Everyone knows the iconic villians, the anti-heroes everyone
knows (listed randomly, in no order of preference):
Jack Nicholson’s Joker, Darth Vader, the Wicked Witch of the
West, Lord Voldemort, Freddy Kruger, Hannibal Lecter, Jack Torrance from The
Shining.
I’ve always been intrigued by the villians that were especially
creepy and twisted because of a horrible backstory or other circumstance, where
you can understand why they’ve become villians. The kind of characters where
you almost root for them to win, or at the very least feel sad when they lose
(or die). The ones that stick with you, and you can’t forget them even if you
wanted to. That's what I'm truly excited for whenever I pick up a book or sit down to a movie. The right villain.
One of the best examples of this is Loki from Thor/Avengers,
played by Tom Hiddleston.
Another example is Mr. Silva from James Bond Skyfall, played
by Javier Bardem.
A final example is King Commodus from Gladiator, played by
Joaquin Phoenix.
There are so many other villians that fit this description. That have stayed with me over the years. But I want to hear from you.
Who are some of your favorite villians, and why?
I tend to watch mysteries or romantic comedies. I don't like villains or anything/one scary. I had to give up reading thrillers because I couldn't sleep at night and had night mares. I don't watch any of the "creepy/villainous" shows and usually close my eyes during the commercials for them. I have watched Skyfall and loved everyone but the bad guy. I can barely remember him because I probably closed my eyes during those scenes... I love the Sherlock Holmes movies with Robert Downey Jr. but there are several scenes in those movies, I haven't watched completely. I know, I'm a wuss! LOL The abominable snowman in Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer scared me as a kid. I'd sit on the stair every Christmas time and watch the show until the abominable snowman came on then I'd go to bed.
ReplyDeleteThis is a great post!!
Interesting post. I've always heard that we should make our bad guys have one endearing characteristic -- maybe they love puppies or give part of their loot to an orphanage. It makes sense that a villain who has a reason for being evil would be more believable and interesting. I'm reminded of Scrooge from A Christmas Carol. His history led to his becoming a curmudgeon!
ReplyDeleteI only like villains who are so evilly comical at some point that I laugh. I'm an odd person. I can write vilains, but can't handle reading about ones written by another author or watching them in movies. I did like the evil dude in Skyfall, but then it was a Bond movie and I'm a Bond fanatic from the mid-sixties. Great post.
ReplyDelete