Jeepers Creepers Wiki
Register
Advertisement

"Every twenty-third spring for twenty-three days, it gets to...eat."

The Creeper

Creeperheadshot

The Creeper
Race:   Unknown
Gender: Male
Height: 6' 1"
Weight: 200+ pounds
Birth Date Unknown
Sleep/Awaken Every 23 years for 23 days.
Location North Central Florida
Death toll Over 2,000
 Main Song "Jeepers Creepers" Written By Harry Warren, 1938
Age 2000+
Film(s) Jeepers Creepers
Jeepers Creepers 2
Jeepers Creepers 3

The Creeper is a fictional character and the main antagonist in the 2001 horror film Jeepers Creepers, its 2003 sequel Jeepers Creepers 2 and their 2017 interquel Jeepers Creepers 3. It is an ancient, mysterious demon, who seeks organs from humans to eat or replace the damaged ones. It hunts for 23 days every 23rd spring, by scaring its victims and using the scent of fear to determine what it needs to feed on.

In all but two of his appearances, it is portrayed by Jonathan Breck (Justin Long played the Creeper at the ending of the first film and Al Santos played the Creeper in the middle scene of the second film).

Origin[]

While the exact origins of the Creeper are unknown, he is implied to be hundreds of years old and has been around "since man first walked upright. Maybe before, even." The comic Jeepers Creepers: Trail of the Beast further explores his history. The Aztecs believed him to be their serpent god Quetzelcoatl, and he is seen accepting and eating a sacrificed human heart during one of their rituals. The Cherokee likewise referred to him as the Uktena, the most feared and respected of all the dark creatures, and performed a similar method of keeping him appeased. He is also revealed to be responsible for the disappearance of the Roanoke colonists in the late 1580s, as well as starting the mine fire in Centralia, Pennsylvania in 1962.

Jeepers Creepers

Five days before its hibernation, the Creeper went out on a hunt in its signature rusty truck. After having fed, he was returning to his church hideout with the body of a victim wrapped in a sheet in the back of his vehicle. As he drove along the highway on East 9 in rural North Central Florida he came across siblings Trish and Darry. He drove behind Trish's car and sounded his horn, ignoring the space Darry offered him to pass. But eventually drove past them. The Creeper had possibly forgotten about the Jenners, but just as he was tossing another body down the pipe in broad daylight, he saw them pass by, looking at what he was doing. Knowing very well that they had seen him, he got back in his truck and gave chase. The Creeper did not take long to catch up to them and rammed the cattle catcher in the front of his truck at the rear of their car. He did this while repeatedly sounding his horn, until the final blow that sent their car off the road.The Creeper drove off and left the Jenners where they were. It is unknown why he spared their lives, as he could easily have stopped to kill them. Perhaps he was warning them.

The Creeper had been gone for a while, probably to hunt, and returned when Darry and Trish were parked outside a gas station. He still ignored them and sped back to the church with all haste. Back at the church, he found evidence that someone had been there while he was away, and smelled Darry's scent, as Darry was scared when he found all the bodies. Knowing that the only people that came snooping in his lair were the pair he encountered earlier, the Creeper sprang his wings and flew to the Gas Station. It was dark by the time he found their car. He went through the laundry he found at the backseat of the car, sniffing it, and confirming his suspicions that Darry was inside his lair. The Creeper then ran off as some people in the diner had seen him. Minutes later, he flew over the gas station and saw Darry and Trish were with police. He flew back to his church, and knowing that his hideout was no longer safe, he disposed of the evidence by setting it on fire, along with the basement and his workshop. Then he went to deal with the police and the two siblings.

The Creeper flew to Darry, Trish and the two cops. He first eliminated the bigger threat, the police. He landed on the police car, which was behind that of the oblivious Jenner sibling's vehicle, pulled the female cop out of the car window by grabbing her head, then penetrated the top of the car right above the driver's seat with his hand, dragged the male cop's head through the hole, and beheaded him with a battle-axe. He threw the head at Trish's windshield, alarming the siblings and causing them to stop. Through all that confusion, the Creeper was able to slide inside the police car and sit in it waiting. As the terrified brother and sister watched, he came out seconds later, whistling his favorite song Jeepers Creepers, walked over to the cop's head, and pulled its tongue out with his teeth. Trish drove away from the scene and The Creeper loaded the headless body, into the back of his truck followed by the male cop's head. Resuming his hunt for Darry and Trish, he landed inside an old woman's yard, impersonating one of her scarecrows. He dismantled the electricity, and darkness followed. The old woman stood in front of Darry and Trish and threatened the Creeper with a rifle to leave. She fired, only for her to blast her scarecrow to pieces as The Creeper had got out of the way with lightning speed and leaped on top of her house, frightening her cats. The old woman followed the Creeper but was mortally wounded after firing twice at him. The Creeper held her upright by her spine, finally revealing his non-human face to Darry and Trish. The Jenners fled, while The Creeper followed. They got in their car and returned to the road, but The Creeper landed on the hood of their car, flipped back and landed firmly as they reversed. Trish drove the car forwards and backward trying to hit him, seemingly playing a game amusing to The Creeper himself. The Creeper soon got tired of the game and moved in for the kill, but Trish caught him off-guard and hit him square. She later ran the car backward and forwards, breaking his feet and his hand. The Creeper tried to get up to fly away, by releasing one of his wings but its badly hurt body denied him. He passed out just as Trish ran over him one last time and drove off with Darry.

The Creeper did get up in the end, and walked to its truck on the open ends of his legs, and drove after the Jenners, as he wanted to know which Jenner had the part he wanted to eat and to avenge the trouble they had caused him. He found their car parked at the police station. He quietly broke into the station, entered the cells and killed and ate some prisoners. He ate a heart, two feet, and was caught just as he was swallowing a hand. He escapes the cops that were going down to the cells to capture him, and proceeded to look for Darry and Trish in the station.

He found them cornered with Jezzelle, a psychic woman. The Creeper moved in as Darry and Trish ran up the stairs to hide. He sniffed Jezzelle, but since she did not have any fear of him, he let her be and went for Darry and Trish. The Creeper found them, annoyed as he could not sniff Trish, who stood a few inches away from him but with a one-way-view window between them, of which Trish was unable to see she was face to face with him. The Creeper broke the window, just as Darry was leading Trish out of the room and finally captured them. He sniffed them both for a while and even tasted them until he finally found that Trish had nothing he wanted. He threw her away, and after sniffing Darry some more, he found that he wanted Darry's eyes that had seen his lair. The Police came charging into the room, but could not shoot as The Creeper shielded himself with a horrified Darry holding a tight grip around his neck. Trish then asked The Creeper to take her instead of Darry. She claimed to have everything the same inside her body that Darry had. The Creeper unleashed his wings ready to fly. Trish begged him, and it looked as if he was going to consider it, but decided he would rather keep Darry ignoring Trish’s pleas. The Creeper turned with his strong arms around Darry and flew through a window that was behind him, leaving the cops aiming into the trees outside the station. Trish followed him while crying out her brother's name but the creeper soon flew out of sight, leaving Trish stunned by the tragic events.

The Creeper flew away with Darry and knowing he could not return to the burned church, he flew to an abandoned meat packing factory and locked Darry in his truck (which was booby trapped). It is unknown what happened during the course of the night, but judging from the bodies that The Creeper had in the new lair, he must have hunted again during the night and began decorating his new Lair.

It is clear that The Creeper did not begin working on Darry immediately when it got back to its lair that night, for Darry's death happened early the next day. The Creeper did not want to inflict any damage on Darry's eyes, which would have happened had Darry's eyes been taken out from the front. The Creeper played the song Jeepers Creepers and proceeded to work on Darry. He removed his skull at the back of his head, which was the main cause of Darry's terrible screaming. Darry died when The Creeper tempered and removed his brain so he could take his eyes.

The Creeper sat for some time removing its own eyes and ate Darry's eyes, which then became his eyes. He is seen holding a long needle in his hand which it was obvious he was going to use to sew the back of Darry's head back on with. The Creeper then tied Darry's eyeless naked corpse to the ceiling. Sometime later The Creeper removed Darry's bellybutton, attracted by the rose tattoo and later turned it into a throwing weapon. In the post-credits scene, he is seen driving his truck down the highway, honking his horn.

Jeepers Creepers 2[]

Three days after Darry's death, The Creeper began snooping around Jack Taggart's farm searching for new victims and started tampering with Jack's postpuncher. He then removed one of the scarecrows hanging in the cornfield and crucified himself in its place, just before Jack's son Billy went into the field to hang up more scarecrows.

Somehow, the family dog picked up his scent and started barking at the cornfield. The Creeper's cover was blown when Billy notices him turn his head. When Billy moves in for a closer look he saw that the "scarecrow" was not bound to the stake upon which it stood, and had feet with long claws. Billy sees one toe twitch, and his suspicions are confirmed.

With all speed, Billy flees from The Creeper. Sensing his fear, The Creeper jumps from the stake, springs its wings and flies over the field. He scares Billy some more by making his shadow pass over him then dives on him, making his muffled cries alert Jack Sr. and Jack Jr.

The Creeper sniffs Billy as he struggles against his firm grip, and finds him suitable. Then he grabs him by his hair and sprints along the field as Jack Sr. and Jack Jr. give chase. The two try to catch up to him as Billy screams from the agonizing pain of being dragged by his hair, but just before his father can get to him, The Creeper jumps aloft, still holding onto Billy by his hair, unleashes his wings and flies away. Billy is still heard screaming as The Creeper flies off into the distance and the two watch in horror as Billy is taken back to The Creeper's new lair.

The Bus[]

On the last day before it's hibernation, the Creeper temporarily immobilized a school bus carrying a high school basketball team traveling on the East 9 highway, blowing out its rear tire with a bony throwing star. When the students and teachers later prepared to leave, the Creeper flew over Kimball as he finished relieving himself, but did not attack him.

That night, however, Minxie had a dream of Darry and Billy both warning her to turn back, followed by the Creeper immobilizing the bus earlier that day. Sure enough, the Creeper permanently disabled the bus with another throwing star, hitting the same tire. After the group convened on what to do next, the Creeper proceeded to pick off the adults one by one, forcing the teens to barricade themselves inside. An hour later, presumably after murdering a traveling couple the coach had asked for help earlier, the Creeper returned outside the bus, taunting the teens and singling out his victims before seemingly attempting to force his way in. Once it had left, however, Minxie experienced another psychic dream of the Creeper in his scarecrow disguise at the Taggart farm, with Darry explaining its motives to her.

Later, shortly after Bucky successfully called the Taggarts for help, the Creeper punched a hole in the roof of the bus and attempted to abduct him. Fortunately, Rhonda managed to impale him through the head with a javelin. Enraged, the Creeper flew into the air and crash landed onto the bus, effectively trapping everyone inside.

As Dante remarked on his wing, the Creeper ensnared him in it, decapitating him. Tearing off his damaged head, the Creeper pulled Dante's head out of his chest, transforming it into his new head. He took off and waited for the teens to exit the bus. He proceeded to chase them into the fields, killing Jake with a throwing star and pinning Scotty to a tree with a knife before abducting him. He returned to the bus later, attempting to get Bucky, but was attacked by the Taggarts. After being harpooned twice, he shed his disguise and flew off to find the other teens before midnight.

He found Rhonda, Izzy and Double D driving the truck of an exterminator that had fallen victim to The Creeper earlier. He tried getting to D in the back of the truck but was shot multiple times with a flare gun. He crashed through the truck's window when Izzy slammed on the breaks, losing his wings and two of his limbs. Badly torn apart, he leapfrogged after Double D to eat his limbs and replace his own. However, the Taggarts returned and harpooned him through the head. Despite the Creeper's best efforts to remove the harpoon, Jack Sr. repeatedly stabbed him in the chest until his time ran out. Though it initially appeared to succumb to its wounds, the Creeper instead glared at Jack as its face wings closed over its head, signifying that its next 23 years of hibernation had finally come.

Bat out of Hell[]

Creepers2 52

The "Bat out of Hell" on display.

The Taggarts took his body and tied it up in their barn, using the Creeper as a roadside attraction called the Bat out of Hell; they re-attached his limbs as well. Fearing something may happen if they touched it during its hibernation in the following decades, Taggart Sr. made a rule to never touch it. About three days before the 23rd Spring since the Creeper's attack on the bus, three teens come to look at him. He remains asleep but withered down to nothing but skin and bones, and Jack Sr. has the harpoons ready for the Day of Waking.

Jeepers Creepers 3[]

23 years before his encounter with the Jenner siblings, the Creeper attacked and killed a man in front of Kenny Brandon. The man managed to sever his arm with a machete, which Kenny brought back to his mother's farm house.

In the present day, after abducting Darry, the Creeper continued to terrorize the Florida countryside. Following his attack on the police station, he recovered his truck from the authorities. Standing on top of his truck as it drove itself away, he soon returned to abduct one of the impound drivers, Officer Frank.

The next day, The Creeper landed on top of his truck to find Kirk and three of his friends trespassing near it, with Kirk having been impaled in the leg by the truck's harpoon. Tossing Kirk aside, the Creeper summoned a spear from his truck and impaled two of Kirk's friends to a tree. While casually loading his truck, the Creeper discovered that one of the boys, who'd fled before the Creeper attacked, had urinated on his truck. Enraged, the Creeper flew off and killed the fourth boy before he could get help.

Later that day, the Creeper began flying above a plantation, prompting the owner and a few workers to take cover under their cars. After overturning a nearby trailer and frightening off the workers, the Creeper took an interest in Addison Brandon, who had arrived with her friend Buddy to deliver some hay. Shattering the window of Buddy's truck with a roar, the Creeper overturned the vehicle and abducted Addison, leaving Buddy traumatized.

Later, after driving to another open field while listening in on his truck's police scanner, the Creeper left to hunt, buying Addison and Kirk some time to try to escape. Returning with a fresh victim later in the day, the Creeper found Kirk's dead body. He also smelled something off about one of his victims and stabbed them with a knife.

Skirmish on East 9[]

He quickly traveled down the East 9 Highway in his truck, only to run into Sheriff Dan Tashtego and Michael in hot pursuit. As the bullets bounced harmlessly off his truck, killing Michael and Jenky in the process, the Creeper deployed rolling mines from his ride, blowing Tashtego and Sgt. Tubbs off the road. Exiting his truck to finish the job, the Creeper tossed a throwing star at Tubbs, destroying his shotgun. Tashtego managed to open fire with Michael's mini-gun, but the Creeper shrugged off his wounds and tackled Tashtego to the ground. Splitting the Sheriff's head open with his axe, the Creeper simply summoned his weapon back to his hand and walked away, leaving Tubbs alone.

Addie's escape[]

That night, the Creeper returned to his truck to find Addie still alive. Before he could kill her, however, she ironically impaled his head on the truck's door spikes as had been done to Kirk and quickly leaped out the back before the doorway spikes could close on her. Recovering, the Creeper tried to fly after her, but his wings were still damaged from his fight with Sheriff Tashtego. Thinking fast, he tossed a throwing star at her, but she tripped on a rock and fell, causing it to narrowly miss her head. Desperate, he hurled another spear at her, but only managed to impale her jacket. Out of options, the Creeper simply charged at her with his axe, only to be hit by a passing semi-truck. When the driver got out to investigate, the Creeper killed him before continuing the hunt. Arriving at the Brandon farm, the Creeper only managed to find a piece of cardboard with the message "We know what you are," and his severed hand who has been cut 23 years ago nailed to it. Crumbling it to dust, The Creeper howled in anger and several dead crows begin falling from the sky.

Jeepers Creepers: Trail of the Beast[]

The Creeper recovered from his ordeal with Addie, first by fetching his truck, then acquiring a new hand from a man whose car broke down. At some point during his latest hunt, the Creeper formed a psychic link with Devon James, a college student investigating the myths and legends surrounding him. While in Mexico, Devon received one of the Creeper's knives from a mysterious old woman, cutting himself by accident. Sensing this from hundreds of miles away, the Creeper dared Devon to come find him.

Later, while visiting a Cherokee reservation in North Carolina, Devon was invited to learn more about the Creeper from an old man. After drinking some mulberry wine and having his hand cut a second time, Devon met the Creeper face to face in a vision, learning about the monster's lust for blood and human flesh. That evening, Devon continued to be haunted by the Creeper. Following a nightmare at the hotel he was staying at, Devon suddenly appeared before the Creeper as an astral projection. The Creeper attacked Devon, but failed to hurt him. Furious, he smashed a skull against the wall of his lair in anger. While traveling to Roanoke, Devon hallucinated that a passing truck was the Creeper about to ram him in his own ride, forcing him to swerve off the road. Fed up with their mutual bond, the Creeper decided to go after Devon himself.

After stopping for breakfast, Devon visited the Roanoke Historical Society. Cutting himself with the Creeper's knife a third time, Devon suddenly found himself in the colony back in the 1580s. He witnessed the Creeper abduct a colonist whose eyes had been gouged out, then slaughter three more. Spotting Devon, the Creeper disarmed him, then proceeded to cut something in his arm. Waking up, Devon found that the Creeper had left him a message: Centralia.

Upon arriving in Centralia, Pennsylvania, Devon fought the Creeper in the town's abandoned mine, stabbing him in the heart with an iron spike. In rage, the Creeper backhanded Devon against a wall, causing the mine shaft to collapse, separating them. Devon managed to escape the mine, only for the Creeper to destroy his car with a rock and fly off with him. Hours later, Devon woke to find himself hanging upside-down over a pool of blood. The Creeper slathered his body and face in some of it before kissing him and tossing him against a wall. He threatened to scoop Devon's eyes out with a spoon, but Devon managed to cut himself free with a bone shard and stabbed the Creeper in the eye. Furious, the Creeper threw the same shard at Devon, narrowly missing his head. He lunged at him, but Devon quickly threw a skull at his head, causing him to crash against the wall and get impaled by a falling stalactite. Smashing the Creeper's head with a rock for good measure, an exhausted Devon finally collapsed from the fight. Waking up in a hospital next to his mother and his girlfriend, Nina, Devon believed himself to be safe, but was shocked to see one of the Roanoke colonists running past him. Encountering other past victims, Devon discovered to his horror that he too had become one with the Creeper as the monster gouged out both of his eyes to replace the one he'd lost.

Overview and Appearance[]

The Creeper is an ancient, mysterious being implied to be a Demon/Monster of some sort, though the details of his origin have yet to be elaborated on. He appears as a fairly masculine, humanoid animal, and usually wears a tattered, 19th-century duster, wide-brimmed Stetson, and tattered trousers to pass for human. In Jeepers Creepers 3, he also takes to wearing a red sweater. This disguise is effective at a distance but fails the moment his face comes into view. In the first movie, he wore heavy boots, but shed them for the sequel, revealing prehensile, bird-like talons. The Creeper's skin is covered in thick, dark-green scales, while his digits end in a hook. His face has prominent jowls, framing a set of needle-like teeth. The majority of his head is bald, save for a patch of bushy, white hair around the back of his head. A third nostril sits upon his nose, but perhaps his most distinctive feature is his "hood". While normally lying flat against his head, the Creeper is able to expand a wide fringe of webbed, insect-like appendages as a threat display or when agitated.

A set of bat-like wings lie folded against his back, hiding under his duster, but capable of propelling him through the air with astounding force.

The Creeper ori-1-

The Creeper wearing clothing.

While the Creeper's activities are largely focused on hunting, he is shown to have a twisted sense of aesthetics and sets aside time from his short 23 day-span of awake time to focus on creative endeavors. He makes grotesque art by sewing skin and bodies together, placing them on the walls and ceiling of his "home" as a form of decoration. He also carves pictures into the handles of his knives or attaches skin and teeth to his weapons in an attempt to decorate them. He also seems to possess a somewhat crude knowledge of human biology and medical practice as he is able to preserve human bodies in perfect form, by some unknown method, for centuries. He can cut out the organs of humans, sew them up and keep them alive in the process. The Creeper apparently has some level of mechanical skill, being implied to have "souped up" the rusted truck he drives, and even sporting a custom license plate reading "BEATNGU" (Be eating you).

Personality[]

In all three films, the Creeper is shown to have a rather twisted personality. He seems to enjoy toying with his victims before killing them. By doing this he is not only able to amuse himself but it also works well in igniting more fear in his victims. However, once his time on earth nears its end, the Creeper can be ruthless and merciless and he will continue to pursue his victims even when severely injured. In the first film, the Creeper displayed more of a laid-back, almost human, personality. He even uses some of the little time he has on Earth to make grotesque artwork from the bodies of his victims while listening to music. However, once his time draws to a close in the second film, the Creeper begins to put his full power to use. Instead of playing road games with his victims and blending into human society, he cuts right to the chase and ruthlessly hunts down his victims, stopping only when he wants to "pick them out". In the third film, he rescues his truck from being sent to the impound and rides on the top of it. He smiles and doffs his hat to the confused cops, hoping to scare them.

Despite being mostly animal-like and seemingly incapable of speech, the Creeper does display human emotions and intelligence. He is shown to understand emotions such as amusement, anger, pain, and fear and at one brief moment, it is hinted that he may understand compassion. When Trish begs him to take her instead of Darry, the Creeper does actually listen to her and seems to give her offer some thought rather than just immediately flying away. Nonetheless, the Creeper shows no empathy for his victims and even goes so far as to turn their bodies into macabre art pieces which he then hangs on his wall like a hunting trophy. Despite being hundreds of years old the Creeper seems to possess a very advanced understanding of modern human technology, weapons, and anatomy. He is able to drive a truck with no difficulty at all and has even found a way to make it travel at speeds that it normally would not be capable of. He also seems to understand the process of taxidermy as he is able to keep human bodies perfectly preserved for centuries and even uses left-over body parts to craft his weapons.

The Creeper is also shown to be incredibly shrewd and calculating when pursuing his victims. He does not go full force on his victims unless they prove to be a challenge or if his time is short. Instead, he seems to prefer studying his victims from a distance by either donning a disguise or disabling their vehicles. By doing this he can decide which ones would be the best candidates for him to pursue and strategically figure out how to catch them with the least difficulty. It's possible that he took out the adults on the bus in the second film first since they could calm, or at least anger the teenagers enough that their fear would be drowned out.

Another strange thing to add is that, despite being somewhat merciless and evil, the creeper does not seem to kill people indiscriminately, only going after the people he chooses, and sparing the rest. This might be due to the fact that he does not have time to do so or that he simply doesn't like to kill unnecessarily. This last idea, although less probable, can indicate that he does not kill people out of pleasure, but out of necessity, despite showing a degree of amusement when hunting his victims.

The Creeper does not seem to discriminate between the victims he chooses, going so far as killing children in order to continue surviving. Evidence of this is the fact that there were missing children posters displayed in the Poho Police Department, to which we can assume the Creeper is responsible for as well as abducting young Billy Taggert in the beginning of the second film.

According to Jezelle from the first film, once the Creeper has the scent of something it likes, it can't stop hunting its prey down until it gets what it came for.

According to Darry from the second film, the Creeper knows no mercy and consumes everything.

In Jeepers Creepers 3, Dan Tashtego mentions that crows follow the Creeper wherever he goes, indicating that the birds seem to have a special relationship with the creature. Throughout the films, at least one crow appears as a sign of the Creeper's presence, even during his hibernation.

Abilities[]

The Creeper has the ability to regenerate any part of his body by devouring a similar part from a victim. In this manner, he has survived for centuries, replenishing his deteriorated body by feeding on humans for replacement parts. The ability also works as a form of healing factor, as the Creeper can discard injured or maimed body parts after ingesting a replacement version. In addition to his regenerative powers, the Creeper has a high level of durability. He has survived several gunshot wounds to vital areas, from pistol bullets to high-caliber machine gun rounds, taken hits from oncoming vehicles, and fallen from heights that would be fatal to normal humans. In the second film, he is impaled with harpoons multiple times, including head wounds, yet retains the ability to move. The Creeper only stops moving when it reaches its hibernation period.

The talloons of The Creeper

The Creeper's talons.

Physiologically, the Creeper is a humanoid figure. His skin is dark green and yet scaly, and he has razor sharp claws and teeth. Hidden under his black duster coat is a pair of enormous bat-like wings strong enough to lift himself and at least one adult human. In the second film, the Creeper is shown to throttle a pick-up truck off the ground while in flight. The speed at which he can fly is undetermined, but he is seen to match a speeding automobile with little difficulty.

The Creeper possesses a third nostril on the bridge of his nose which allows him to smell specific organs in his victims. This second sense of smell can only detect essential parts when the being is in a state of fear. This can be countered by forcing one's fear down, making them only a nuisance for the Creeper.

The Creeper is a sort of a Chimera. The human body parts are backed up by a second, almost indestructible creature that does not seem to be the product of any Earthly line of evolution. This second creature forms the wings and clawed hood structures behind the humanoid head of the Creeper.

Creeper103107

The Creeper's hood.

The clawed hood in both movies to date can flare out to intimidate/frighten the Creeper's prey. At the end of the second film, the clawed hood engulfs the Creeper's head as the creature returns to a 23-year hibernation. In Jeepers Creepers II, the creature is seen to discard and replace his head with one from a fresh victim, but the clawed hood remains part of the original torso. Therefore, the clawed hood/wing structures appear to be the actual Creeper and the human body parts appear to be additions. It's unknown if the Creeper can get memories or knowledge from a freshly absorbed human head. (However, this may possibly be how the Creeper knows how to maintain and drive his truck; in the second film, this may be what made him decide to let the teens make stupid moves like leaving the bus, as he would have Dante's memories of the group.)

The Creeper has superhuman strength and speed. He is strong enough to flip automobiles, tear open their frames and rips parts from the human body barehanded. He can also climb on vertical surfaces like a spider, and is well-versed in physical combat, including using melee and throwing weapons. While the Creeper does not talk in either of the films, a deleted scene from the first film has him speaking in a Southern American accent saying, "She don't smell too good... Darius.". The rest of the time, however, his speech consists mainly of animalistic growls and roars, and he can scream loud enough to break glass and kill several crows and ravens at once. He is also known to whistle the Jeepers Creepers song. The Creeper in the first film has an old phonograph in his new lair and seems to like early 20th Century music and songs, hence the film's title Jeepers Creepers.

Weaponry and Equipment[]

Jeepers-Creepers-2-Screamer-Dagger-1

The daggers of the Creeper.

The Creeper employs a variety of weapons in his pursuit of food. He commonly carries daggers and throwing stars made from the flesh and bones of his victims. He also uses a medieval battle axe in the first and third films, sharp enough to cut through bone and a steel chain with one swing. In Jeepers Creepers 3, he also throws a custom-made spear a considerable distance, impaling two unfortunate teenagers to a tree at once. The weapons he creates are shown to move of their own accord, and the Creeper can summon some of them to his hand at will. In the second film, for instance, a knife flies across a room under its own power, traveling through a lampshade before embedding into a nearby wall (a possible sign that they also travel towards flesh). In theory, it could be that the Creeper has some sort of psychic connection with his weapons. Additionally, Jack Sr. strategically decides to use it as a tip for his harpoon to hunt the Creeper. Perhaps another fine example of the Creeper's weapons and obsession with his victims would be a small, throwing star-like object that he used to flatten the school buses tires in Jeepers Creepers 2, which appeared to have been crafted out of Darry's flesh as it had his belly-button and rose tattoo on it. The blades themselves are likely to be Darry's bones (it is unknown if they are). Another example of his attachment to victims can be shown with Billy Taggart. On the aforementioned knife's handle, there is a cryptic, free-hand drawing of the Creeper pursuing a frightened person into a cornfield.

The Creeper drives a large, rusty, 1940s-era delivery truck, which he uses to transport bodies and scare victims to get a scent from their fear. Described as a slaughterhouse on wheels, the truck has been heavily modified from its original design, with a cowcatcher for ramming other cars and a supercharged engine allowing it to travel at extremely high speeds. The truck's body and tires are completely bulletproof, causing even high-caliber mini-gun rounds to simply ricochet back to the sender. It is shown in Jeepers Creepers 3, that the rear doorway is booby-trapped with spikes to deter (or kill) potential intruders, while the cabin doors are also rigged to impale would-be escapees. A police scanner allows the Creeper to keep tabs on the local authorities, and the interior holds a variety of knives and spears. The truck can also fire a custom harpoon from its exhaust pipe and deploy rolling mines that home in on their targets. Similar to the Creeper's weaponry, the truck seems to operate on the whim of its master, opening its doors for the Creeper and even driving itself after being rescued from the impounded truck.

It is possible that The Creeper has the intelligence to modify the vehicle to the point where it can use the aforementioned tools but it is highly possible that over the years that he has attained the knowledge from his victims.

Relationships[]

Andy Buck[]

Manager of the basketball team. Andy was "picked out" by the Creeper. Andy made communication with Jack Taggart, and told Taggart something was trying to kill them. Andy was attacked by the Creeper twice: but was saved by a student the first time and saved by the arrival of Jack Taggart the second time, ultimately surviving the night.

Jake[]

Basketball player who was killed by the Creeper who threw a custom shuriken into the back of his head as Jake fled from the bus with most of the other students.

Darry Jenner[]

Darry getting captured by the Creeper

The Creeper encountered Darry Jenner while he was on his way home from college with his sister Trish, running them off the road with his truck in broad daylight. This was the Creeper's way of trying to see if the Jenners had anything it wanted but he ignored them. As the continued down the road, Darry and his sister witnessed the Creeper dumping a body down a pipe in front of an abandoned church, prompting the Creeper to attempt to run them off the road a second time, but they escaped. Darry and his sister return to the abandoned church and made a frightening discovery, causing his fear to escalate and become the enticing scent for the Creeper. Darry is ultimately captured and killed after the Creeper sewed off the back of his to eat his eyes. Despite that, the Creeper placed the back of Darry's head back on his body as it put his body as a part of its collection.

In Jeepers Creepers 2, the spirit of Darry appears to Minxie Hayes to warn her of the Creeper's intentions and showed her of what fate he endured at its hands to prove it. It is unknown if the Creeper was aware of Darry's continued influence but Darry's acts allowed the psychic to warn her friends of him and lead to his capture by the Taggart Family.

Trish Jenner[]

The older sister of Darry Jenner and survivor of the Jenner siblings. They met in the first film, where the Creeper tried to run Trish and her brother off the road to see if they had things it wanted. However, it found them of no importance and ignored them but when he spotted them witness him throw a body into the tunnel of the church, it attempted to get rid of them but failed in their escape. After Trish's brother discovered the bodies, she didn't believe him until the Creeper appeared to them and she saw its monstrous nature. Trish became afraid of the creeper as it chased them, but turned her fear into courage when she tried to kill the Creeper by running it over with her car. When the Creeper had her and her brother captured, it smelled them to see if it had they had anything he wanted. Very soon, he threw Trish away and decided with Darry. Despite that, Trish begged him to take her instead and it looked like he was going to consider it but rejected her because the Creeper sensed no fear from Trish, which meant she had nothing it needed. In Jeepers Creepers 3, it is shown that 23 years after her brother's death, an older Trish plans to expose The Creeper's existence to the world and destroy him once and for all.

Jezzelle[]

Apart from Minxie, Jezzelle knew much about The Creeper from her psychic abilities, even though the two characters have seen each other only once. Unlike most, Jezzelle does not fear The Creeper and constantly tries to thwart his plans to capture Darry. The two met in the police station, where The Creeper sniffs her but does not find anything of interest after seeing she doesn't fear it and leaves her.

Scotty[]

A high school basketball player who is "picked out" by the Creeper with several other students on the school bus. He pretends he was not "picked out" to avoid the unfortunate fate. After his teammate is beheaded by the Creeper, Scotty demands the other 3 students picked out by the Creeper leave the bus so the other students and himself would be safe. However, an angry Double D reminds Scotty he knows the Creeper also chose him and dares him to remain on the bus. Scotty is presumably killed by the Creeper when he leaves the bus with the other students.

Minxie[]

Unlike the older and wiser Jezzelle, this psychic was one of The Creeper's victims on the bus. She was "picked out" by the Creeper, but warns the disbelieving students that the Creeper would return for those it chose. Minxie also learns in a psychic dream the Creeper is a millennia-old, unkillable demon, and always gets the people it chooses as victims. She later warns Jack Taggart that the Creeper is not dead, just hibernating after he stabs it multiple times with a spear.

Double D[]

D was "picked out" by the Creeper, since it appeared D had something it liked. He saved Andy Buck from Scottie's wrath, then physically pushed down Scotty after Scotty demanded the Creeper's targets leave the bus. D led the other students off the bus. While being chased, D rides in the back of the pickup truck driven by Izzy but when the Creeper attempts to grab him, Izzy crashes it intentionally. After the pickup flips, D is pursued by the injured, yet still determined Creeper, who soon pinned him. The Creeper intended to devour D not only for a meal but to heal its injures, though D fought against him for a while until overpowered. Unfortunately for the Creeper, D was saved by Jack Taggart and watched as the monster was stabbed before going into hibernation.

Jack Taggart (Sr)[]

Jack Taggart Sr and The Creeper.

After his youngest son was taken by The Creeper, Jack seeks his revenge by hunting down the Demon himself. When the two finally meet, they have a brief moment of staring at one another as their battle was about to begin. When the fight ensues, The Creeper was too resilient and too strong. He even tried to kill Jack by throwing the harpoon shot at him back at Jack, nearly succeeding in skewering Jack Jr. Then in a final attempt to outmaneuver Jack Taggart, The Creeper tried to fly through the bus windows to catch Jack unaware, but was struck square and painfully with another harpoon shot which Jack uses to stab him in the head repeatedly. When he finally goes into hibernation, he stares intently at Jack Taggart, marking him as his mortal enemy for the next time they meet.

Izzy[]

A student sportswriter who was not "picked out" by the Creeper. Izzy hot-wired a truck before being pursued by the Creeper. D was in the back of the truck as the Creeper chases them, but Izzy slams the brakes causing the flying Creeper to fly thru the windshield injuring itself flipping over the pickup in the process severely injuring the Creeper by removing an arm and a leg, Izzy is seen crawling from the wreckage before the truck explodes.

Dan Tashtego[]

Since his first sighting of the Creeper 23 years prior, Sheriff Dan Tashtego is determined to understand and ultimately destroy the monster. Even after seemingly learning the Creeper's origin from its severed hand, however, his obsession proves to be his undoing.

Trivia[]

  • He's become a legend to some people, as the cannibal man who drives an old truck.
  • It’s possible the Creeper has telekinesis, which would explain how his weapons can be so accurate.
  • It’s likely the Creeper is awake all 552 hours of his active period. This is likely given his moments of casual behavior as if he had to sleep during his active period, he would act more rash.
  • The Creeper, Trish, and Darry are the only characters that appear in more than one movie with their primary roles.
  • The Creeper is shown to have talons instead of shoes in Jeepers Creepers 2.
  • On the final scene of Jeepers Creepers, Justin Long, not Jonathan Breck, was dressed in the creeper costume so as for the Creeper and Darry's eyes to match.
  • He is able to survive for some time without a substitute for his head.
    • It is unknown how long he can survive without a substitute head.
  • Conventional means appear to only temporarily impede the Creeper, such as being run over, repeatedly shot, stabbed, etc. The loss of limbs lessens the threat the Creeper poses; if he has a single arm and leg, he can hop at a remarkably fast pace.
    • It seems that if the Creeper suffers damage like from a Gatling gun, his body will repurpose flesh to heal up his wounds until he can eat new parts. This would explain why he was only able to sprout one wing to chase Addie; he was still hurt by Tashtego's attack.
    • If his head is damaged, the Creeper will have a hard time keeping his balance or aiming. His movements appear woozy, due to brain damage or impaired eyesight.
  • The Creeper abandons his disguise near the finale of each film, except for the third. It appears to be for practical reasons, as it the first film, he didn't want obstructions when his foot and hand regrew; in the second, it's suggested the clothing impedes his flight abilities, as he had trouble with being harpooned until he shed his clothing. Adding to this is that he tore open his shirt before regrowing his head, which rose out of his chest.
  • The Creeper can scream or screech, and whistle. In a deleted scene from the first movie, he does speak, making it obvious that he is, in fact, intelligent. He has an old west style accent, hinting at maybe some origin. (Deleted scene here: Creepers Voice)
  • The Creeper can read/write. His license plates say "BEATINGU" so we can assume he had to come up with the letters/word.
  • The Creeper likely doesn't know how to tell time and has never been seen to have a watch of some kind, to warn when he should go hide before Day 23 is up.
  • Victor Salva mentioned in the commentary of the movies that the Creeper is compulsive - it will NOT stop hunting prey, no matter what happens to it.
  • If the Creeper does accumulate knowledge from the heads he eats, he could theoretically be a technological genius. It's possible that he could've created some kind of jamming device to prevent cell phones from working, as noted throughout the second film, no-one's phone was working.
  • The Creeper appeared to have another set of clothes nearby after taking Darry, given the relatively short amount of time between his escape and attacking the tow truck.
  • The Creeper has some downsides to his abilities.
    • If someone touches a severed piece of his body, it will show them the truth about it.
    • He seems to trigger psychic powers in potential victims.
    • Spirits of his victims know what the Creeper will do, as they became part of it; this allows them to warn his targets.
      • They always appear in the state they died in, with visible wounds. Though Darry manages to appear with his eyes for a brief time.
    • Crows follow him wherever he goes.
      • His scream can kill them. When he was roaring in rage that someone knew of his origins, the Creeper caused multiple crows to fall out of the sky.
  • In the first film, after the Creeper consumes a prisoner's hand, we notice that the prisoner's severed arm has a tattoo that had part of it eaten where the hand had been. When the Creeper puts his hand on the One-Way View mirror in the interrogation room to look at Trish, we observe that the remainder of the tattoo that belonged to the prisoner is now on his hand.
  • In the first film, the Creeper is never seen without their trench coat and wide-brimmed hat when out in the daylight, only flying around and killing at night, and remaining in his factory lair and truck during the day, leading to heavy fan speculation that like vampires, the Creeper was weak to sunlight, until the 2017 third film established the Creeper to operate in sunlight also.

Gallery[]

Advertisement