Certain characters in film and television have earned a special place in our hearts—for all the wrong reasons. Whether driven by greed, cruelty, narcissism, or pure evil, these characters evoke strong emotions. Here, we explore the most reviled characters in entertainment history and what makes them so universally despised.
Joffrey Baratheon (Game of Thrones)
At the top of many people’s lists, Joffrey is the sadistic and cruel puppet king of the Seven Kingdoms. He enjoys inflicting pain and tormenting others, especially those he considers weaker than him. His arrogance, impulsiveness, and cruel disregard for human life make him widely despised by viewers and other characters in the show.
Dolores Umbridge (Harry Potter)
Umbridge is a Ministry of Magic official who becomes Hogwarts’ Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. She is known for her authoritarian and cruel methods, including lengthy detentions, oppressive rules, and even torturing students. She is outwardly sweet-natured, which makes her true ruthlessness even more loathsome.
Ramsay Bolton (Game of Thrones)
Ramsay is a sadistic and depraved nobleman known for his brutal treatment of others, including his own family. He loves to torture, kill, and rape, and delights in psychological manipulation. After Joffrey, he is probably the most hated character in Game of Thrones.
Percy Wetmore (The Green Mile)
Percy is an outwardly quiet yet power-hungry correctional officer. He delights in tormenting inmates, especially the gentle giant John Coffey. His cruelty and lack of empathy make him a viscerally hated figure among both the other guards and the audience.
Nurse Ratched (One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest)
Nurse Ratched is the cold and manipulative head nurse at a mental institution. She keeps control over her patients through withholding medication, intimidation, and other mind games and humiliates them into doing her bidding. Louise Fletcher won the Best Actress Oscar for her portrayal in the 1975 film adaptation.
Hannibal Lecter (The Silence of the Lambs)
Hannibal Lecter is a genius but also a psychopath and serial killer. He enjoys taunting and manipulating those around him—and eating them. His manipulative nature and penchant for cannibalism make him a terrifying character. Anthony Hopkins won the Best Actor Oscar for portraying him. Hannibal Lecter takes the top spot in the American Film Institute’s 100 Greatest Villains.
Regina George (Mean Girls)
Maybe not quite in the same league as Hannibal Lecter; Regina is the popular and manipulative leader of a high school clique known as The Plastics. She is cruel and narcissistic and is willing to destroy the lives of anyone to maintain her social status.
Alex DeLarge (A Clockwork Orange)
Malcolm McDowell plays Alex, the sociopathic narrator of A Clockwork Orange, directed by Stanley Kubrick and based on the novel of the same name by Anthony Burgess. Alex leads a gang of delinquents in acts of extreme violence and depravity, robbing, raping, and assaulting innocent people for their own amusement.
Gordon Gekko (Wall Street)
Gordon Gekko is a ruthless and greedy Wall Street trader who embodies the excesses of the 1980s financial world. His mantra, Greed is Good, and his willingness to exploit others for his own gain make him a symbol of corporate greed and, unsurprisingly, earn him widespread contempt.
Scar (The Lion King)
Scar, the jealous brother of King Mufasa, plots to usurp the throne of the Pride Lands. His treachery, which culminates in the murder of Mufasa and the manipulation of true heir Simba, makes him a hated villain in The Lion King.
Annie Wilkes (Misery)
Based on Stephen King’s novel and played by Kathy Bates, who won a Best Actress Oscar, Annie Wilkes is a psychotic and obsessive fan who rescues her favorite author from a car accident. However, when she discovers he plans to kill off the heroine in her favorite novel series, Wilkes holds him captive and subjects him to torture and manipulation.
Hans Landa (Inglorious Basterds)
Hans Landa is a charming and well-mannered but sadistically evil SS officer, played by Christoph Waltz in his breakout role (for which he received the Best Supporting Actor Oscar). He is one of the most memorable villains in all of film.
Commodus (Gladiator)
Commodus is the corrupt and power-hungry Roman Emperor who murders his father to seize the throne. He is narcissistic, treacherous, and willing to sacrifice anyone who stands in his way.
Mr. Potter (It’s a Wonderful Life)
Not the most famous Mr. Potter in the world, this villain is despised for his greed, manipulation, and lack of empathy. He is willing to do anything to get rich, no matter who he hurts. Mr. Potter is number 6 on the American Film Institute’s 100 Greatest Villains list.
The Wicked Witch of the West (The Wizard of Oz)
The Wicked Witch of the West, her of the green face, is obsessed with harming Dorothy, her unfortunate cursed friends, and (worst of all) her little dog too. She represents evil incarnate and has a fleet of flying monkeys.
Anton Chigurh (No Country for Old Men)
This deadpan hitman is ruthless and enigmatic. He perpetrates random acts of violence with a cattle stun gun. Combined with his nihilism and quiet intensity, Chigurh is a cold-hearted monster. Javier Bardem won the Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his portrayal.
Hans Gruber (Die Hard)
Hans Gruber is one of the most iconic villains in cinema history. Played by Alan Rickman in his breakout role, Gruber is a cold and calculating terrorist mastermind.
Bellatrix Lestrange (Harry Potter)
Despised for her fanatical loyalty to Voldemort, Belatrix was known for her maniacal laugh, playful persona, and sadistic enjoyment of causing pain and suffering. She is responsible for the deaths of several beloved characters in the series.
Amy Elliot-Dunne (Gone Girl)
Amy is a creative, manipulative sociopath who orchestrates an elaborate scheme to frame her husband, Nick, for her murder as punishment for his infidelity.
Cruella de Vil (101 Dalmatians)
With her iconic black-and-white hair and fur coat, Cruella de Vil is single-minded in her pursuit of vanity and luxury. Her ruthless quest to make a coat out of the fur of Dalmatian puppies makes her one of Disney’s most detestable villains.
The Emperor (Star Wars)
The Emperor is a tyrant who orchestrated the fall of the Jedi Order and the rise of Darth Vader. His thirst for power, cruelty, and willingness to sacrifice countless lives to maintain his control make him one of the most despised villains in cinematic history.
