100 Most Evil Characters In All Of Cinema?

[mothman]

Interestingly (perhaps), the prologue to the novelisation of the first Star Wars film is an extract from a history book which claims that Palpatine was an ambitious but overly-hedonistic man who bullied his way to the top, whereupon he became a feckless wastrel who ended up being easily manipulated by his various advisors, sycophants and boot-lickers who became the real evil geniuses of the Empire. But, presumably, the saga needed a big uber-villain (the Satan analogue, as already suggested by thecuriousorange), and the ensuing films and books quietly swept that characterisation under the carpet and never spoke of it again.

Star Wars? Eschew moral complexity in favour of simplistic polarised characterisation? Perish the thought!

[Fambo Number Mive]

The two cops who

Spoiler alert

throw a kid off the roof to his death

[close]

in Fort Apache: The Bronx.

Toecutter and his gang in Mad Max.

Papa Corn and his evil clowns in Circus of the Dead (probably the most horrible film I've ever seen, my advice is not to watch it, it's vile). I think these are the most evil creatures in cinema.

[Phoenix Lazarus]

Papa Corn and his evil clowns in Circus of the Dead (probably the most horrible film I've ever seen, my advice is not to watch it, it's vile). I think these are the most evil creatures in cinema.

I've just read some reviews of that.  It does indeed sound most unpleasant.

[rjd2]

Jack Palance as Wilson in Shane.

Henry Fonda as Frank in Once Upon A Time in the west.

Opening scene is still pretty shocking and their is no redeeming characteristics regarding Frank whatsoever. Decades of murder for money.  Probably the ultimate Western villain.

I was going to suggest the Hackman character in Unforgiven,  but he just seems like a scumbag on a power trip and seems genuinely repulsed by the crimes of the Eastwood character in the finale so he gets a reprise.

[Chedney Honks]

Jack Palance as Wilson in Shane.

Henry Fonda as Frank in Once Upon A Time in the west.

Totally agree, two fantastic characters and performances. Frank is a relentless beast, as you say.