For my tradition today I’ve decided to do something special inspired by @storytellerwes2 on Twitter. Today I want to share my top 20 favorite villains in all of fiction which includes movies, video games, and shows. These villains were chosen of how well written and well performed they are. There are some rules, only one villain per franchise, channel, and studio. Also, no real-life people like Rameses or Hitler. Last rule, this is based on my personal opinion.

Honorable Mentions: Pegasus from Yugioh, The Hacker from Cyberchase, The Fairy Godmother from Shrek 2, Syndrome from The Incredibles, Glados from Portal, Bill Cipher from Gravity Falls, Daly from Black Mirror, and all three villains from Puss in Boots The Last Wish.

20.The Narrator from The Stanley Parable:

It’s debatable whether he’s a villain or not but he does share a trait a lot of my favorite villains have which is having control over people. He’s kind of like a male version of Glados from Portal and what makes him so entertaining is Kevan Brighting’s witty performance.

19.Jobu Tupaki from Everything Everywhere All at Once:

She has all the power and knowledge of every dimension and yet because of that she feels nothing. This makes her the perfect embodiment of nihilism. Stephanie Hsu gives such a playful but also tragic performance and her hallway fight scene is both awesome and hilarious.

18.Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean:

This guy is why Dead Men’s Chest is my favorite Pirates of the Caribbean film. I love everything about this villain’s aesthetic. I love the design of him, his crew, and his ship. The Oscar winning visual effects and Bill Nighty’s acting make him one of the most unique pirates in fiction.

17.Thrax from Osmosis Jones:

Osmosis Jones is such an underrated film with such an intimidating villain. Something about a virus trying to break his record by killing his victims faster is disturbing and Laurence Fishburne gives such a threatening performance. This virus would make Covid look like the sniffles.

16.Raoul Silva from Skyfall:

Skyfall is my favorite James Bond film. It has my favorite James Bond Daniel Craig, my favorite title song from Adele, and of course my favorite villain. Sure, he’s similar to Alec from Goldeneye but his goal on destroying M makes him more threatening and more of a personal foe.

15.Chef Slowik from The Menu:

Ralph Fiennes has played many great villains such as Amon Goeth, Rameses and Voldemort but my favorite villain that he’s played is Chef Slowik. He’s also the most grounded villain Ralph Fiennes has played since his motivations are understandable. He is what happens when the passion is sucked out of us and all it took to remind him of his love of cooking is a cheeseburger.

14.General Tsao from Sly 3:

The Sly Cooper series has a lot of great villains so I had trouble choosing who would represent. I settled on Tsao because he works as a great foil for both Sly and the Panda King. The way he treats Panda King’s daughter and his legacy makes it so satisfying to see him get his just desserts. Why are the worst people in this series birds?

13.Darth Vader from Star Wars:

I know it’s predictable to put him here but he is one of the most famous for obvious reasons. The “I am your Father” twist yes is overused but it’s a great twist that really changes your look on this villain. There are also recent scenes like the endings of Rogue One and Jedi Fallen Order are that reminded us how threatening he used to be.

12.Xigbar from Kingdom Hearts:

Xigbar was really cool in KH2 thanks to his laid-back attitude, but his role afterwards was made him even more interesting. While he was Xahanort’s right-hand man it felt like he also had a secret agenda and was pulling the string from behind the scenes as seen in the post credit scene in KH3. I’m really looking forward to see what the series does with him.

11.Flowey from Undertale:

Just the idea of a “cute” talking flower being a villain is brilliant. What’s neat about him is that depending on what route you play Flowey can either be an irredeemable monster or a tragic villain. Whichever route you decide to play Flowey is a creepy, funny and interesting villain.

10.Azula from Avatar:

Azula is like that fly that’s impossible to kill…who can also shoot lightning. Her manipulative behavior is why this is Grey Griffin’s best role. She has one of the greatest villainous breakdowns that would put any Ace Attorney villain to shame and her defeat in the finale is one of the saddest I’ve ever seen.

9.King Andrias from Amphibia:

Twist villains are usually hated especially ones from Disney, King Andrias however is probably my favorite “twist villain” of all time. The twist was properly foreshadowed, and it didn’t come out of nowhere. Once he’s revealed Andrias has such a blast being so despicable. Keith David really nails Disney villains that involve frogs.  

8.Judge Doom from Who Framed Roger Rabbit:

Was it so obvious that he was the villain? Yes! But the reveal that he not only is a toon but also the one that killed Eddie Valient’s brother is the stuff of nightmares. The idea of a toon wanting to murder toons is messed up and Cristopher Lloyd gives such a creepy performance.

7.Dolores Umbridge from Harry Potter:

Any villain that manages to scare Stephen King deserves to be on this list. Imelda Staunton’s performance makes her one of those villains you absolutely love to despise. I don’t think there has ever been a villain I hated more than her. It’s crazy how she manages to make Lord Voldemort more likable compared to her.

6.The Devil from Cuphead:

My favorite version of the prince of evil himself. He’s cool in the game but his Netflix counterpart is even better. Probably the funniest villain on this list thanks to his old school character design, fluid animation, and Luke Millington-Drake’s amazing voice acting. I really can’t imagine anyone else playing him.

5.Hopper from A Bug’s Life:

I had trouble deciding between Hopper or Syndrome (one villain per animation studio). I went with Hopper since as a kid he was the most terrifying villain to me and not just because he’s played from Kevin Spacey. His most powerful weapon isn’t strength, it’s fear which he uses to keep the ants in line because he knows they can overpower him.

4.Thanos from the MCU:

So much buildup to this villain that wonderfully paid off. I love how even though he’s the “greater scope villain” of the MCU, he’s not the evilest or even the most powerful villain. His motivations and goals were surprisingly understandable and will make sacrifices for the “greater good” even if it hurts him.

3.Slade from Teen Titans:

People say Joker (Heath Ledger especially) is the best DC villain because of how mysterious he is but DC already pulled it off with Slade. I love that they turned this assassin into a manipulative mastermind thanks to Ron Perlman’s chilling performance. Also, can we all agree that Slade is a much cooler name than Deathstroke.

2.Lord Shen from Kung Fu Panda 2:

I love sequels that introduce a more personal foe to the main protagonist and Lord Shen perfectly checks off every box. Sure, Tai Lung was a good villain but he didn’t have any ties with Po unlike Shen. I love everything about this villain such as his unique design, his dark backstory, and Gary Oldman’s performance.

1.Judge Frollo from The Hunchback of Notre Dame:

It wasn’t a hard decision to make. What makes him so intimidating is that let’s face it, there are people like him in real life. I’ve always felt uncomfortable about bigots and overly religious zealots and Frollo embodies all of these types of people. Tony Jay was made for this role and his villain song Hellfire is one of if not the best villain song of all time. All this is why Frollo is my favorite villain of all time.