Top 30 Best Movie Villains of the Century (So Far)

[@WatchMojo]

Which villains do you think have defined the century so far? Let us know in the comments. For more content like this, click here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/nKGqfWSCgN6og9E Don't forget to play our Live Trivia (www.watchmojo.com/play) games at 3pm EST for a chance to win cash! The faster you answer, the more points you get!

[@infamouswickedjokestar]

True villain of all villains The Joker

[@infamouswickedjokestar]

Joker (The Dark Knight 2008)

[@marcusyates3044]

Darth Vader/Emperor Palpatine

[@Marty.Robins]

Agreed 👍

[@Reaperguy67]

​@@Marty.Robins everyone agrees that tiger is a liar and you have multiple accounts.

[@mr.decencykeepinitreal6348]

It’s been over 16 years since Heath Ledger died, we still missed him a lot. His performance as the Joker is both impressive and unforgettable.

[@SirSaka]

He is just charlie hunnam

[@slimthagod6340]

Kylo ren in the top 10 is crazy

[@PacificaJaena]

WokeMojo's recency bias

[@KirillEnin27]

Kylo Ren is in the top 10.. Jigsaw is not on the list Hmmmm

[@broncojuan]

Kylo Ren was great. He was everything Anakin should have been.

[@AnnettaDarandri]

Yeah. A confused, weak villain that wears helmet for nothing.

[@captainhowlerwilson508]

@@broncojuanNo he wasn’t. He was how not to do a redemption arc, which was super inconsistent due to Disney and J.J. Abrams not being able to decide whether they should follow a similar arc they did for Vader, or just make him evil in the end.

[@M3nacex]

Green goblin should be on this list

[@LegendMkr7]

Dafoe version yes, especially considering how good he was following up the role in No Way Home.

[@420thlegioner8]

Totally agree

[@OliverStricker-x4u]

Please tell me its William defo

[@justapeacefulmanwhosbornin7291]

J.K. Simmons did an amazing job as Terrance Fletcher, the Jazz instructor who was nothing but a perfection-seeking maniac. He earned an Oscar in 2015. 🙂👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@LegendMkr7]

I had a high school band teacher who never recognized my talents. Once I went to college I was one of a handful of non music majors to get a music scholarship at my university, and I thought he was an a-hole so I understood how Miles Teller felt.

[@SpammytheHedgehog]

"And I thought my jokes were bad." *- Joker*

[@cwebekilehadebe2532]

Little gamble here won't have a nickel to give his Grandma...😂😂😂

[@danasaeed9018]

Give Me One Reason Why I Shouldn't Have My Boy Pull Your Head Off?! Joker: How About Magic Trick?

[@cwebekilehadebe2532]

@@danasaeed9018 and for the.. 👉👉👉 televisions so called plan... batman has no jurisdiction...he will find him and make him squeal...

[@800Ms-k6n]

Before even watching the whole video, i instantly knew that Heath Ledger's Joker is absolutely going to be number one

[@MLGProTroller]

That’s what I said. Otherwise this list is invalid.

[@hazzogaming516]

i love Heath Ledger for that role, but i thought Thanos would be 1

[@flexivefowl8186]

Davy Jones carried the PotC sequels. He was the best thing about them.

[@landongeorge-go6dm]

While I agree with you that he was the best villain of the sequels, Barbossa was a much better villain than him in my opinion. I personally believe that Barbossa is one of the greatest villains ever written.

[@trinaq]

While Tim Curry's Pennywise never really scared me, Bill Skarsgard's version is creepier, and really gives you the chills.

[@zeronixtheyoutuber3983]

Bill is just like another Joker

[@SpammytheHedgehog]

Heath Ledger wasn't just the Joker. He was THE Joker.

[@ST43LERS]

I wonder how Nolan would've ended the Trilogy if Heath didn't passed. He was truly unbelievable!!!

[@Bman32x]

Mark Hamill is THE Joker.

[@2301WAYNE]

Calling someone joker is more of an insult though, I Mean In The Batman Comic Books he's just coward cum-faced rapist who had tried to kill his own wife and rape his daughter but The Batman saved them and hidden them safely which joker could Never find, but joker still killed a lot of babies of some country, It's been a long time I read I don't remember if it was india or China or maybe both!

[@leonardork]

Sadly, this role consume his sanity 😢

[@davejansen743]

Joaquin phoenix is not the joker just a crazy dudy with clownpaint on his face

[@rpeck2832]

Anton Chigurh and Hans Landa should of been #1 & 2.

[@michaelmonthey5974]

Ra’s Al Ghul in Batman Begins and The Riddler in The Batman deserve honorable mentions.

[@LegendMkr7]

Green Goblin also

[@gravydoors]

Two entries for Javier Bardem. Just shows how great of an actor he is

[@Yiii912]

Killmonger has a better backstory than magneto ? Yeah... good one.

[@Bman32x]

In the movies? Yes he does. The FoX-Men movies are to blame for that.

[@Predatorwarrior18]

@@Bman32xNot even close.

[@noiisserpmii]

Kylo is insanely high wtf

[@OliPeters2003]

And not even a mention for Feyd Rautha. Criminal.

[@noiisserpmii]

@@OliPeters2003 yeah way too high as well but if i had to pick of the 2 id have feyd

[@OliPeters2003]

@@noiisserpmii Me too. Picking Kylo Ren as an act itself is crazy.

[@SpammytheHedgehog]

You know the Joker's the real deal if he surpassed Thanos.

[@hurricanegoalkeeping7768]

Quite villainous to not at least include either Willem dafoe's green goblin or Alfred Molina's Doctor Octopus.

[@rubygracemoseley8144]

I haven’t even seen The Dark Knight but Heath Ledger’s Joker is so incredibly good that he’s one of my favorite fictional villains

[@brodiebashford4407]

Magneto at 27 is an absolute insult. He's undeniably a no.5 villain and one of the best characters ever period.

[@CourtneyPielok]

Amy in Gone girl was ABSOLUTELY EFFFFFFFFING MENTAL.

[@NiRudraws]

That Heath Ledger Joker will forever hold a special place in my heart, the hall of Fame and far other great places.

[@RFGfotografie]

The Magneto story line is so well made, do wonder if he will once get his true own movie, as he deserves it, the actor is so good in his role, but also Magneto deserves a bit of redemption as for me, he shouldn't be evil at all.

[@CBright7831]

Godzilla’s (the Minus One version) absence from the list of best villains is a glaring omission, especially considering the malice and joy he brought to his destructive work. He was the best villain of 2023, and his relentless pursuit of one character throughout the movie was a testament to his dedication to chaos. While the Joker's #1 spot on the list is well-deserved, Godzilla's exclusion is a disappointment.

[@itenshidoom]

Excluded Godzilla, included Megan. Really doesn’t make sense.

[@CBright7831]

@@itenshidoom - I agree and I’m a big fan of M3gan too. It just baffles me.

[@davidchism6081]

Godzilla is more of an allegory/force of nature.

[@wwbetson]

Godzilla isn’t really a villain. He’s a creature that caused destruction out of instinct.

[@WillieManga]

What makes Ledger even scarier than Phoenix is that in 2019, we can see the world through Joker's eyes. We can see why he does things, we can see his origins, we can sympathize with what society made him. But in The Dark Knight, we can't. Fleck had more fleshed out backstory, but the Dark Knight's nemesis has no established backstory; he is the embodiment of chaos. He makes up the origins of his scars to different people, because like the Killing Joke version, he thinks it's best to be multiple choice. Like I said, chaos incarnate.

[@jackambrose2762]

“I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti…….HSSSSSSSS!” -Hannibal Lector

[@michaelpointek1899]

I didn't know 1991 was this century.

[@SamuelMcAlpin-ft3uu]

No John Kramer/Jigsaw? WatchMojo may need to play a game for that one…

[@colleenross8752]

My favorite horror character

[@edwingaleana2085]

Silva did not want conquer or rule over anything, he just wanted revenge even if that costed his life. All over the years with Bond movies he taught us how can hurt James for real.

[@Muzan_Kibutsuji-900]

Green Goblin Doc Ock Sauron Gollum Ultron Zemo Count Dooku Darth Maul Darth Vader (prequels) Palpatine (Prequels) General Grievous Barbossa

[@BlackWhite-lj4qb]

Yeah, no.

[@Muzan_Kibutsuji-900]

@@BlackWhite-lj4qb hey,ever heard of the thing called an opinion?

[@Emir_969]

​@@Muzan_Kibutsuji-900 Zemo?! Lol No. Ultron?!!!!!! LMAO HELL NO.

[@landongeorge-go6dm]

The best part about this list is that it doesn’t have racist Killmonger on it.

[@Muzan_Kibutsuji-900]

@@Emir_969 Ultron was pretty mid. They underused him. He was just some goofy ahh robot with a plan and Zemo, a mere human was smarter to get the avengers to try to kill each other

[@TallSilhouette]

Bernie Rose; Albert Brooks' character in Drive. His complete comfort with bloody violence is chilling.

[@tomtinley3262]

Wasn’t expecting the Amritsar family. Really nice addition

[@mr.decencykeepinitreal6348]

Actor and Oscar winner Denzel Washington did a great job playing the corrupt LAPD detective Alonzo Harris. In 2002, Mr. Washington earned the 2nd Academy Award.

[@זהבההלברשטט]

its crazy how over 15 years later, despite being universally praised, ledgers performance still seemed underrated.

[@AJARyan-yn2uv]

Wouldn’t call it underrated considering almost everyone calls it one of the best acting performances of all time.

[@matthewchelette9088]

Heath Ledger’s Joker is the best number 1 villain of the century. He has no morality or regrets for his actions. Responsible for the death of Rachel, turning Harvey Dent to Two-face, Batman taking the heat for Harvey’s crimes, Gordon losing his family for covering up for Harvey, and forcing Batman to kill Harvey to protect Gordon’s son.

[@2301WAYNE]

Batman was not at all in the movie though, It was mostly Bruce Wayne or Christian Bale pretending to be The Batman, As The Batman Comic Book it's disappointing but he's portyal is the worst nit only his cheap grandpa suit in cheap comic con and silly voice but his fighting skills, detective skills everything was worst it was okay In The Batman Begins only because I gave him a pass it's just beginning and they way say he's somehow begun it even though In Batman Comic Books he left gotham when he was 8 and trained all around the world by himself but never stole or beg though that was so stupid and then very poor choice of word, The Batman is known as the greatest one liner in comic books if not in the entire fiction as he always even say facts that's why there are so many memes and videos about it, But in all 3 films Christian Bale used very poor choice of words and Batman Would have saved both of Racheal and Harvey, I mean he was once given choice to save 10-20 people form diffrent places at the same time he Never chooses selfishly to save someone important to him as he chose to save Alfred later, not to mention Harvey Dent's original origins turning Into Two-Face by acid from a Maroni son is way better not including that also lesses the depth and messege of Bruce Wayne still refuses to give up on him and still chose to save him everytime, Christian Bale did such a sloppy job portyaing that first time he decided to speak a lot in the end and that also sloppily it was neither God K Bruce Wayne Talk or Batman Talk at all, It was just stupidly someone cheaply pretending to be The Batman,Christian Bale is good Bruce Wayne but I can write infinite book series on Christian Bale is as much words as Val Kilmer and George Clooney in the portrayal of The Character, They should definitely rename the trilogy as The Bruce Wayne trilogy or something because The Batman's Charcter is completely not at all present and completely ruined compared to Christian Bale's Batman Performance Netflix Death Notes Light and L portrayal were way more cool, Interesting and accurate, Christian Bale Made the Chracter look way too much uncool and stupid compared to The Batman Comic Books!

[@hectorramirez9251]

is Kylo Ren in this list? how? why?!!!! Whyyyyyy?

[@BlackHatCinephile]

Mojo brownnosing Disney.

[@broncojuan]

Because he was a great villain. Complex and well acted. Everything we should have got for Anakin.

[@BlackHatCinephile]

@@broncojuan Kylo Ren is Darth Emo. Worse than Anakin.

[@hectorramirez9251]

@@broncojuan surely you are joking.

[@captainhowlerwilson508]

@@broncojuanThat is a joke. Anakin just needed better directing. Kylo on the other hand, while played by a better actor just goes on the most inconsistent character arc ever.

[@silverstreet7984]

Bill Nighy as Davy Jones is the best of the lot.

[@49ers_red_and_gold2]

Heath, as the joker, better be number one 😤

[@MiguelNdiweni]

Heath Ledger's Joker as No 1 I agree best villain performance in a film ever 10/10

[@camgold2154]

Coriolanus Snow from the Hunger Games should have been on list.

[@RFGfotografie]

Loki truly did his job so well.

[@Jordashian93]

Heath Ledger’s Joker earned first place!

[@ICON1OF1]

Omg we did the Bane voice the other day at work

[@jmcf00]

Magneto should be higher than every other MCU villain

[@karimhammadi7293]

just imagine, if heath's joker had superpowers.

[@joonassummanen6130]

How dare you put Raoul Silva at only 30. He deserves to be in the top 5.

[@HalleyBay61]

Sir Ben Kingsley in Sexy Beast is always overlooked. That guy was as scary as they come and intensely realistic, which made his character all the more believable and very, very unnerving. There's also Col Quaritch from Avatar. What a fantastic villain he has played in the series so far. "You are not in Kansas anymore. You are on Pandora."

[@effbeingsadwithtiffanyann24]

Mr. John Kramer has arrived and he wants to play a game (Billy the puppet will be delivering you your tape on his bicycle with his stylish red sparkly shoes and…super, um, adorable laugh). Game over. But all joking aside, Tobin Bell’s performance as John Kramer/Jigsaw throughout the Saw franchise has been phenomenal. Yes, there were terrible Saw movies, but for the movies he was in and played Jigsaw, he has given 110% and shown his many layers (especially in Saw X). How is he not on this list?

[@landongeorge-go6dm]

Kramer definitely deserved a spot on this list more than stupid Killmonger. I hate seeing his childish face everywhere. He sucked! He was not a sympathetic villain. He was Black Hitler!

[@sethgoldberg8432]

What no mention of classic slashers, Michael Meyers, Freddy Krueger, Jason Vorhay, The Tall Man and Pinhead. I also thought The Purge's concept that anyone could be a murderer for a day very scary.

[@baughjaughes5104]

so glad you featured terrence flethcher, outstanding villain for me

[@cringenamehere3920]

Kylo Ren being number 8 is a crime he should at least be number 31

[@pintu6899]

He was garbage..

[@kriach5788]

he was pathetic villain,raging like little kid

[@bkingofbeers]

He was rubbish!!

[@MiguelNdiweni]

One of the worst villains in filmmaking

[@mdh_masalewale8681]

he was pretty good... until rise of skywalker gutted any potential for his character arc

[@yeoedwin1619]

Worth mentioning: Rogelio Torez (Machete), Senator John McLaughlin (Machete), Vilain (The Expandable 2), Paine (The Expandable), Saffin (No Time To Die), Le Chiffre (Casino Royale), Vic Hoskins (Jurassic World), Mr Eversoll (Jurassic World Fallen Kingdom), August Walker (Mission Impossible Fallout), Solomon Lane (Mission Impossible Rogue Nation), Gabriel (Mission Impossible Dead Reckoning), General Zod (Man Of Steel), Black Manta (Aquaman), Erich Ludendorff or Ares (Wonder Woman), Alexander Pierce or Brock Lumlow (Captain America: The Winter Soldier), Red Skull (Captain America: The First Avenger), Helmut Zemo (Captain America: Civil War), Syndrome (The Incredible), Jigsaw (Saw franchise), Tai Long (Kung Fu Panda series)

[@hugoboss435]

I take it Willem Defoe’s Goblin doesn’t exist in WatchMojo’s world??

[@leonigama5597]

awesome job about Best Movie Villains of the Century So Far from Top 10

[@michaelcurtin524]

I haven't done the Bane voice, but I have tried doing another comic character played by Tom Hardy with the quote "Eyes, lungs, pancreas. So many snacks, so little time."

[@KeanuPayne]

Megatron should have been on this list

[@JosephHarvey-t3l]

"We're still shuddering over that gas station scene--" "You're watching a toothbrush play Billy Eilish."

[@sagebagot2080]

Heath’s Joker is the most iconic of all time!!!

[@michaelpointek1899]

Daniel Plainview needed a mention here.

[@bahesb2419]

I’m surprised that Jason, Freddy or even Michael myers made it on the list. Those guys are the most iconic horror villains of all time and what made the horror/slasher genre so popular in the first place.

[@harmie1743]

Those villains are primarily 20th century, majority of their films were in the 80s

[@GrandmasterBBC]

I find one character oddly absent from this list. I am referring to the sensational performance by Daniel Day-Lewis as the villainous Daniel Plainview in There Will Be Blood.

[@MrProdigy810]

I thought Agent Smith would be on here

[@justapeacefulmanwhosbornin7291]

M3GAN is officially one of the 100+ most famous movie villains.

[@vmega007]

Great list! I would’ve put Kylo Ren lower tho. I almost lost it when I thought #1 was gonna be society 😂😂

[@shroomhead1565]

Immortal Joe from fury road should been on list at least in top 10

[@flexindaily4940]

To not have dude from the Saw series is crazy

[@alexjohnson-fry3778]

it is unacceptable that Magneto is so low

[@ChibiProwl]

Yep. I haven't seen the X-Men movies yet, but Magneto is SO bombastic and badass!

[@SnakeEyesNZ]

@@ChibiProwlIt’s because of the Fox X-men movies that he is that low

[@REDVOLT400]

I can’t believe Green Goblin and Doc Ock weren’t here

[@garveyneal1672]

Can you do top 30 Best Animated Movie villains of the Century too?

[@ChibiProwl]

Megatron and Maleficent better be in the top five.😊

[@imtyler99yearsago90]

Would CGI count?

[@garveyneal1672]

@@imtyler99yearsago90 yep that definitely counts

[@ChibiProwl]

@@imtyler99yearsago90 It should.🤔 It IS computer animation.🤔

[@julietate]

Always awesome

[@julietate]

I would say the mad max villan

[@Hydro_9293]

The only problem I have with the joker movie is your trying to give an Originless being an Origin

[@tdogggamer5348]

I'm missing Gerard Butler from Law Abiding Citizen😮 At some point you're kind of hoping he'll win. They had to have his character go too far to make people want to see him lose

[@bobthyw0rlord129]

Gangs of new York was fackin dope!

[@Seimur1722]

-Annie “Misery” -Hannibal Lecter “The Silence of the Lambs” -Stansfield “Leon” -John Doe “Seven” Just some of the villains that came up to my mind that are definitely worth to be o that list

[@AJARyan-yn2uv]

When they eventually redo this list next year, Dementus will be on it.

[@BatmanPops]

0:00 What A Wonderful Day!!!! 👑

[@kennethellingsen5902]

You forget the unhinged orange villain in the hotel lobby in Home Alone 2!

[@justaguyivory]

You mean Tim Curry heheheh

[@diegotorres5046]

I would have put Baron Harkonnen and Feyd Rautha in the list

[@VINI-VIDI-VICI289]

Respect for Mojo for putting Heath Ledgers Joker at the top 💯

[@alejandrovaldovinos3546]

Nah. Hans Landa>>>Joker

[@MrMrjack18]

​@@alejandrovaldovinos3546 No one will ever top Heath Ledger's Joker !

[@evanmorris6057]

I feel like Green Goblin in both the Rami Spidey films and No Way Home at least deserves an honorable mention!!

[@catelynstark9883]

Joaquin Joker was more the hero of his own story Heath was just levels of dark and spooky

[@justapeacefulmanwhosbornin7291]

Michael B. Jordan as Erik “Killmonger” Stevens from Marvel’s Earth-199999. 😃

[@justaguyivory]

Gary oldman from Leon was sooo evil

[@daltonbarton4315]

John Kramer from saw🎯

[@justaguyivory]

Kramer was just a judge and a Executioner

[@Gabriel.Blaze12]

MAGNETO.

[@walterivanfairview]

Silva is Top 5!

[@rickblaine8383]

Lee-Woo Jin from Oldboy ???

[@venomius]

I could argue thanos over joker but since they are 1 and 2 I won't bother....great list enjoyed it tremendously ❤

[@danasaeed9018]

The Joker, Bane, Immortan Joe, Magneto, Davy Jones, Incredible Likable Movie Villains.

[@CaptDeadpool32]

I can't argue with most of the 30 names but the ranking is all over the place

[@OliverStricker-x4u]

If they added scare crow than it would be every villain from the Christopher nollan Batman trilogy

[@granddooku]

Homelander?

[@lordeflockatee3399]

So Koba is tragic villain but Magneto is a Monster? Interesting…

[@CandiceVidito]

Magneto is # 1 in my books 😊

[@AnnettaDarandri]

No Hannibal Lecter? The smart, charming, manipulative and protagonist-rooting cannibalistic serial killer that win an Oscar for a HORROR?

[@ChibiProwl]

"I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti. *Hssssss*"

[@AnnettaDarandri]

@@ChibiProwl “Tell me, Clariiiiiceee,”

[@jamalvargas6146]

High Chancellor Adam Sutler V For Vendetta (2006) I never liked that guy or Peter Creedy we need more DC Imprint Adaptations I'd love that alot

[@captainhowlerwilson508]

I would put Syndrome from the Incredibles somewhere on the list.

[@SnakeEyesNZ]

They say at the start animated villains aren’t included

[@nepatrul6075]

Damn. Watchmojo hit us with the “We live in a society.” I haven’t heard that joke in years. Good times.

[@kamsismith]

Calvin Candie from Django Unchained and while not a villain, Hailey Grant from The Hate U Give.

[@BlackHatCinephile]

🥉

[@bugraylmaz4678]

seriously? MEGAN?

[@ofivecento]

The Operative from Serenity should be on here. HANDS DOWN

[@kingstratton2876]

Recently after rewatching the planet of the apes trilogy and watching the new Kingdom of the planet of the apes, I definitely acknowledge Koba as an amazing sympathetic villain. Koba is truly one of the top 10 best villains in movie history!!