There’s something about serial killers that just captures our fascination. Their crimes both disgust and intrigue us as we wonder just what makes a person capable of committing such horrific deeds. Real serial killers have had numerous movies, TV shows, and documentaries made about them. Today, we’ll look at fictional serial killers and what the best performances of said killers in movies have been. Since we’re limiting ourselves to only fictional killers, that means we regrettably have to exclude fantastic performances like Charlize Theron’s Oscar-winning performance in Monster, as that was about a real person. Here are the best performances of fictional serial killers in movies.

7 Benoit Poelvoorde – Man Bites Dog (1992)

In this darkly comedic Belgian mockumentary from 1992, Benoit Poelvoorde (who also wrote and directed the film) plays Ben, a serial killer followed around by a camera crew as they document his life. Poelvoorde has a big challenge in making this racist, sexist, and generally all-around despicable human being someone we want to follow around. However, Poelvoorde also makes Ben a joker and someone who seems like they’d be fun to be around. However, Ben slowly convinces the camera crew to become more involved in his crimes and even actively participate in them. Poelvoorde does a fantastic job and uses his charisma well. It’s not hard to see why the camera crew would help out when they have someone this outrageous and entertaining to follow. A very good performance in a very shocking and disturbing film.

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6 Kevin Spacey – Se7en (1995)

Without question, the shortest performance on the list, which means Kevin Spacey has to do quite a lot with very little screen time. He pulls it off brilliantly. In this fantastic 1995 film, Spacey plays John Doe, a serial killer who bases all his crimes around the Seven Deadly Sins. The crimes themselves, most of which we only see the aftermath of, are some of the most grotesque and disturbing crimes ever committed on screen. Doe, however, makes no apologies for his crimes and is proud of them. Spacey’s performance is masterful. Doe’s worldview is perfectly brought to life by Spacey in such a short amount of time. The ending of the movie is where Spacey shines brightest. Doe himself is guilty of the crime of Envy over Detective Mills’ (Brad Pitt) perfect life and tries to get Mills to kill him, thereby becoming the sin of Wrath. John Doe is one of the most memorable serial killers onscreen, and it’s all thanks to Spacey’s performance that he leaves such a lasting impression.

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5 Robert Mitchum – Night of the Hunter (1955)

The only film actor Charles Laughton ever directed; this film flopped with both critics and audiences when it came out in 1955, but has been vindicated by history as one of the greats. Robert Mitchum plays Reverend Harry Powell, a serial killer with “Love” and “Hate” tattooed on his knuckles. When he’s arrested for driving a stolen car, Powell is placed in a cell with a bank robber, who has stashed away $10,000 and told his children where he’s hidden it. When Powell is released, he woos the robber’s widow and tries to get close to the children, attempting to get them to reveal where the money is hidden. What follows is a chase between the two children (one of whom is only four years old) and a monster in human form relentlessly hunting them down.

Robert Mitchum is so good in this film. He’s convincing in his faux preacher persona, and he makes the hymn “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms” sound like the most frightening hymn ever composed, as he sings it on his path of death and destruction. Menacing every second he appears, Mitchum makes Harry Powell one preacher whose sermons you shouldn’t feel guilty about skipping out on.

4 Christian Bale – American Psycho (2000)

In this controversial 2000 film, Christian Bale plays Patrick Bateman, an investment banker/serial killer. You will never look at Huey Lewis and the News the same way ever again after watching this film. The film is intended to be a satire of 1980s yuppie culture and consumerism, something that Bale does a good job of capturing. Watch the famous “business card scene,” where Bateman and his fellow co-workers compare their business cards, heavily emphasizing the color and the font. When he sees Paul Allen’s card, Bateman’s inner monologue shows perfectly how he’s losing his mind, while Bale’s physical reactions are just perfect. The voice Bale puts on Bateman is perfect, too. There’s definitely something off about the way he talks, a sense of unsettling falseness about it. Then again, almost everything about Bateman’s public persona is false, just like all his co-workers. Bale’s performance is

3 Anthony Perkins – Psycho (1960)

There should be no surprise that this iconic performance from one of Hitchcock’s best films is on the list. Norman Bates, to put it kindly, has some mommy issues. And of course, said mommy issues turn him into a serial killer. Anthony Perkins tries his best to make Norman come across as harmless, blaming his mother for everything, but the true monster comes out every now and then, especially in the scene where Norman describes to Marion Crane (Janet Leigh) how “we all go a little made sometimes.” He might be talking about his mother, but he’s really describing himself. Even after Crane’s now iconic shower murder, Bates puts on a horrified reaction, truly making us believe his mother carried out the killing and horrified that she did so.

There isn’t a single flaw in Perkins’ iconic performance. That final image of him smiling as we hear a voiceover of Norman’s mother telling us how harmless she is and ending with an unsettling grin from Perkins is just masterful. The penultimate scene of the movie features a tacked-on explanation of a psychiatrist explaining just what makes Norman Bates tick. It wasn’t needed. Perkins’ great performance already tells us everything we need to know.

2 Peter Lorre – M (1931)

In this 1931 masterpiece, Peter Lorre plays Hans Beckert, a notorious child killer in Berlin. At first, Beckert proves so successful at evading capture that the police, under intense pressure to catch him, begin performing raids on known criminals, disrupting their operations. The criminals, unhappy that the police are cracking down on them, decide to organize their own manhunt for Beckert. They catch him and put him on trial. What follows is not only one of the best performances of Lorre’s great career, but one of the best performances of a serial killer period. What makes Lorre’s performance so good is how passionately he argues his case. He’s sick, he admits it, but he says he can’t control his urges and that his “sickness” is just like any other malady that needs to be cured. He can’t control his urges, unlike Berlin’s other criminals, so what right do they have to judge him? Lorre’s work here is incredible, and it’s not difficult to believe that someone could be swayed to his side of thinking. A truly sick man, Lorre’s Hans Beckert stands out as one of the best serial killers in film history.

1 Anthony Hopkins – The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

With only about twenty-five minutes of screentime, this is the second shortest performance to ever win the Best Actor Oscar (David Niven in Separate Tables clocks in with about a minute less of screen time). Dr. Hannibal Lecter has a very solid case for being the greatest fictional serial killer ever put to screen, and it’s all thanks to Anthony Hopkins‘ legendary performance that he reaches that peak. What makes Lecter so scary are the mind games he plays with FBI Agent Clarice Starling (Jodie Foster, who also won a much-deserved Oscar for this movie). His unsettling voice, which Hopkins said was a mix of Truman Capote and Katharine Hepburn, only adds to the creep factor that Lecter exudes. It’s a testament to how good Hopkins’ performance is that “cannibalistic serial killer” is not the most frightening thing about Lecter. Every word, every inflection, everything is just perfect. A fascinating character portrayed to perfection by an incredible actor.