‘Supernatural’s Scariest Monster Appeared More Than Once

The Big Picture

• The Khan Worm, a six-inch worm named after a Star Trek character, holds its own as Supernatural's scariest monster due to its grotesque appearance, and its ability to possess and control its victims undetected.
• The Khan Worm is capable of controlling people's bodies and minds, leading to gruesome acts of violence and creating a sense of unease and paranoia among the characters.
• In Season 10, the Khan Worm returns with evolved abilities, such as resistance to electrocution and dehydrating its victims, making it even more formidable and terrifying.

Sam and Dean Winchester (Jared Padalecki and Jensen Ackles) may have conquered countless baddies over the course of Supernatural’s historic fifteen-year run, but no monsters were more frightening than the ones that turned the beloved brothers against each other. While shapeshifters and leviathans impersonated our heroes, and angels and demons took their meat-suits for a spin, one often forgotten monster of possession pushed the boundaries of trust between the Winchesters and their friends, and left a slimy trail of deadly carnage in its wake. This is, of course, none other than the nefarious Khan Worm — named by Dean, feared by all, and ready to crawl into your ear and make you shoot your cousin.

The Khan Worm Was Created by Eve in Season 6 of ‘Supernatural’

Okay, a six-inch worm named after a Star Trek character might not seem like the biggest contender for Supernatural’s most terrifying beast, but when we sit back and think about what this monster was capable of, along with all the grotesque side effects of its attacks, we can see how the Khan Worm holds its own among the likes of vampires and changelings and remains the show’s scariest monster.

We first meet the Khan Worm in Season 6, Episode 16, “...And Then There Were None.” The tragic episode of Supernatural lives up to its name as by the end of the episode, Sam, Dean, and Bobby (Jim Beaver) are the only ones left standing following a brutal hunt. The episode starts with Season 6’s resident big bad, Eve (Julia Maxwell) hitching a ride with a God-fearing truck driver. She kisses the man, and he rejects her advances, but he then returns home later that night and slaughters his family with a hammer. After getting wind of this murder spree and learning that another local man went uncharacteristically ballistic, Sam, Dean, Bobby, and Bobby’s old hunter friend, Rufus (Steven Williams) roll into town to investigate, seeing Eve on a security tape with the killer truck driver, who was found to have no memory of his crimes.

Eve was introduced in Season 6 as the “Mother Of All,” aka the creator of the Alphas, who are the first of every monster. Long story short, anything involving her is some seriously bad news, and the hunters head to the cannery where both murderous men were employed to investigate further. At the cannery, the gang is shocked to find their recently revived grandfather, Samuel Campbell (Mitch Pileggi) and cousin Gwen (Jessica Heafey) also on the case.

The Khan Worm Was ‘Supernatural’s Scariest Monster

For those who need a brief refresher, during Season 6 when Supernatural was trying to navigate its way post-Eric Kripke, the storylines got admittedly more convoluted than they had been in the past. This included bizarre developments like Soulless Sam and the reincarnation of Samuel by Crowley (Mark Sheppard), and Robo-Sam and Grandpa Campbell became a stellar — if not slightly unhinged — hunting team along with never-before-seen third cousins Gwen and Christian (Coren Nemec). This newfangled family business largely fell apart when Sam reunited with Dean and got his soul back, so seeing Samuel and Gwen working a case again was as shocking to the audience as it evidently was to the brothers.

The initial shock and granddaddy-issues quickly subside, however, when Dean suddenly shoots Gwen point-blank, killing her. Rufus finds a dark ooze coming from Dean’s ear, and a disgusted Dean then informs the team that a large, black worm-like creature slithered out of his ear and into an air vent, and that he has no memory of shooting Gwen. The group quickly deduces that the worm is controlling people’s bodies and minds, and Dean is quick to dub it the “Khan Worm.” Things delve deeper into body-horror territory when Sam shoots Samuel, whom he believes to be possessed by the worm, and we learn that the monster can keep a person alive even after a bullet to the brain. This is horrifically deduced when Samuel awakens mid-lobotomy (Bobby and Rufus cracked out the cranial saw to see if Samuel did in fact have the worm inside him) and attacks the men. Bobby inadvertently shoves Samuel against a live power outlet, and the electric shock proves to be the only tried and true way to expel the worm from one’s body.

The Khan Worm Brings Out 'Supernatural's Best Performances and Horror

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Now, what makes the Khan Worm scarier than any other nightmarish creature that possessed characters on Supernatural? First off, the Khan Worm is virtually undetectable. Unlike demons that flash black eyes or leviathans that open up their entire face revealing forked tongues and rows of sharp fangs, there really isn’t a good way to tell that your buddy is under the worm's influence until he’s shooting you in the face. This inability to tell when one has been infiltrated by the worm also leads Sam into a small tailspin, because he fears that he may have murdered his grandfather for no reason. While Sam, Dean, Bobby, and Rufus take turns zapping themselves with a live wire to see if any worm fluids start flowing from their ears, there’s still something incredibly eerie about a parasite using your loved one’s hands to murder you. This is exemplified when Rufus notices something off about Bobby, and Bobby lunges at him, fatally stabbing his best friend in the chest.

Similarly, while you can fill a water gun with harmless holy water or borax in order to weed out other beasts, electrocuting your besties is not only wildly impractical, but also extremely dangerous to the person being zapped. After Sam and Dean see that Bobby has become the Khan Worm’s newest host, they knock him out and tie him up, knowing that the only way to free Bobby is to electrocute him until his body becomes inhabitable to the worm, essentially frying it alive inside Bobby’s body. The brothers are forced to duct tape all the worm’s possible escape routes (ie. Bobby’s ears, nose, and mouth), and hold a sizzling wire to his neck, unable to watch as their adored father figure twitches and smokes, with dark ooze leaking out around his face as the worm meets its maker. Bobby miraculously survives the Khan Worm's attack and his subsequent electrocution, but then has to return home and bury the friend that he killed under its dark influence.

The Khan Worm Returns in 'Supernatural' Season 10

Although there were tons of spooky monsters on Supernatural, we also have to admit that some of their scare power was diminished by cable-TV restrictions or iffy special effects (sorry, Wendigo). The Khan Worm, being a monster of possession, was rather allowed to be frightening through the performances of the actors it was controlling, giving them an eerie, growling voice, while also being equally disturbing through the strong visual of the wriggly, oozing beast itself. Watching our beloved Bobby Singer taunt the boys as the Worm forces them to shock him within an inch of his life isn't a visual that many will soon forget. Perhaps the most frightening thing about the Khan Worm, however, is that it seems to have the ability to evolve.

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In Season 10, Episode 15 of Supernatural, in the midst of the ongoing Mark of Cain drama, Sam and Dean learn after a series of violent attacks by veterans that the Khan Worm (or at least its "freak cousin," as Dean astutely observes) is back and better than ever. Remaining a thick, gooey worm-like creature that possesses its host and forces them to do its evil bidding, the Khan Worm, which now also has horns, has streamlined its process, now just crawling out of one man's mouth and squirming directly into the next. The worm has also upped its game by becoming resistant to electrocution and dehydrating its victims so powerfully that their skin begins to peel, and they'll settle for drinking blood if it is the only liquid available. When the worm enters Dean's unrequited nemesis-turned-casual friend, Cole Trenton (Travis Aaron Wade), they learn that the worm can be forced out and promptly squashed if the person it's inhabiting becomes dehydrated so quickly that the worm is forced to evacuate. This isn't discovered, however, until after Dean has spent a few minutes frying Cole with jumper cables as the man convulses in pain and nearly dies.

Should Supernatural return for its rumored revival, it seems highly unlikely that the dreaded Khan Worm will reprise its role as the show's scariest monster. However, with its slimy, writhing body, insatiable bloodlust, and ability to make even the most loyal hunter turn on his best friend, we can at least rest assured that this squirming vermin won't be underestimated by the Winchesters anytime soon.

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Supernatural

TV-14ActionAdventureDrama Horror Sci-Fi

Two brothers follow their father's footsteps as hunters, fighting evil supernatural beings of many kinds, including monsters, demons, and gods that roam the earth.

Release Date

September 13, 2005

Cast

Misha Collins , Jared Padalecki , Jensen Ackles , Jim Beaver

Main Genre

Action

Seasons

15

Studio

The CW

Creator

Eric Kripke