Top Ten Tuesday: Greatest Villains Of All-Time

The people have spoken, and they have named the Joker the greatest villain of all-time in the #WhiteWolfVillainBracket. The Joker won by taking 61% of the vote over Darth Vader, and it comes a year after his nemesis Batman won the #WhiteWolfHeroBracket with 56% of the vote over Luke Skywalker. So the Joker will take the top spot on this week’s Top Ten Tuesday listing the best villains of all-time, but which other villains make the list? [NOTE: There are some spoilers for the villains, so just skip over anyone you do not want to get spoiled about.]

 

10. Hans Gruber

 

 

Considered by many to be the greatest movie villain of all-time, Hans Gruber is the perfect adversary for John McClane in Die Hard. The German terrorist had a flawless plan to take over the Nakatomi Plaza on Christmas Eve, and he and his crew would have gotten away with it if not for the unforeseen heroics of McClane. Gruber was not only calculating, but also cold-blooded—as evidenced by him executing two men without even flinching.

 

 

9. Michael Corleone

 

 

It is also easy to see Michael Corleone as a hero, as he did unselfish things like volunteering to fight in the war for his country and being forced to flee to Italy after killing Virgil Sollozzo and Captain McCluskey. He was forced to take over the family business even if he didn’t want to. However, it’s difficult to look past the cold-bloodedness of some of the things Michael did—none more so than killing his own brother Fredo.

 

 

8. Littlefinger

 

 

Among all the great villains in history, they probably don’t get much more cunning than Lord Petyr Baelish. Littlefinger was a genius and a ruthless master manipulator, and he played “the game” better than anyone in Westeros, which is a lot of what Game of Thrones is all about. Without Littlefinger’s devious meddling, the events that set off the War of the Five Kings would not have occurred, so he caused a lot of harm both directly and indirectly.

 

 

7. Cersei Lannister

 

 

If there is anyone in Westeros better at playing the game than Littlefinger, it’s Cersei Lannister. The Game of Thrones scene between Cersei and Littlefinger, where Cersei had the memorable “power is power” quote was a perfect display of why she should not be crossed. The daughter of the powerful and callous Tywin Lannister learned a lot and took a lot after her father, and it shows. Cersei might not be truly evil, but she will do her best to eliminate whatever is in the way of what she wants.

 

 

6. Walter White

 

 

Like Michael Corleone, Walter White can also be considered an antihero with good qualities. When Breaking Bad first started, he was a harmless high school science teacher, but by the end of the series he became an absolute villain that admittedly enjoyed it. Walter cooked drugs, had a high body count, and manipulated people. Heisenberg even had several people killed in prison in about two minutes. He was a villain, but a villain that most people rooted for.

 

 

5. Joffrey Baratheon

 

 

There are some villainous characters in Game of Thrones, but Joffrey Baratheon was straight-up born evil. Wicked, malicious, and maniacal, Joffrey thought he could do and say as he pleased, with no repercussions. When he was named King after Robert Baratheon’s death, Joffrey’s arrogance hit another level—which was comical at times. Joffrey’s evil ways had Ned Stark executed when even Cersei didn’t want it to happen.

 

 

4. Ramsay Bolton

 

 

Ramsay Bolton is very similar to Joffrey Baratheon, as they are both simply evil-spirited people. Clearly, Ramsay was a sociopath that enjoyed torturing, killing, and toying with the helpless. The former bastard was also power-hungry and went as far as killing his own father, his step-mother, and his newborn half-brother—by feeding the infant to his dogs. Ramsay also terrorizes Sansa Stark, killed Rickon Stark, and make Theon Greyjoy into a shell of himself. Ramsay is as evil as it gets.

 

 

3. Darth Vader

 

 

The discussion of greatest villains ever must include Darth Vader somewhere near or at the top of the list. Lord Vader was formerly a powerful Jedi that was drawn to the dark side of the Force, with no turning back until the very end—and he had some heroic qualities with his attitude (“I find your lack of faith disturbing”) that displays there was some goodness in him. But he is still very clearly a villain. As Anakin Skywalker, he both massacred all the Tuskens—including women and children—and murdered helpless Jedi Younglings. 2016’s Rogue One gave an awesome look at Vader in action when he sliced through Rebel soldiers like it was nothing. There might not be a more intimidating villain than the rage-filled Darth Vader.

 

 

2. Night King

 

 

As this list displays, Game of Thrones has the most quality and quantity of villains thanks to the world created by George R.R. Martin, but the Night King is the ultimate villain of the epic HBO series. He already turns babies into White Walkers, turns the dead into his army (including at the massacre at Hardhome), turned Viserion into an ice dragon, and took down the Wall that’s been standing for thousands of years. It’s chilling to wonder what else the Night King has planned, and whatever it is could potentially be enough for him to take the top spot as the greatest villain ever.

 

 

1. Joker

 

 

The Joker has really benefited by Jack Nicholson and Heath Ledger playing the character to help lift it into iconic status. From the makeup, to the purple suit, to the trademark laugh, Batman’s archenemy looks the part of a villain. And his violence, unpredictability, and craziness all contribute to him being considered the greatest villain of all-time. The Joker doesn’t care about money, or power, or death, and he basically has fun being evil. There simply isn’t a method to the Joker’s madness, which is a big reason he’s such a great villain.