17 Actors Who Played Villains So Convincingly That People Can't See Them As Anything Else

"John Lithgow was so terrifying in Dexter that I kept expecting him to murder somebody in The Great British Bake Off."

Reddit user u/TheToughestHang recently asked which actors were so "perfectly hate-able" in a role that you had a hard time separating them from their character.

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And there were so many great responses! Here are some of the top-voted answers:

Note: I'm sure these actors were/are nice people IRL! It's just interesting to think that they're so good at their craft that people had a hard time shaking their incredible performances.

1. Imelda Staunton as Professor Umbridge in Harry Potter

Warner Bros/Courtesy Everett Collection

"I can't unsee Umbridge as her, even after reading the books again. She encapsulated Umbridge so well."

—u/Lunavixen15

"Honestly, the biggest challenge for any new Harry Potter series is going to be matching the casting of the movies. Imelda Staunton is one of many who was absolutely perfect for her character, and it's going to be hard to buy anyone else in the role."

—u/forbiddenmemeories

2. Antony Starr as Homelander in The Boys

Amazon Prime Video / Via youtube.com

"I know it’s a character, but he’s such an amazing actor that he instilled a fear in me that I will never be able to explain."

—u/whatthengaisthis

3. Louise Fletcher as Nurse Ratched in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and as Kai Winn in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine

United Artists / Paramount / Courtesy Everett Collection

"She was excellent at playing the villain. You are helpless against the tide of hate that washes over you."

—u/LitherLily

"Such a remarkable actress. Really underrated."

—u/lekoman

4. Billy Zane as Cal Hockley in Titanic

Paramount / Via youtube.com

"It's too bad; he's a cool dude."

—u/Fly_By_Orchestra

"I read somewhere that he would make a great Lex Luthor, and now, I can't unsee it."

—u/Toky0Sunrise

5. Rosamund Pike as Amy Dunne in Gone Girl

20th Century Fox / Via youtube.com

"She played Amy so perfectly in Gone Girl that I have only recently been able to watch shows or movies that she is in."

—u/EvilTodd1970

"I just watched Gone Girl yesterday! I honestly love her even more because she really does have THE RANGE of being Jane Bennet and Amy, lmao."

—u/NotAMuchTallerWoman

6. Giancarlo Esposito as Gus Fring in Breaking Bad and as Moff Gideon in The Mandalorian

Gregory Peters / AMC /Disney/Lucasfilm / Courtesy Everett Collection

"When I saw Giancarlo Esposito in Community, I just about shat myself in fear."

—u/RatCatSlim

7. John Lithgow as Arthur Mitchell (the Trinity Killer) in Dexter

Randy Tepper / Showtime / Courtesy Everett Collection

"John Lithgow was so terrifying in Dexter that I kept expecting him to murder somebody in The Great British Bake Off."

—u/Aduro95

"John Lithgow is a tremendous actor. Like, he's been in more stuff than you realize because he's so completely the character that you almost don't realize it's him."

—u/byebyedenverdiva

8. Mo'Nique as Mary Johnston in Precious

Lions Gate / Courtesy Everett Collection

"Oh, this is a good answer. Funnily enough, Mo'Nique is apparently one of the biggest sweethearts in the world."

—u/SmellyCheeseDisease

9. Jesse Plemons as Todd Alquist in Breaking Bad

AMC / Via youtube.com

"It took years for me to see past his dead-fish portrayal of Todd and recognize his immense acting talent. He’s really very good."

—u/overmonk

10. Jason Isaacs as Lucius Malfoy in Harry Potter and as Colonel William Tavington in The Patriot

Warner Bros. / Columbia Pictures/ Courtesy Everett Collection

"Gotta say, he excels at portraying despicable villains."

—u/MilleniumPelican

11. Christoph Waltz as Standartenführer Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds

Francois Duhamel/Weinstein Company/Courtesy Everett Collection

"He was fantastic at playing a Nazi. It took me nearly halfway through Django Unchained to believe he was a good guy in that. I’m still suspicious of any character he plays."

—u/yma_bean

12. Lena Headey as Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones

HBO / Via youtube.com

"She's actually super nice from what I've seen interviews, but dang, she was too perfect as Cersei."

—u/Zorgcustomersupport

13. Javier Bardem as Anton Chigurh in No Country for Old Men

Miramax /Courtesy Everett Collection

"I watched No Country for Old Men in the theater and studiously avoided Javier Bardem until last year when I watched Dune. He’s a great actor; otherwise, Anton Chigurh wouldn’t have mentally scarred me for a decade."

—u/Jill1974

14. Joaquin Phoenix as Commodus in Gladiator

DreamWorks / Via youtube.com

"Took me quite a while to watch Joaquin Phoenix in anything after Gladiator. His Commodus was so f*cking evil that I couldn’t stand him in anything for years."

—u/Mud_Landry

15. Tobias Menzies as Captain "Black Jack" Randall in Outlander

Starz / Via youtube.com

"Every movie and film he is in, I always hope his character dies."

—u/Pand0ra30_

"Such a despicable character played so well by him."

—u/Lulubean16

16. Samuel L. Jackson as Stephen Warren in Django Unchained

The Weinstein Company / Via youtube.com

"Leonardo DiCaprio had a certain charisma to him in that movie. Not Jackson. He perfectly portrays someone who sold out their own."

—u/Anomaly4D89

"It’s an incredible role. You can tell Jackson uses his contempt for the character in the performance to really show the contempt his character had for the other slaves."

—u/UglyInThMorning

17. And finally, Ralph Fiennes as Amon Goeth in Schindler's List and as Voldemort in Harry Potter

Universal / Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection

"I've been scared of him all my life. I was so happy to see him play such a different character in The Grand Budapest Hotel."

—u/anotherkeebler

Can you think of any actors who were so good at playing the villain that it was hard to watch them in anything else? Sound off in the comments below!

Note: Some responses have been edited for length and/or clarity.