When the new teaser for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes dropped, casual film fans wondered why a Hunger Games prequel series would revolve around President Coriolanus Snow. He isn't exactly a household name like Darth Vader and doesn't have a dark past like Voldemort. But what Snow does have over these other villains is he might be eviler than either of them could hope to be. In fact, Snow's insidious nature might just make this prequel series one of the darkest ever.

President Snow's brand of supervillany is different because he isn't a supervillain at all -- he's a politician. While other villains might want to take over the world, Snow was already firmly in power when fans first saw him. And the matter-of-fact ways he holds on to his influence are more chilling than anything a Sith Lord or dark wizard could do.

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President Snow in The Hunger Games Mockingjay Part 2

"Realism" is the key word here. Snow's evil is recognizable to anyone who studies history and sees how commonplace his behavior is in past tyrants. Indeed, his first name, "Coriolanus," comes from a legendary Roman general in ancient times who advocated for rolling back political reforms and led armies against Rome. Unlike other villains whose methods build on winning followers and increasing their physical power, Snow's are based purely on manipulation and brute force. His preferred method of killing, poison, perfectly reflects that commitment to subterfuge. Other misdeeds, such as creating the luxurious Victors' Village to convince young people to fight in the Hunger Games and using The Capitol's children as human shields, show that he knows every angle to keep people on his side and at each other's throats.

Donald Sutherland's portrayal in the movies enhances these sneaky aspects of the character to create the most understated villain in recent film history. Unlike Ralph Fiennes' Voldemort or the many people who have embodied Darth Vader for James Earl Jones, Snow didn't have to raise his voice or choke an underling to get his point across. He would simply pop up at someone's home one day and threaten to have everyone they know executed if they didn't do what he said. Katniss got to experience this firsthand as Sutherland's Snow laughed and spoke to her pragmatically as if she was an old friend, promising her they "would never lie to each other."

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That clearheadedness is what makes Snow unique among his evil peers. He tells Katniss that the brutality he imposes on the world is the only appropriate response to the world around them and that no one would be even better. While Luke Skywalker could trust Yoda and Harry Potter could trust Dumbledore, Snow not only successfully drives Katniss against her leader, President Coin, but is right to do so.

Snow denounces Coin's bombing that kills Katniss' sister at the series' end as deplorable because it had "no reason" for it to happen. He argues that Coin is worse than Snow because she actually is harshening his methods while his evil gets steeped in realpolitik. What he says is so convincing that Katniss actually chooses to execute Coin, the leader of her own side, instead of Snow. Though Snow dies in the chaos that follows that act, he remains the smartest guy in the room at the story's end.

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President Snow from The Hunger Games

Building a prequel around such an amoral and intelligent character is a fascinating chance to explore his psyche. Most prequels, including Attack of the Clones and Joker, position their classic villains as misunderstood victims of an uncaring society. While the book version of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes also delves into Snow's young loves and idealism, it firmly places his warped beliefs in the context of a warped society. Snow isn't a victim of society lured by a vague philosophy like the dark side of the Force or wizard supremacy over Muggles. He's a normal person who chose an evil path to thrive in the harsh society of Panem -- a character arc that might make Katniss' tragic compromised hero's journey look like a delightful romp in comparison.

Such a nasty character might not make for a crowd-pleasing blockbuster, but President Snow's character is complex enough to make up for it. His evil disturbs the viewer not because it gives him fantastical superpowers or is bound up in prophecy. Snow's evil is borne out of a ruthlessness all too common in the real world. The soft-spoken man who bedevils Panem proves mesmerizing because he's recognizable in all the evil tyrants of history. Even worse, it's a kind of evil that proves impossible to defeat, even for the Mockingjay.