The Wicked Witch of the West (“The Wizard of Oz”)
This is one of those villains that has been embedded in our minds for generations. As the main villain of Oz, who torments Dorothy and her little dog, too, this may have been the first movie villain you encountered in your life.
Pennywise (“It” franchise)
Whether your favorite Pennywise is performed by Tim Curry or Bill Skarsgård, it doesn’t matter. Both performances makes the character a chilling iconic villain.
Tyler Durden (“Fight Club”)
Brad Pitt and Edward Norton combine their talents to present the duel personalities of the central figure in David Fincher’s movie. There’s the guy, who’s fed up with life and goes off the grid (Norton) and then there’s the guy, who builds a cult and tries to bring down capitalism (Pitt).
Leatherface (“The Texas Chainsaw Massacre”)
This horrific villain with a love for his chainsaws from Tobe Hooper’s classic still gives movie fans sleepless nights.
Hans Landa (“Inglourious Basterds”)
Here’s another evil Tarantino character: Christoph Waltz earned an Oscar for his performance as the “The Jew Hunter,” who seems to outsmart everyone until he comes up against Lt. Aldo “The Apache” Raine (Brad Pitt) and his team of “Basterds.”
Keyser Söze (“The Usual Suspects”)
This villain is so evil that the criminals we’re following in this movie are scared to death of him and his legend. His evilness is also amped up when we realize at the end of the movie that he was the weakest member of the crew (played by Kevin Spacey) the whole time.
Phyllis Dietrichson (“Double Indemnity”)
Sometimes a great villain has someone else do their dirty work and that’s the case with this classic femme fatale played by Barbara Stanwyck. She received an Oscar nomination for her performance as a wife, who seduces an insurance agent (Fred MacMurray) to kill her husband.
The Alien (“Alien” franchise)
The xenemorphy has been terrorizing people in space since the late 1970s (and even has faced off against the Predator). With its acid blood and inner mouth that shoots out at its victims, when it comes to villains in sci-fi this one is pretty iconic.
Thanos (“The Avengers” franchise)
The best villains are the ones that are as layered and complex as the heroes. And that is certainly the case with this Titan. After many movies of just being talked about, he’s put front-and-center in “Avengers: Infinity War” and in the process it puts the movie on another level than most in the franchise.
Jason Voorhees (“Friday the 13th” franchise)
Another classic villain makes the list. Voorhees’ body count over his movies is hard to compare to anyone else. And the twisted way he’s killed people over the decades has become almost an art form in the horror genre.
