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[cormack12]

Source: https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/ar...he-21-most-iconic-21st-century-movie-villains

To help me whittle the incredibly long list down, I tried to avoid ‘anti-heroes’ or ‘villains who are the leads of their films’, as in Joker or Nightcrawler, as well as films that aren’t - if we are being truly honest with ourselves - that well known, such as Pan’s Labyrinth, Dredd, The Shape Of Water, Serenity, Widows and so on, no matter how evil either Captain Vidal or The Operative are.

OP Note: I pared down the list a little to make the poll manageable and gave everyone 2 votes, but feel free to select 'other' and note down below

 

[MayauMiao]

Joker because a lot of what he said about human nature is true.

 

[mansoor1980]

chigurh , dude is scarier than the exorcist

 

[Reality Czar]

We live in clown world, Joker rules all.

 

[West Texas CEO]

Voting for Hans Landa, just based off of that strudel scene alone..

 

[finowns]

I was going say Frieza but the fact that you said film and the first episode of dbz came out in 1989?!! I’ll go with Joker from the list.

 

[finowns]

Also Zod was a great villain I might go with him.

edit - ya I go with General Zod

 

[The Cockatrice]

Joker but I liked Thanos as well so gave him a vote.

 

[John Bilbo]

I'd say Walter White if series were included. In film it is a close call between Thanos and Joker.

Thanos is a good example of good intentions leading to catastrophic results.

Joker on the other hand works in tandem with Batman to break down and question his morals.

I have to go with Joker. I think he has more meat on his bones.

 

[bitbydeath]

 

[INC]

only answer that matters

 

[Ballthyrm]

It's missing my favorite one

 

[SafeOrAlone]

Joker. And twice, if you want to count Heath and Joaquin, who both took the world by storm with this character. Anytime he shows up on screen, you're captivated completely.

I also really appreciated Chigur.

 

[gradient]

Harvey Weinstein

 

[HE1NZ]

Of the ones mentioned Thanos, Commodus and Hans Landa.

 

[quickwhips]

I picked thanos but then thought about no country for old man and thanos was in that also.

 

[MrS]

Daniel Plainview

 

[Peggies]

It's missing my favorite one

Come on, he was no villain. I didn't even get why everyone was mad at him in the end. Made me sad. Poor old fella .

 

[Peggies]

Voting for Hans Landa, just based off of that strudel scene alone..

I friggin' hate Christoph Waltz. Don't get why Americans love him so much. He was a mediocre TV actor here in Austria and you guys make him a Hollywood star. Kinda like Hitler who wasn't even accepted to Art school here and in Germany...well never mind.

 

[West Texas CEO]

I friggin' hate Christoph Waltz. Don't get why Americans love him so much. He was a mediocre TV actor here in Austria and you guys make him a Hollywood star. Kinda like Hitler who wasn't even accepted to Art school here and in Germany...well never mind.

lol, I guess he's a charming dude, though. (unlike Hitler)

plus, he speaks like five languages or something, which is pretty impressive in the eyes of an American.

 

[INC]

I friggin' hate Christoph Waltz. Don't get why Americans love him so much. He was a mediocre TV actor here in Austria and you guys make him a Hollywood star. Kinda like Hitler who wasn't even accepted to Art school here and in Germany...well never mind.

Tarantino can make average actors seem cooler than they are, look at Willis and Travolta in pulp fiction

 

[Ballthyrm]

Tarantino can make average actors seem cooler than they are, look at Willis and Travolta in pulp fiction

He isn't good enough to save himself from his bad acting though.

 

[INC]

He isn't good enough to save himself from his bad acting though.

and yet hes awesome in IG and django.....

id argue hes opening scene in IG is one of the best in cinema, in terms of delivery and dialogue, but each to their own

 

[Lanrutcon]

Ah yes, Sauman. That unforgettable fiend.

I friggin' hate Christoph Waltz. Don't get why Americans love him so much. He was a mediocre TV actor here in Austria and you guys make him a Hollywood star. Kinda like Hitler who wasn't even accepted to Art school here and in Germany...well never mind.

He's very likable. I never would have guessed he's from Down Under though. Could swear he has a European accent! Very talented man.

 

[Peggies]

Ah yes, Sauman. That unforgettable fiend.



He's very likable. I never would have guessed he's from Down Under though. Could swear he has a European accent! Very talented man.

you trolling, man?

 

[Lanrutcon]

you trolling, man?

What are you talking about? ...Australians are weird.

 

[Peggies]

What are you talking about? ...Australians are weird.

Very true, they are. Only I'm not one of them and neither is Christoph Waltz. We're from Austria - skiing, Alps, Arnie Schwarzenegger.
Australia - kangoroos, koalas, bush fires.

 

[INC]

What are you talking about? ...Australians are weird.

wait you talking about Sauman - Christopher lee? hes British

or Waltz? hes certainly not australian, Austrian sure.....

im confused here

 

[Lanrutcon]

Got you both.

 

[Peggies]

 

[The Hamburglar]

The joker sucks. Tdk was boring crime movie not a bat man movie.

 

[EverydayBeast]

Joker #1 is a forgone conclusion this is what a villain is supposed to be

 

[kunonabi]

Probably Joker. Thanos had a shot before Endgame screwed him, and everyone else really, over.

 

[Peggies]

The joker sucks. Tdk was boring crime movie not a bat man movie.

Whoa! Maybe it was no batman movie but it was a brilliant thriller about fucked up world today. I found it really good.

 

[Chiggs]

Unfortunate LOTR spelling error.

Voted Anton Chigurh, but he was a literary villain before he was a film villain.

 

[T8SC]

Johnny Tran.

 

[SebastianShaw]

Chigurh

 

[Kerlurk]

Gaming Discussion

Video game news, industry analysis, sales figures, deals, impressions, reviews, and discussions of everything in the medium, covering all platforms, genres, and territories.

www.neogaf.com

 

[Goro Majima]

Easily Joker with two iconic interpretations of the character and then Thanos at #2

 

[thefool]

 

[AJUMP23]

An amazing film, with an amazing villian.

 

[Kenpachii]

Voldemort, harry potter is massive.

Joker probably second, because well known, could also be first because of that actually.

Bane was probably the best after that but more niche, thanos is more a bane character at the end of the day.

 

[V1LÆM]

What no Hans Gruber? I'm outta here.

no. die hard is a movie from 1988. that's not 21st century. it's 20th. so that's why there is no Hans Gruber. get outta here.

 

[Insane Metal]

Spoiler

lol

 

[VulcanRaven]

I would say that Sauron is more iconic than Saruman even though he is only an eye for most of the trilogy.

 

[Ionian]

Whoa! Maybe it was no batman movie but it was a brilliant thriller about fucked up world today. I found it really good.

Truly was palpable his mental breakdown and actions. No idea how you make a sequel to it but it was far better an origin story then the comics ever did.

 

[HarryKS]

Iconic?

Has to be Thanos.

Because of the definition of the word iconic. I mean, it has to be a popular choice.

I prefer comic book Thanos but cannot deny his popularity in pop culture since the Avengers movies were released.

 

[Reality Czar]

Thanos was "iconic" for 3 or 4 years. He was mostly a marketing gimmick used to sell people on the idea that seeing a bunch of cross promotion (via the portal sequence) is a "meaningful" experience. People crying at the portal scene are fully bought into this hook line and sinker.

He was just a guy who would show up occasionally at the end of other movies to tease people for a climactic film release. His character design constantly changing reflects this fact, he was just a vague boogeyman in the background.

Then he showed up in one movie, killed everyone, then immediately was destroyed in the following movie. Big whoop. He doesn't even have a trilogy to his name.

 

[Men_in_Boxes]

Thanos was plastic.

Film has become plastic over the last 20 years.

It's definitely Thanos.

 

[Hoya Destroyer]

I say Thanos is the most iconic of the 21st century, due to the 21st century films he was in. Joker is still more iconic overall, but like Darth Vader, its because of his 20th century history.
Chigurh is so much more interesting than Thnaos though.