A Definitive Ranking Of Every Superhero Villain Since Iron Man

Zack Stentz, one of the co-writers of the Marvel film Thor, recently teamed up with ScreenJunkies, the guys behind the great YouTube channel Honest Trailers, to watch and react to the Honest Trailers version of Thor. It’s worth a watch for any semi-interested comic book movie fan, as Stentz offers insight for what it’s like to work for the Marvel machine that heavily scrutinizes everything you do as they have 10 other films that they need to worry about and protect. Knowing full well that Loki, Thor’s brother and the antagonist of the film, was going to return as the villain for their epic Avengers film, it was important for Marvel that Thor was able to create an excellent bad guy. What I found most astonishing was that Stentz admitted that he was told that he needed to “give [them] a villain as good as Magneto” from the (original) X-Men movies.

It initially struck me as odd that Marvel chose to go with a character that’s seemingly bland like Magneto. There are so many incredible and transcendent comic book villains (hell, we were blessed to see Heath Ledger’s The Joker only a few years prior) that I felt like it was a dumb decision to settle on Magneto. However, I recently brought this up to a huge comic book friend of mine (she actually reads comic books and goes to comic book conventions) who scoffed at the idea of villains that need to be as good as The Joker. That off-handed comment got me thinking; it’s rare that movie adaptions of superhero villains are anywhere close to what Ledger gave us in 2008. In my humble opinion, Heath Ledger gave the greatest acting performance in the history of cinema. He won a posthumous Oscar for his performance. With that being the case, why should I have expectations that other superhero villains should be the same? It’s unrealistic. With that in mind, it is much more realistic (and better for the mass audience that Marvel caters to) that a villain be “only” be on par with the great Sir Ian McKellen’s performance of Magneto.

Magneto really was good villain and foil in the Marvel universe and its inspiration Loki really is one of the best superhero villains we’ve had. So where does Loki match up in the MCU? Where does he match up among the explosions of villains we’ve seen since the rise and popularity of these films? Let’s take a look:

BARELY IN THE FILM TO MAKE A DENT

30) The Rhino (Paul Giametti) The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

29) Dr. Doom (Toby Kebbell) Fantastic Four (2015)

28) The Green Goblin (Dane DeHaan) The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

SOLELY IN THE FILM AS A PLOT DEVICE
27) Dr. Bolivar Trask (Peter Dinklage) X-Men: Days of Future Past  (2014)

26) Malekith (Christopher Eccleston) Thor 2: The Dark World (2013)

25) Ajax (Ed Skrien) Deadpool (2016)

24) Aldrich Killian (Guy Pearce) Iron Man 3 (2013)

23) The Red Skull (Hugo Weaving) Captain America: The First Avenger (2011)

22) Darren Cross / Yellowjacket (Corey Stoll) Ant-Man (2015)

GREAT FOREIGN ACTORS THAT WERE CRIMINALLY UNDERUSED

21) Baron Zemo (Daniel Bruhl) Captain America: Civil War (2016)
20) Chudnofsky (Christoph Waltz) The Green Hornet (2011)

19) Emil Blonsky /The Abomination (Tim Roth) The Incredible Hulk (2008)

OSCAR-NOMINEES WITH WEIRD ELECTRICAL SUPER POWERS

18) Whiplash (Mickey Rourke) Iron Man 2 (2010)

17) Electro (Jamie Foxx) The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

WAY TOO DULL CONSIDERING HOW IMPORTANT HE IS

16) The Winder Soldier (Sebastian Stan) Captain America: The Winter Solider (2014)

GREAT AMERICAN ACTOR THAT WAS CRIMINALLY UNDERUSED

15) General Zod (Michael Shannon) Man of Steel (2013)

A look at Michael Shannon’s filmography including Take Shelter and Boardwalk Empire will reveal what an amazingly creepy actor Shannon can play and his role in the underrated Premium Rush shows you that Shannon can pop off of the screen as the film’s villain. So why in the hell Shannon’s performance as a major bad guy in a superhero film never reached Ledger-esque status is beyond me. God Zach Snyder really does ruin everything, huh?

14) Jacques (Kevin Bacon) Super (2010)

James Gunn, Kevin Bacon, and the stories of real life people trying to become superheroes will all show up on this list later, but needless to say, Kevin Bacon is just a National Treasure. He’s so great in everything he does.

PLOT DEVICE VILLAIN ELEVATED BY THE FILM’S STORY

13) The Lizard (Rhys Ifans) The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)

For all of the re-treads The Amazing Spider-Man gave us, the main point of originality the film had was its villain. We very easily could have had another Dr. Oc or Green Goblin (especially considering we got yet ANOTHER friggin’ origin story), but instead the film gave us a new villain that Sam Raimi’s trilogy never gave us before. I enjoyed how well Ifans Dr. Connors fit within the mythology of Peter Parker and how well Marc Webb was able to have some sort of grounded realism about a man who becomes a giant lizard.

12) Ronan (Lee Pace) Guardians of the Galaxy (2014)

Guardians of the Galaxy is one of those rare comic book movies where the heroes are more interesting than the villain. That being said, Lee Pace did a good job as Ronan and the film accurately portrays him as being so powerful that five heroes and an army were necessary to defeat him.

THE LONE FEMALE

11) Selina Kyle (Anne Hathaway) The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

As great of a director as Christopher Nolan is, his one main blind spot is writing for females. Yet Oscar-winner Anne Hathaway does a damn fine job bringing humanity to this character. Selina Kyle is probably not a villain in the truest sense of the word or the story’s antagonist, but within the Batman mythology and the context of her role in TDKR, I feel confident putting Hathaway’s performance on this list and as high as it is.

OH YEAH, HE IS A GREAT BAD GUY

10) Red Mist (Christopher Mintz-Plasse) Kick Ass / Kick Ass 2 (2010/2013)

While the true villain of Kick Ass is probably Mark Strong’s Frank D’Amico, it’s his son Chris, played by Mintz-Plasse, that is the star bad guy of these features. Kick Ass is from big budget master Matthew Vaughn who gave us X-Men: First Class and Kingsman: The Secret Service. It's a film that helped restart the X-Men franchise and proof of how fun and violent and edgy these films can be. It's like a Marvel film, but better. Like all good superhero stories, it needs to have a memorable bad guy, and Vaughn gave us one thanks to Superbad's break out star. 

CHARISMATIC ACTING LEGENDS (PART II)

9) Alexander Pierce (Robert Redford) Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

I haven’t drunk the Winter Soldier Kool-Aid like the rest of America has, so I’m not terribly sold on Redford’s performance, but if you’re going to make a political thriller disguised as a Marvel movie, there’s no better actor you’d rather have your Big Bad be than King Redford himself.

8) Ultron (James Spader) Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

Marvel has had done some incredible casting over the years, but having Spader voice Ultron might be the best job it has done so far.

7) Sebastian Shaw (Kevin Bacon) X-Men: First Class (2011)

For some reason, history has largely forgotten X-Men: First Class and its villain played by Kevin Bacon. My guess is that it’s because it was directed by Matthew Vaughn as opposed to Bryan Singer, but that’s an odd reason because the reason that First Class is arguably the best film in the franchise is precisely BECAUSE it was directed by the great Matthew Vaughn and not Bryan Singer. Nevertheless, re-watch this film and you’ll notice in the midst of a litany of great performances like that by Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, and Nicholas Hoult is this now underrated performance by Kevin Bacon.

THE CONTROVERSIAL CHOICE

6) Justin Hammer (Sam Rockwell) Iron Man 2 (2010)

There is not a whole lot to like about the sequel to the smash hit Iron Man, but its lone bright spot is Rockwell’s performance of Justin Hammer as the evil version of Tony Stark. On paper, Hammer is solely a plot device and a way to bring Whiplash closer to Iron Man, but Sam Rockwell is such an amazing performer that he makes a bland character pop off of the screen. As an actor, Rockwell has the incredible ability to bring charisma and joy to what’s not written on the page. It’s what makes him a great actor and it is why Justin Hammer is this high on the list. 

CHARISMATIC ACTING LEGENDS (PART I)

5) The Mandarin (Ben Kingsley) Iron Man 3 (2013)

Even without the great reveal at the end of the film regarding Kingsley’s character, the Oscar-winner would have forced his way into the Top 10 no matter what. How Kingsley plays The Mandarin should be the gold standard for these Marvel films.

4) Obadiah Stane (Jeff Bridges) Iron Man (2008)

This has now become the minority opinion for some reason, but the greatest non-Batman superhero film ever made is Jon Favreau’s Iron Man. I remember being dragged to the movie theater by my college roommate to see Iron Man and leaving the theater in pure awe. After multiple re-viewings, the film still holds up. Part of the reason of the film’s creative success is the performance of one of the greatest living American actors- Jeff Bridges. His performance is really good throughout, and even better upon re-watching now that you know he’s the mastermind behind everything.

THE OBVIOUS ICONS

3) Loki (Tom Hiddleston) Thor / The Avengers (2011/2012)

If the goal was to create a villain as good as Ian McKellen’s Magneto, then mission accomplished. Partially for being the bad guy in the now influential Avengers film and partially because Hiddleston brings nuance, charisma, and humanity to this role, Loki has now become one of film’s most iconic villains.

2) Bane (Tom Hardy) The Dark Knight Rises (2012)

There are a lot of flaws in Nolan’s third film of The Dark Knight trilogy, and a lot of them do revolve around the film’s antagonist, but it’s hard to deny just how iconic Hardy’s performance was and how it still resonates within the zeitgeist. Everyone dresses up as Bane for Halloween and comic conventions; far less people dress up as Loki. Between the look, the power, and of course the voice, Bane easily is one of the best villains in this MCU superhero age.

THE NUMBER ONE BAD GUY WHO YOU WOULDN’T HAVE SUSPECTED FROM A FILM YOU DIDN’T EXPECT

1) Andrew Detmer (Dane DeHaan) Chronicle (2012)

Sam Rockwell’s Justin Hammer is sure to cause some schisms and outrage, but I’m sure that far more people are going to have a problem with Chronicle being #1. Andrew Detmer certainly is not the most iconic villain on this list, far from it, but Dane DeHaan’s performance is the only one that could be considered Ledger-esque.

Josh Trank’s Chronicle is told through Andrew Detmer’s point-of-view, and it tells the story of the rise of a super-villain that’s disguised as a found-footage movie. It is not your traditional glossy, summer blockbuster superhero film, but it still is one of the best superhero films made within the past 15 years. DeHaan’s Detmer, Michael B. Jordan’s Steve, and Alex Russell’s Matt are high schoolers who gain superpowers when they discover an asteroid that crash landed near them at a party one night. Unlike films like Kick Ass and Super that use the story point “what if normal people became superheroes?” as an excuse to tell a fairly normal superhero tale, Chronicle treats the trope seriously to delve deeply into the psyche of its three main characters. Chronicle is a character study first and a superhero film second, which in turns gives us an incredible performance by DeHaan. Similar to how Buffy the Vampire Slayer used monsters and the supernatural as an allegory for high school, Chronicle does something similar. It uses these character’s newfound superpowers as a way to shine a light on the caste system in high school.

Dane DeHaan’s Andrew Detmer may not be a flashy or an iconic choice, but it’s a choice I am going to stick with nonetheless. In an era where superhero movies blend together, which in turn causes their villains to blend together, Andrew Detmer stands up from a non-traditional superhero film that stands out.

NOTE: There are a few superhero films I have not seen yet, most notably Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice and X-Men: Apocalypse, but for the most part, this is a very comprehensive list.

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