# Which evil, malicious, despicable characters light up the screen? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [February 7, 2013, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532 "2013-02-07T00:44:48Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/81 "2013-02-08T05:24:34Z")
It’s going back a bit but Robert Mitchum in [The Night of the Hunter (1955)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048424/?ref_=sr_4) had very close to no redeeming qualities. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/82 "2013-02-08T05:30:45Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > It’s going back a bit but Robert Mitchum in [The Night of the Hunter (1955)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048424/?ref_=sr_4) had very close to no redeeming qualities. I agree. Also, Orson Welles got mentioned for _The Third Man_, I also thought he was an excellent villain in _Touch of Evil_. ---
**Author:** ![SecretaryofEvil](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e95f7d/32.png) [@SecretaryofEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SecretaryofEvil)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 5:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/83 "2013-02-08T05:55:19Z")
> [@Nava](#): > > Forgot :smack: that super-nasty DI in GI Jane… later known as Aragorn. Or if you’ll go by what his papers say, Viggo Mortensen. There’s many things I don’t like about that movie but he does a helluva job. He plays the devil in the film The Prophecy. He’s fantastically creepy. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/84 "2013-02-08T06:03:26Z")
I was about to forget the utter malignancy that was Michael Madsen in [Reservoir Dogs (1992)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0105236/?ref_=sr_1) and some other roles where he was at least more than just “heavy.” ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/85 "2013-02-08T06:26:23Z")
> [@SecretaryofEvil](#): > > He plays the devil in the film The Prophecy. He’s fantastically creepy. Speaking of the devil, Peter Stormare in _Constantine_. Not on screen a lot, but gets the job done. https://www.youtube.com/embed/7rVFse1LLQs?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/86 "2013-02-08T06:28:25Z")
Huh, the scene is cut short. You get the idea, though. ---
**Author:** ![chacoguy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/50afbb/32.png) [@chacoguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chacoguy)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/87 "2013-02-08T06:45:23Z")
Sideshow Bob. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 6:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/88 "2013-02-08T06:47:59Z")
> [@ExTank](#): > > Gary Oldman as [corrupt/psychotic DEA Agent Norman Stansfield](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74BzSTQCl_c) in _Leon_ And Gary Oldman as Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg in _The Fifth Element_. ---
**Author:** ![rjk](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ed655f/32.png) [@rjk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rjk)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/89 "2013-02-08T08:00:37Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > It’s going back a bit but Robert Mitchum in [The Night of the Hunter (1955)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048424/?ref_=sr_4) had very close to no redeeming qualities. My first thought was Max Cady in [Cape Fear (1962)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055824/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2). ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/90 "2013-02-08T10:23:07Z")
**Cate Blanchett** was good as an evil government operative in **Hanna**. **Nicholson** was enjoyably wicked in **The Departed**. **Patrick McGoohan** as Longshanks in **Braveheart**. **Wes Studi** as Magua in **Last of the Mohicans**. ---
**Author:** ![StJoan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/bc79bd/32.png) [@StJoan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StJoan)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 10:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/91 "2013-02-08T10:37:57Z")
Heath Ledger as the Joker in The dark Knight. ---
**Author:** ![Banksiaman](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/banksiaman/32/3334_2.png) [@Banksiaman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Banksiaman)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 11:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/92 "2013-02-08T11:17:19Z")
Agnes Skinner in the Simpsons. Breathtakingly apalling! ---
**Author:** ![Gyrate](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gyrate/32/3588_2.png) [@Gyrate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gyrate)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 12:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/93 "2013-02-08T12:39:37Z")
> [@Lasciel](#): > > Have to say that Hiddleston portraying Loki positively nails that mad balance between egomania, desperate vulnerable narcissism, and casual (but purposeful) cruelty that makes up a nice \*quality \*psychopath. Delightful to watch. I agree. I expected a fluffy rock-'em-sock-'em movie from _Thor_; Hiddlestone gave it a whole other dimension in his complex portrayal of Loki. > [@tdn](#): > > Vincent D’Onofrio in _The Taking of Pelham 123_. Far more chilling than either Travolta or Shaw. > [@AuntiePam](#): > > He was also good as The Bug in the first _Men in Black_ movie. 😃 And as Carl Stargher in _The Cell_. Not to mention his last scenes in _Full Metal Jacket_. Seriously, D’Onofrio does creepy really, really well. OTOH if you like your villains campy and with snappy putdowns, you can’t do better than Jane Lynch’s Sue Sylvester. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 2:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/94 "2013-02-08T14:44:11Z")
> [@Zeldar](#): > > It’s going back a bit but Robert Mitchum in [The Night of the Hunter (1955)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048424/?ref_=sr_4) had very close to no redeeming qualities. Good choice. ---
**Author:** ![Tara57](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@Tara57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tara57)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/95 "2013-02-08T15:16:28Z")
J.R. Ewing steals every scene. I was enjoying the new episodes of Dallas, but I can’t watch it without J.R. ---
**Author:** ![Skammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skammer/32/143_2.png) [@Skammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skammer)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/96 "2013-02-08T15:36:31Z")
> [@Tara57](#): > > J.R. Ewing steals every scene. I was enjoying the new episodes of Dallas, but I can’t watch it without J.R. Damn, I read the whole thread ready to say this and it was in the very last post. ---
**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/97 "2013-02-08T16:01:46Z")
Another two votes for Ian McKellan and Alan Rickman in, well, just about _anything_. McKellan and Patrick Stewart between them brought a level of subtlety and nuance to the X-Men movies that I don’t associate with big-budget action flicks. As for Rickman, whenever he’s on the screen, I can’t take my eyes off him. Someone mentioned “Q”, from _Star Trek: The Next Generation_. That’s John DeLancie, and he’s great in everything I’ve seen him in. Including a stint as an eccentric inventor on … Oh hell, I can’t remember the soap opera he was on in the '80s. _Days Of Our Lives_, I think. Also got to mention Malcolm McDowell in _A Clockwork Orange_. He and Helen Mirren made _Caligula_ almost watchable. Almost. Going back a bit, how about Peter O’Toole as Henry II in _Beckett_ and _Lion In Winter_? > [@AuntiePam](#): > > I just finished watching that. 😃 Was he evil or just unbalanced? He seemed so vulnerable. You couldn’t help but like him. That’s what makes a good villain - you empathize with him or her. > [@Left\_Hand\_of\_Dorkness](#): > > In the second season of Justified, Maggs was a tremendous villain: this obese grandmotherly hillbilly, speaks softly, and when you get on her bad side HOLY SHIT. One of the things I love about that show is how compelling the villains are–even dumbshits like Dicky are great fun to watch. If you dig around in _Fresh Air_’s archives, you can find a good interview with that actress from last fall. ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/98 "2013-02-08T19:48:02Z")
> [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](#): > > Someone mentioned “Q”, from _Star Trek: The Next Generation_. That’s John DeLancie, and he’s great in everything I’ve seen him in. Including a stint as an eccentric inventor on … Oh hell, I can’t remember the soap opera he was on in the '80s. _Days Of Our Lives_, I think. Yes, it was _Days of Our Lives_. He played Eugene, and IIRC, he was suspected of being a murderer at one point because he knew stuff supposedly only the murderer would know, but he was sort of psychic. My picks: Gollum from LOTR. The Master (especially the guy who played him during David Tennant’s run) and Davros from _Doctor Who._ Gaston from Disney’s _Beauty and the Beast_. Joey Herrick from _The Practice_ (on TV). John Larroquette was great. I wanted him to face off against Alan Shore (two guys with no ethics, one good, one evil), but when they brought John Larroquette onto _Boston Legal_, he was a different character. What a waste. Spike and Drusilla (during their first few seasons) and Sunday, the Gentlemen, and the Master on _Buffy the Vampire Slayer_. Lindsey on _Angel._ ---
**Author:** ![gigi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a587f6/32.png) [@gigi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gigi)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/99 "2013-02-08T20:01:31Z")
> [@rjk](#): > > My first thought was Max Cady in [Cape Fear (1962)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055824/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2). I just saw that version but still think Robert DeNiro in the remake would be my choice for this thread. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [February 8, 2013, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532/100 "2013-02-08T20:10:21Z")
When I try to envision a character like we’re trying to identify, I try to think of one whose demise was pleasurable to the point of ecstasy. In that regard, even though Vittorio Gassman was more evil, it was joyous seeing Henry Silva being shot to pieces as he was falling out of that Atlanta high-rise in _Sharky’s Machine_ (I am reluctant to say that that movies is one of the very few I own on DVD.) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532.md?page=4) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/which-evil-malicious-despicable-characters-light-up-the-screen/649532.md?page=6)