Who Are Hollywood’s Most Fearsome Actors That Constantly Play The Villain?

When certain actors are cast as villains it can leave you shook, like when John Lithgow played the Trinity Killer in ‘Dexter‘. It’s the same feeling you get when someone like Ashton Kutcher takes on a serious role and Jim Carrey leads a psychological thriller. In a lot of ways it’s just not…right, but really, it’s just not what we’re familiar with when it comes to their acting chops. 

On the flipside, when other actors are cast villains it evokes a certain “Ah, of course” because that’s how they’ve been moulded as an actor. Plus, they almost always have a conniving smile that says, “Fall in love with me even though I’ll proceed to sell your organs on Craigslist.” You know the ones. People like the below.

Photos:  Batman, Witches of Eastwick, The Shining.

Now a solid 80 years old, Jack Nicholson is the villain to end all villains and yes, he is one scary mother flipper. Whether he’s deviantly three-timing his girlfriends only to become a human voodoo doll in ‘The Witches of Eastwick’ or becoming a dark-and-twisty psychotic family killer for ‘The Shining‘ (that grin tho), Nicholson knows how to scare the living daylights out of you / make you cry for your mumma.

Photos: Skyfall, Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, No Country for Old Men.

Javier Bardem, 48, is quickly becoming one of Hollywood‘s most iconic villains. His upcoming role as Captain Salazar in Disney’s ‘Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales‘ sees him hellbent on killing pirates (including the legendary Jack Sparrow) alongside his army of ghost sailors.

That won’t be his first villainous rodeo, though. He’s also played a sniggering cyber-terrorist in ‘Skyfall’ (which made some name him as Bond‘s best villain ever), as well as a merciless murderer in ‘No Country For Old Men‘ – a role so significant he wound up with an Oscar. Some people are just destined to be bad, you know?

ANJELICA HUSTON

Photos: The Addams Family, The Witches, Ever After: A Cinderella Story.

Anjelica Huston is one of those yaaas kween villains y’all love to hate. She gave us the heebie jeebies in the movie adaptation of Roald Dahl‘s ‘The Witches‘, which – it has to be said – delivers scenes far too disturbing for it’s young audience. I mean, watching it back the outdated production alone is enough to make you laugh instead, but it was 10/10 screwed up during its release 1990.

Her role as Danielle de Barbarac / Nicole de Lancret‘s stepmother in ‘Ever After: A Cinderella Story‘ was also one for the books, as well as her iconic stint as Morticia in ‘The Addams Family’.

Be sure to check this article again in 2027. Efron might’ve made the list by then.

Photo: No Country For Old Men.