A character doesn’t become entirely evil or wrong just by virtue of being the villain. Villains suffer the brunt of it all; their primary intentions usually revolve around acts to kill, destroy, and wreak havoc.
Sometimes, it’s okay to write off these characters. Other times, it’s worthwhile to gauge things from a different perspective. After all, according to a famous quote, every villain is a hero, given a different context.
Are there times villains were right even once? Yes. One of my favorite instances is Scar from The Lion King, who believed Simba didn’t deserve to be king just because he was the firstborn son of Mufasa. Although he’s bad (and perfectly good at it), he was right.
There are others, too.
1. Chef Skinner From Ratatouille
You might remember the angry, possibly sadistic head chef from the Pixar animated film Ratatouille. One probably shouldn’t trust a man named Skinner, and he may have been wrong about many things, but he wasn’t wrong about not letting rats in the kitchen.
1. Chef Skinner From Ratatouille
Some people don’t even like another human in the kitchen while they cook, let alone a rodent. Even though he did it for selfish, dishonorable reasons, many people think Chef Skinner was right to keep Remy, the enthusiastic rat, out.
2. Magneto From X-Men
Either die a hero or live long enough to see yourself become the villain, eh? Magneto is the bane of the X-Men – but he wasn’t born with dreams of being evil.
2. Magneto From X-Men
Nine times out of ten, he starts with a good motive, a righteous cause. But the line between good and evil is so thin that he slips into becoming the monster he hoped to destroy. According to someone, “He doesn’t want justice. He wants revenge. And that’s the narrow line that separates a hero from a villain.”
3. Shere Khan From The Jungle Book
In my books, a close second to Scar is Shere Khan, the formidable tiger in the animated Disney film The Jungle Book.
3. Shere Khan From The Jungle Book
When Bagheera finds Mowgli, a human baby, in the jungle, she takes him to a mother wolf so she can care for him. Shere Khan, who knows the damage humans are capable of and once did to the jungle, warns everyone and tries to chase out Mowgli – for this, he’s seen as the bad guy. But I’m sure you’d see his point if you’ve seen the film to the end.
4. Zemo From Captain America: Civil War
A popular meme shows the Avengers have saved the world…after destroying everything in it. The irony, huh? Baron Helmut Zemo is a Sokovian nobleman and a major antagonist in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Was he to blame for who he became? A surprising number of people debate this.
4. Zemo From Captain America: Civil War
Losing your family in warfare and finding their bodies later, while the ones you considered responsible returned home safely, is enough to turn anyone into a Thanos. And although he wanted the right thing – to avenge his family, vengeance consumed him.
5. Dr. Jake Houseman in Dirty Dancing
All fathers want to do is to protect, even when it seems like they are taking it “too far,”, especially with their daughters. I can think of some instances myself, but let’s keep the spotlight on Dr. Jake Houseman of Dirty Dancing. Fans think he wasn’t wrong to be wary of a guy in his mid-20s hanging around his teenage daughter. I agree.
6. Loki From the MCU
Get in here, Marvel geeks (draw out a seat for yourself). One believes “Loki wasn’t wrong about Thor being unfit to rule Asgard.” Adding, “In the end, Valkyrie ended up ruling while Thor ate Cheetos.”
6. Loki From the MCU
One might laugh about that – or see sense in it. Thor, or the mighty Thor, was entitled, self-absorbed, and perhaps unfit to be a ruler.
7. Count Dooku From Star Wars
Here’s another example of an antagonist who strayed too far from their original intentions. Even though good ideals guided him, the dark side corrupted him, and he became what he fought to get rid of. Still, fans give him his flowers. One said, “Count Dooku is an elegant, criminally underrated character.”
8. Tom Cat From Tom & Jerry
Tom Cat (yes, he has a surname) may have never said a word in the cartoons, but still, we all understood his pain. He was the villain for always pursuing and trying to hurt Jerry, but he was only doing his job. Once you looked beneath the cute mouse façade, Jerry was the devil.
9. Killmonger From Black Panther
This one is a hot debate involving cultures, racism, and colonization. But it revolves around the primary question? Was Killmonger the true villain? Someone felt like “they were grasping at straws to make Killmonger look bad in Black Panther.”
9. Killmonger From Black Panther
Many believe his motivation was right. One countered, saying, “He’s trained in propaganda and deception, and all his noble talk about Wakanda helping the world his manipulations.” As I said, hot debate.
10. Rodrick From The Diary of a Wimpy Kid
“It’s ironic when you grow up and realize Rodrick is the least toxic person in the family,” someone said. Dude just wanted to play in his rock band, Löded Diper, and occasionally get on Greg’s nerves. Which brother doesn’t? Often, his opinions of Greg and best friend Rowley Jefferson weren’t wrong!
Source: Reddit.
10 Crazy Good Movies Where Women Are the Bad Guys
Are you looking for a movie night with a twist? Look no further than these Reddit-voted top ten films where women take on the destructive bad guy role.
10 Crazy Good Movies Where Women Are the Bad Guys
10 of the Worst TV Series Ever According to the Internet
There’s Seinfeld, The Sopranos, Game of Thrones, The Office, and other legendary shows. But have you considered that for each show that garners universal critical acclaim, there is an inverse show lurking on the other end of the IMDb rating scale?
10 of the Worst TV Series Ever According to the Internet
15 Cover Songs that are Better than the Original
Sometimes, a cover of a song ends up doing far better than the original. Some covers are so good that we didn’t even realize the cover version wasn’t actually the original.
15 Cover Songs that are Better than the Original
These 11 Movies Are So Bad You’ll Wish You Could Unsee Them
The movies we love best are a combination of excellent characters, plots, stories and cinematography. But if these factors can make great movies, they can also make terrible movies—the ones that make people cringe, the ones we swear they’ll never watch again.
25 Extraordinary Sequels and Remakes That Outshine the Originals
Every once in a while, a movie sequel or remake surpasses the original film. After polling the internet, “Name a single movie where the sequel or remake was better than the original?” Here are the top-voted responses.
25 Extraordinary Sequels and Remakes That Outshine the Originals
About the Author
