Movie villains come in all shapes and sizes, and, as a result, have unique fates to fit. While some villains get off scot-free with no punishment whatsoever, others are redeemed (albeit briefly) and then die, or are given a second chance at life to make amends. Additionally, there is a group of villains who are so morally vile or ignorant that they cannot conceive that they are doing anything wrong at all.
The chances are that even if the thought has crossed their minds, they just don't care; all that matters is what they want. These villains tend to die in their films, often in a karmic fashion, where the single-mindedness of their respective quests leads to their ironic, violent demise.
10 Sidious Oversteps When He Attacks Vader's Son (Star Wars: Return Of The Jedi)
Star Wars' Darth Sidious is the true identity of former Supreme Chancellor Palpatine, the man who destroyed the Galactic Republic and Jedi Order to rule the galaxy. He also turns Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker to the Dark Side and takes him on as his Sith apprentice, where he becomes Darth Vader.
Sidious is also known for his Force Lightning abilities which he dispenses as necessary. In Return of the Jedi, after failing to turn Vader's son Luke, Sidious shocks him with Force Lightning. This attempt to destroy the last vestiges of Vader's humanity causes him to rise against the merciless ruler. Vader then throws Sidious into the Death Star's core.
9 The Hyenas Devour Scar After He Blames Them (The Lion King)
Scar, the villain of The Lion King, plots to steal Pride Rock from his brother Mufasa. After catching him in a stampede, Scar throws Mufasa to his death when the latter attempts to leap to safety. Not one for loose ends, Scar then sends his hyenas after Simba to kill the heir apparent. Scar rules Pride Rock for years, destroying it in the process.
When Simba returns home from hard jungle living, he challenges Scar for the kingdom. To get Simba's guard down, Scar claims the hyenas are responsible for his own political machinations. In the end, Simba kicks Scar off a cliff just like the latter did to his brother Mufasa. He is then consumed by the hyenas whom he had betrayed.
8 Burke Is Killed By His Greed (Aliens)
Carter J. Burke in Aliens first presents himself as a heroic and trustworthy character. Soon, however, he proves that he is the same as the other financially opportunistic corporate figures that head Weyland-Yutani. Burke prioritizes the company's interest over human life.
Ripley proceeds to destroy the Xenomorphs to put an end to the threat, and learns that Burke sent the colonists to the derelict ship on purpose to have one of the crew members impregnated by a Facehugger. Abandoning Ripley, Newt, and the Marines to die when the Xenomorphs attack, Burke reaps his own reward when he runs straight into an alien during his escape.
7 Sauron Is Defeated By The Ring's Destruction (Lord Of The Rings: The Return Of The King)
Sauron of Lord of the Rings creates the One Ring to bind all of Middle-Earth and dominate all. He loses it after Isildur cuts it from his hand at the War of the Last Alliance, but Isildur's attachment to the Ring ensures that Sauron's spirit remains, returning him to an active state by the story's beginning.
Sauron spends the trilogy in Mordor amassing his Orcs and human allies in one final bid to rule Middle-Earth while desperately searching for the Ring. Fittingly, Sauron and his evil empire collapse entirely when the Ring finally falls into Mount Doom, undone by Sauron tying all his ambition into his most sought-after object.
6 Elsa's Avarice Causes Her To Forget Saving Her Own Life (Indiana Jones And The Last Crusade)
In Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, Elsa is introduced as yet another love interest to Dr. Jones but ultimately unveils herself as a traitor for the Nazis at Castle Brunwald. Siding with Walter Donovan in his attempts to acquire Indy's father's diary, Elsa seeks the Holy Grail for its prize status.
While Elsa exhibits some sympathetic qualities, such as appearing dismayed when the Nazis burn books and handing Donovan a false Grail after he shoots Henry Jones, Sr., she still sides with the Nazis. Her obsession ultimately kills her when she chooses to grab the Grail over Indy's hand while dangling over a rift in the earth and she falls to her death.
5 Nedry's Sabotage Ends With His Demise (Jurassic Park)
In Jurassic Park, Computer programmer Dennis Nedry was originally hired by John Hammond to oversee computer and security systems at the park. However, poor pay and employment standards, along with his own self-centered greed, make him susceptible when Biosyn offers him money to sell them the experimental dinosaur embryos that the park scientists have created.
Nedry leaves to meet the boat with the embryos at the start of a hurricane to deflect attention from staff, while also shutting down numerous power grids to clear his way and make it look like a blackout caused by the storm. However, Nedry loses his way before running into a loose dilophosaurus which blinds and then eats him.
4 The Green Goblin Makes A Move Where Peter Is Vulnerable (Spider-Man)
When Green Goblin cannot convince Spider-Man to rule the city side-by-side, he targets the people Peter loves most. After Peter manages to save Mary Jane and a tram of children, Goblin engages Spider-Man in a vicious fight. When Goblin threatens to violate Mary Jane, Peter gains the upper hand, pummeling Goblin so relentlessly that Norman Osborn seemingly resurfaces.
Using their shared past, Goblin tries to get beneath Peter's defenses while he readies his glider, but Peter's Spider-Sense allows him to jump out of the way. In trying to attack Peter by targeting his vulnerability, Norman gets speared, fittingly pierced to death in his own rather vulnerable place.
3 Mrs. Lovett Dies In The Place Where She Makes Her Pies (Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber Of Fleet Street)
In Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Mrs. Lovett becomes Benjamin Barker's partner-in-crime when he begins slaughtering his barbershop customers, helping him conceal the bodies by cooking them into her meat pies. She also harbors romantic notions toward Barker, having long been in love with him since before he was falsely convicted of a crime he did not commit and subsequently condemned to a penal colony.
These hopes are in vain when Barker learns that Mrs. Lovett lied about his adored wife Lucy dying so that she could have a chance with him. Barker pretends to reciprocate Mrs. Lovett's feelings and then throws her into her own oven – a fate she brought upon many.
2 Judge Doom Melts In His Own Concoction (Who Framed Roger Rabbit)
As the tyrannical mayor of Toontown, Judge Doom enjoys subjecting supposedly-guilty cartoon characters to the Dip, a solvent that kills them. Though he poses as a figure of justice, the film reveals that Doom rigged the election that made him mayor and is guilty of two murders already, one of whom was protagonist Eddie Valiant's brother.
In the end, Doom is revealed to be a Toon himself, intent on using the Dip to eradicate Toon Town to make room for a freeway. His just desserts come when Valiant tricks him into draining the Dip Machine, trapping Doom in his own nefarious concoction.
1 Gothel Ages After Rapunzel's Hair Is Severed (Tangled)
For 18 years, Tangled's Gothel masquerades as a caring mother figure to the child she kidnapped so she can use her magical healing hair to keep herself perpetually young. A proponent of emotional abuse to keep Rapunzel dependent on her, Gothel temporarily loses control when Rapunzel leaves with Flynn Rider to the lantern festival.
To retrieve the source of her youth, Gothel fakes a rescue that forces Rapunzel back home and sends Flynn to his execution. But when Flynn escapes and shows up to help a captive Rapunzel, he cuts Rapunzel's hair to set her free. Gothel withers away into dust, the magic sustaining her gone.