What our minds cannot fathom is what we fear the most! The fear of the unknown, or the terror of the unknown, is no less terrifying than a ghost haunting a mansion in this way. The emptiness of space has an unnerving quality that has long drawn horror films. To capture the sci-fi components, a large budget and a decent story are usually required, but that has not stopped filmmakers.
Even the prospect of journeying through the vastness of space is terrifying. It is existentially terrible, and it has been used in a number of exciting horror films throughout the years. The desolation and claustrophobia associated with space travel are combined in these films. Most space horror films include an extraterrestrial menace or other monstrosities that terrify the audience. We have compiled a list of some of the most unsettling monsters we have seen in space horror films in this video. Get on board if you are looking for a new level of horror!
Xenomorph – Alien (1979)
“Alien” changed the dynamics of space horror because this Ridley Scott classic brought life to our worst fears. The movie is premised in a distant future, where the crew of a commercial spaceship is returning to Earth. They pick up a distress signal and decide to investigate and descend on unknown terrain.
They find a hive colony of some strange creatures, and soon realize that what they thought to be a distress call was actually a warning! The crew grasps that they are not alone, and some mysterious life form has joined them. This is the Xenomorph, the most terrifying killing machine in the universe! They are all at the mercy of this deadly creature, and there is no one to hear them scream!
The Xenomorph has now become one of the most iconic fictional alien threats ever. This alien species has a multi-staged life cycle and it requires a human host to reproduce. The embryo is implanted in the host, and the nature of the host determines the size and appearance of the creature. If the host is human, the Xenomorph can grow up to nine feet and the Queen of a hive can grow twice as long.
They have a large, curved head and a long, muscular tail. It doesn’t have visible eyes, and it probably uses echolocation like bats to understand its environment. Depending on the stage of its life, the physical form and capabilities of a Xenomorph can vary. The life cycle begins with the ovomorph stage, where it is simply an egg. When it detects a possible host nearby, the Facehugger stage is activated, where it launches onto the host’s face and impregnates it. Eventually, the creature consumes the insides of the host and bursts out of the chest cavity in the Chestburster stage.
It then transforms into an adult Xenomorph in a matter of hours. Most of the Xenomorphs that have been encountered have shown signs of intelligence, and they use new information to take advantage of their surroundings. The Queen Xenomorph can communicate with the others in the hive, and it can also telepathically communicate with the hosts in the form of terrible dreams and visions.
These creatures can be surprisingly quick and agile, and they are experts in ambush attacks. Some Xenomorphs can spit acid which is extremely corrosive and can blind victims. The exoskeleton of a Xenomorph is almost impenetrable, and only the most powerful weapons can breakthrough. Besides these weapons, they are vulnerable to and fearful of fire. There are various types of Xenomorphs and these mysterious creatures have spawned a massive franchise that still continues to fascinate horror fans.
Calvin – Life (2017)
“Life” brings you the terrifying ordeal of six astronauts at the International Space Station who are studying a sample collected from Mars. This sample can be crucial in providing data suggesting extraterrestrial life in the Red Planet. It contains a living cell, which could be the first sign of extraterrestrial life. However, the research soon has some unintended consequences. The cell woke up and steadily gained intelligence. It escaped from the sealed laboratory, and the astronauts realize that they must kill the alien life form before it kills them all. The alien organism is increasingly smart, and it will do just about anything to survive!
This deadly alien life was called ‘Calvin’, and after it mutated into a monstrous form, it started behaving like a true apex predator. There were pieces of evidence that suggested that the creature was the one to wipe out all forms of life on Mars. After being found as an organic tissue, Calvin soon started to grow into a multi-cellular form by absorbing water and nutrients. It keeps growing stronger and larger, and after attacking one of the astronauts, he shows no signs of stopping.
This alien creature caused some horrible deaths, and one of the most memorable ones was when it entered the mouth of one of the astronauts and devoured his organs. Calvin’s appearance is nothing alarming at first, but it grows more grotesque with time. It looks like a multi-headed creature and it has translucent skin that makes its circulatory system visible.
The creature developed superhuman strength, and it was much stronger than the human victims inside the Space Station. Whatever it consumes, causes a remarkable growth in size and strength. It showed signs of intelligence in its tactical moves and learned to attack when the crew was least expecting it. In some ways, it shares a few similarities with the ‘Blob’ and the ‘Xenomorph’, but the uniqueness of Calvin makes it one of the modern-day monsters to remember!
Bioraptors – Pitch Black (2000)
A space transport ship called ‘Hunter-Grazer’ is hit by a severe meteor storm, and it crashes on an unknown planet. Among the forty members on board, only eleven survive the crash, but their troubles are far from over! The ship was carrying a dangerous criminal named Riddick, and he was among the survivors. The survivors soon find out that the criminal is the least of their concerns because some kind of mysterious bloodthirsty creature roams the planet.
Their only advantage is that these flesh-eating alien creatures called ‘Bioraptors’ can only hunt in darkness, and the planet is lit up by three Suns. However, their luck soon runs out when they find out that a major eclipse is about to engulf the planet in absolute darkness, which will last for a month! Riddick has a strange ability to see in the dark, and he might be their only hope as the Bioraptors emerge from the darkness to feast on them!
The Bioraptors are extremely aggressive and animalistic creatures. They are forced to starve for very long periods of time, and this explains their desperation in the one-month eclipse that provides them an opportunity to feed. The adult Bioraptors have ultrasonic sensors on either side of their head and they can be up to two meters long. They use this to detect possible prey in their surroundings.
These creatures have a long, split tail, and they have spiky feelers which can be extended to capture prey. They have lizard-like feet with talons, and the Bioraptors clearly are much stronger than humans. Apart from the one-month eclipse, these creatures have to remain hidden in their underground dwellings because they are extremely photosensitive. Even a powerful source of artificial light can burn their bodies severely.
These creatures are capable of flight and they have thick, leathery skin with wings that can keep them airborne for a little while. The first Bioraptors to emerge in the darkness are the Infants, and they are much smaller than the adult ones. Individually, they might not pose a threat, but they emerge in groups, and collectively they can inflict great damage. Their lack of food sources had made them cannibalistic and adult Bioraptors will devour the young. The designs and special effects of the Bioraptors were spots on, and it was a treat to watch them in this movie.
Necromorphs – Dead Space: Downfall (2008)
“Dead Space: Downfall” serves as a prequel to the hit video game and explains the first Necromorph outbreak. It starts off with a miner spaceship called the ‘USG Ishimura’, which is transporting an artifact termed the ‘Red Marker’. It was found in the Aegis VII colony, and since then, people there have been slowly going crazy.
It seems like they are being infected by something unknown and a team of officers is sent to investigate the matter. However, it soon turns into a suicide mission after the people on board start changing into homicidal maniacs. The survivors are threatened by Necromorphs, deadly reanimated corpses, and the narrative shows us how it all started!
One of the most interesting things about this film is undoubtedly the mutated corpses, Necromorphs. After an extraterrestrial infection is derived from the code etched into the Markers, the dead bodies are reanimated in an aggressive form. These zombie-like creatures will attack anything in sight, and their only goal is to acquire more bodies and spread the infection further. Massive Necromorphs called ‘Brethren Moons’ control the other Necromorphs, and their life cycle begins with the Markers.
This is the stage where dead tissue is transformed into Necromorph tissue, and the corpse is brought to life. It also sends out a signal that affects the other nearby life forms. It causes them to descend into homicidal and suicidal tendencies. There are various types of Necromorphs such as Lurkers, Guardians, etc., and they are all capable of inflicting serious damage. These creatures are extremely durable and can survive in the most hostile environments, such as in space.
They not only infect humans, but even other animals can fall prey. The Necromorphs are not just mindless killing machines because they often display signs of intelligence in their tactical moves while attacking their prey. They also have some kind of collective intelligence, which allows them to act in a coordinated manner.
It is quite a difficult task to kill a Necromorph, and dismembering them completely seems to work. The similarities with the Xenomorphs are quite clear because even the Necromorphs use human bodies to reproduce and launch surprise attacks. This monstrous presence made the movie and the games extremely terrifying, and the Necromorph is the kind of monster you would see in your worst nightmare!
Cannibalistic Mutants – Pandorum (2009)
In the distant future, Earth has exhausted all of its natural resources. As a last-ditch effort for mankind, a spacecraft is launched to the planet Tanis to establish a colony. The space travel is too long and the crew members manage it by dividing the workload and traveling in hyper-sleep. Two such crew members wake up in their sleep chambers abruptly. They are disoriented and confused and soon discover that there is something seriously wrong with their spacecraft. There is a terrifying presence in their craft, and slowly some sinister secrets are revealed. Can they survive the unknown threat?
We have seen some scary creatures over the period of time, but the concept behind “Pandorum” offered something new. The term ‘Pandorum’ has been used to explain a state of psychological illness that stems from hyper-sleep and interruptions in the process. It can result in panic attacks and disoriented behavior that can lead to terrible consequences. We see some creepy pale-skinned humanoids with tribal markings.
They carry primitive weapons, but their cannibalistic urges are so strong that they prey on the remaining survivors. They have a heightened sense of smell which helps them detect their prey. It is revealed that the so-called monsters are simply individuals hibernating in the pods. The story states that a large number of humans were sent off to colonize the planet ‘Tanis’. These people were given a kind of medication, which helped them adapt to the assumed conditions of Tanis.
This caused an accelerated evolution in the people and turned them into cannibalistic monsters. The movie didn’t work wonders at the box office, but people did appreciate the innovative monsters introduced in the narrative.
Jason Voorhees – Jason X (2001)
At the beginning of the 21st century, the notorious killer Jason Voorhees was cryogenically frozen along with scientist Rowan. After a few centuries, in the futuristic world of 2455, the Earth has become uninhabitable. Humans have moved to other colonies, and a school field trip discovers two cryogenically frozen bodies. These are taken to one such colony on a spaceship called ‘Grendel’.
No prizes for guessing that one of the bodies belongs to the maniacal killer! When the bodies are thawed, the unstoppable Jason goes on a killing spree as always. It seems like he has upgraded himself and is deadlier than ever. The only silver lining is that Rowan has also been thawed and he must team up with the surviving students to stop Jason inside the spaceship!
Whether he is taking down victims at ‘Camp Crystal Lake’ or hunting them in space, Jason remains the killing machine that we know him to be. In this movie, we get to see the same old antics of Jason, after he uses a machete-shaped surgical tool and stalks his prey through the ship. The body count rises and he makes the spaceship crash into a nearby Space Station. He is taken down, but he uses the medical station to come back to life.
Most of his biological tissues are damaged, and he is rebuilt as a powerful cyborg. This version of him is even deadlier, and his strength seems to have increased several folds. It takes a lot of heroics to incinerate ‘Uber Jason’, and while the “Friday the 13th” fans weren’t too pleased with the movie, Uber Jason didn’t disappoint anyone.
Morganthus Monster – Galaxy of Terror (1981)
A spaceship named ‘Remus’ crash lands on planet Morganthus. In order to rescue them, another spacecraft called ‘Quest’ is sent. However, Quest meets with the same fate and crash lands as well. After examining the Remus, they find slaughtered bodies all around the ship. Very soon, the team members from Quest also start being picked off one by one. The spacecraft is damaged, and the surviving personnel investigates a nearby, lifeless alien pyramid. They don’t have the slightest clue that their own fears would be used to hunt them down and kill them all!
One of the most intriguing monsters that we have encountered in space horror movies would have to be the ‘Morganthus Monster’. He resides inside the mysterious super pyramid and has a unique style of toying with his victims. He preys upon their deepest fears and brings them to life. The hideous beasts sent out to torment them are only manifestations of their fears. The Morganthus Monster resembles an old man in Celtic robes.
His head is an orange glowing plasma ball, and he has shapeshifting abilities, which allow him to take the form of the fears of his victims. He was several monsters inside one because we saw him take up some terrifying forms in the movie. The pitch-black demon with a foaming cat-like mouth and the dark green insectoid monster forms were particularly disturbing.
The Morganthus Monster was quite intelligent, and his sinister, sadistic plans proved that he wasn’t some mindless creature hunting down prey. He was crafty in his attacks, and the narrative did not reveal any major weakness of this invincible creature!
Alien Creature – Sputnik (2020)
The narrative is premised during the heated period of the Cold War. After a bizarre experience of two Russian astronauts, only one of them manages to return to Earth alive after the spaceship crash lands on re-entry. A young psychiatrist, Dr. Tatyana Klimova, is brought in to assess the condition of this quarantined astronaut.
Dr. Tatyana soon discovers that the astronaut has not come back alone, and an alien life form is residing within his body. It only emerges from the body when the host is asleep at night, and the doctor has to find a method to separate the two because they have formed a symbiotic relationship. What happens next is a cat and mouse game, with the doctor trying to get rid of the alien creature and the latter trying to hold on!
This Russian sci-fi horror flick shows an interesting alien creature, but it doesn’t explain much of its powers. It has been revealed that the creature is a symbiotic organism, which means that it derives nutrition from the host body, while also benefitting or harming the host in some manner. Thus, it is difficult to separate the two forcibly because that would cause an adverse impact on the host.
It is clear that the creature originated from outer space, but not much is known about its origin. Even the life cycle of the alien creature seems to be a mystery. It lives inside the host’s abdomen, but we have no clue about the stage of the creature’s life. There is an attempt to weaponize the alien creature, and the doctor initially has no problem. However, she later realizes that the creature feeds on humans and depends on a hormone called cortisol, which is the main stress hormone of the body.
In other words, it feeds on human fear and causes stress in the host to secrete the hormone. It exercises a lot of control over the host body and every time the creature feeds, the host grows stronger as well. In the end, they probably figured out that this species of alien life could cause more harm than good, and the alien creature was killed at the end of the movie.
Arachnid and Tanker Bug – Starship Troopers
“Starship Troopers” is premised in a futuristic militaristic society. All young men and women are encouraged to join the military for a crucial battle with alien bugs. However, it soon becomes clear that they joined the forces for all the wrong reasons. Humans may not be the saintly beings that they project themselves to be. The full-scale war against a planet of alien bugs brings new perspectives, and new threats have to be dealt with. Watch this intriguing satirical narrative for the fun script and the killer bugs!
‘The Arachnids’ were one of the deadliest things encountered by the human forces. The humans were taught that these creatures had been through millions of years of evolution, and they were at the epitome of their survival skills. Simply by hurling their spores into space, the Arachnids could take over planets, and their social structure is rigidly set according to their mental capabilities. There is a definite system that ascertains more responsibility to certain Arachnids, such as ‘God Bugs’ and ‘Brain Bugs’.
These bugs take up leadership roles, while the others that are less intelligent obey orders. There are several variants of Arachnids, but the ‘Tanker Bug’ is our favorite. This enormous Arachnid variant resembles giant beetles, and these creatures are very useful in armored assaults. They are built like a tank and can destroy whole platoons of the Mobile Infantry. The Tanker Bug is one of the most powerful species, and they grow up to ten to eleven feet tall, and twice as wide. The body is covered in an armored plate, and it is very difficult to penetrate even with bullets.
These creatures can spit a dangerous corrosive liquid from their mouths, and their weight and size can crush entire regiments. However, the Tanker Bug has one weakness that can be exploited. There is a gap between their armored skin plates, and shooting in these gaps might cause some serious damage! The area behind the Tanker Bug’s head also seems vulnerable, and these weaknesses were exploited by the Mobile Infantry.
Pinhead – Hellraiser IV: Bloodline
You have previously seen the horrors unleashed by Pinhead on Earth! This time, the story takes a futuristic spin and takes place in the 22nd century. Dr. Paul Merchant has created a special space station and he wants to seal the gates to hell forever. It was his ancestor, Phillip L’Merchant, who built the first puzzle box, and Dr. Paul Merchant wants to make amends. For generations, the family has tried to stop the Cenobites, but this time they might just be successful! However, Pinhead and his fellow Cenobites aren’t too pleased with his plans. You will see Pinhead in action as he battles the closure to his realm forever!
While “Bloodline” does get the tag of Pinhead in space, the story actually brings him to space quite organically. It is just used to show the Merchant family’s history and links with the hellish realm in the future. Pinhead, as you all know, is the leader of the Cenobites. He used to be a soldier named Elliot Spencer, who fought in World War I.
His disturbing experience turned him away from God, and he started to explore a hedonistic lifestyle. Eventually, he found the Lament Configuration and understood the true pleasures of pain. According to the narrative of this movie, Dr. Paul Merchant uses the space station to form the Elysium Configuration, which will negate the effects of Lament Configuration. Pinhead and all other Cenobites are trapped, and they seem to be destroyed for good!
Alien Vampires – Lifeforce (1985)
A space mission goes horribly wrong when a space shuttle investigating the mystery of Halley’s Comet comes back with a deadly species of space vampires. One of these creatures, ‘Space Girl’, sucks the life force out of people and turns them into zombie-like beings. Now, it is up to one of the survivors of the space mission to control the menace! It is certainly a whacky idea to combine aliens and vampires, and the formula works wonders in this movie.
These alien vampires are also called ‘Energy vampires’. They feed on the human life force for survival. Their appearance is very similar to humans, but they are way more powerful and capable enough to handle attacks from modern weapons. They do have a natural form, which looks like a giant, hideous bat, but they are mostly seen in their humanoid forms. These creatures have shapeshifting capabilities and can take the form of any species that they come in contact with.
Their human forms usually walk around naked, and can acquire clothing just like ‘the Terminator’ used to – kill the victims and take their clothes! The alien vampires are immortal as long as they have a steady supply of life force to feed on. When they absorb the life force, the host is turned into energy vampires or undead zombies.
Just like vampires, their alien counterparts also have accelerated healing and telepathic powers. They also have the power of flight and seem to have two main weaknesses. They can be vulnerable if deprived of the life force, and leaded iron could deal a lethal blow to kill them permanently.