Naruto Evolution

Without a fearsome, memorable villain, your average superhero just doesn't have the opportunity to shine. With the release of The Dark Knight, featuring Heath Ledger's very creepy Joker, here's a closer look at some of the most evil and powerful supervillains in movies.




DARTH VADER - The Empire Strikes Back

Darth Vader has all the hallmarks of a true supervillain. He's committed evil acts like killing scores of Jedi knights, blowing up a planet, and lopping off his son's hand. He has superpowers he uses for evil purposes, like choking people from across the room. But the most obvious sign that he's a supervillain is that he wears a black cape. There's no clearer signal to the world that you follow the Dark Side than a black cape.



LORD VOLDEMORT - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is the most evil wizard to come down the pike in nearly 400 years. He wants little more than to return to his former glory as the dark overlord of the non-Muggle world. Unfortunately, that cursed Potter boy always gets in the way.




MEGATRON - Transformers

A robot that shrinks down into a handgun that other robots have to hold to shoot? Not exactly a threat to the planet. So it's no surprise that the leader of the Decepticons was given a new "alien jet" vehicle mode for the movie. Not that he needed to turn into something to wreak havoc; he tears poor Jazz in half with his bare hands.




DAVY JONES - Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest

Plenty of villains can be described as being "heartless." Few, however, have the dedication to remove said organ and lock it away. With his crew of undead fish-men, Jones ruled the oceans, claiming the souls lost at sea. Jack Sparrow incurred Jones' wrath when he tried to weasel his way out of their deal for the Black Pearl. But if you really want to make him mad, just order calamari.




AGENT SMITH - The Matrix Reloaded

Agent Smith isn't just evil. He's a bureaucrat with a license to kill. Think of him as an IRS agent who packs heat, punches through concrete, and dodges bullets. And if there's anything that Smith hates more than humans, it's rebellious humans sporting leather pants, cool shades and clunky cell phones from the late 90's.


DOCTOR OCTOPUS - Spider-Man 2

He lost his wife, he ruined his career, and he got four robotic arms with malevolent artificial intelligence fused onto his back. But did Otto Octavius give up? No, he decided to continue his research using alternative sources of funding. Namely, robbing banks. You'd think a dweeby kid who calls himself an arachnid wouldn't stand a chance against a guy who really does have eight limbs.


THE WICKED WITCH OF THE WEST - The Wizard of Oz

The debate continues whether the Wicked Witch is a green-skinned incarnation of evil or a wronged woman rebelling against the tyrannical Wizard of Oz. In any case, she rules the Winkies with an iron fist, commands an army of fearsome airborne primates, and probably has dubious personal hygiene habits. But if your house accidentally drops on one of her siblings, watch out. She'll get you and your little dog too.


GENERAL ZOD - Superman II

Lex Luthor is as evil as he is bald, but at the end of the day, he's just an ordinary guy. General Zod, however, is just as super as Superman. Though Zod and his henchmen gleefully created global chaos once they busted out of Krypton's answer to San Quentin, the Forbidden Zone, the General really only wanted one thing - for the son of Jor-El to kneel before Zod.


MAGNETO - X-Men: The Last Stand

Eric Lehnsherr survived a Nazi concentration camp as a child only to be ostracized as an adult for being a mutant. His friend Charles Xavier tried to convince him that their kind and humans could live in harmony, but he saw mutants as humankind's betters, not their equals. Using his incredible magnetic powers, Magneto will bring humans to their knees - especially the ones with metal pins in their legs.


KHAN NOONIEN SINGH- Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan

Most genetically-enhanced, cryogenically-preserved war criminals have anger management issues, but this one had his reasons to be ticked off. When his scheme to hijack the USS Enterprise didn't go as planned, Captain Kirk dumped Khan and company on a remote planet that quickly became a barren wasteland. When his wife died, Khan became obsessed with dishing out some revenge served cold. And it is very cold in space.


T-1000 - Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Whats the one thing that can go mano-a-mano with a time-traveling cyborg bodyguard? A fluid, Silver Surfer-looking dude in a police uniform. The T-1000 can walk through jail bars, pick locks with his finger and take a direct hit from a grenade with nary a dent. He makes the T-800 seem as uncool as last year's iPod.


THE QUEEN - Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

There are many different reasons why villains do villainous things. Some want revenge. Others want power. The Queen simply wants to be the fairest in the land, and she will stop at nothing to see it through - including slipping poisoned fruit to a would-be competitor and trying to drop a boulder on seven cohabiting dwarves.


THE ONE RING - The Lord of the Rings

Yes, the antagonist of the three-film epic was ostensibly the Dark Lord Sauron. But, come on, he was an eyeball. The real menace came from the little band of gold that everyone wanted so bad. It could turn you invisible, but that drew Ringwraiths around like flies to honey. More devastating was the effect it had on the mind. Keep it long enough and you too will become a withered, raspy freak with multiple personalities.


SYNDROME - The Incredibles

If obsessive fandom was a superpower, Buddy Pine, AKA Syndrome, would actually be the superhero he longs to become. But his enthusiasm nearly gets him blown up and leads to all supers being forced into hiding. With his dream thwarted, he uses technical prowess, dastardly schemes, and, of course, a black cape to turn into the Incredible family's worst nightmare.



SATAN - South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut

It's hard to imagine a figure in the Western world who could be more of a supervillain than Satan. In John Milton's "Paradise Lost," Satan tempted Eve with the fruit of knowledge causing mankind to get chucked out the Garden of Eden. He has been blamed for almost every bad and unfortunate thing that's happened in history. Yet in South Park, he saved humanity from the terror of his abusive boyfriend, Saddam Hussein.