# What's the best screen portrayal of the Devil? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** actor-characters\ **Created:** [September 26, 2022, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235 "2022-09-26T03:56:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 3:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/101 "2022-09-30T03:50:15Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I like the interpretation that he’s an avatar of HP Lovecraft’s Nyarlathotep. That’s an excellent connection that never occurred to me. ---
**Author:** ![Peter\_Morris](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peter_morris/32/359_2.png) [@Peter\_Morris](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peter_Morris)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 4:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/102 "2022-09-30T04:27:16Z")
[![](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/0BA_8cwdvjA/hqdefault.jpg "Rowan Atkinson (1992) - I'm A Devil.Good Evening!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BA_8cwdvjA) ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/103 "2022-09-30T05:35:42Z")
I also prefer a Man of wealth and Taste, who holds a general’s rank as opposed to always chaotic evil. My first choices have been named, but I’ll drop a couple of more obscure references here. ABC movie of the week from the '70s [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/kazUHWjZ-p0/hqdefault.jpg "Satan's Triangle Part 7/7 scariest fooking movie ever!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kazUHWjZ-p0) **Don’t Temp Me(No News from God)**, Where they speak French in heaven, Spanish on earth, and English in hell. [![]( " - YouTube") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a8DNOaAifkE) ---
**Author:** ![outlierrn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/outlierrn/32/3005_2.png) [@outlierrn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/outlierrn)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 6:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/104 "2022-09-30T06:05:17Z")
Keeping in the obscure, there’s also **Book of Life**. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/LWDlSOp_FIA/hqdefault.jpg "The Book of Life—Hal Hartley") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LWDlSOp_FIA) ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 6:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/105 "2022-09-30T06:51:17Z")
James Coco in the 1987 movie “Hunk”. Ha! I’ll bet few of you remember that, ahem, hunk of shit of a flick! ---
**Author:** ![Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/face_intentionally_left_blank/32/288_2.png) [@Face\_Intentionally\_Left\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Face_Intentionally_Left_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 7:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/106 "2022-09-30T07:52:25Z")
A disturbing lack of disturbing pictures and video in this thread. I’ll echo comments upthread - Tim Curry as ‘Darkness’ in Legend. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/A9KjjvZE0Lo/maxresdefault.jpg "Legend (8/11) Movie CLIP - I Want to Kill the Unicorn (1985) HD") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A9KjjvZE0Lo) ---
**Author:** ![Knowed\_Out](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/knowed_out/32/7380_2.png) [@Knowed\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Knowed_Out)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 10:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/107 "2022-09-30T10:58:23Z")
Leave us not forget Danny DeVito voicing the Devil in _Little Demon_, mainly because Aubrey Plaza voices his dangerously insane ex-wife. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/2vN8GpnNpDw/maxresdefault.jpg "Danny DeVito is a father from hell in 'Little Demon'") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vN8GpnNpDw) ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/108 "2022-09-30T12:32:44Z")
Considering what’s happened with him since he made **The Devil and Max Devlin** in1981, Bill Cosby might be particularly appropriate [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/kVr91ra1Tn4/hqdefault.jpg "The Devil and Max Devlin 1981 TV trailer") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVr91ra1Tn4) ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/109 "2022-09-30T17:18:38Z")
I mentioned the thread to my wife, and she suggested an honorable mention for the Robot Devil from Futurama. In a setting where we can argue whether the character is the ‘real’ devil for various definitions of real, this one is obviously artificial, but still comes with most of the perks and flaws attributed to the real thing, and does it with style and panache (and musical numbers!) The classic musical intro - [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/7RswZkSrAQE/maxresdefault.jpg "Robot Hell - A Song & Dance Routine from Futurama") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7RswZkSrAQE) ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [September 30, 2022, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235/110 "2022-09-30T20:07:57Z")
> [@Guest-starring\_Id](#): > > The coital cameo in “Rosemary’s Baby”. Good pick! This has to be the winner. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-best-screen-portrayal-of-the-devil/972235.md?page=5)