Top 20 Likeable Movie Villains

We all have a dark side, right? Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most charming, compelling film villains we can’t bring ourselves to hate-animated ones not included, unfortunately. Spoiler alert: Sympathetic villainy and some major plot points will ensue. Our countdown includes villains from movies “The Dark Knight”, “Blade Runner”, “Austin Powers” and more! Which other movie villain had you feeling sympathy for the devil? Let us know in the comments down below!
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#villains #movies #mcu #bond #beetlejuice #zoolander #badguys

[@WatchMojo]

Which other movie villain had you feeling sympathy for the devil? Let us know in the comments down below! For more content like this, click here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/hKOuYYCYotmXo68 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!

[@Cinezillaaa]

Honorable mention: Electro in Amazing Spider Man 2. He was treated like sh*t by his boss nobody liked him, he talks to himself alot. So sad 😞

[@samkresil6011]

Sandman in Spider-Man 3 and Gollum in Lord of the Rings

[@erzaender]

beetlejuice

[@williamsummerson1204]

Darth Vader, Khan and Megatron.

[@samkresil6011]

Bill the Butcher in Gangs of New York maybe?

[@Obi-Wan-Kenobi_]

You should now do a top 20 most hateable movie heroes

[@lefantomer]

Add tv. I don't want to see Negan escaping from that one.

[@rgerber]

I always thought Biff Tannen is the absolute perfect scumbag

[@alucard00774]

Rey and Captain Marvel would top that list imo.

[@moscowcentre]

Superman ss depicted in Man of Steel. BORING AF character

[@mikitz]

i.e., a list containing twenty girl bosses from the last ten years alone.

[@MAC-bb9bu]

Where’s Darth Vader?

[@mechajason]

At the beginning they said, charismatic and charming villains Darth Vader is not charismatic or charming

[@MAC-bb9bu]

@@mechajason he is to me

[@owie4070]

​@@MAC-bb9bu You... animal!

[@diegoleonelreyes]

@@MAC-bb9busame

[@slystone4892]

@@MAC-bb9buactually he is in some way I can’t explain, and it’s very weird cause we don’t even see any expression because well we don’t see any face and yet there’s some charisma to be found.

[@cherylbunyan3995]

No list about charming, likeable villains could ever be complete without Tim Curry! He is the epitome of the charismatic bad guy. Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Rocky Horror) Long John Silver (Muppet Treasure Island), Cardinal Richielieu (Three Musketeers), Darkness (Legend), etc.

[@hunterolaughlin]

If he wasn’t paralyzed by a stroke that he has to use a wheelchair and retire from physical acting later in life, he would’ve been the ideal casting choice for Count Olaf in the Netflix adaptation of A Series of Unfortunate Events.

[@Toledotourbillion]

Tim Curry was also the best devil in Legend. His portrayal was... Legendary.

[@tarantinoish]

Pennywise the Dancing Clown

[@downhomesunset]

@@tarantinoishI liked him much better than the 2017 version

[@jesterjosie3281]

"A hero is a hero, but everyone loves a great villain. ".. Ferb Flynn Fletcher

[@anjoLas]

How old are you, kid ? 9 ? 10 ? did your parents had kids ?

[@jesterjosie3281]

@anjoLas no, I'm 21, and my parents have three 🤣🤣

[@blairmcauley2497]

Tom cruise as Vincent is one of my favorite villains he’s a bad guy but he’s so charismatic due to Tom’s performance

[@MelloMood1]

Nice list but Hans Gruber should have been #1 or at least in the Top 3. Hans was the definition of Likable Villain......

[@user-xh5vh9lv1l]

Jim Carrey's The Grinch is my all time favorite villain

[@eaglesfan226]

Can’t say the Grinch as a villain per se. Just a protagonist that was so lonely he didn’t realize there’s more to Christmas than presents.

[@Noah_ol11]

I would say Villanelle from Killing Eve or Kingpin from Daredevil , but then i realized is only movies , but i think Darth Vader should be on this list

[@meedily]

Kingpin! Yes.

[@lolahernandez6871]

Villanelle...so overrated 🙄

[@lukas.strautins]

Since when is Darth Vader "likeable"?

[@user-em6ie2be7x]

Harry & Marv - Home Alone 1 & 2 Even though they're Bumbling Burglars (Marv anyway) after a while you just really wanted them to get their hands on Kevin.

[@merc-chef]

Another Alan Rickman villain that stole the show was the sheriff from Prince of Thieves. He carried that movie and has some fantastic quotable quotes.

[@griffinbenjamin3150]

No villain more charismatic than Alonzo Harris in training day

[@christiandemorro2092]

Ya but fuck that guy. He'll be on the top 20 most hated great villains

[@brunofelix]

King Kong ain't got $hit on him

[@crystalshaw8744]

​@@brunofelixFacts...smile

[@chriswelter3859]

He's such a POS in that film, but so great to watch. One of Denzel's best characters

[@michaelmonthey5974]

In addition to Collateral, Tom Cruise has played likable villains in Interview with a Vampire and Tropic Thunder.

[@downhomesunset]

I adored Lestat!

[@Denis-89]

is Les Grossman a villain though?

[@michaelmonthey5974]

@@Denis-89 Oh, he definitely is. He is the boss you’d love to hate.

[@henryqu19]

Nowadays Loki isn't even considered a villain , he is amazing 😂

[@tia4057]

Facts like he redeemed himself in Thor 2

[@AbominableQueer]

I understand he’s a fictional character, but he did kill/is responsible for the deaths of scores of innocent people???

[@paulstokowski1466]

Same as Venom... which is pretty f stupid.

[@K-dawg26]

​@paulstokowski1466 No it's not but, you are.

[@NathanaelJacob-px6lu]

He caused more damage to New York than 9/11.

[@Hevihenkka]

Hades from Disney's Hercules (1997) was so likeable villain I rooted for him when I was a kid.

[@rickmartinez3268]

Enjoyable

[@Gor85]

He was awesome 😀

[@eburel506]

I just love his snark.

[@MrAndyBearJr]

Simon Phoenix in Demolition Man was one you almost rooted for as he performed his villainy with playful aplomb.

[@tracemacmillan9718]

John silver from treasure planet should be here. I mean, you know his betrayal is coming but you almost don’t want it to happen because he fills a very pivotal role in Jim’s life as a father figure and mentor

[@Jeremiah_Rivers76]

Jamie Foxx’s Max Dillon/Electro only wanted recognition in _The Amazing Spider-Man 2,_ but being perceived as nobody was a pain which helped drive Max to that incident with the electric eel tank, even though he couldn’t control that. Doesn’t anyone besides Andrew Garfield’s Peter Parker/Spider-Man and I have any sympathy for poor Max Dillon?

[@lukas.strautins]

Read the title of the video.

[@matthewmira3265]

I do. Max in The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was a sweet, but mild-mannered person who was constantly pushed around by his boss, co-workers, and basically those around him that he perceived himself as nobody. Due to that, he repressed so much anger in himself. Then after Spider-Man saved him and said that he was his eyes and ears and that he needed him, Max not only received a smidge of the recognition he wanted, but gained a confidence boost and also felt that he finally gained a friend and began to idolize Spider-Man. However, due to his inferiority complex, Max took that one moment he had with Spider-Man to a big and almost obsessive extent to the point that he instantly believed Spider-Man was his best friend and he had a shrine dedicated to him in his room. Then he’s told to stay to fix an electrical malfunction by his boss on his birthday. After his transformation into Electro, Max was initially scared and confused from not understanding what happened to him from the cop’s reaction to seeing and Max accidentally using his new powers to lift truck over him. After seeing himself being broadcasted all over the city, he becomes mesmerized by the sight of his broadcasted face, believing that people finally see him. Then Spider-Man arrived and tried to help diffuse the situation and hopefully help Max. However a sniper fires at him, which causes Max to angrily retaliate. Spider-Man saves a cop from getting crushed, inadvertently humiliating Max. Being mocked by the public, much to his anger, and being manipulated by the voices in his head into believing Spider-Man lied to him, Max becomes enraged from feeling betrayed by Spider-Man, gives into the repressed anger inside of himself, and attacked his former idol and the public with his electrical abilities. After he was defeated by Spider-Man, Max accepted transformation and adopted his supervillain moniker Electro, boasting a more arrogant attitude. Overall, this version and incarnation of Electro was definitely sympathetic and relatable in terms of his character.

[@Ogre1086]

barbossa was my absolute favorite from the pirates movies

[@AntonXul]

What about Tony Montana? He has more charisma than most on this list.

[@jamesdugas571]

Antihero

[@AntonXul]

@@jamesdugas571 He’s a protagonist villain. He had Anti-Hero qualities, but he’s definitely a villain. A murderous drug lord can’t be a hero of any kind.

[@Animeguy300]

Joker and Loki are the best villains in DC and Marvel

[@Dopecheetah]

Rutger Hauer made up the soliloquy at the end of Blade Runner. It wasn’t in the script. Love Hauer. That dude scared me my whole life😂. RIP to him

[@owie4070]

I never heard that. I have to look that up.

[@Dopecheetah]

@@owie4070 yeah look it up. Let me know what you find. I’ve heard it a bunch of times and looked it up a long long time ago. I believe Ridley Scott talks about it?

[@jamesmendonca2900]

Great list. However, I would not consider Snape from the Harry Potter series a villain. Yes, he is antagonistic towards the main character and is not the most approachable with his students. But he did what he felt was right, even if it was not the most agreeable choices.

[@christophermerlot3366]

Tom Cruise as Lestat in Interview with a Vampire John Malkovich as Vicomte de Valmont in Dangerous Liaisons Michelle Pfieffer as Catwoman in Batman II

[@lolahernandez6871]

YES, LESTER!!! 👍👍👍

[@Zed-fq3lj]

Brilliant, a charming list! Finally, after so long a great list from Mojo!

[@CaptainMcTubeSnoot]

Darth Vader? Palpatine? Darth Maul? Godzilla? Jurassic Park T-Rex? Johnny Lawrence in Cobra Kai?

[@rgerber]

expect maybe Godzilla those are all simple evil villains. Maybe they are "cool" but not made to be charismatic

[@downhomesunset]

Kobra Kai is a TV series

[@Acidrain82]

they said, charismatic and charming villains

[@Gor85]

So many likeable ones. Beetlejuice,James Cook,Frank Costello,Hannibal Lector,Harry and Marv,Severus Snape. Great video😊

[@downhomesunset]

What about Tom Cruise’s performance as Lestat in Interview With The Vampire?

[@olvialee7221]

386: Before you started the list, I love how you had Hades from Hercules react to you. Genius

[@MarkJacksonGaming]

-- James Woods: The Specialist. Dennis Leary: The Ref/Judgement Night. Vin Diesel: Fast and Furious 1. Arsenio Hall: Harlem Nights. Jackie Gleeson: The Toy. Vin Diesel again: Pitch Black. Ed Harris: The Rock. Denzel Washington: Training Day. Robert DeNiro: Heat. ALL OF THEM: The Goonies. Your list is good, though I think you got off track a little; and I was stunned how bad the first one; just figured I'd add some. Number one is clearly: Darth Vader.

[@pkvanderzee6226]

Nicholas Cage: "Cyres" John Cusack: "Grissom" that movie was amazing

[@234daydreamer]

There's gonna be a Beetlejuice 2 with Micheal Keaton reprising his role as the striped poltergeist

[@olvialee7221]

391: I didn’t see The Silence of the Lambs but my parents did. They told me that Hannibal Lector creeped them out

[@RFGfotografie]

Alam Rickman is just a perfect actor.

[@reddogjpn]

Joaquin Phoenix's Arthur Fleck was far more relatable than the other Jokers, in my opinion.

[@slystone4892]

Yes cause we see his struggle and his mental decline and we find relatable as any of could break like that any day now.

[@omegafeather6254]

I'm hoping that joker is amazing.

[@MarcVanLaere-zr5im]

Rutger Hauer was one of the best. RIP ❤

[@richarddrake7148]

Personally I wanted to see Venom on the list.

[@philosophiesoflife8744]

Definitely missing Christoph Waltz as Hans Landa from Inglorious Basterds and Javier Bardem's Anton Chighur from No Country for Old Men, both won Oscar's for those roles

[@AmbyJeans]

Yes!

[@tazzreviews1578]

Where’s my man Jack Horner?

[@joeb.evrythngEclectic5571]

No John Kramer?

[@lorinhardy8920]

The Wet Bandits but no Darth Vader? Inconceivable.

[@aysada]

Miranda Presley from the Devil wears Prada, Catwoman from Batman returns (although she may be considered anti-hero), and Gollum from lord of the rings

[@BooBop1987]

I will Doc Ock from both Spider-Man 2 and Spider-Man No Way Home. He is one of the best Likeable Movie Villains that I ever cared about in Movie Review!

[@PandorasJunkJournals]

I love the sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood prince of thieves

[@RFGfotografie]

Very interesting.

[@rogueprince1341]

Darth Vader should've been on this list. The way the Emperor used his fears against him to twist his mind. His redemption with his son. Leading to him fulfilling his destiny, bringing balance to the force by killing the Emperor.

[@lukas.strautins]

Still not likeable

[@artiemedley9369]

I'm casting a vote for the monster or the lieutenant with the prosthetic arm in Young Frankenstein.

[@Tcassa89]

top 3 most likeable villains 1. Beetlejuice 2. Beetlejuice 3. Beetlejuice

[@cliffcorson4000]

The princess bride villians are funny And Beatlejuice? No comparing him

[@olvialee7221]

390: Not a huge fan of The Joker but I did like Heath Ledger’s performance

[@olvialee7221]

388: Vizzini may not be a Major Villain in the movie but he does make my dad laugh

[@filmfocusmind]

How could you forget Dr. Frankenfeurter?!

[@Khyranleander]

Okay, some of those like Loki & the Princess sidekicks definitely fit the trope, & the Home Alone duo were too laughable to be hated. But while Gruber, Hannibal & Fezzik were iconic & every Joker BUT Ledger's should have stayed with Adam West (sorry Mark)... but _likeable_? To quote Diego "I don' think that word mean what you think it does."

[@HoodyBoy85]

So glad to see that Vincent was on the list. Also, Beetlejuice is by far my #1 pick

[@owensuperbot232]

This list is very true, many of them are likeable.

[@johnnyd.5466]

Certainly all of the villains on this list are charismatic, but applying the term "likable" to Frank Costello and Hannibal Lecter really makes me worry about the WatchMojo staff! 😊

[@Leon-oz2ho]

A few missing on this list Darth Vader - Star Wars Kenny 'Pig Vomit' Rushton - Private Parts Jareth The Goblin King - Labyrinth Sheriff of Nottingham - Robin Hood Prince of Thieves Ray 'Bones' Barboni - Get Shorty Thulsa Doom - Conan The Barbarian Dee Bo - Friday Shooter McGavin - Happy Gilmore

[@FannyAdamsGhost]

Hilarity, I clicked to watch to see if Hades would make the list, then the voice says, "No animated ones," But I let it play a minute and he was included, I thought, "Now I HAVE to watch and like."

[@olvialee7221]

384: I see BeetleJuice, I clicked.

[@kaleighcoutermarsh4922]

I have always so loved the dynamic between Castor and Pollux Troy. Pollux is one of my favorite side characters ever. Also, Cyrus the Virus is just brilliant. Con Air is a fantastic movie!

[@abbeymclane6985]

Can you do Top 10 Movie Henchmen Who Receives Instant Karma next

[@David_Theisen]

Pacino in Devil’s Advocate, first off you just thought he was a regular businessman, even after you find out he’s the Devil, he’s still nicely dressed and a well coordinated gentleman!! He was really good at being a deceitful conniving being!!! Should watch it again though! It’s been a while now

[@darrencole97]

I agree that Kevin became the Saw guy.

[@olvialee7221]

387: You misspelled BeetleJuice

[@hiatusinc]

I love that Loki is #1 Good list good list

[@annahilliard4875]

Dr. Evil from Austin Powers is hilarious! Even his henchmen and his clone Mini-Me are great! Dr. Evil will always be one of my favorite movie villains of all time. But there's many more that I also like too.

[@olvialee7221]

389: I will always love Severus Snape

[@adriennemeyer3408]

Watchmojo y'all should do top 10 Alan Rickman roles.

[@eugeniapatroncosta920]

The Joker, Hannibal Lecter and Hans Gruber are my favourites.

[@RFGfotografie]

The Jokes was such an interesting character. Though my fave stays Dr. Freeze in batman.

[@user-gi3pi1yb1t]

SMH... Y'all should've added Denzel Washington for Training Day. That should've been #1. Plain and simple. 💯

[@felipetoledo2569]

Who could ever guess Beetlejuice is the villain without watching the movie

[@olvialee7221]

392: I may not know much of The Silence of the Lambs but I did love Stewie as Hannibal Lector in a Family Guy parody

[@schizoidboy]

The one villain I keep expecting to see on these lists is Professor Fate from The Great Race, play perfectly by Jack Lemon. He's the sort of person we should be hating but we end sympathizing with him instead because he's an utter klutz. Everything he tries he fails at so instead of rooting for the hero we end up relating to the villain. He's like a live action version of Willy E Coyote.

[@jacobdrolet4262]

Lex Luther in superman franchise and Doctor Doom fantastic four 2005 to 2007 version not that terrible version the fantastic four 2015 one. Amazing video watch mojo,marvellous job.

[@maxpowertastic]

The most recent villain on this list was from a 2012 movie. Hollywood just doesn’t write them like they use to.

[@Toledotourbillion]

Michael Shannon's Zod is my favourite villain. He's ruthless but self sacrificing to save his people. The man could stand toe to toe with Cavill's Superman despite his disadvantages.

[@abutalha6220]

Heath Ledger is the greatest villane of all time.GOAT

[@donnalichvarcik5588]

My ultimate favorite likeable villain is the late great beloved angel severus Tobias snape rip our beautiful beloved angel 😇💀🐍💚🤍

[@lesterhale]

I always thought of Beetlejuice as a Hero/anti hero as he just wanted to scare the pants off the Deetz family to get them out of the house. And also, he did save the Maitlands from Othos ritual, whom by the way I do consider the true villain in Beetlejuice.

[@michaelmonthey5974]

Beetlejuice will be back by the end of summer

[@nathieboy1987]

I'm surprised John Travolta's Vincent Vega from Pulp Fiction, Samuel L Jackson's Danny Roman from The Negotiator, Ed Harris' Gen. Francis X. Hummel from The Rock weren't included on this list. At least two of them did the wrong things for the right reasons and one, well.. it was a five dollar shake performance

[@matthewhipps3221]

9:14 - I guess kind of like a world without Red Cow Milk Powder. A few people would notice but overall not a huge loss.

[@raypias8767]

My heart kinda went out to John Kramer in Saw

[@johnseelinger9803]

You left out Darth Vader, he's my favorite character from "Star Wars." Other movie villains that I like that were not on the list include Dark Helmet, Colonel Sandurz, President Skroob, Count Dooku, Thanos, Boba Fett, Kylo Ren, Nebula, The Winter Soldier, Smaug, Sauron, The Phantom of the Opera, and Saruman.

[@lordnightingale7346]

Sad that Betelgeuse didn't score higher in the list

[@scottbakanumba1heathen313]

Pamela Springsteen as Angela in Sleepaway Camp 2 & 3.

[@David_Theisen]

Does Cyrus from Con Air make an appearance in this?? I liked him!! He utilized his knowledge and cunningness to create their escape on that plane!!!

[@CapeRayer23]

i seen someone mentioned Freddy Krueger. No disrespect to the person who mentioned him, but i have to ask this question....What is likeable about Freddy? He was a child killer before the parents burned him alive. He deserved what he got. If any slasher horror villian deserves to be liked, it's Jason Voorhees. He drowned at Camp Crystal Lake...accidentaly! When Jason was killing those camp councelers, i was on Jason's side saying "That's right! get your revenge! F*** them up!" lol. You have to feel bad for Jason. :)

[@David_Theisen]

Have u seen Freddy vs Jason? If not u should because I don’t think his drowning was an accident!

[@hunterolaughlin]

No mention of Bela Lugosi’s Dracula? 😢

[@AndreaDoesYoga]

Love these villains, they're so charming! 😈🎬

[@seanharris37]

Jules Winfield (Samuel L. Jackson) from Pulp Fiction deserves a spot on this list

[@pinkwerewolf]

Where is Freddy Krueger? Not the new one, the 80’s one of course . He was so fun.

[@Catinthehat6969]

She may not be a Movie villain but Azula is so cool u just cant hate her

[@olvialee7221]

385: Captain Barbosa is a fun villain in the Disney canon. I like him better than Davy Jones

[@BlenderStudy]

Thank you for the update, WatchMojo..!! 5:32 "Cy.." "Yonara..!!"

[@KadenJ-ie1ji]

HOW is Davy Jones not on here? He was more likeable than Barbossa because he was just lonely so we sympathized with him.

[@Deanobucko917]

Bram Stoker’s Dracula

[@Spitfirethedragon]

Would Beetlejiuce be disqualified? They did made him into a half hour tv cartoon with the same characters. The tv cartoon also helped soften him up to be loved as well. There are also movie cartoon versions of Peter Pan with Captain Hook. So that one should not be counted either. There are also cartoon versions of Joker as well.

[@RFGfotografie]

Dr. Evil was awesome to. I liked him a lot. But oih well the movies were just perfectto begin with