Truly evil characters in film and literature

[Imago]

All of the Greek gods in Dan Simmon’s Ilium, by a landslide.

Maybe Loveless in William Gibson’s Virtual Light. We don’t really see enough of him to know.

Chet in M. T. Anderson’s Thirsty.

A slew of characters from any of the classic dystopias (Nineteen Eight-Four et al).

Most everyone in The Jew of Malta.

While he didn’t kill or rape anyone, I utterly hated Malvolio from Twelfth Night.

Moongirl and Harrow from The Darkest Evening of the Year by Dean Koontz.

That fellow who raped the female lead in the 300 movie.

Wednesday in Neil Gaiman’s brilliant American Gods.

The father in the movie Precious, and in my opinion the mother too.

Goet in Schindler’s List.

Not technically a movie, but a lot of the unsubs in Criminal Minds.

If we can include comics, I think both Lucifer and Morgana (and perhaps more?) in Dracula vs. King Arthur. And if we can include webcomics:

Karnak, Helixia, Lady Loxo and perhaps Jacob from Dominic Deegan: Oracle for Hire.

Drip from Jack.

Mordred in The Wizard of Quippley.

Tristan and Poltergeist from Ragdoll.

[gallows_fodder]

@MacCat

That’s the one I was looking for and saw rachelellogram did on page 2.

In reading all, Sampiro’s post reminded me of Shelley Winters truly evil character in A Patch Of Blue.

The mention of Shelley Winters reminded me of another villain in a Shelley Winters movie: the Reverend Harry Powell in The Night of the Hunter. And, huh, I didn’t realize he was based on a real person, Harry Powers, who murdered two widows and three children and was hanged for it.

Harry Powell/Robert Mitchum is terrifying in the film, but I can never help laughing at the moment when he’s watching a burlesque act and glowering at the brazen hussy on stage, and he flicks open his switchblade through his pocket.

And then of course: “There are too many of them. Can’t kill the world.”

[Malthus]

@BrainGlutton

Tony’s mother is cold and selfish and manipulative and not someone you’d want to be around – Tony’s shrink, based purely on his descriptions, diagnoses her with Borderline Personality Disorder – but she’s not actively malicious or scheming. She has nothing of Empress Livia’s brains or determination.

In Empress Livia’s case, she seems to be absolutely convinced everything she does is for the Greater Good. The Empire is better than the Republic – look how the Republic ended! – and Tiberius (about whom Livia has no illusions, and for whom little affection) is better suited to keep it going than Agrippa or Marcellus or any of Augustus’ other favorites. In the book, Claudius (who knows the worst about her) considers it entirely appropriate that she should be made a goddess. It makes a kind of sense – she lived and planned on such a godlike plane.

I agree that she’s utterly without concience rather than actively sadistic, but I think much of her “greater good” talk (when she finally comes clean to Claudius near the end of her life) was self-serving justification - what she really wanted was not the greater good, but to ensure that her line takes the throne. She has zero respect or liking for Tiberius, but he is her child, so she manuvers and murders to ensure he takes the throne.

[MegaBee]

@Lucky_13

Sousuke Aizen in Bleach. He acts like a nice guy until his whole evil scheme is discovered. He fakes his own death and frames his lieutenant for it, knowing she is in love with him and breaking her heart. He also allows Rukia to be condemned to execution, aware that she carries the Hogyoku, takes it from her as her friends help her escape, and runs away to take over Hueco Mundo. Later he takes Orihime prisoner by having Ulquiorra emotionally blackmail her into coming to Las Noches, so that her friends will rescue her; he’s aware of her emotional vulnerability and knows her feelings of guilt at seeing her friends sacrifice for her will break her.

BTW I haven’t read or seen the “Turn back the Pendulum” arc. If anyone here has, please answer: Did Aizen have a hand in the exile of Urahara and Yoruichi? Also, did he sell Shinji (then his captain in the 5th division) out? I don’t know, but I suspect he had something to do with the creation and exile of the Vizards (Visoreds? That sounds wrong).

The answer to all of your questions is yes.

[The_Peyote_Coyote]

Mr. Ripley from The Talented Mr. Ripley.
Murdstone and his sister from David Copperfield. I found them much more chilling and repellant than Uriah Heep, who was merely a hypocrite and a thief.

[Sitnam]

@rachelellogram

Nurse Ratched

This.

While reading these I tried to think of someone worse than Archibald Cunningham, but now I’m trying to think of someone worse than Ratched.

[Gedd]

@Autolycus

Maleficent from Sleeping Beauty, as long as you ignore her momentary acts of relative altruism in Kingdom Hearts II.

(I stick with the movie). She wanted to kill a baby because she wasn’t invited to the party.

Evil.

I would also say Amon Goeth in Schindler’s List, but the said reality is that he wasn’t made up.

[Malthus]

How about the Kurgan from Highlander?

[Sampiro]

@Sitnam

This.

While reading these I tried to think of someone worse than Archibald Cunningham, but now I’m trying to think of someone worse than Ratched.

Kirk Douglas said in an interview that when he was playing McMurphy on Broadway he actually wanted his character to rape her when he attacks her toward the end, and for Ratched to enjoy it. I can only imagine the (completely justifiable) outcry this would have brought about, but- per Kirk- “it felt right”. He believed there was sexual chemistry between the two.

Speaking of the already mentioned Max Cady from Cape Fear, I saw the remake first and the original years later and couldn’t believe how much scarier Mitchum was than DeNiro. This with Night of the Hunter cements him as one of the great villain players of all time.

[Sitnam]

@Sampiro

Kirk Douglas said in an interview that when he was playing McMurphy on Broadway he actually wanted his character to rape her when he attacks her toward the end, and for Ratched to enjoy it. I can only imagine the (completely justifiable) outcry this would have brought about, but- per Kirk- “it felt right”. He believed there was sexual chemistry between the two.

:dubious: Hate-fucking the most sinister character in all of fiction history might ‘feel right’ but it would have destroyed her mystique of terror.

In that setting, in a mental ward, she has complete power and authority, she knows it and uses it ruthlessly. THAT is why she terrifying. Your life and mental cognition are perpetually at the sadistic whim of a control freak with unlimited power.

That she exerts her power with impunity over those that can leave at any time makes it even more perverse.

Kirk could hardly have been more wrong.

[Typo_Knig]

I remembered another one - not as genocidal as most of these, but Police Chief Dudley Smith from LA Confidential was PF evil. In a movie full of “bad guy” actors, James Cromwell stood out as a bad guy. I can’t believe the same actor who played Farmer Hoggett in Babe could also play Chief Dudley. Dudley’s eyes were COLD.
Rolo Thomassi

[Maiira]

I’m a bit surprised no one’s mentioned Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter. Voldemort was a pretty fucked-up individual, but you could see the factors that led to his madness. Umbridge was just a snake, pure and simple. There’s no indication that she was just following orders–someone (I think it was on TVTropes, but I can’t remember) suggested that she could produce a decent patronus in the Ministry courtroom at the muggle-born trials because THAT was something she derived happiness from. She was exactly where she wanted to be. A truly chilling thought.

Voldemort was someone I loved to hate. But Umbridge? I just hated her.