The following article contains spoilers for The Bad Guys, now playing in theaters.

The Bad Guys, directed by Pierre Perifel, is the latest movie from DreamWorks Animation. It tells the story of five universally-feared stereotypical animal "bad guys" who try to reform their public image. When their leader, Mr. Wolf, wants to go good for real, it creates a rift between the friends. Ultimately, the story becomes a true redemption arc for all five of the complicated creatures.

2010's Megamind, directed by Tom McGrath, is another great DreamWorks movie with a central redemption arc. The film shows how the eponymous supervillain was rejected by his peers in favor of the golden child Metro Man, who goes on to become his heroic nemesis. What do both movies have in common, and what do they do differently? Here's how each film explores the theme of redemption.

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Just How Bad Are The Bad Guys?

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The darkest of Megamind's evil schemes is arguably his ill-fated plan to use an "illiteracy beam," but none of them appear to be fatal. Also, even in Megamind's most potentially evil moments, his influence was curbed by the ubiquitous presence of Metro Man to put a stop to his plans. His surprise when he appeared to have killed Metro Man might further imply that the villain had never actually killed anyone before.

In contrast, the Bad Guys' string of heists remains unbroken by the dedicated but unsuccessful chief of police, Misty Luggins. The protagonists' wrongdoings seem limited to these heists and Mr. Snake's love of eating guinea pigs, as discussed in the film's Tarantino-esque opening scene. Overall, it seems that Megamind aspired to evil on a wider scale, but the Bad Guys actually got away with a lot more. Both movies reveal the extent of the specific evil deeds their characters are capable of, which makes their ultimate turn to good more satisfying and inspiring.

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What Motivates Megamind and The Bad Guys' Redemption Arcs?

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Megamind's redemption arc starts with a chain of events beyond his control. After seemingly killing Metro Man, Megamind quickly became bored with complete control over Metro City. He attempted to make a new hero out of obsessive cameraman Hal Stewart, hoping he would arrest him to restore the status quo. Megamind's disguised as a mild-mannered museum curator while dating reporter Roxanne Ritchi gave him a taste of life as a good guy, but his resolve was cemented when Roxanne implored him to save the city after Hal went rogue.

In The Bad Guys, Mr. Wolf is the first of the group to go good, with his tail wagging uncontrollably after saving someone from falling down the stairs. After the gang convinced the people of LA that they'd changed, Mr. Wolf tried to make the façade a reality by sabotaging their latest heist. Megamind's redemption arc is interesting because it initially stems from somewhat selfish motivations, such as alleviating his boredom and wanting Roxanne to love him. In contrast, Wolf's tail-wagging implies that his desire to do good is a natural instinct, suppressed only by his reluctance to disappoint his friends.

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What Must Megamind and The Bad Guys Sacrifice?

When Mr. Wolf sabotaged the heist in The Bad Guys, it appeared to partly be because he had come to enjoy people celebrating him. It was then that the Bad Guys' tutor in good, Professor Marmalade, betrayed the gang, implicating them in a heist of his own. Perhaps this symbolizes that Mr. Wolf was trying to be good for the wrong reasons. When Mayor Diane Foxington waited for him to return Marmalade's recuperated heist money so she could tell the police that he had done the right thing, he instead turned around to rescue Mr. Snake from Marmalade -- sacrificing good publicity for a good deed.

When Megamind told his loyal fish-like minion that he didn't want to be a bad guy anymore, he felt betrayed and left him. Megamind ultimately offered an anguished apology from his self-imposed prison cell before Minion broke him out to take on Hal. All five Bad Guys also made amends and accepted their newfound appreciation for doing good in the middle of a Looney-Tunes-style free fall. Both Megamind and Mr. Wolf risked alienating the people closest to them with their desire to do good, but Minion and Mr. Snake ultimately showed that true friends support each other's attempts to improve themselves.

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Who Are Their New Enemies?

Both Megamind and The Bad Guys have strong antagonists that give additional meaning to the characters' struggles to be good. Professor Rupert Marmalade is a guinea pig who only cares about what makes him look good. His most famous good deed was encouraging the people of LA to look at a devastating heart-shaped meteor as a symbol of love, a faux-inspirational platitude foreshadowing his fixation on appearances. This serves to make the gritty, flawed Bad Guys seem even more authentic in comparison.

In contrast, Hal doesn't care if Metro City hates him. After publicly defeating Megamind, Hal was respected in the way Megamind never was but took over the city anyway. This highlights the fact that, in contrast, Megamind ultimately became a hero despite the city's low expectations of him.

Overall, Megamind's redemption arc was more of a struggle, as the Hal plan represented his reluctance to give up the life of villainy he was used to. However, the Bad Guys had more to lose by going good, as the fallout it created was more threatening to their friendship. Both movies tell compelling redemption stories that show the benefits of doing the right thing -- even when it's difficult.

To see their redemption play out, The Bad Guys is currently available in theaters.