It is difficult to imagine C. Robert Cargill’s original idea working anywhere near as effectively. Creepy as some versions of Willy Wonka can be, the idea of a grinning man in a top hat staring back at you through an 8mm film doesn’t quite stir the same anxiety or terror in you. This isn’t to say it can’t fit any other horrific premise, though. Cargill told Slash Film, “My original concept from the way it was formed in my head would be realized on film several years later in a movie called ‘The Babadook.’ That image was very close to what I had in my head for what Bughuul was supposed to look like.”

Cargill’s mention is only for reference. He did not write “The Babadook,” nor did he have anything else to do with the production of the film, which was released two years after “Sinister.” Still, the top hat and maniacal grin work for a character like Mister Babadook, seeing as he is a character from a children’s book come to life as a violent personification of grief. That he was brought to life through stop-motion animation underlined the character’s mischievousness.

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And of course, “The Babadook” is also considered a modern masterpiece of horror. Rotten Tomatoes ranks it at number 13 on its list of the 200 Best Horror Movies of All Time. Even William Friedkin, director of an absolute classic like “The Exorcist,” dubbed “The Babadook” the most terrifying movie he’d ever seen (via Twitter). This just goes to show, when it comes to horror, there are few things more important than an appropriate villain.