As the MCU’s Phase 5 continues with Loki Season 2‘s debut, and the DCU reboots itself under James Gunn, it’s important to remember that they didn’t always hold a monopoly on superhero movies. Or even comic book movies. But as any fan can tell you, the best superhero movies always have a great supervillain. So we figured it was time to look at the best superhero movie villains ever.
And that’s any superhero movie, not just ones from Marvel and DC, and not just ones that came from a comic. So here you’ll find Jokers and Penguins, Lokis and Magnetos, all mixed in with other noteworthy baddies from super-flicks that don’t fall into the Marvel/DC category. Also, be aware that sometimes a villain’s portrayal is so great that more than one version of them might wind up on our list. Let’s get into the 25 best superhero movie villains of all time!
25. The Penguin
Actor: Colin Farrell
Movie: The Batman (2022)
Matt Reeves’ The Batman was rife with new takes on classic characters, and one of the big standouts was Colin Farrell’s chameleon-like, prosthetic-heavy performance as Gotham gangster Oswald Cobblepot, the opportunistic wise-guy right hand of Carmine Falcone. A gruesomely charming performance, this Penguin was part of a major action set piece mid-movie while also indulging in a little comic relief. Farrell is set to reprise the Cobblepot role in Max’s upcoming Penguin series, which will also feature Cristin Milioti as Sofia Falcone and Clancy Brown as Salvatore Maroni.
24. The Phantasm
Actor: Stacy Keach/Dana Delany
Movie: Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (1993)
Batman: Mask of the Phantasm is considered one of the best Batman stories ever to make it to screen, animated or otherwise, and a big part of that has to do with the film’s main foil, the mysterious Grim Reaper-esque Phanstasm. With this Gotham vigilante on a killing spree, and Batman taking the blame for the mob murders, The Batman: The Animated Series-inspired Mask of the Phantasm offered up a touching look at Bruce Wayne’s past, and the road almost taken, while also pitting him against a dark reflection of himself and devestating us with well-crafted twists and turns.
23. Top Dollar
Actor: Michael Wincott
Movie: The Crow (1994)
The wonderfully gravel-voiced Michael Wincott added the final “ingredient X” to Alex Proyas’ supernatural gothic revenge romp The Crow as a crime lord so utterly bored with all the murder and mayhem he’s been getting away with that he finds the idea of an unstoppable zombie rocker, back from beyond to avenge his and his fiance’s death, an absolute blast. Adapted from James O’Barr’s therapy-in-the-form-of-a-comic masterpiece, The Crow stands tall as a uniquely dark and moving exhibition of violence while Top Dollar provides a shot in the arm of charisma and swagger that Devil’s Night desperately needs.
22. Bane
Actor: Tom Hardy
Movie: The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
Following Heath Ledger’s Oscar-winning performance in The Dark Knight was always going to be a thankless task, but Tom Hardy’s Bane — though heavily parodied during The Dark Knight Rises’ release (and its aftermath) — was nothing if not formidable and memorable. Choosing to speak like a mix between famed actor Richard Burton and bare-knuckle boxer Bartley Gorman, Hardy made the “man who broke the Bat” all his own, and embodied a villain who could take Bruce Wayne down in any arena of combat, be it physical or mental. Bane leveled Gotham, humbled (and hobbled) the Caped Crusader, and disgraced Jim Gordon. He left no stone unturned when it came to the annihilation of his enemies.
21. Neville Sinclair
Actor: Timothy Dalton
Movie: The Rocketeer (1991)
Based on Golden Age of Hollywood swashbuckler Errol Flynn (along with accompanying “Nazi spy” rumors surrounding Flynn), Timothy Dalton’s nefarious Tinseltown star Neville Sinclair was the perfect foil for farm boy/stunt pilot Cliff Secord in The Rocketeer. Wooing Cliff’s actress girlfriend Jenny while also plotting a jetpack-assisted third Reich invasion of Los Angeles, the debonair Sinclair was a nasty treat. Dalton may not have gotten to make his third Bond film but in a strange way Sinclair possessed the flare and confidence of a Double O agent.
20. Deacon Frost
Actor: Stephen Dorff
Movie: Blade (1998)
As also seen in The Crow, when you’e got a deadly serious hero you need an arch antagonist with a touch of panache. In the Marvel Comics pages, vampire boss Deacon Frost was an older gentlemen, representing the cruel old guard of vampire-dom. In 1998’s Blade, however, young buck Stephen Dorff played Frost as a cocky upstart ready to take down the gatekeepers and rule the vampire world his way. The rocker way. And he was so fun in the role that test audiences rejected the original final battle because Frost turned into a CGI “blood god.” They were literally like “Where did Dorff go?” So they changed it up so that Dorff remained to sword fight with star Wesley Snipes, but with “blood god” powers.
19. The Riddler
Actor: Paul Dano
Movie: The Batman (2022)
Traditionally portrayed as a giddy, thirsty narcissist, cackling with joy over whatever he considered to be “outsmarting” Batman, the Riddler was turned totally upside down in Matt Reeves’ The Batman as the character was given a warped, serial killer makeover that resembled Jigsaw from Saw or John Doe from Se7en more than a cavorting carnival barker. As a vigilante running a parallel mission to Batman’s, who claims to have been inspired by Batman, Paul Dano’s brutal sadsack Riddler was after the higher-level corruption of Gotham rather than the street-level larcenies, and his existence — and twisted plans for the city — helped Batman come out of the shadows and decide to be a symbol of hope rather than fear.
18. Ozymandias
Actor: Matthew Goode
Movie: Watchmen (2009)
The modern age tradition of “hey, that villain was actually more right than wrong” was popularized in a big way with Alan Moore’s revolutionary Watchmen comic series from the late ’80s and the arch-villain Ozymandias, a “hero” with his 4D chess eyes on the greater good and the actual saving of humanity. Like an A.I. programmed to predict the best overall outcome for a hypothetical armageddon, Ozymandias, played by Matthew Goode in Zack Snyder’s film adaptation, sacrificed millions of lives in order to bring the nuclear doomsday clock to a stop. And the best part, of course, was the subversion of the cliched villain monologue. Instead of being his undoing, providing a window for the heroes to stop him, it was simply an explanation after the fact.
The words “I did it 35 minutes ago” haunted a generation.
17. Mysterio
Actor: Jake Gyllenhaal
Movie: Spider-Man: Far From Home (2019)
Nicely evolving from page-to-screen, from a bitter special effects wizard/con man to an ex-Stark Industries employee out to fool the entire world into thinking it was under attack, Mysterio transformed into a global threat ready to take advantage of the Avengers’ absence in order to stick it, posthumously, to Tony Stark, and appease his own need for adoration and glory. All, of course, while also being frighteningly relevant in our own world, in our own times, where it’s become increasingly more difficult to trust what we see and discern the truth. Jake Gyllenhaal attacked the Quentin Beck role with gusto as Mysterio had to be both a worthy champion and a gross s***heel.
16. Lex Luthor
Actor: Gene Hackman
Movie: Superman (1978)
The genius of Gene Hackman’s turn as wealthy criminal mastermind Lex Luthor, Superman’s ultimate foe, was how goofy and brazen he was most of the time, sleazing through society like a used car salesman. But then, when needed, on a dime, his sinister streak would emerge and the ghoul with zero empathy for his fellow human beings would emerge. On the surface, Luthor required buffoons in his service so he could feel smarter, but in reality he actually was a titan of criminal innovation, messing up Superman’s life so much that the Man of Steel had to freakin’ change time itself to right Lex’s wrongs.
15. Helmut Zemo
Actor: Daniel Bruhl
Movie: Captain America: Civil War (2016)
Like many of the villains listed here, Helmut Zemo’s game-changing weapon was cerebral warfare. Managing to dismantle the whole of The Avengers with nothing more than manipulation — and by taking advantage of harbored resentments, stubborn loyalties, and dangerous secrets — Zemo fractured Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. And he did so to the point where, honestly, the world was super vulnerable to Thanos and all that followed. Of course, it wasn’t all mind games, Zemo’s plan. There was also the awful assassination of King T’Chaka, which was the lethal lighting of the fuse that led to our heroes’ splintering. Sure, some theories even have Zemo hiring Crossbones, setting the Avengers up for collateral damage and bringing about the Sokovia Accords… which would totally make sense and not be outside the parameters of his spycraft skills.
14. High Evolutionary
Actor: Chukwudi Iwuji
Movie: Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 (2023)
In a crowded playing field of sympathetic, layered villains, sometimes you just need an utterly loathsome, irredeemable a***hole as your nemesis. Someone who exhibits all the worst qualities and revels in their own cruel machinations. There’s an old adage about how you’d quickly display a villain in a movie by showing them kick a puppy. Well, how about torturing a puppy? High Evolutionary inflicted pain and misery on the vulnerable, with no consideration for them as living beings. And he was loud, angry, and pompous while doing it. Having one’s face shredded apart couldn’t have happened to a nicer dude, amirite?
13. Zod
Actor: Terence Stamp
Movie: Superman II (1980)
The most recent version of preening Kryptonian traitor General Zod was played with gusto by Michael Shannon in two DCU/DCEU movies, but nothing tops Terence Stamp’s original arrogant wannabe usurper, seen briefly at the top of 1978’s Superman only to return as a mighty thorn in Kal-El’s side in Superman II. Stamp’s faux air of royalty and utter contempt for humanity played nicely off Gene Hackman’s foolish, foolhardy Lex Luthor and Christopher Reeve’s earnest, honest Clark. Superman may have longed for the planet he never knew but this wasn’t the taste of home he was looking for as finally someone was strong enough to pose a physical danger to him (while also realizing empathy was Superman’s ultimate vulnerability).
12. Mr. Glass
Actor: Samuel L. Jackson
Movie: Unbreakable (2000), Glass (2019)
Born with brittle bone disease, Elijah Price found himself isolated in his youth, turning to comic books as a way to let his mind escape reality. There he found kindred spirits, but not in the heroes… rather, in the outcast, misshapen villains. Samuel L. Jackson’s Mr. Glass (a name given to him by bullies) was so convinced he was fated to be a bad guy that he secretly killed hundreds of people in search of an invulnerable counterpart. Then in 2019’s Glass, the third movie in this Unbreakable-verse, he once again outsmarted his foes, creating a big ruse so that he could actually reveal, to the world, that there were people with special abilities. Jackson was able to create a sympathetic character who had been hobbled not only by his disability but also his years of loneliness.
11. Syndrome
Actor: Jason Lee
Movie: The Incredibles (2004)
The Incredibles, though not based on a comic, is still considered one of the best superhero movies ever made (and definitely the greatest “Fantastic Four” movie to date). It’s got humor, heart, tremendous action, and… yup, a devious, clever villain who preys on the world’s secluded heroes and their need for adventure. Because Syndrome would know all about that as a former mega-fanboy of superheroes (Mr. Incredible in particular) who was never allowed to participate because he didn’t have powers. Syndrome, after murdering dozens of supers to perfect his killer robot, planned to “Mysterio” the world, introducing himself as Earth’s new and improved guardian. Jason Lee delivered a truly menacing figure here, exuding both a chipper playfulness and a frightening callousness.
10. Loki
Actor: Tom Hiddleston
Movie: Thor (2011), The Avengers (2012), Thor: The Dark World (2013), Thor: Ragnarok (2017), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Before Thanos reigned over Phase 3 of the MCU as a near-unstoppable genocidal madman, Tom Hiddleston’s Loki was the saga’s best (and most-defined) villain. Now, of course, two timeline versions of him have been redeemed, with the 2014 version that escaped in Avengers: Endgame now turning into, pretty much, a hero on the Loki TV series. The previous Sacred Timeline Loki would have probably got there too after his showing in Thor: Ragnarok. But for a while, and definitely for two big movies, Loki was the deceitful trickster longing for love and approval. It was a need that ran so deep he’d kill off his own family and conquer entire civilizations to do it. A relative unknown when cast, Hiddleston made this iconic Marvel character his own, and it’s now near-impossible to imagine anyone else playing the part (unless it’s Sophia Di Martino, Richard E. Grant, or an alligator).
9. Doctor Octopus
Actor: Alfred Molina
Movie: Spider-Man 2 (2004), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
One of the trickier comic book villains to translate to the big screen, Doctor Octopus, one of Spider-Man’s key adversaries for decades, was brought to vivid life by director Sam Raimi and star Alfred Molina. Otto Octavius, like Willem Dafoe’s Norman Osborn, was a father figure/mentor for teenage Peter Parker. And like Norman, he was horribly changed by an experiment gone awry. In Otto’s case though, his brain was controlled by the AI-driven equipment he’d built, which had turned him into a puppet, basically. And even with this restrictive premise, Molina was able to deliver an honest-to-goodness menace who, as we’d see decades later in Spider-Man: No Way Home, was simply in need of a hero willing to help him. Plus, Otto’s fight with Peter on the elevated train in Spider-Man 2 still stands as one of the best super-fights in cinema.
8. The Penguin
Actor: Danny DeVito
Movie: Batman Returns (1992)
The second Penguin on our list is for sure the least traditional of the two (and the one that lost Batman Returns some key McDonald’s toy sponsorship). Tim Burton took a big swing with Danny DeVito’s Oswald Cobblepot, imagining him as a malformed child with flipper-like hands who shunned humanity and, eventually, ran a crime syndicate from the sewers of Gotham. The only time this Oswald donned trademark “Penguin” attire (top hat, umbrella, monocle, etc.) is when he had to make himself presentable for the public and as a mayoral candidate. If not for a crooked billionaire’s ill-fated scheme to put Cobblepot in charge of the city, Penguin would have just been content with his original plan — the one he falls back on at the end of the movie — to drown dozens of Gotham’s children in the muck of the city’s subterranean caverns. Pretty grim, huh? DeVito’s wobbling nightmare was a gravelly-voiced treat, giving us a Cobblepot that could only come from the macabre mind of Burton.
7. The Joker
Actor: Jack Nicholson
Movie: Batman (1989)
1989’s blockbuster Batman may have not been a Batman origin movie, per se, but it sure was a Joker origin movie — making Jack Nicholson’s cackling madman the de facto star of the entire film (at the time it was noted, and noticed, how little Batman was the focus in Burton’s two Batman movies). Nicholson’s cool, collected gangster transforms, via lavish disfigurement, into a loudmouth lunatic who’s very upset Batman’s getting all the good press. This Joker is a blend of goofy and ghastly, taking a little bit from ’60s Cesar Romero version and a touch from the ’80s comic book Joker(s), which was a darker take on the Clown Prince of Crime. Nicholson earned his keep here, stealing every scene he’s in, improvising a ton, and providing a splash of color in the gothic Gotham jungle.
6. Magneto
Actor: Ian McKellen
Movie: X-Men (2000), X2: X-Men United (2003), X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), The Wolverine (2013), X-Men: Days of Future Past (2014)
A textbook example of a villain done right, from a comic book and a movie standpoint, will always be Magneto. A powerful mutant with grand designs against humanity, Magneto’s hatred for non-mutants is understandable, and even sympathetic, as he’s someone who’d witnessed atrocities inflicted out of irrational fear during the Holocaust. A concentration camp survivor, Erik Lehnsherr had seen, firsthand, the worst things that human beings could do to those they randomly decided were “inferior.” Sir Ian McKellen brought Magneto to life in multiple X-Men films, as both an enemy and ally to Xavier’s students, giving him both a devout warmth and a logical cruelty. The best villains, as Mr. Glass would tell you, aren’t that much different from their heroic counterparts. Just a hair’s breadth away in terms of ideology and tactics.
5. Green Goblin
Actor: Willem Dafoe
Movie: Spider-Man (2002), Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)
Arguably Spider-Man’s most famous foe (or he was for a long time, during a certain era), Green Goblin not only terrorized Spidey in 2002’s Spider-Man but returned decades later, in Spider-Man: No Way Home, to torment a totally different Spider-Man — and rob him of his beloved Aunt May. Willem Dafoe’s kindly brainiac Norman Osborn, warped into a madman by a super-soldier serum, is a nasty, unhinged delight, and seeing shades of “Goblin” start to surface in No Way Home’s Norman, as Peter and May attempted to cure Spidey’s rogue’s gallery of unfortunates, was a welcome return to form(ula). In any timeline, Goblin would be there as the apex villain, living only to make Peter Parker’s life a parade of misery. Not motivated by fame, family, or fortune, Goblin is just a demon out to deliver pain.
4. Killmonger
Actor: Michael B. Jordan
Movie: Black Panther (2018), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (2022)
As we get into our top villains here, you’ll notice the trend of many of them being “right.” That is, insofar as they have understandable grievances and long for lasting, dramatic change in society. What pushes them over the edge, into bad guy territory, are the methods they’d go to, stoop to, in order to achieve their desired results. Navy SEAL Erik Stevens — code name: Killmonger, real name N’Jadaka — returns home to Wakanda after years of unintended exile to both expose the truth about his father, the king’s brother, being murdered by his own country, but also to usurp the throne and finish his father’s plan for an armed rebellion all over the globe. Ready to battle racism everywhere that wasn’t Wakanda, Killmonger had noble intentions but lethal plans. Michael B. Jordan gave us a villain who was charismatic, driven, and so, so close to being on the right path.
3. Catwoman
Actor: Michelle Pfeiffer
Movie: Batman Returns (1992)
Okay, let’s call Catwoman, on both page and screen, a “tweener.” A perennial villain for a long while, Catwoman eventually became a more neutral party in the world of Batman, and eventually Batman’s lover in different iterations. Batman Returns, however, clearly marketed two baddies to the public: Penguin and Michelle Pfeiffer’s slinky Selina Kyle, all decked out in a black leather body suit with thigh-high boots. Like Burton’s first Batman film, this was a chance for A-listers to get a little nuts and naughty by playing wild comic book nogoodniks, and Pfeiffer wowed us with a Catwoman origin story that saw a dowdy office assistant survive a murder attempt and become a sultry, avenging vandal determined to take down her untouchable assailant. The voice, the look, the whipping of mannequin heads — all iconic.
2. The Joker
Actor: Heath Ledger
Movie: The Dark Knight (2008)
The late, great Heath Ledger posthumously won an Oscar for his role as Joker in The Dark Knight, a role so cryptic and fiendish that it’s been impossible to top in the realm of superhero movies… especially from a Joker standpoint. Ledger’s grimy ghoul, out to prove that people, in their hearts, are selfish cowards, sought to undo all the hope Batman had brought to Gotham, seeing himself and Batman as opposite sides of the same coin. An “agent of chaos” in its truest sense, Joker had no M.O., no fingerprints, and no way to be reasoned with. Ledger’s Joker makeup, costume, voice, and mannerisms are now part of superhero history, forgoing most of the comedy and driving home the point that Joker is to be feared and revered. Some men just want to watch the world burn, indeed, and Ledger’s Joker just wanted to start the biggest, most beautiful bonfire of them all.
1. Thanos
Actor: Josh Brolin/Damion Poitier
Movie: The Avengers (2012), Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), Avengers: Endgame (2019)
Thanos was going to solve the entire universe’s population problem — and dammit, he was not open to alternative ideas! He would make personal sacrifices himself, sure, but mostly he would randomly sacrifice trillions of lifeforms, throughout the cosmos, in an effort to give everyone else a little extra elbow room. Half of existence was what he was asking. Wipe out 50%. And he’d get the job done with the use of the Infinity Stones. Thanos is the rare villain, like Watchmen”s Ozymandias, who won. He was looking out for the greater good, knew a ton of people needed to die to stave off a catastrophe, and just did it. Josh Brolin — who took on the role beginning with the first Guardians movie — gave Thanos a kind voice, a devilish mission, and a brooding nastiness, and that was enough to topple the Avengers’ best efforts to save half of everyone. Thanos would ultimately be undone via time travel, but never forget that he did it. He did the thing. He brought it home, folks. And he was content when Thor killed him, knowing he’d reached his goal.
Who do you think is the best superhero movie villain? Who’s missing from our list? Discuss in the comments!
From various Jokers to Loki to Syndrome and beyond, these are the 25 best superhero movie villains of all time. Read More