Krampus is being compared to Gremlins, with some calling it an instant Christmas classic. The difference between that 1984 monster movie and this new comedy thriller is that you had to pay full ticket price to see the title characters in Gremlins. The first Krampus clip gives us a good look at the beast right off the bat. And it's terrifying.

We're not sure how the Krampus was called into this situation. But one thing is for sure, he wants to eat this young woman's soul and then drag her body back to the South Pole. Watching Krampus trot along rooftops is profoundly scary, and if the rest of the movie can keep up with this gloriously tense footage, it will probably become another classic holiday cinema staple on par with It's a Wonderful Life, Elf and A Christmas Story.

Legendary Pictures' and Universal Pictures' Krampus, a darkly festive tale of a yuletide ghoul, reveals an irreverently twisted side to the holiday. When his dysfunctional family clashes over the holidays, young Max (Emjay Anthony) is disillusioned and turns his back on Christmas. Little does he know, this lack of festive spirit has unleashed the wrath of Krampus: a demonic force of ancient evil intent on punishing non-believers. All hell breaks loose as beloved holiday icons take on a monstrous life of their own, laying siege to the fractured family's home and forcing them to fight for each other if they hope to survive.

The horror-comedy also stars Adam Scott, Toni Collette, David Koechner, Allison Tolman, Conchata Ferrell, Stefania Owen and Krista Stadler. Krampus and his mischievous underlings have been created by the combined efforts of Weta Workshop and Weta Digital, both renowned for their epic work on The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit trilogies and King Kong, among many others. Written and directed by Michael Dougherty (Trick 'r Treat), Krampus is co-written by Zach Shields and Todd Casey and produced by Legendary's Thomas Tull and Jon Jashni, Alex Garcia and Dougherty.

The film is in theaters his Friday, making it the only new wide release in theaters this weekend. This could mean that Krampuswill rake in big bucks at the box office, with no competition except The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2, which will still be going strong, along with last weekend's new releases The Good Dinosaur and Creed. While we wait to see how Krampus fares at the box office, check out this first clip. It will chill you to the bone.

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