Top 10 Most Terrifying Lord of the Rings Characters

Imagine wandering through Middle-earth and suddenly coming face to face with a being that chills you to the core. Maybe it's a dark shadow that looms larger than life, a creature whose very presence reeks of malice, or a seemingly kind figure whose power hints at something far more dangerous.

Middle-earth is home to some of the most frightening beings ever brought to life in literature and film, and this list is dedicated to them. These are the characters who would stop you in your tracks, leave you trembling, or send you running in the opposite direction if you encountered them.

The Top Ten

  1. Sauron

    Sauron is the title character and main antagonist of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. Originally a servant of the first Dark Lord, Morgoth, Sauron rose to power after Morgoth's defeat. He forged the One Ring to dominate Middle-earth but was defeated when the Ring was cut from his finger.... read more

    Just everything he has done. And the ring, when you put it on. The scene where he defeats Gandalf in The Desolation of Smaug. Gandalf: "Where is your master?"

    Azog: "He is everywhere. We are legion!"

    That gave me chills. The scene where Glorfindel banishes him. The combination of how long it took someone as powerful as her to banish him and the way he moved when she was banishing him. Creepy.

    The effects of the ring when you put it on. Sauron to Frodo, "I see you." That scared me half to death. Also, if that's not enough, search YouTube for: Necromancer/Sauron theme. It's the first one that appears. It's long, but listen to it all. It's horrifying.

  2. Shelob

    Oh gosh, this abomination crawled out of my nightmares to haunt me!

    As an arachnophobic, Shelob absolutely terrifies me. I'm really glad I wasn't in Frodo or Sam's place.

  3. Balrog

    It looks like Lucifer himself!

    Imagine a cow but 10 times bigger, who turned into a demon on steroids. That's the Balrog.

    It might be kinda scary, but you have to admit it's also a pretty badass creature.

  4. The Witch-king

    Unlike Sauron, this guy actually gets up and does something.

    He is not scary, besides that he can't die. He is a beast.

    Pretty scary. I like the dragon he rides.

  5. Galadriel

    Galadriel is a character created by J.R.R. Tolkien who appears in his Middle-earth legendarium, including The Lord of the Rings and The Silmarillion. She is one of the greatest of the Eldar, renowned for her beauty, wisdom, and power, and is the bearer of Nenya, one of the three Elven rings of power... read more

    I totally hate her, and she's so scary. No offense to Cate Blanchett, though, I really like her. But I feel sorry for her - she got the worst part in all of The Lord of the Rings.

    When I saw the Battle of the Five Armies at 6 years of age, I was crying when I saw Galadriel. That woman freaks me out.

    - Opal_the_siamese

    I am pretty sure Cate Blanchett only plays creepy people.

  6. Gollum

    Gollum is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium. He was introduced in the 1937 children's fantasy novel The Hobbit and became an important supporting character in its sequel, The Lord of the Rings. In Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies, he is portrayed... read more

    Creepiest character I've ever seen. The ones that didn't creep out the first time they saw him have really brave hearts.

    It's gotta be hard to make a creepy but pitiable character. Kudos to everyone involved with making movie Gollum/Smeagol who he is.

  7. Lurtz

  8. Morgoth

    Morgoth Bauglir is a fictional antagonist from J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-earth legendarium. Introduced as Melkor, he was the first and most powerful of the Valar, corrupted and renamed Morgoth in The Silmarillion.

    Morgoth could probably look at any modern western villain and say, "That's cute."

    Guy makes Smaug look like a pansy and Shelob like a box of kittens.

    He's the best villain of the entire Tolkien universe, but he's not from LOTR. He's from The Silmarillion.

    Books only, not the movies.

    Sauron's boss during the First Age.

  9. Treebeard

    I suppose he's not too scary. But you wouldn't want to make him angry!

  10. Mouth of Sauron

    He's the creepiest LOTR character ever. Just look at those yellow teeth. That's so gross. And his voice is so evil.

    He should be number 1! He's a dentist's nightmare.

    I can't get over how dirty his teeth are.

    11. The Newcomers
  11. ?

    The Dead Army

    I just find them, you know...a bit freaky. You wouldn't want to mess with them.

  12. ?

    Gothmog

    13. The Contenders

  13. Ringwraiths

  14. Ungoliant

    Just imagine Shelob, but bigger and creepier and spewing darkness. She has an everlasting hunger and went toe to toe with Morgoth, for crying out loud.

    Scary to think of witnessing her.

    Queen of all spiders, and grandmother to Shelob, but three times larger.

    Balrogs were created to fight her, but it took several Balrogs just to get a tie in the fight.

    She devoured herself. Just think about that. And she was able to overwhelm Morgoth if it wasn't for the Balrogs.

  15. Watcher in the Water

  16. Smaug

    Smaug is a fictional character and the primary antagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit. He is a fearsome dragon who hoards the treasure of the Lonely Mountain. In Peter Jackson's The Hobbit film trilogy, Smaug was portrayed via motion capture and voice by Benedict Cumberbatch.

    Benedict Cumberbatch nailed the voice acting, and everybody else nailed the size and scale.

    Oh, and the details too.

    Smaug, the last great dragon, took down many dwarven armies in The Hobbit from J. R. R. Tolkien's novel The Hobbit.

  17. Barrow-wight

    Being trapped in a place with wraith-like creatures? No thank you.

  18. Bilbo

    Never forgot the first time I watched The Fellowship of the Ring. Bilbo jumpscare.

    Anyone remember the Bilbo jumpscare? I know that I'll never forget it.

  19. Legolas

    Legolas is a character in J.R.R. Tolkien's legendarium. He is a Sindarin Elf from the Woodland Realm and one of the nine members of the Fellowship of the Ring. Legolas was portrayed by Orlando Bloom in Peter Jackson's live-action film adaptations.

  20. Feanor

    Eru help you if you get between him and a Silmaril. This guy killed his own kin to get them back!

  21. Cave Troll

  22. Frodo

    Frodo Baggins is a fictional character and the main protagonist of J. R. R. Tolkien's novel The Lord of the Rings. He was a Hobbit of the Shire during the Third Age and was chosen to be the bearer of the One Ring in the quest to destroy it. Frodo was portrayed by Elijah Wood in Peter Jackson's film adaptations... read more

  23. Tom Bombadil

    Books only, not the movies.

    Intended by Tolkien to be something like "God's little brother" and more powerful than anyone, even Sauron. However, he did not care about anything or anyone else and did not get involved.

  24. Aragorn

    Aragorn II, the son of Arathorn II and Gilraen, is a fictional character from J. R. R. Tolkien's legendarium and one of the main protagonists of The Lord of the Rings. He is a skilled ranger and warrior, and as Isildur's heir, he carried the reforged sword Andúril, which was once the shards of Narsil,... read more

  25. Saruman

    Saruman the White is a fictional character and a major antagonist in J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings. He was originally the head of the Istari order but becomes corrupted by his desire for power and control. In the film adaptations directed by Peter Jackson, Saruman was portrayed... read more

  26. Gandalf the Grey

    Gandalf the Grey, later known as Gandalf the White, is a fictional character and one of the protagonists in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. He is an Istar, a type of Maia sent by the Valar to aid the peoples of Middle-earth against the threat of Sauron during the Third... read more

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