The "Evil Child" Trope In Horror, Explained

gamerant.com:

There are so many horror tropes that sometimes, fans can pick out several in the same movie. Countless haunted house stories also include a creepy child character who seems to know something that no one else does, along with protagonists and minor characters who run upstairs, are scared of clowns, fall when running, and generally behave like so many others do in these films.

One of the horror tropes that has endured the most is that of the «Evil Child.» This is, in fact, different from a kid who is simply strange and gives people the creeps. There is a lot to know about this trope and it's fun to think about the popular movies that have used to it to great affect, scaring audiences with a seemingly innocent and sweet young character who ends up being the key to everything that is going on.

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According to TV Tropes, this trope is referred to as «Enfant Terrible» and refers to a «cute» kid who manipulates people and hurts them. It's scary to be in their presence as they are out for blood and destruction and they create chaos everywhere that they go. The website explains that these characters are sometimes a «Self-Made Orphan,» a «Devil In Plain Sight» (like in The Omen), and scarier than the «Creepy Child» trope since these are real villains. Instead of simply seeming odd or noticing the supernatural figures in their new home, which is a haunted house movie cliche that should go, these evil kids are behind the murder spree or weird occurrences that are going on in the film.

There are many horror movies about evil children, and it's fun to look at various popular horror films to see how this trope has been used. Starting with Esther Coleman (Isabelle Fuhrman) from Orphan, which