There's a reason we love haunted houses and scary movies: the thrill of seeing something so terrifying that you can't look away is a feeling like no other. And that must be why we also love these photos of real-life horrors gathered from the creepiest corners of the internet. So get out a blanket or your coziest sweater because these images will probably give you full-body chills.
Just When We Thought Sharks Couldn't Be Any Scarier
Well, it looks like sharks are just downright evil creatures no matter what way you look at them. You have probably never seen a picture of a shark taken from the underside before, but now you have been bestowed with the honor. Their teeth and wrinkly skin create the illusion of a terrible creature laughing at you arrogantly, knowing that your doom is near. If you were scared of sharks before, now you probably will be even more.
It is difficult to erase such a glaring image from your head once you have seen it. After all, who would think at first glance that this was even a shark at all?
Someone Get This Creepy Owl a Coffee
Have you ever seen an owl that has not yet had its morning coffee? Well, there is a first time for everything. Here you are presented with the absurd and slightly disturbing image known as the wet owl. He looks as if he has had just about the last straw after a tiring day and has no more energy for anything. He isn't even angry or frustrated; he is just plain old defeated.
It seems like owls should have special feathers that protect them from the rain, but either this owl is the exception, or they hide themselves away when wet (for a good reason).
The Water Bottles Are Watching You
Just when you think you are all alone in your room. You turn off the lights and put your water bottles next to your bed before sleep, prepared in case you feel the sudden late-night urge for a sip of water. What you are not prepared for is the terrifying image that has entered your space. You are not alone cause the water bottle shadows are with you, watching over you in a very creepy manner.
Although it's clear that it is just a shadow, it is pretty scary nonetheless. Maybe it is really the shadow of a soul or a ghost in the form of your water bottles!
The Real Reason MRI's Are Discouraged During Pregnancy
MRIs can be scary. No one likes to have their body scanned by a big machine, whatever the reason behind it might be. During pregnancy, MRIs are even discouraged. However, it looks like this soon-to-be mom decided to get an MRI anyway and may have learned the real reason that they are so adamantly discouraged. The baby in this woman's stomach appears to be a little more than just a baby.
What a terrifying image to see of your unborn child. If anyone was on the edge about having children, this would throw them right over the edge into a childless life.
The Dark Side of a Penguin
Everyone loves penguins. They are silly and cute with their little waddles. They look so cuddly and friendly. Fish might not have the same picture, especially if this is what they see coming toward them as they swim peacefully under the water. Who knew that penguins had such strange-looking mouths and such intense teeth? This guy in particular also has some crazy eyes, and he is ready to enjoy his next meal.
Sorry if now your entire view on penguins has changed for the worse. It is hard to look at these cute, waddling creatures the same after seeing this picture.
The Kind of Intruder Australians Worry About
Australia is infamously the land of horrible and terrifying creatures. Perhaps one of the lesser feared (at least among internationals) is the kangaroo. People tend to focus on the deathly snakes, sharks, and spiders a bit more. But it seems that the locals are genuinely terrified of the kangaroos, and this picture shows why. They are not worried about people breaking into their houses; they lock their doors to make sure the kangaroos stay away.
Imagine sitting at home and then seeing a kangaroo appear at your door. It starts to stare at you with red, possessed eyes. He puts his hands against the glass, begging you to enter. What would you do?
She Lost Her Soul During the CAT Scan
Most people do not enjoy having to get a CAT scan done. The small, enclosed space is enough to freak out even the most relaxed of people. However, many people in the world struggle with severe and debilitating claustrophobia, like this patient here. She entered and started to get her CAT scan done but realized pretty quickly that she was not capable of staying still the entire time. This was the end result.
Besides being downright terrifying, it really, truly looks like this is an image of someone's soul leaving their body after death. Well, that is probably what she felt was happening in the panic of the moment.
The Moth of Horrors
In general, moths are fairly lovely creatures. Akin to the butterfly, they are less endeared due to their lack of beautiful and bright colors and their appearance during the night. However, most moths are entirely harmless and even pretty. There is always an exception, though, and it looks like this moth is it. This moth can be found in Australia, its horns are retractable, and it can even fly.
This is really the stuff that nightmares are made out of. How does anyone sleep peacefully in Australia knowing what sort of creatures are out there?
The Bridge to Satan's Winter Home
This photo is more captivating than it is terrifying. The combination of the hazy snow and the metal bridge produced a dreamy and mystical aura. The bridge that leads to nowhere and a whole other world at the same time. It must be really scary to drive on this bridge, however, as there is no real sign or direction of where it will go and where it will lead you.
It is difficult not to be mesmerized by this beautiful bridge covered in pure, white snow. Driving on a bridge during a snowstorm is already a risk, but this image proves how much so!
Big Freddy Krueger Vibes
Imagine you are sitting at home on a Saturday morning, and you decide to make yourself a batch of pancakes. Your cat walks over to sniff around, looking interested. Instead of shooing them away like a normal person, a crazy thought comes into your head. You poke a few holes in the pancake you have created and plaster it on your cat's face. Too shocked to respond, your cat just stands there as you take a picture.
Perhaps the craziest part of this photo is that the owner of the cat managed to take a quality photo before the cat rushed to get the pancake off its face.
And Suddenly the Screaming Stopped...
It's always pretty sad when you have a nice coordinating set of things, and then one of the pieces either gets lost or missing. It feels like there is a part of you missing. In this set of bowls, it seems that the most important one was lost. Everyone is familiar with the phrase, "I scream, you scream, we all scream, for ice cream." In this group of four bowls, the last phrase happened to be the one that went missing.
The true vibe of these bowls was lost the minute the last bowl disappeared. It went from cute and funny surrounding ice cream to just a bunch of creepy bowl screaming.
Australia or the Pit of Hell?
Whether or not you believe in the idea of an afterlife and heaven and hell, it is hard to deny that this picture looks exactly like something taken out of Satan's handbook. It would be nice if it was filtered or edited to give it this creepy look, but it was not. This is a true, unedited photo from when Australia was going up in flames. What a tragic time.
It must have been terrifying to wake up in the morning and see the entire sky red. It looks like something out of a true horror film or your worst nightmare.
Did He Ask for a Seat Change?
Everyone dreads the moment that they find out who will be sitting next to them on a plane. It is such close quarters, and it's hard to get your personal space. All anyone wants is to spread out and enjoy the journey. This man seemed to have enjoyed his travels quite a lot and passed the time by making fun of the person sitting next to him, who strangely looked just like a mannequin.
At first glance, it is hard to deny how unreal that person looks. If he didn't testify that they were indeed real and were sleeping and snoring, it would be hard to believe.
A Real Life Superhuman
It is a common question to be asked, "if you could have one superpower, what would it be?" Many people would answer that they would like to feel no pain. Little do they know that there are actually some people on earth who experience just that. It is a disorder known as "Chromosome 6 Deletion," which causes a person to feel no pain at all. They do not feel hunger or the need to sleep and also cannot comprehend fear.
This 7-year-old girl named Olivia Farnsworth was hit by a car as a child and dragged along the ground. She felt no pain at all and, even more miraculously, had no injuries after the event.
How to Build a Mountain Road in China
It would be scary enough to drive or walk on a road that was built on the edge of a mountain like this. It would make people sick just to think about it. And yet here you see the people who built the road people are too scared to travel on. The infrastructure they are walking on doesn't look too sturdy itself, and they must live in terror every moment of their job.
How did they build the original network of pathways that they are standing on now? That must have been an even more dangerous job for an even more courageous crew of workers.
The North Pole of Saturn
You probably never considered that each and every planet has its own north pole. Yeah, we'd never thought of it before, either. Unlike planet earth, Saturn has a hexagon-shaped north pole. That means that they have constant storms, cyclones, and some pretty crazy weather. It looks very pretty from the outside and almost looks like a piece of artwork, but it actually is not as lovely as it seems at first glance.
The very tip of Saturn and the center of the hexagon almost look like an eye, like the eye of the storm watching you and keeping everything in order.
Don't Mess With This Four-Legged Chick
This little chick looks like the combination of a chick and a dog. It is still pretty adorable despite its birth defect, but it is hard to deny the terrifying nature of the way this little guy looks. He can walk on all fours, something most chicks cannot claim. This genetic defect is known as Polymelia, and you can only hope that he will grow up to be a healthy chicken, able to function like all other chickens.
Does he have two legs instead of wings? Or does he also have a set of wings? Or maybe, in the craziest circumstance, he has four legs and four wings.
The Demonic Piece of Meat
In case you were considering becoming vegetarian, here is your sign. Nothing will encourage vegetarianism like a terrifyingly creepy steak. This piece of meat seems to have the soul of a demon etched within its essence. It even has eyes, a face, and a complete body. The long, skinny arms look like they expand into wings. It is a truly terrifying sight and enough to make you never want to eat meat again.
Maybe this is the angry soul of the animal that was killed in order for you to enjoy this meal. Hopefully, whoever bought this thought wisely before taking a bite into this piece of meat.
That Is Not Corn
It is unclear which part of this image is more disturbing. There is the strange discoloration of the grains growing in the field (why do they appear white), and then there is also the strange and unexplainable figure that is sticking out in the center of the field; and lastly, there is the fact that someone truly thought this was a field of corn. The field is clearly of wheat, but the first two questions remain without an answer.
The concern of this person who can't differentiate between corn and wheat is valid. It does somewhat appear to be a human hand sticking out in the middle of the field.
They Will Settle for You
Computer problems are never ideal. And it is not recommended to leave things running in the background on your computer overnight, especially when you might come back to something like this. This person was innocently watching Netflix, and they forgot to turn off their screen. They came back the next day to a frozen screen with the words "I'll settle for you" pinned to the bottom of the screen.
At that point, they should just get rid of the computer entirely and never look at it again. It is clearly a haunted computer, and they need to distance themselves from it immediately.
She's Just Offering Her Services
This almost looks like an innocent and normal ad for some sort of sofa cleaning service until you look a bit deeper and see the truth. This woman is offering "her services," which are, in reality, quite strange and very disturbing. She says that she can come and sit on your sofa for 20 minutes, at which point it will be completely wet. After a few weeks, the maggots came where she sat. You must eat the maggots to be cured.
She makes it very clear that it is not just sweat that comes onto the chair, but it is not water either. And imagine only $30 for all of this! Is anyone desperate enough to try this?
A Very Grim Warning
Instead of engraving something on their gravestone, one of the recently deceased decided to leave a sign for everyone who passed by. They wrote, "Pause a moment as you pass by. As you are now, so once were we. As we are now, so shall you be!" It is both creepy and humbling at the same time. You will never know if they were trying to scare people or bring a little respect to this burial place.
Regardless of the intentions, it is a dismal reminder for everyone who passes by this graveyard. And the sign is just pinned up there wrapped in plastic, not even an official sign.
Telescopefish: The Deep Sea's Worst Nightmare
Imagine the creature in your worst nightmare as a child (or even as an adult). It most likely did not even come close to being as scary as this creature, which lives in the deep waters of the ocean. It almost looks like a skeleton, and yet it is a real creature, complete with terrifying glass-like teeth and bulging eyes. Beyond all that, they are able to eat prey even larger than themselves!
Luckily for humans, they live very deep in the ocean (between 500 and 3000 meters), so it is unlikely that you would come across one of these babies in your daily swims.
One Light on in the Abandoned Hospital
Abandoned buildings are pretty eerie in and of themselves. Add to that abandoned building the fact that it was once a hospital. Add to that the fact that it is nighttime. And then add to that one mysterious light that is turned on in the middle of the building. Is there one patient that refused to leave the hospital even after it was abandoned? Or is someone camping out there illegally just for the sake of it?
It is unlikely that the answer will ever be revealed since there are very few people on earth who have the courage to enter that building at night and figure out what is going on there.
The Adventures of the Demon and the Boar
Of all the pictures on this list, this one probably has to be the most terrifying of all. It is not very clear what is even going on here until you look closer at the disturbing image. Even then, the only logical explanation is that there was a boar running in the forest by itself when it was joined by a large demon with wings who wanted a ride. The two joined forces, and voila.
Who took this picture, and what were they doing out in these clearly haunted woods in the middle of the night? How were they not terrified by what they witnessed?
Red Rice Was a Bad Idea
You have been warned: next time you are cooking red rice in a rice cooker, be careful how much water you add. If you don't, you may end up like this girl who has what appears to be a bleeding rice cooker. Even if the rice was perfectly edible after this incident, it would be hard to consume considering this disturbing image. And the water had to explode everywhere as well to make things worse!
Imagine trying to explain this to someone who does not know what red rice is. It would be hard to convince them that this was a very innocent cooking experience.
The Mysterious Cable to the Sky
Perhaps the most shocking part of this story involving a free-standing and stiff cable in the middle of a playground and reaching clear into the hazy and cloudy sky is not its existence but the response of the person who found it. Most people would probably just run for their lives the minute they recognized this mysterious and creepy contraption, but this person was crazy enough to try and pull it out!
Nothing at all happened when they tried to pull the cable out of the ground, which is possibly even more creepy than before. Where does it come from, and where does it go?
Showering With a Clown
Considering the number of people who are utterly and completely terrified of clowns, this clown shower seems to be in poor taste. Both children and adults alike would (rightfully) be scared to enter this creepy shower. Not only would you feel like there is someone watching you at all times, but the location of the water faucet could have been more strategically placed to avoid perversion.
The clown is also very creepily smiling and looking down. There is nothing ok or acceptable about this creepy shower, and it is probably not frequented often, except in someone's nightmare.
A Chilling Body Paint Illusion
At first glance, there is little to no chance that you understand what is going on in this picture. Is this real or fake or a painting? It's hard to tell. But when you hear that the special effects crew working on a film painted this person's hand, things start to make a little more sense. You can see in the background where the actual fingers are, although it is hard to see.
Imagine being so talented at your job that you can pull off something like this! It's so realistic the owner of that hand was probably terrified to even look at themself.
A Very Sturdy Foundation
Many amusement park rides are risky endeavors. Roller coasters are scary for many people, and there are countless risks involved. Of all the rides, the Ferris Wheel is usually among the safest. However, maybe you should not rest too easily, even on this one. As can be seen in this picture, the foundation and the setups are not always the best and are done professionally.
Everything looks so nice and fun on this purple Ferris Wheel until you see the foundation. Hopefully, people noticed this before getting on the ride, and hopefully, no one was hurt.
Mark Needs to Watch His Back
Portland can be a scary place. It is not one of America's safest cities. But it looks like it is particularly dangerous for a man named Mark. He walked out to his parking spot and found his tires slashed and this note on his windshield. "You were SO easy to find, Mark. You should drive more carefully." What did Mark do to deserve this treatment, and why were people looking for him? Maybe he didn't even know that he needed to be on the run.
Hopefully, Mark took the hint and was more careful about his proceedings from then on. Maybe it was a one-time revenge sort of thing, and he'll be off the hook soon.
Why Are We Seeing Double?
Somewhere in a land far away, there were identical twin brothers named Jeremy and Josh. They met identical twin sisters named Brittany and Briana. They paired off and fell in love, and each set got married. Both couples then proceeded to get pregnant at the same time, and both sisters gave birth to baby boys at the same time. Although most people would think the two boys were just cousins, they are also genetically brothers.
The craziest part of all is that this group of six all live together in the same house! This is a recipe for the most confusing house on planet earth, and there is no way things don't get confused between the people from time to time.
The Fish That Sees Everything
In case you were wondering, there is a fish in this world that can pretty much see EVERYTHING. Well, not quite as the actual quality of the eyesight of the Big Eye Grendalier fish is not a big topic of discussion, but the size of the eyeball is hard to miss. They tend to live in the deepest parts of the ocean, near the seafloor, so perhaps it is not too surprising that they need those big eyes to see properly.
This fish looks like a real-life version of a Disney character, with its massively oversized eyeballs, as most Disney characters tend to boast. It's a shame he didn't make an appearance in The Little Mermaid.
Every Neighborhood Has a Possessed Dog
Imagine living next to this dog. He is always watching you. He sees you when you're sleeping; he knows when you're awake, he knows if you've been bad or good, and he is waiting to attack and any given moment. To add to the terrifying image, the dog is named Junebug, and he looks tall enough in this photo to be a human. Although he's probably harmless and sweet, it's hard to overlook those eyes.
Those leering eyes look far too human-like for anyone's comfort. Who wants to be enjoying doing some yardwork only to turn around and see this terrifying creature watching their every move?
Just About Anything Seems More Fun Than That
It is unclear who would want to buy a Game Boy after seeing a creepy and disturbing ad like this, but apparently, they were still pretty popular. It is also unclear what effect they were going for by creating this other than shock and disgust. In some sense, it worked, as people are still talking about this ad decades after it was printed (in the 1980s).
There are so many mixed emotions from seeing this ad. The young man's face is super disturbing, and it is scary to see that someone modeled for this (hopefully, it is just a very realistic drawing).
The Most Cursed Face Swap
Faceswap is a pretty frightening thing. Switching faces with someone around you is always going to be a little shocking. People, however, started to get pretty creative with it. Instead of limiting it to human faces, people have expanded to dogs and cats and all sorts of other pets. Who would have thought that it would also work with a young boy and Thomas the Train?
Although it was technically possible, this is by far one of the creepiest and most disturbing examples of a face swap on the internet. This is definitely not why the filter was made (or was it).
Playing Baseball to Save Your Life
Death Row is a terrible and frightening place (to say the least). The inmates there live in constant horror and fear, not knowing when their last day will be and when they will breathe their last breaths. In 1910, they had an even more disturbing custom surrounding Death Row. Inmates were made to play baseball games for their lives. Each game that they won pushed back their execution date.
This is a truly sickening motivation for these inmates, and some of the people in the picture look incredibly young to be on Death Row; some of them even appear to be young children!
Jurassic Park's Dinosaurs Weren't Graphics
As can be seen in this behind-the-scenes photo from Jurassic Park, a little-known fact is that the dinosaurs in the film weren't created from graphics. They were actually actors dressed up in extravagant dinosaur costumes. This may make this creepier to some and less creepy to others, but the human in the dinosaur costume is certainly going to cause some alarm. It must have been pretty fun to dress up as a dinosaur and be the one playing in the film.
They could tell all their friends which dinosaur was them even though no one could see their faces.
We Wish We Could Unsee This
This is the face swap we never knew we needed. And that's because we literally don't need it. Just take a glance below, and you'll understand why we wish we could unsee it. But it's exactly for that reason that it had to be included on this list. So what exactly are we looking at here? Great question. If you didn't already figure it out, we're looking at the unfortunate face swap of a dog and a horse.
We're really not trying to adopt either of these creatures as a pet, but if we had to choose, we'd definitely go with the one on the left.
Koalas Are Cute but Their Brains Aren't
Who would have thought that the most accurate comparison for the way a Koala Bear's brain looks is a chicken breast? It's hard to deny the uncanny resemblance. Unlike the human brain and the brains of many other animals, the koala's brain is pretty much smooth. What does that mean? Koalas are not the smartest creatures out there. They may be among the cutest, but they are definitely not among the smartest.
If you hand Koala Bears a bunch of Eucalyptus leaves picked off the tree, they won't understand what to do with them and that they are food. Their brains cannot comprehend it unless they pick it themselves.
Are You Feeling Hollow Inside?
It's safe to say this phantom-like statue in Italy certainly is. The figure isn't the only of its kind at Vezio’s Castle in northern Italy. Its empty shell provokes feelings of loneliness and terror. The statue looks like a haunted spirit searching for meaning in this idyllic countryside. Yet, with the peaceful and beautiful backdrop, the image has a certain air of calm restfulness that contradicts the statue's terrifying silhouette.
During the day, this is a sight worth seeing. However, at night, when you don’t know what to expect going up these stairs, we'll give this site a hard pass.
The Black Crack in Utah
If you suffer from vertigo, you probably won’t dare to approach this 65-foot-deep fissure in Utah like these brave hikers are doing. Nevertheless, there's something uniquely terrifying about this black scar marking the earth’s surface. Found along a trail in the Canyonlands National Park, those that fall would surely never come out again. Needless to say, it’s all too easy to allow ourselves to imagine that a blackness like this leads somewhere else entirely.
The world splitting in half like that is a vision from a dystopian tale, made all too realistic by this example. It’s terrifying to think this crevasse isn't the only one. Moral of the story: when you're out there in the wilderness, be careful where you step!