The 20 Greatest Ultra Villains in Movies

Posted on 10 mei 2024 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

20. Bill the Butcher

Played by: Daniel Day-Lewis
Film(s): Gangs of New York (2002)
Line: ‘Ears and noses will be the trophies of the day. But no hand shall touch him.’

Nothing goes too far for William ‘Bill the Butcher’ Cutting in his personal mission to oppress the new immigrants whom Bill sees as mere cockroaches. His name is very appropriate: whenever he joins the street fights, he slaughters enemies by the dozens using his vast set of knives and stabbing weapons. He shows a softer side around Amsterdam, who he sees as the son he never had, but in the end, Bill is a bad man. Played to perfection by Daniel Day Lewis.

19. Mr. Joshua

Played by: Gary Busey
Film(s): Lethal Weapon (1987)
Line: ‘See, Martin, we have a problem. Since we have Murtaugh, we don’t really need you. But I believe in being thorough.’

The ultra blond Mr. Joshua is pretty much a badass. He shows his macho behavior in his intro-scene by letting his employer hold a lighter under his arm for a pretty long time. Riggs and Murtaugh have a lot of trouble with this ex-commando. In his mission to smuggle heroin into the United States, he lets nothing or nobody get in his way. He scores extra points for his pretty good fighting skills.

18. The Terminator

Played by: Arnold Schwarzenegger
Film(s): The Terminator (1984)
Line: ‘Your clothes – give them to me, now.’

Schwarzenegger is perfectly cast as a killing machine. The Terminator is one scary motherfucker. ‘Sarah Connor? Yes. Boom!!!’ He is efficient and unstoppable. The perfect invention really. James Cameron (director) and Stan Winston (special effects) have really outdone themselves. The highlight? There are many, but Schwarzenegger barging in the police station killing everybody is pretty damn exciting.

17. Amon Goeth

Played by: Ralph Fiennes
Film(s): Schindler’s List (1993)
Line: ‘Ah, an educated Jew… like Karl Marx himself. Unterscharfuehrer! Shoot her.’

Can a psycho Nazi killer still be charismatic? Leave it to Ralph Fiennes to pull it off. Even though Goeth commits horrible acts and certainly deserves to die for it, he can be touching in a strange and remote way. A truly remarkable bad guy, right up until his ‘Heil Hitler’ sent off.

16. Judge Doom

Played by: Christopher Lloyd
Film(s): Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Line: ‘Soon, where Toon Town once stood will be a string of gas stations, inexpensive motels, restaurants that serve rapidly prepared food.’

Christopher Lloyd who nailed the ultimately sympathetic ‘Doc’ in Back to the Future, plays a really scary dude here. Judge Doom is one malicious bastard and the type of villain we could use more of: wacky, evil-lookin’ and carrying a dark secret. Brilliant character in a brilliant movie.

15. Anton Chigurh

Played by: Javier Bardem
Film(s): No Country for Old Men (2007)
Line: ‘What’s the most you have ever lost in a coin toss?’

Chigurh is one weird psycho killer for sure. Armed with an oxygen tank and a shotgun he makes life very difficult for the people in the wasteland of the Texas-Nevada borderlands His entrance in No Country for Old Men alone is enough to earn him this position. Add to that his terrible haircut, his deep voice and his seemingly random killing spree and you got an A-grade villain that’s just hard to forget.

14. Freddy Krueger

Played by: Robert Englund
Film(s): A Nightmare on Elm Street series (1984-2003)
Line: ‘I’m your boyfriend now, Nancy.’

The child murdering Freddy literally gives his victims nightmares. Both his burned face and his evil mind tricks can make everybody crap their pants. Freddy is without a doubt the greatest supernatural killer to ever appear on the white screen.

13. Annie Wilkes

Played by: Kathy Bates
Film(s): Misery (1990)
Line: ‘You! You dirty bird! How could you?’

Pour Paul Sheldon. Being captured by his greatest fan is a nightmare beyond imagination. He is constantly walking on eggshells as the slightest provocation will set off Annie Wilkes big time. It’s hard to say what kind of disorder she actually ‘suffers’ from, but there is no doubt that she is completely batshit.

12. Skeletor

Played by: Frank Langella
Film(s): Masters of the Universe (1987)
Line: ‘I am Skeletor.’

Masters of the Universe is no masterpiece, but Frank Langella really elevates the movie with his highly enjoyable appearance. His portrayal of Skeletor, who was already a favorite villain in cartoons, became a most memorable bad guy. His looks are spot on, and he rules his underlings with an iron fist. It’s a total shame that He-Man kicks him into a dark, deep shaft at the end of the movie.

11. Saruman

Played by: Christopher Lee
Film(s): The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001 / 20 02 / 2003)
Line: ‘Hunt them down! Do not stop until they are found. You do not know pain, you do not know fear. You’ll taste men-flesh!’

While Sauron may be the real bad guy in The Lord of the Rings, Saruman makes a far greater impression. His voice is perhaps his greatest asset. The way he utters spells and commands is just the ultimate in evil cool. Christopher Lee, almost 80 when he played this, is remarkable in the role that he was born to play. When it comes to evil old wizards surrounded by Orcs, Saruman is the man.

10. Agent Smith

Played by: Hugo Weaving
Film(s): The Matrix (1999) / The Matrix Reloaded (2003) / The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
Line: ‘I will enjoy watching you die…Mr. Anderson.’

Who ever thought a software application could be this menacing? Smith may be funny with his monotone voice and robotic locomotion, but he can be vicious as well. It’s really hard to relax with this guy around, and he is always around. When you think he’s finally gone, he returns with clone abilities. Smith is an unstoppable force of destruction and can ultimately be only stopped by himself. Now that’s pretty bad.

9. Clarence Boddicker

Played by: Kurtwood Smith
Film(s): RoboCop (1987)
Line: ‘Can you fly Bobby?’

It’s not exactly his looks that make Clarence Boddicker ultra villain material. It is his ruthless and merciless attitude. He first shows his vileness, when he kicks one of his wounded cronies out of a moving truck. Soon after, he displays a real sadistic streak when he brutally murders Murphy. Although he’s a street level boss, he meets personally with Dick Jones, Vice President at OCP (Omni Consumer Products) showing he is also an intelligent and competent gang leader.

8. T-1000

Played by: Robert Patrick
Film(s): Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)
Line: ‘Thank you for your cooperation.’

Robert Patrick as the liquid metal T-1000 is an example of perfect casting. This unstoppable and constantly morphing killing machine is pretty scary at times. The fact that he is wearing a police uniform makes this even worse. Rather than ‘protect and serve’, he fanatically chases John Connor around while killing everybody that gets in his way. Glad to have Schwarzenegger around, the only one with a remote chance to stop it. Now that’s pretty telling.

7. Bill

Played by: David Carradine
Film(s): Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003) / Kill Bill: Vol. 2 (2004)
Line: ‘Do you find me sadistic?’

Bill is a murderous bastard, but he can be honorable as well. When the Bride arrives to take revenge on Bill for shooting her in the head, he grants her one night with her daughter, who she had presumed to be dead. Make no mistake though, in the duel that follows he would have killed her without mercy if it hadn’t been for her special skills. A classic villain who gets extra points for his great knowledge of martial arts and pop culture.

6. Major Arnold Toht

Played by: Ronald Lacey
Film(s): Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Line: ‘You Americans, you’re all the same. Always overdressing for the wrong occasions.’

The boring communists in The Kingdom of the Crystal Skull showed again what great villains Nazi’s can be. Major Toht is an absolute favorite. A very unpleasant appearance and an equally disturbing voice can make someone cringe. It’s a true relief when his face starts melting towards the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

5. Emperor Palpatine

Played by: Ian McDiarmid
Film(s): Star Wars: Episode VI – Return of the Jedi (1983)
Line: ‘Welcome young Skywalker. I’m looking forward to completing your training. In time, you will call me…master!’

While the Ewoks made Return of the Jedi just a little too child friendly, Ian McDiarmid restored the balance with his dark portrayal of the Emperor. Allegedly, serial killer Jeffrey Damner was a huge fan of Palpatine. This figures, because Palpatine is a true incarnation of evil. Every line he utters comes out as pure poison. He is often underestimated because of his fragile old appearance, but make no mistake! When Palpatine starts using his dark side force techniques there is nobody who can stop him. Well there’s always one.

4. Hans Gruber

Played by: Alan Rickman
Film(s): Die Hard (1988)
Line: ‘Nice suit. John Phillips, London. I have two myself. Rumor has it Arafat buys his there.’

Another German villain to make the list. It is just hard to ignore their bad guy potential. Hans Gruber is the perfect baddie against Bruce Willis’ hero John McClane. He is both ruthless and smart, but certainly not without a sense of humor and style. You gotta hand it to this guy. Up till now, the Die Hard creators haven’t yet found a suitable replacement for him as the villains in the four sequels all made far less of an impression.

3. Frank

Played by: Henry Fonda
Film(s): Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)
Line: ‘I could crush you like a wormy apple.’

Not a businessman but ‘just a man’. If that is true, humanity is truly fucked. Look at Frank’s sins: killing a young boy in his first appearance, raping Jill McBain and off course the thing he did to royally piss off Harmonica. Nobody figured the sympathetic Henry Fonda could play a bad guy this well. He proved them dead wrong. Frank is one of the most accomplished villains ever, and Fonda should have won an Oscar for the part.

2. Dr. Hannibal Lecter

Played by: Anthony Hopkins
Film(s): The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
Line: ‘I’m having an old friend for dinner.’

Anthony Hopkins delivers a wicked and Oscar-winning performance as Dr. Hannibal Lecter. Charming, extremely intelligent, psychically strong: Lecter has it all. One of the few baddies in this list who actually survives the films he is in, Lecter stands above the regular laws of good and evil. He just does what he does. His character has been exploited a little too much in modern cinema and literature, but his turn in The Silence of the Lambs remains one of the most chilling and spellbinding performances ever in cinema history.

1. Darth Vader

Played by: David Prowse, James Earl Jones (voice)
Film(s): Star Wars Trilogy (1977 / 1980 / 1883)
Line: ‘If you only knew the power of the dark side.’

Its villains have always been the best thing about Star Wars, but Darth Vader is the baddest motherfucker of them all. It is hard to say which is cooler; his voice (and breathing), his name or his appearance. His introduction in A New Hope alone makes him the best movie villain ever. But he also has a fair share in fighting skills, force power and strategy. Just a fantastic character altogether.

James Bond: 10 Greatest Villains

Posted on 17 oktober 2015 by Jeppe Kleijngeld

In anticipation of SPECTRE, FilmDungeon.com editor Jeppe Kleyngeld lists his favourite things about the James Bond series in 12 unique features. Enjoy!

10. Ernst Stavro Blofeld
Films: FROM RUSSIA WITH LOVE, THUNDERBALL, YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE, ON HER MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE, DIAMONDS ARE FOREVER, FOR YOUR EYES ONLY, NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN
Played by: Anthony Dawson, Donald Pleasence, Telly Savalas, Charles Gray, John Hollis, Max von Sydow
Quote: ‘Let his death be a particularly unpleasant and humiliating one’

Why memorable: Ernst Blofeld is the arch villain of the Bond series. As leader (Nr. 1) of SPECTRE, he is cunning and rotten to the core. He appears in seven Bond films and is finally killed by Bond (thrown in factory chimney by helicopter) in the pre-title sequence of FOR YOUR EYES ONLY. This is Bond’s revenge for the death of his first and only wife at the hands of Blofeld in AT YOUR MAJESTY’S SECRET SERVICE. Blofeld is played by a different actor in almost each of the seven movies he appears in and they all have a slightly different interpretation of the role. My favourite interpretation of Blofeld is the one performed by Donald Pleasence in YOU ONLY LIVE TWICE (photo).

9. Francisco Scaramanga
Film: THE MAN WITH THE GOLDEN GUN
Played by: Christopher Lee
Quote: ‘My name is Scaramanga. Francisco Scaramanga. I feel I know you, although I never thought we should ever really meet’

Why memorable: An assassin with a golden gun who charges a million bucks per hit, but he is willing to do James Bond for free. It is all about the challenge for this pistol artist who grew up in a circus. Great portrayal by the dark and handsome Christopher Lee. He makes Scaramanga a truly dangerous and respectable opponent. Bond’s employer MI6 has evaluated Scaramanga as one of the finest shots in the world, and M authorizes Bond to assassinate the KGB-trained gunman – if he can.

8. Kananga
Film: LIVE AND LET DIE
Played by: Yaphet Kotto
Quote: ‘At any cost – any – Bond must die’

Why memorable: After Blofeld has been the villain for three Bond movies in a row, it was time for something else. Kananga is a power-hungry political baddy with a taste for voodoo and sadism. He is also a drug manufacturer. On his island San Monique he has thousands of acres of poppy (heroin) fields, protected by the Voodoo threat of Kananga’s accomplice Baron Samedi. Then there is Kananga’s alter ego, the New Orleans based Mr. Big, distributer and wholesaler of the product through his chain of Fillet of Soul restaurants. Kananga/Mr. Big is excellently portrayed by character actor Yaphet Kotto as a frustrated, angry, impatient and violent bully. Kananga is named after Ross Kananga, owner of the crocodile farm featured in the movie.

7. Maximilian Largo
Film: THUNDERBALL, NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN
Played by: Adolfo Celi, Klaus Maria Brandauer
Quote: ‘Do you lose as gracefully as you win?’

Why memorable: Icy villain that works for SPECTRE as head of its extortion operations, under the organization’s leader Ernst Stavro Blofeld. Appears in both THUNDERBALL and unofficial remake NEVER SAY NEVER AGAIN. I am personally more a fan of the second interpretation. Largo’s cover is that he is a well known millionaire and philanthropist. Largo’s two main headquarters are his super-yacht The Flying Saucer and a Moorish castle Palmyra located on the north coast of Africa. He seems very friendly and controlled, but all of a sudden he can get real psychopathic. A very scary acting job by Austrian character actor Klaus Maria Brandauer.

6. Alec Trevelyan
Film: GOLDENEYE
Played by: Sean Bean
Quote: ‘Why can’t you just be a good boy and die?’

Why memorable: Former colleague and friend of Bond who faked his own death and comes back nine years later to extract revenge on Britain for what happened to his parents in the war. This leader of the Janus Crime Syndicate is very angry and hateful making him an interesting antagonist. For James this is the first time he faces a former friend, but naturally he stays true to Britain. Sean Bean is excellent as the vengeful Trevelyan, whose face is scarred due to Bond, making him even more hungry for payback.

5. Elektra King
Film: THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH
Played by: Sophie Marceau
Quote: ‘I always had a power over men. Nobody can resist me’

Why memorable: THE WORLD IS NOT ENOUGH is the first James Bond movie where the main villain is a woman. This is revealed later in the film when Elektra is already a major love interest for James. She turns out to be pretty cold. She murdered her own father because she felt he hadn’t helped her sufficiently when she was kidnapped. Now she wants revenge on M, who worked together with her father during the kidnapping. Elektra is very sexy, smart, manipulative and above all: deadly. In short, the perfect Bond villain.

4. Max Zorin
Film: A VIEW TO A KILL
Played by: Christopher Walken
Quote: ‘Intuitive improvisation is the secret of genius’

Why memorable: A mad evil doctor did experiments on pregnant woman during the Second World War to enhance the intelligence of babies. Most of the women had miscarriages, but Max Zorin is one of the doctor’s success stories. He is extremely intelligent, but the treatment had a side effect: he is utterly psychotic as well. Zorin was trained by and long-affiliated with the KGB. Then he became a successful business man, first in oil, then in microchips. Zorin forms a plan to destroy his only competition in Silicon Valley by triggering a massive earthquake in the San Andreas Fault at high tide, causing the valley to flood. Zorin is completely ruthless and displays a total lack of loyalty towards his own men, as shown when he mows down hundreds of his own mine workers with a machine gun, laughing psychotically while doing it. He even betrays his own right hand woman May Day. Besides killing, he also has a strong passion for horse racing.

3. Karl Stromberg
Film: THE SPY WHO LOVED ME
Played by: Curt Jurgens
Quote: ‘Cancel transfer of 20 million dollars. Inform next of kin that a tragic accident has resulted in the deaths of Professor Markovitz and Dr. Bechmann. The funeral was at sea’

Why memorable: Shipping tycoon Karl Stromberg is, along with Hugo Drax in the follow-up MOONRAKER, the most ambitious Bond villain and among the most rich and powerful (and crazy). His masterplan is to destroy the world via a nuclear war and create a new civilisation under the sea. He can best be characterised as insane maniac who thinks he is God. Stromberg reclusively lives in his sea station ‘Atlantis’ that has a spectacularly beautiful aquarium that contains several rare species, but also sharks that he uses to feed his disloyal underlings to. Prefers not to shake hands.

2. Franz Sanchez
Film: LICENCE TO KILL
Played by: Robert Davi
Quote: ‘I just want you to know that this is nothing personal. It’s purely business’

Why memorable: Robert Davi plays the role of a lifetime as Franz Sanchez, a ruthless druglord who is completely believable in his cruel practices. From the moment he is introduced, he is evil and menacing. His first acts shown to us are whipping his girlfriend for cheating and having her lover’s heart cut out. Soon after, he throws Bond’s best friend Felix Leiter to the sharks. When LICENCE TO KILL came out, newspapers were full of cocaine kings like Sanchez, making him a very current villain at the time.

1. Auric Goldfinger
Film: GOLDFINGER
Played by: Gert Fröbe
Quote: ‘No Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!’

Why memorable: Industrial tycoon and criminal mastermind that wants to increase the value of his gold supply (approx. 10 times) by blowing a nuclear bomb in the vault of Fort Knox, making the entire gold supply of the United States radioactive for 60 years. His plan is so ambitious that he must be a lunatic. He is, but still comes pretty close to achieve his operation Grand Slam, killing many people along the way, including the turned Jill Masterson, who is found covered in gold paint. ‘It’s the kiss of death…’. What makes Goldfinger so intriguing – apart from his brilliant name – is his love for gold. ‘All my life, I’ve been in love with its colour, brilliance and divine heaviness.’ He dies by getting sucked out of an airplane cabin through a window that Bond has shot.