Buzz
Let me start by apologizing to anyone who suffers from coulrophobia (the fear of clowns). This list is entirely focused on the topic. Personally, I’m neither terrified nor particularly fond of clowns, but there’s something inherently creepy about the concept. Even the most cheerful clowns seem to hide something off-putting beneath their smile. This unsettling duality could be the reason why so many people are afraid of them. In this list, we highlight ten clowns—both fictional and real—that most of you will recognize.
10. Krusty
Krusty the Clown is a character that most readers are bound to know. He’s one of the stars of the iconic TV show *The Simpsons*. Krusty is adored by children for his goofy humor on screen, but his off-screen persona is a stark contrast. As a veteran entertainer, Krusty is often shown as a jaded, washed-up figure, perpetually struggling with addiction to gambling, cigarettes, alcohol, Percodan, Pepto-Bismol, and Xanax. He spirals into depression the moment the cameras stop rolling. Krusty is infamous for his reckless spending, burning cash to light cigarettes, indulging in extravagant condor-egg omelets, splurging on adult magazines, and blowing vast sums on gambling—from horse races to operas, even betting against the Harlem Globetrotters. Why is Krusty on this list? Because a man who consumes excessive substances and peddles harmful products (like cereal with jagged metal pieces in every box) is simply not to be trusted!
9. Pulcinella
Pulcinella, also known as Punch or Punchinello in English, is a character that originated in the 17th-century commedia dell'arte, a type of professional masked theater. The defining feature of this character, from which he gets his name, is his exceptionally long nose that looks like a bird's beak. Traditionally, Pulcinella is depicted as malicious, devious, and crafty. His primary defense mechanism is pretending to be too clueless to understand what's happening, and when that fails, he resorts to violence. Pulcinella's influence can also be seen in modern fiction; for instance, in Dean Koontz's *Life Expectancy*, the antagonists Konrad Beezo and his son Punchinello share similarities with this iconic figure. While Pulcinella may not be the most villainous clown on this list, his role as an early figure in the evil clown tradition definitely earns him a spot here.
8. Ronald McDonald
This is not a joke. Ronald McDonald, the beloved mascot of McDonald’s, is a clown you’d better not mess with! However, the reason he makes this list is a bit different from some of the others. In many countries with McDonald's, there is a Ronald McDonald actor who is hired for children’s parties. Due to his immense popularity and the excitement he brings to kids, he often travels with a security team—other McDonald's employees trained in crowd control. This is where things take a dark turn. If a child gets too close to Ronald, these bodyguards are taught to use force to keep them at bay. My cousin, who worked as a bodyguard, shared that his training included techniques like pinching kids and stomping on their feet. So next time you see Ronald, it might be a good idea to keep your distance—you never know what could happen. By the way, the image above shows Ronald McDonald being arrested by the New Zealand police.
7. Doink
In the early 1990s, the World Wrestling Federation (WWF) introduced an evil clown character. Doink the Clown initially appeared as a villain. His actions were cruel and often included popping children’s balloons with a cigar, spraying water on the audience, and using a fake prosthetic arm to attack his rivals. At one point, he even assaulted an opponent with a car battery. His entrance music started with the cheerful circus tune “Entrance of the Gladiators,” only to abruptly switch to dark and ominous sounds, accompanied by sinister cackles.
6. Killer Clowns
No list of dangerous clowns would be complete without mentioning the Killer Clowns from Outer Space, who star in the 1988 film of the same name. This group of sadistic alien clowns lands their circus tent-shaped spaceship in the quiet American town of Crescent Cove. Their invasion is nothing short of a genocide as they harvest the unsuspecting citizens by using a ray gun that wraps them in cotton candy cocoons, leading to deadly consequences. These extraterrestrial clowns employ a range of seemingly playful tactics to trap their victims, like using shadow puppets, bloodhound-like balloon animals, and a child’s toy ray gun. Since their methods appear innocent, the people of Crescent Cove don't realize they're in grave danger until it’s far too late. While the film may not be a high-quality, serious piece of cinema, it is undeniably absurd and ridiculously funny.
5. Ubu Roi
Ubu Roi (King Ubu) is a 1896 play by Alfred Jarry and one of the key works that influenced the Theatre of the Absurd and the broader surrealist movement in the early 20th century. The central character, Ubu, is a grotesque, clown-like antihero who inhabits a world driven by selfish indulgence. He is greedy, cruel, cowardly, dishonest, and utterly vile. Like Shakespeare's Macbeth, Ubu murders the king who helped him at the urging of his wife, seizes the throne, and ultimately meets his end at the hands of his own son. The play famously caused a riot during its first performance when the word 'merdre' (a crude variation of the French word for ‘shit’) was spoken, leading to it being banned from the stage. However, it was later revived and has become a significant work in the history of theater.
4. Poltergeist Clown
If you've seen the chilling 1982 horror film *Poltergeist*, you’ll likely recall the infamous scene involving the toy clown that attacks the young boy. While the details of the scene are limited, the image of that menacing clown should be enough to bring back memories of how genuinely terrifying it was. The unsettling moment has been parodied multiple times, notably in *Family Guy* and *Scary Movie 2*, where the clown takes a much darker turn (even sexually assaulting its victim). Though the clown scene might not be the most memorable part of the movie, it's definitely one of the most iconic, making the film a must-watch for horror fans.
3. Pogo
Pogo earned the top spot on this list for one undeniable reason: if you crossed him, you were as good as dead. Pogo was the clown persona adopted by John Wayne Gacy, who used the guise to lure young men and then subject them to unimaginable horrors of rape, torture, and murder. Gacy, a self-taught master of clown makeup and costume creation, chose to intentionally paint his mouth with sharp, angular corners instead of the usual round ones that are typically considered less frightening to children. He performed countless times at children’s parties and hospitals, all the while embodying the purest form of the 'evil clown.' The death toll attributed to Gacy under his Pogo alias ranges from 25 to 30 victims.
2. Pennywise
Pennywise, the shape-shifting antagonist from Stephen King's *It*, is far more than just a clown. As the embodiment of pure evil, Pennywise is a part of a much larger universe that spans across many of King’s works. While it most frequently takes the form of a clown to stalk and terrorize children, Pennywise also transforms into a horrifying giant spider. The full truth about its form is never fully seen, as Pennywise exists beyond the physical world in a space known as the 'deadlights.' Every thirty years, this monstrous entity resurfaces to wreak havoc, and at the novel's conclusion, Pennywise is revealed to be female, capable of laying eggs.
1. The Joker
The Joker is a famous villain from the Batman universe, known for his chaotic and sadistic nature. His portrayal by Heath Ledger in *The Dark Knight* stands out as one of the most sinister and realistic depictions of the character. Over the years, the Joker has evolved from a psychopathic mastermind to a more unpredictable trickster. While he doesn't follow the typical clown appearance, his features—such as his distinctive grin—link him to the clown archetype. His origin story typically involves a fall into a vat of chemicals, which transforms him physically into the terrifying figure we know, with pale skin, green hair, and a permanent smile.
