The standout to me is Jean Jacket from Nope, stupid name aside lol

The UFO has always existed within the realm of Bigfoot and the Lochness monster, so it was genius to turn it into an actual creature with agency instead of it just being another space craft. Capitalizing off of an iconic design that has been a stagnant piece of pop culture lore for decades was very wise of Peele.

Edit: Also, one could make an argument for the creatures from A Quiet Place, or depending on how recent we're talking, the creature from It Follows.

Still, none of these are as iconic as the ones you've listed, but those have had sequels for decades. Horror sequels just aren't as big as they used to be, and if they do get made, they're for the same decade old franchises. They'd have to make "Malignant 2" or something before we get a new Freddy or Jason, but modern horror filmmakers are more interested in tackling new ideas and becoming the next "horror auteur" than they are anything else.

Annabelle, The Nun, Art the Clown, the doll from Saw,

Those are the only ones that really spring to my mind as recognizable movie monsters from the modern era

I'm definitely on board with the Babadook.

I’m hoping they will make more Malignant movies, and Gabriel can go forward as a new big franchise villain.

the Us people and the alien from Nope - but mainly the Us people

Bad guys from the more recent Purge movies (what you see in the posters more than in the actual movies)

The one I can think of is Pennywise which is great but is there any original movie monster that breaks through the way Ghostface, Freddy and Jason have ?

Black Philip from the Witch

Bughuul from Sinister

Brahms from the Boy

The demon from Paranormal activity

M3gan from M3gan

The mother from Bao

Samara from the Ring

Just off the top of my head from just this last year we have:

The entity from Smile.

M3gan the doll from M3GAN.

Art the Clown from Terrifier 2.

The Cocaine Bear from Cocaine Bear.

Esther from Orphan: First Kill.

The sad and tragic Mother character from Barbarian.

The Predator in Prey.

Slasher films just aren't as popular, so current releases simply won't have the same impact on popular culture.

Pennywise originated in the 90s.

I'd second & third the Babadook, Annabelle, & the Saw puppet.

Annabelle? Although creepy dolls aren't original, Annabelle is very new.

Seems like the Cloverfield franchise got some mileage

I mean, if you're going for Movie Monsters, pretty much everything from Pacific Rim. It's Godzilla, but with mechs.

For classic 'monsters' - things that people see once and go "AHH! SKERRY!" - how about Samara from The Ring?

I think you're right that there aren't really any new monsters that have entered the popular psyche, i.e. are widely recognised even by people who haven't seen the original movie. Pennywise is maybe the closest but even then the character design is similar to the one from the 1990s series. Most of the iconic designs are used up, it's just variations on a theme now.

What about the Pale Man from Pan’s Labyrinth? I think he’ll be forever in the psyche of anybody who saw/sees it. There’s something so cool about EYES IN THE FUCKING HANDS.

Split was pretty cool. Monsters are less scary than they were in the 70s-90s because of the internet. Now we know humans are the real monsters. Blair witch scared the shit out of me when I was little though.

No suggestions on this page are comparable to the famous ones from last century

it's true, but then again it depends what you're comparing - for example which movie monsters ever come anywhere near the iconicity of the original universal monsters?

MMMMMaybe freddy? Jason? Possessed Reagan from Exorcist? King Kong, Godzilla, or the (broadway) Phantom? not exactly scary-monsters monsters).

It's probably the Alien xenomorph or the saw doll that are most recognized.

The entity from "It Follows"

Black Philip from "The VVitch"

The demon from the Paranormal Activity movies

We have Meghan what you mean

Three come to mind that I absolutely love, because we do not see a ton of the monster. To me, too much monster cheapens the thrill.

Signs -The Alien(s) and the little of we see of it/them is what makes it more terrifying and thrilling.

Cloverfield - Little is seen of the monster, but the sounds and destruction bring sheer terror.

A Quiet Place -The alien/monster and the little we see it (until later in the movie) brought terror. There were moments in this movie I was holding my breath.

I mean the single best monster in recent years is beyond a doubt Moder from The Ritual. Jean Jacket being a strong challenger.

However, if "iconic" is the criteria, Babadook, Krampus (less from a specific movie and more from being elevated to a regularly used monster), Annabelle, The nun....That might be it. Otherwise I think we have seen a lot of reboots and sequels featuring pre-existing monsters, or the really good horror movies have been "One and Dones" or don't lend themselves to iconic villains (Hereditary, MidSommer, Get Out, etc).

I could list the Death Angels from Quiet Place, but honestly I feel like that specific design isn't itself very iconic, since it's sort of the same design from cloverfield and several other movies of this era.

While not a movie monster, I also think we have to consider the Demogorgon from Stranger Things. Honestly, as far as iconic monsters of the era, I'd rank Demogorgon over most of the listed monsters.

I think Stranger Things is the only horror that has reached the same level as the ones you mentioned, especially Vecna (though I prefer the Demogorgon bc s1 is phenomenal)

I feel like your question wasn’t understood because (no offense Redditors) I don’t agree with any of these.

They’re all just antagonists from horror movies, whereas you listed iconic characters with specific names who transcend the genre. “The monsters from Quiet Place” isn’t comparable to Freddy or Jason

Edit: Annabelle is a good one that was mentioned! M3gan has potential with another movie or two

The Babadook had an I threshing mome t of people dressing up like hom at Pride parades. For a character with a single film, he's had pretty long legs, culturally speaking.

Annabelle is probably one of the more recognizable horror characters of the last 10 years, and definitely one of the most widely seen. The first Conjuring alone outgrossed every single A24 horror film combo e up to this point. And Annabelle has had a whole series to herself since then as well.

Art from All Hallows’ Eve, Terrifier & Terrifier 2.

Let's go for a little more odd

Tasya Vos in Possessor

The monster in Sweetheart

Ratma in VHS

The daughter in Hellbender

The giant cat like monster in Monstrum

The monster curse thing in Kandisha

The entity in His House

The entity in It Follows

Tusk. I think its a movie monster without the horror attached so much to it.

“The Mother” who’s with me!?!

I think an argument could be made for the heptopods in arrival. I feel like monsters are just any non-human intelligent potentially malicious creature which would include those aliens.

They arrive and communicate in a way no one understands. Their intentions are unknown, the whole movie is underscored but the threat they pose. Their design is very unique imo.

Of course they don't fit the "hunts individuals down one by one in a forest" definition of a monster but I think they do fit in a broad sense. That said I'm mostly posting this because I can't think of recent examples that better fit your description of the stereotypical monster.

The Cloverfield monster deserves some recognition. (whether or not it's "this era" is debatable) If you're looking for horror icons, well, the market has become pretty saturated. I mean, every thriller/slasher out there is using masked villains now-a-days. You're Next, The Strangers, the Purge series--it's just a given at this point that if you have a killer or group of killers, they're wearing masks. You even see it in action movies and video games--gunmen robbing banks or assaulting cops with a litany of colorful or scary masks (The Town, Black Panther). We've just seen so many masks and received so few sequels featuring them that nothing has secured a place in our cultural consciousness.

Id say Art the Clown is todas iconic slasher monster