Why do we hate villains? The answer seems obvious at first glance: We hate villains because they’re the bad guys. Villains are created as antagonists, to challenge the heroes and drive conflict forward. Without them, there would be no conflict.
Villains come in many forms, from dark wizards to high school bullies. These forms often overlap to create new, interesting dynamics between villains and their heroic counterparts. A villain may have a tragic backstory or realistic motivations to generate audience sympathy; on the other hand, a villain might be extra vile to make the audience root against them. It would make sense that the most morally reprehensible villain would be the most hated. But is this always the case?
Most franchises have a “big bad,” a villain who serves as the chief antagonist throughout the story. Popular examples include Lord Voldemort (Ralph Fiennes, “The Menu”) from “Harry Potter,” Emperor Palpatine (Ian McDiarmid, “The Lost City of Z”) from “Star Wars” and Thanos (Josh Brolin, “Dune: Part Two”) from the Marvel Cinematic Universe. These villains are just as iconic as their respective heroes and recognizable even to casual moviegoers. Establishing an overarching villain raises the stakes and keeps viewers engaged (presumably to witness their downfall).
Big bads pose a looming threat to the worlds they inhabit. Thanos wants to wipe out half of humanity. Palpatine wants to rule the galaxy. These goals are no small feats, requiring immense power to accomplish. Recurring villains often grow in power as the story progresses, increasing the scope of their destruction to match. Hatred for these villains stems from their acts of mass destruction.
While the primary villains pose the largest threat to the heroes, they are usually distanced from the story. To lay the foundation for an epic finale, the villain must be shown throughout the narrative but saved for an ultimate confrontation at the end. It takes Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe, “Miracle Workers) eight films to defeat Voldemort. In the MCU, Thanos was teased in two post-credit scenes before his debut as the main antagonist of “Avengers: Infinity War.” While these villains loom over the story as future threats, protagonists are often faced with smaller villains.
Secondary antagonists are crucial to any franchise. If there had been only one villain to defeat, the conflict would quickly grow stale. These villains drive growth in the heroes by creating smaller hurdles for them to overcome. They occupy less space in the narrative as a whole, but their threats are more active and personal. Take Dolores Umbridge (Imelda Staunton, “The Crown”) from “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” an employee of the Ministry of Magic who began working at Hogwarts due to concerns about headmaster Albus Dumbledore (Michael Gambon, “The King’s Speech”). Umbridge is extremely strict with her students, setting harsh rules and even harsher punishments. She targets Harry specifically, magically etching “I must not tell lies” into his hand as a punishment for speaking out.
Although we don’t see much of Voldemort throughout “Order of the Phoenix,” the audience spends plenty of time with Umbridge and her antics. Her villainous acts are more personal, typically aimed at Harry and his friends. She may not be as morally reprehensible as Voldemort, but she is far more hated by audiences — lists of the worst “Harry Potter” characters often place Umbridge in the top spot, outranking countless Death Eaters, mass murderers and the big bad himself. Her crimes are less heinous but much more salient to audiences, leaving her as one of the most despised villains to date.
We hate villains that mirror our reality the closest. Most people don’t know a dark wizard obsessed with conquering the world, but they do know an awful teacher on a power trip. Large-scale violence against nameless victims doesn’t hold the same emotional weight as the abuse of a few lovable characters. Putting realistic characters into realistic situations adds a layer of relatability, which prompts greater attachment. Once an audience is connected to a character, their struggles become more personal — like watching a close friend suffer. When the villain is the cause of that suffering, it becomes much easier to turn our anger towards them. Realism is what makes villains like Umbridge so detested. Still, there is more to audience hatred than realistic portrayal.
It would be a crime to talk about villains without discussing one of the most hated characters in television history: Joffrey Baratheon (Jack Gleeson, “In the Land of Saints and Sinners”) from “Game of Thrones.” Joffrey isn’t the primary antagonist of the series, but he is certainly the most loathsome. A ruthless tyrant, Joffrey commits countless acts of cruelty during his time on the Iron Throne. He calls for the execution of Eddard Stark (Sean Bean, “The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring”), brutally abuses his wife Sansa (Sophie Turner, “X-Men: Apocalypse”) and regularly tortures people for his amusement.
If we hate the most realistic villains, why does Joffrey Baratheon reign as one of the most hated characters in television history? Most viewers don’t know a tyrannical king. Well, he may be more realistic than audiences initially think. Joffrey acts out whenever his power is questioned, and the suffering he inflicts is typically targeted at specific people like Sansa. Furthermore, while his actions are extremely cruel on their own, Joffrey’s sniveling, entitled personality cements the audience’s hatred. Joffrey is a spoiled brat undeserving of his power, a relevant fact whenever he is on screen. While other leaders rule based on strategy, Joffrey rules by his whims, which gets him into messes that those around him must clean up. Audiences hate Joffrey not only for his actions but also for his abhorrent personality. He abuses the power he doesn’t deserve in the first place and allows his arrogance to cloud his judgment. Most people can think of someone in their life who is entitled, and Joffrey Baratheon takes his entitlement up by 100 notches.
So, what kind of villain do audiences hate most? There is no one answer; a combination of realism, scale of action and personality can determine how hated a villain is. Big bads have time to grow their power and establish themselves as a threat, while secondary villains must make an impact with their limited time. This leads to more personal conflict with the protagonists, creating stakes that are physically smaller but emotionally stronger.
There will always be exceptions to these rules. Great villains come in many forms, and audience reception differs for every character. A villain’s quality isn’t determined solely by how hated they are, just as their likeability isn’t determined solely by their actions. As we continue to engage with media, it is important to realize where our hatred is directed and why. If we ignore the bigger picture in favor of pesky details, what issues are we really missing?
Daily Arts Writer Morgan Sieradski can be reached at kmsier@umich.edu.