the schoolmaster felt so melancholy, so utterly alone. And the nearer he approached the hollow, the more dismal he became. Once inside the murky glen, Ichabod's anxiety increased a hundredfold. For now, the forest seemed to close in behind him, and every small detail of Brom's awful story returned to haunt his recollection.
Film — Live-Action
There's no earthly way of knowing
Which direction we are going
There's no knowing where we're rowing
Or which way the river's flowing
Is it raining? Is it snowing?
Is a hurricane a-blowing?
Not a speck of light is showing,
So the danger must be growing
Are the fires of hell a-glowing
Is the grisly reaper mowing?
YES! The danger must be growing,
For the rowers keep on rowing
AND THEY'RE CERTAINLY NOT SHOWING
ANY SIGNS THAT THEY ARE SLOWING!
Which direction we are going
There's no knowing where we're rowing
Or which way the river's flowing
Is it raining? Is it snowing?
Is a hurricane a-blowing?
Not a speck of light is showing,
So the danger must be growing
Are the fires of hell a-glowing
Is the grisly reaper mowing?
YES! The danger must be growing,
For the rowers keep on rowing
AND THEY'RE CERTAINLY NOT SHOWING
ANY SIGNS THAT THEY ARE SLOWING!
— Willy Wonka, Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory
"Men fear most what they cannot see."
— Henri Ducard, Batman Begins
Literature
Teal lifted the blind a few inches. He saw nothing, and raised it a little more — still nothing. Slowly he raised it until the window was fully exposed. They gazed out at — nothing. Nothing, nothing at all. What color is nothing? Don't be silly! What shape is it? Shape is an attribute of something. It had neither depth nor form. It had not even blackness. It was nothing.
Now, being prepared for almost anything, he was not, by any means, prepared for nothing; and, consequently, when the Bell struck One, and no shape appeared, he was taken with a violent fit of trembling.
It is the unknown we fear when we look upon death and darkness, nothing more.
— Albus Dumbledore, Harry Potter
There wasn't a living soul. He hated it when it was like this. It was like the bits in the film where you were waiting for the aliens to jump out.
Somehow, they were always more dreadful than the bits with the fangs in.
Somehow, they were always more dreadful than the bits with the fangs in.
Before darkness fell, we caught sight of the Sea-Hound to starboard, and this glimpse was indescribably eerie - perhaps particularly because we only got a kind of general impression of the beast. In the darkness I imagined the rest, and that was worse still.
Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
"Sir," said I, "or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you" - here I opened wide the door; —
Darkness there, and nothing more.
"Sir," said I, "or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you" - here I opened wide the door; —
Darkness there, and nothing more.
"There is neither ghost of earl nor ghost of countess in that room, there is no ghost there at all; but worse, far worse."
"The worst of all the things that haunt poor mortal man," said I; "and that is, in all its nakedness - Fear! Fear that will not have light nor sound, that will not bear with reason, that deafens and darkens and overwhelms."
"The worst of all the things that haunt poor mortal man," said I; "and that is, in all its nakedness - Fear! Fear that will not have light nor sound, that will not bear with reason, that deafens and darkens and overwhelms."
Watson: I ought to be more case-hardened after my Afghan experiences. I saw my own comrades hacked to pieces at Maiwand without losing my nerve.
Holmes: I can understand. There is a mystery about this which stimulates the imagination; where there is no imagination there is no horror.
Holmes: I can understand. There is a mystery about this which stimulates the imagination; where there is no imagination there is no horror.
Bear in mind closely that I did not see any actual visual horror at the end.
— The Whisperer in Darkness, opening sentence
Magister Hickory: The Master has been playing with us for a full week now. Lights on and off, odd noises, awful smells. And that was a glimpse of the Beast.
Thornmallow: But I saw nothing.
Register Oakbend: Which is worse - seeing or not seeing?
Thornmallow: But I saw nothing.
Register Oakbend: Which is worse - seeing or not seeing?
That which is clearly known hath less terror than that which is but hinted at and guessed.
Live-Action TV
Do you know what the most frightening thing in the world is? Nothing.
— Ethros Demon, Angel, "I've Got You Under My Skin"
Josh: Man, if she's gonna get us, I wish she would just get us... I-I can't take this stress!
Megan: I sat back quietly, all week long, watching. While the two of you were slowly eaten alive by your own fear. And that's the best revenge there is.
Megan: I sat back quietly, all week long, watching. While the two of you were slowly eaten alive by your own fear. And that's the best revenge there is.
— Drake & Josh, "Megan's Revenge"
"The trouble with triffids is what we don't know."
— Bill Masen, The Day of the Triffids (1981)
"Craig, maybe your twins could come back? I thought I didn't like seeing them, but it's even worse when I don't know where they are"
— Beck Bennett, Saturday Night Live season 46
Music
Dark night nothing to see
Invisible hand in front of me
Scared to death there's someone near
Scared to move but you can't stay here...
Invisible hand in front of me
Scared to death there's someone near
Scared to move but you can't stay here...
— Motörhead, "Iron Fist"
Like swimming underwater in the darkness
Like walking through an empty house
Speaking to an imaginary audience
Being watched from outside
By someone without a key
Like walking through an empty house
Speaking to an imaginary audience
Being watched from outside
By someone without a key
— Slint, "Don Aman"
There was a sound at the window then
The captain started, his breath was still
Slowly, he turned.
The captain started, his breath was still
Slowly, he turned.
— Slint, "Good Morning, Captain"
He senses something terrible awaiting
A loose dread, a worsening
And in a moment he turns to the sky
He notices it is darker now than it used to be
It is darker now at this hour than it was last week
A loose dread, a worsening
And in a moment he turns to the sky
He notices it is darker now than it used to be
It is darker now at this hour than it was last week
— Daughters, "Ocean Song"
Post-Awareness Stage 6 is without description.
— The Caretaker, Everywhere At the End of Time - Stage 6 summary
Stand-Up Comedy
The one thing worse than seeing a spider is not seeing a spider.
Tabletop Games
There's an experience worse than blindness—it's the certainty that your vision is perfect and the horror that there's no world around you to see.
— Clinging Darkness's flavor text, ''Magic: The Gathering]]
's flavor text, ''Magic: The Gathering]] Theatre
Harry: We were scared. It was like being lost: very young again, with the dark, and lost. There was no... thing... to be... frightened of, but...
Edna: WE WERE FRIGHTENED... and there was nothing.
Edna: WE WERE FRIGHTENED... and there was nothing.
Video Games
Stephen King once wrote that "Nightmares exist outside of logic, and there's little fun to be had in explanations; they're antithetical to the poetry of fear." In a horror story the victim keeps asking "why?" But there can be no explanation, and there shouldn't be one. The unanswered mystery is what stays with us the longest and it's what we'll remember in the end.
Inside the mailbox is absolutely nothing.
Nothing after nothing came bursting out.
Nothing after nothing came bursting out.
— Mother 3, during the Mushroom Samba sequence.
But nobody came.
— Undertale battle interface, during a "No Mercy" run as you clear an area of monsters
Junpei: How could you be afraid of ghosts, but not be scared of this...?
Yukari: It's easy to get freaked out by something you can't see, don'tcha think?
Yukari: It's easy to get freaked out by something you can't see, don'tcha think?
Real terror is not the sight of death. It is the fear of death. What is the fear of death? Terror of the unknown.
— Pisha, Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines
I have learned to fear nothing, although it is nothing that I most fear.
— Maximilian Roivas, Eternal Darkness
Web Original
Visitors report hearing their own blood begin to pump louder and louder and their muscles stretching and contracting within them. the experience is not entirely unlike that of being in an anechoic chamber, but having the sensation outside is beyond maddening.
— Corin Deeth III, Kakos Industries
Mat: I was scared of some other games, but this is just pissing me off! He's taking all of the internet fame and stuff, and he doesn't even do anything! Slenderman is a slacker!
Pat: But you know what? That's the scariest thing about him! It's one of those things, where it's the ultimate show that your brain subconsciously comes up with the scariest things possible.
Pat: But you know what? That's the scariest thing about him! It's one of those things, where it's the ultimate show that your brain subconsciously comes up with the scariest things possible.
Then there's the kind [of horror] where the guy in the spooky mask isn't in the cupboard, but right behind you, and you just know he's gonna go "ABLOOGY WOOGY WOO!" at some point, but he doesn't, and you're getting more and more tense, but you don't want to turn around because he might stick his cock in your eye. That would be your Silent Hill 2. [...] You see, [this type] is best, because your imagination is doing all the work, all a good horror game needs to do is hand you a piece of sandpaper and shout encouragement as you vigorously massage your own undercarriage.
Matt: See, that's what horror games bring to the table: doing something with absolutely nothing.
Pat: Yeah, the absence of "thing" is what's scary.
Matt: The absence of a threat is the biggest threat.
Pat: Yeah, the absence of "thing" is what's scary.
Matt: The absence of a threat is the biggest threat.
Max: "Oh, thank fucking God!"
Daniel: "What? You're not scared? That was my big reveal!"
Max: "Are you kidding me? I spent all day thinking I'd either gone insane, or that you were a body-possessing alien who ate Space Kid! You're a downgrade to say the least."
Daniel: "What? You're not scared? That was my big reveal!"
Max: "Are you kidding me? I spent all day thinking I'd either gone insane, or that you were a body-possessing alien who ate Space Kid! You're a downgrade to say the least."
— Camp Camp, "Arrival of the Torso Takers"
Western Animation
You see that door? You wanna know what's behind that door? You don't wanna know what's behind that door. See those bones? Wanna know what made those bones? You don't wanna know what made those bones.
— Shwick, Courage the Cowardly Dog
Tony: Who are you? What do you want? Anything, anything at all!
Spawn: I want you to stay out of the alleys, Tony. Your business there is done, understand? Whatever wild hair you had up your ass about that place...is officially plucked.
Tony: You...you slaughtered my men!
Spawn: I'll let you in on a little secret; they were doing bad things. But relax. I'm through killing your men. Next time...if I see one of your brain-dead thugs so much as spit in the direction of those alleys, I'm gonna come back and pay you a little visit, Tony. And believe me; it won't be as pleasant as the visit I paid your hired cyborg. So, here's how it goes. As of now, you work for me. And your job is very simple. Give me my space. Understand? All I want is a little peace and quiet. Got it, fat boy?
Tony: Yes...
Spawn: Say it.
Tony: I work for you... and you want peace and quiet.
Spawn: And who am I?
Tony: I don't know!
Spawn: That's right. You don't know. Let that little mystery keep you up at night.
Spawn: I want you to stay out of the alleys, Tony. Your business there is done, understand? Whatever wild hair you had up your ass about that place...is officially plucked.
Tony: You...you slaughtered my men!
Spawn: I'll let you in on a little secret; they were doing bad things. But relax. I'm through killing your men. Next time...if I see one of your brain-dead thugs so much as spit in the direction of those alleys, I'm gonna come back and pay you a little visit, Tony. And believe me; it won't be as pleasant as the visit I paid your hired cyborg. So, here's how it goes. As of now, you work for me. And your job is very simple. Give me my space. Understand? All I want is a little peace and quiet. Got it, fat boy?
Tony: Yes...
Spawn: Say it.
Tony: I work for you... and you want peace and quiet.
Spawn: And who am I?
Tony: I don't know!
Spawn: That's right. You don't know. Let that little mystery keep you up at night.
Bart: Hey, you know what would have been scarier than nothing?
Lisa: What?
Bart: ANYTHING!
Lisa: What?
Bart: ANYTHING!
— The Simpsons' "Treehouse of Horror" retelling of The Raven
Sam: Is this WOOHP? I can't see anything...
Alex: (speaking quicker than normal) Have I mentioned how much I really don't like the dark? I'm not scared, it's just, you know, you never know what's gonna—
(Jerry turns on a flashlight, making the girls scream)
Jerry: Hello, girls.
Clover: JERRY! Ugh! You know what stress does to my skin!
Alex: (speaking quicker than normal) Have I mentioned how much I really don't like the dark? I'm not scared, it's just, you know, you never know what's gonna—
(Jerry turns on a flashlight, making the girls scream)
Jerry: Hello, girls.
Clover: JERRY! Ugh! You know what stress does to my skin!
— Totally Spies!, "Aliens"
Real Life
That was done well in his film, and it is done with even more technical expertise here — but to what point? The more you see of a monster, the less you get. It is the unseen, the imagined, that scares you. (...) Think how little you ever really saw in the first Alien movie, and how frightening it was.
[The Blair Witch Project is] not great art, but it's proof that vague shapes and crackling twigs can be scarier than million-dollar FX - that nothing is scarier than nothing.
— David Edelstein
There is no terror in the bang, only in the anticipation of it.
I believe in putting the horror in the mind of the audience, and not necessarily on the screen.
I was once asked what I thought was the most disquieting thing you could see on the screen and I said, "An open door."
The theatre depends on being incomplete, because the thing that makes it complete is the person that witnesses it. [...] It is special, because every member of the audience is completing that image in their imagination, and at that point, it becomes more alive, more real than it could ever be if you tried to represent it directly, as you would in a film.
The oldest and strongest emotion of mankind is fear, and the oldest and strongest kind of fear is fear of the unknown.
— H. P. Lovecraft, "Supernatural Horror in Literature"
Nothing is so frightening as what's behind the closed door. You approach the door in the old, deserted house, and you hear something scratching at it. The audience holds its breath along with the protagonist as she/he (more often she) approaches that door. The protagonist throws it open, and there is a ten-foot-tall bug. The audience screams, but this particular scream has an oddly relieved sound to it. "A bug ten feet tall is pretty horrible," the audience thinks, "but I can deal with a ten-foot-tall bug. I was afraid it might be a hundred feet tall."
— William F. Nolan, (as quoted in Danse Macabre by Stephen King)
The reason Alien was scary was it didn't have backstory. The reason Alien was scary is it was like an intersection of species, almost by accident. There is an alien, it is a parasite, it is eating its way through whichever is the next item on the menu. You start undoing that, you start giving it a reason to particularly attack humans, and it all falls apart.
