Home » Poetry » The Best of the Bad Guys – Top 20 Movie Villains of All Time

The Best of the Bad Guys – Top 20 Movie Villains of All Time

cybertruth on Jul 1, 2009
10

A look at the bad guys who make movies great.

     Movies need villains.  Without them, they become, well… chick flicks.  And even those normally have an antagonist of some sort.  But the truth is, it is in most cases the bad guy who carries a movie.  And good villains don’t come a dime a dozen.  portraying a good villain often takes just a little bit of magic.  Good guys are easy… We can like pretty much any chump.   But bad guys are something special.  To elicit the kind of fear, disgust, or hatred to make the protagonists victory worth waiting for. (Since, in the end, we know that the good guy almost always wins.  

     Playing a good villain isn’t something any actor can do… one needs only to watch Arnold Schwarzenneger’s ghastly performance as Mr. Freeze  to attest.  It’s a gift, which is why the Jack Nicholson does it so often.  So let’s break it down… take a look at the 25 best movie villain performances of all time.

20.   The Shark   Jaws

I had planned on including just humans, but come on.  This guy scared us for most of the movie with a fin and a bunch of splashing water.  And tell me you’d go swimming in the ocean right after watching it… I don’t even want to take a bath after Jaws.

19.  Chucky   Child’s Play  (voice by Charles Lee Ray)

Again, not an actual human, but as far as killer toys go, Chucky’s in a league of his own.

18.  Borg Queen   Star Trek: First Contact  (Played by Alice Krige)

The Borg as a whole were frightening, and she more so because in so many ways she wasn’t.

17.  Col. Nathan Jessup   A Few Good Men  (Played by Jack Nicholson)

A contradiction as a bad guy because in this case, bad is purely subjective…

16.  T1000   Terminator 2  (Played by Robert Patrick)

The new technology (at the time) used to bring him to life took him to a new level, but Robert Patrick was marvelous)

15.  Commodus   Gladiator  (Played by Joaquin Phoenix)

Such an evil, backhanded little snot… you truly cheered when he bit it in the end.

10
Liked it
Comments (10)
  • Kristy Elliott on Jul 1, 2009

    Great list! Would have had words if Mr. Ledger wasn’t at least in the top three. ;) Seeing that he’s in the most coveted spot, there are definitely no need for words…LOL. Great minds think alike. Heath definitely deserved to take that spot. Landslide! And for him to be given the top spot by a non-fan…kudos! I may have had a few different picks, but fear is subjective so I applaud you again. Great list! :)

  • AngelicaRaene on Jul 1, 2009

    Kristy took the words right out of my mouth. I did hear something about Heath Ledger after his untimely death. I heard that he had said that the role of the joker was so dark for him that he was having trouble dealing with it. It has been speculated that this contributed to his death. I think he played the best Joker of all time. I don’t think anyone could hold a candle to his portrayal of the joker.

    I myself love horror movies. In fact my husband gets upset with me cause every time I see an old “B” horror movie or a collection of old horror movies I always pick it up.

  • J L Williams on Jul 1, 2009

    Meticulously compiled celebration of the movie villains here. Delighted Pennywise made the list, he gave me the heeby-jeebys as a kid. Although, I actually prefer Nicholson’s Joker to Ledger’s. Both were excellent mind you.

    Also…have you seen Pan’s Labyrinth? The army general nutjob in that film was one of the most psychotic villains I’ve ever seen!

    Oh, and Spacey’s John Doe from Seven was sorely missed…….but that’s just me being picky

  • Anne Morand on Jul 1, 2009

    I love your list ! For myself, I am still scare of Jaws ! Good job ?

  • Anne Morand on Jul 1, 2009

    I meant Good Job !

  • BradONeill on Jul 2, 2009

    OK the TV in Poltergeist, Ray Feines Nazi bastard in Schindlers list, The real terminator Arnold!, alien from aliens, the book of the dead from that freaking classic movie series, the black knight from Monty Python. The abdominable snow man from Rudolph that thing still scares the crap out of me! and I even know he turns good at the end.

    Im sorry but we have to demote the Borg queen. A hot chick that assimilates a bunch of nerd boys just isn’t scary.

    Jaws should be number 3 on the list.

  • Brad Again on Jul 2, 2009

    Leatherface!

  • postpunkpixie on Jul 3, 2009

    Dude, you used the american version of Ring? *facepalm* Sadako was way creepier than Samara and her CGI machinations. Other than that (and Davey Jones… that was a baaaad movie) good list.

  • ActionSammy on Jul 10, 2009

    I think Agent Smith of the Matrix films had to be the coolest. I’m surprised Michael Meyers of the Halloween films isn’t on the list. That guy scared the crap out of me when I saw Halloween back when it first came out in ‘78. I was actually terrified of going to bed later that night!!

  • Dana Rawlings on Feb 21, 2010

    Let’s see who you forgot:

    John Malkovich in that movie with Clint Eastwood as a secret service agent.

    Gary Oldman….pick a movie

    Jack Nicholson, pick a movie, not Batman though

    Dennis Hopper, Blue Velvet

    Gene Hackman, pick a movie

    How could you even leave off Anthony Hopkins, hello….Hannibal Lechter

    Christopher Walken, pick a movie like King of New York or At Close Range

Leave a Comment

Hi there!

Hello! Welcome to Authspot, the spot for creative writing.
Read some stories and poems, and be sure to subscribe to our feed!

Find the Spot

Loading

Categories