Casting a motion picture is an incredibly difficult job and casting a film's villain may be a creative team's most important task. Sometimes, filmmakers hold auditions for hundreds of actors to fill only a few parts. Other times, a director knows exactly who they want to portray specific characters.
For Star Wars, George Lucas found the perfect actor to personify Senator Palpatine in Ian McDiarmid. The actor was digitally inserted into Empire Strikes Back and has continued to impress Star Wars fans with his legendary cackle. Future directors can learn a lot by looking at some of the best-cast villains in film history.
10 Margaret Hamilton As The Wicked Witch Of The West (The Wizard Of Oz)
Victor Fleming's The Wizard Of Oz is widely regarded as one of the best movies of all time. The fantasy musical was nominated for six Academy Awards, including Best Picture. Its budget of $2.7 million made The Wizard Of Oz MGM's most expensive picture at the time. The use of Technicolor, award-winning musical score, and its cast of characters are memorable, but no one is as quoted as Margaret Hamilton as The Wicked Witch of the West.
"I'll get you, my pretty, and your little dog too," reverberates through film history. Hamilton's mannerisms and cackle defined what it means to portray a witch for generations to come. Even her Toto-hating Kansas counterpart, Almira Gulch, was nearly as creepy.
9 The Voice Of James Earl Jones As Darth Vader (Star Wars)
Multiple actors have worn Darth Vader's iconic black suit, including David Prowse in the original trilogy and Hayden Christensen in Revenge Of The Sith. Industrial Light & Magic's C. Andrew Nelson portrayed the Sith Lord in a few video games and the special edition of The Empire Strikes Back. Spencer Wilding and Daniel Naprous both portrayed Anakin Skywalker in Rogue One.
However, no one has defined the Dark Lord of the Sith like James Earl Jones. Not only does Jones voice Darth Vader in all of the movies, but he also returned to lend his vocal chops for The Clone Wars and Rebels animated series. Though Scott Lawrence has done an admirable job providing a voice for the Dark Side in the Star Wars video games, Jones set the standard in 1977.
8 Alan Rickman As Hans Gruber (Die Hard)
The late Alan Rickman was known for his acting range, particularly as a villain. He will be remembered for his perfect portrayal of Professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter film series. Movie fans also recognize him for his exceptional role as the Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves.
But no part played by the British actor will be as memorable as his time in Die Hard as terrorist and thief Hans Gruber. His stoic calmness and witty one-liners are only outmatched by his ruthlessness. As Die Hard progresses, Rickman's uncanny ability to show panic and desperation seeps to the surface.
7 Josh Brolin As Thanos (Avengers: Age Of Ultron, Avengers: Infinity War)
Marvel Studios had teased Thanos as the big bad of the Marvel Cinematic Universe since the post-credits scene in 2012's The Avengers. Fans got a little taste of the villain in Guardians Of The Galaxy when audiences met his adopted daughters Gamora and Nebula. Thanos also reappeared in a post-credits scene in Avengers: Age Of Ultron.
But Avengers: Infinity War gave fans the best look at the genocidal maniac. Josh Brolin's mo-cap made Thanos one of the most likable villains in not only comic book movie history, but also cinematic history. The villain almost served as the protagonist, no matter how much he wanted to wipe out half of the universe.
6 Glenn Close As Alex Forrest (Fatal Attraction)
Love makes people do strange things, but hopefully nothing like what Glenn Close's Alex Forrest did in Fatal Attraction. After Alex's love interest tries to break off their fling, she threatens his family, kills his pet rabbit, and refuses to let it go.
Glenn Close is one of the greatest actors of all time. Her ability to steal the screen led to Fatal Attraction becoming the highest-grossing film worldwide in 1987. Close has had a stellar career in film and television, but Alex Forrest earned her a Best Actress nod.
5 Jack Nicholson As The Joker (Batman)
Before there was a comic book movie released every month, it was rare to adapt dark and gritty content for the silver screen. Besides the Superman movies, DC gave fans a fairly silly movie with Batman, which starred Adam West. Those days ended when Tim Burton was handed the reigns for 1989's Batman.
Overshadowing Michael Keaton's performance as Bruce Wayne/Batman was none other than the legend Jack Nicholson. Not only did he nail his role as the pre-Joker mobster Jack Napier, but Nicholson stole the show after falling into a vat of chemicals. Combined with his make-up and signature cackle, there was no better choice for Gotham City's Clown Prince of Crime.
4 Tom Hiddleston As Loki (Thor, The Avengers)
It's difficult to find a lot of positive comments about 2011's Thor, including the protagonist's bleached eyebrows. However, a cast including Chris Hemsworth, Rene Russo, Natalie Portman, Anthony Hopkins, and Idris Elba is certainly one of them. Even with an all-star line-up, it's Tom Hiddleston's Loki that stands out.
The God of Mischief became so popular that Marvel Studios brought Hiddleston back to play the primary villain in The Avengers. Marvel fans were heartbroken to see him fall in Avengers: Infinity War. Although, if there's one thing fans know about Marvel, the money-makers don't stay gone for long and fans are about to get a second season of his Disney+ show.
3 Christopher Lee As Saruman The White (Lord Of The Rings)
The late Christopher Lee was the only choice to play Saruman the White. The legendary actor was a huge fan of the Lord Of The Rings books and read them every year. He was also the only cast member from the films to meet the author of the source material, J.R.R. Tolkien.
“[I met him] quite by chance, really,” Lee said in an interview. “I met him with a group of other people in a pub in Oxford he used to go to, The Eagle and Child. I was very much in awe of him, as you can imagine, so I just said, ‘How do you do?’”
2 Heath Ledger As The Joker (The Dark Knight)
Ever since Jack Nicholson's portrayal of the Joker, many Batman fans became wary of anyone selected to portray the Clown Prince of Crime. Not many people batted an eye when Heath Ledger was chosen by Christopher Nolan for the Batman Begins sequel, The Dark Knight.
The actor's untimely death following The Dark Knight may have inspired a few more fans to see the film, but his performance cannot be overstated. Heath Ledger earned a posthumous Oscar for his role and it will be regarded as one of the greatest pieces of acting in film history for decades to come.
1 Sir Anthony Hopkins As Hannibal Lecter (Silence Of The Lambs)
To say Anthony Hopkins was perfectly cast as Hannibal Lecter in Silence Of The Lambs would be an understatement. The vile man-eating serial killer steals the screen with every scene. The most important character in Silence Of The Lamb was certainly left in capable hands.
His voice, inflection, and facial expressions provide for tense moments in this award-winning thriller. The fact that a majority of his screen time is spent locked away in a maximum-security prison makes his performance that much more impressive.