28) Guys On Tinder
Jan Tepass/imageBROKER/ShutterstockEnough said.
27) Shoeless Joe Jackson, from Field of Dreams
Snap/ShutterstockIf I had my choice of baseball ghosts to throw BP to, Field of Dreams’s Shoeless Joe Jackson would probably be low on that list. He only likes the ball in one spot, and lives in mystical corn fields, so he’s never really free for a beer after. When you really think about it, Shoeless Joe is kind of a dick to Kevin Costner’s Ray Kinsella. What do you mean I’m not invited? That’s my goddamn corn. -Brady Langmann
26) Dr. Malcolm Crowe, from The Sixth Sense
Ron Phillips/Hollywood/Kobal/ShutterstockThat’s right, we spoiled it. What are you gonna do about it? A complete lack of awareness of his ghostly powers makes Bruce Willis a pretty lame ghost, in all honesty. After all, there’s got to be a more exciting way to spend the afterlife than administering therapy to troubled children. -Adrienne Westenfeld
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
25) The Hatbox Ghost, from Disney's The Haunted Mansion
Not many ghosts can claim to have been cancelled, but the Hatbox Ghost can. Upon his installation in the Haunted Mansion in 1969, he was deemed insufficiently scary within a few months of operation, and as a result, he was decommissioned until 2015. Womp womp. After 46 years of retirement, the Hatbox Ghost may have preferred to stay retired, but hey, who doesn’t love a good comeback? -AW
24) Jacob Marley, from NBC's A Christmas Carol
George Costanza is Jacob Marley, and yes, this is Seinfeld canon. In what now would become a series of plagues on this world, NBC stars of new and old teamed up to ruin a bit of the holiday season in every home. With a score by Alan Menken and an all-star cast featuring Kelsey Grammer as Scrooge, there’s some charm to this cheesy straight to TV musical feature. It's not even that Jason Alexander did a bad job, but seeing George Costanza and Frasier Crane talk about the mistakes of their pasts feels more like NBC Sitcom Purgatory than a holiday classic. -Cameron Sherrill
23) The Snapchat Ghost
SnapchatHe’s small, he’s spooky, and he’s got all your nudes. The Snapchat Ghost approaches your most sensitive photos with a frankly inappropriate level of mischief—just look at those pinwheeling arms and that floppy tongue. Fun, cringey fact: his real name is Ghostface Chillah. -AW
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
22) Ghost Rider, from Marvel's Ghost Rider
He’s spooky. He’s on fire. He’s a biker. And his head is a skull. Ghost Rider may not be Marvel’s most famous hero, but he is hands-down the best Ghoulish Good Guy that the MCU has to offer. -Dominick Nero
21) The Pac-Man Ghosts
Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde are Pac-Man’s chief tormentors. A few little-known facts about them: Blinky is bad at grammar, Inky lacks focus, Pinky has a crush on Pac-Man, and Clyde is a hapless do-gooder. Basically, they’re a pack of playground bullies in spectral form. -AW
20) The Dead Men of Dunharrow, from The Lord of the Rings
One ghost is great—a horde of ghosts is even better. In The Lord of the Rings, the Dead Men of Dunharrow are a swarm of spirits cursed to linger under a mountain as punishment for breaking their promise of military aid to Isildur, Aragorn’s ancestor. Only when they fight for Aragorn in the war against Sauron are they released to their eternal rest. A ghost putting in an honest day’s work for an honest reward: you love to see it. -AW
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
19) Slimer, from Ghostbusters
Slimer isn’t just a garden variety ghost—he’s the rare gross ghost. A “grohst,” if you will. You’d think bodily functions would lose their importance in the afterlife, but Slimer is smelly, flatulent, and forever looking for his next meal. Whomst among us can’t relate? -AW
18) The Ghost of Christmas Present, from The Muppets Christmas Carol
The Muppets Christmas Carol has ghosts ranging from hilarious and charming to downright nightmarish, from the antics of Statler and Waldorf as Jakob Marley (or Marley and Marley in this case) to the nightmarish Humanoid doll muppet mutant that is the Ghost of Christmas Past. Out of all of the muppet mayhem, there’s one happy haunt that stands apart: the Ghost of Christmas Present. This jovial, forgetful, giant piece of felt is one of the most charming things about the Christmas Classic. Cheers to you, Ghost of Christmas Present, for saving us all from the other Eldritch abominations that haunt this wonderful film. -CS
17) The Ghost of Abraham Lincoln
Hulton ArchiveThe ghost of Honest Abe gets around. Lincoln is said to have haunted the White House since his death in 1865, with sightings reported by presidents Theodore Roosevelt and Lyndon B. Johnson, among others. In one memorable anecdote, Prime Minister Winston Churchill reported encountering the ghost of Lincoln after emerging from the bathtub, which left him facing down the deceased head of state buck naked. Is Ghost Lincoln a peeping Tom? Who’s to say? For further reading, refer to George Saunders’ Lincoln in the Bardo. -AW
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
16) Danny Phantom, from NIckelodeon's Danny Phantom
More ghosts should have catchphrases. Sure, “I’m going ghost” isn’t exactly groundbreaking, but can you blame Danny Phantom? He’s a half-human, half-ghost 14-year-old juggling puberty, a secret identity, and a single-handed responsibility to keep his small town safe from a menacing horde of ghosts. Plenty of ghosts are do-gooders, but Danny Phantom is a bona fide hero. -AW
15) King Hamlet, from Hamlet
While other ghosts swan through the afterlife on a series of rascally larks, King Hamlet is a ghost on a mission. Trapped in purgatory, as he died without receiving his last rites, King Hamlet urges his good-for-nothing son to avenge his murder at the hands of his brother. It’s worth noting that King Hamlet appears in his full kingly regalia—no cruddy bedsheets for this guy. This is a ghost with class. -AW
14) The Blow Job Ghost and His Lover, from The Shining
The Shining is remembered mostly for its disturbing sequences and unbridled terror, but people seem to forget how downright hilarious this 1980 movie is. Stanley Kubrick never failed to deliver on his trademark mischievous sense of humor, and The Shining is no exception. When the hotel finally becomes a full-on Haunted House in the big finale, Wendy spots a spirit in a bear costume performing oral sex on a man in a tuxedo. Good for them! -DN
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
13) Moaning Myrtle, from Harry Potter
Do you like your ghosts the vengeful, old-fashioned way? Had enough of these gentle, benevolent, “go toward the light” types? Then Moaning Myrtle is the ghost for you, bitter and malevolent as she is. In the Harry Potter universe, Myrtle torments female students in the second floor ladies’ restroom at Hogwarts, though she occasionally slips into the men’s restroom to spy on naked boys in the bath. -AW
12) Banquo, from Macbeth
Showing up uninvited is basically a ghost’s calling card, but Banquo dials it up to 20—he shows up uninvited, and he takes the host’s chair, and he talks shit about the host to his very face. Basically, Banquo is a messy bitch who lives for drama, and we’re here for that. -AW
11) The Holy Ghost in Fleabag
AmazonGod, or some manifestation of his/her spirit, is floating around and unafraid to make its presence known in the second season of Fleabag. Making out with a priest? It’s happy to knock a framed image or two off the wall to keep you in line. At least one-third of the Holy Trinity isn’t here to mess around. -Justin Kirkland
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
10) Denny Duquette, from Grey's Anatomy
The ghost of Denny Duquette was a breaking point for a lot of Grey’s Anatomy fans. Sometimes he appeared as a vision when someone died. Then he appeared as a warm presence in the hospital. Then he had a whole season where he slept with Katherine Heigl’s character. In short, Denny Duquette would not go away, but if you’re going to be haunted by an apparition (or manifestation of your tumor—dealer’s choice), you’d be lucky to find one as charming as Jeffery Dean Morgan. -JK
9) Anakin Skywalker, from Return of the Jedi
For years, the ghoulish visage of English thespian Sebastian Shaw stood as the one and only human representation of Darth Vader. He appeared to Luke Skywalker at the end of Return of the Jedi dressed in a Jedi robe, with a spooky light blue aura surrounding him and fellow Jedi ghosts, Yoda and Old Ben Kenobi. Then, as he is wont to do, George Lucas went and fucked it up. The updated versions of Return of the Jedi now have Hayden Christensen standing in amongst the Original Trilogy Force Ghosts–but Sebastian Shaw will always be the definitive Papa Skywalker. -DN
Watch Next
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
Advertisement - Continue Reading Below
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7pr%2FQrqCrnV6YvK57xKernqqklravucSnq2iln6u2pr%2BOoGlybGhqgXqDjpucrKxdnLWwv9OsZKieXZa5rXnToqSeZaKWu6yxw2g%3D