Top 10 Obvious Villain Reveals in Movies
You'll never guess... oh. Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most predictable moments that a villain, or key information about the villain, was revealed. Spoiler alert, obviously.
Transcript
00:00 "Hello, Jonesy."
00:00 "Hello, Mac."
00:03 Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most predictable moments
00:08 that a villain or key information about the villain was revealed.
00:11 "How about some music, mother?"
00:13 "Selection."
00:14 "Richard Wagner, Das Rheingoldt, Act II, The Entry of the Gods, Into Valhalla."
00:23 Animated movies and comic book stories don't count for this list.
00:26 Spoiler alert, obviously.
00:29 Number 10, William Shank, Spiral.
00:31 In this spin-off to the popular horror film series, Chris Rock's Detective Zeke Banks
00:36 tries to solve a string of jigsaw-type murders with his partner, William Shank.
00:39 "Let's just call it a night."
00:40 "You sure?"
00:41 "Yeah. Go home. Go see your wife, go see your kid."
00:44 The latter character is played by Max Minghella and takes an early exit after it appears that
00:49 he's been killed. Although we see a mangled body that's supposed to be his, it's extremely
00:53 obvious that we never actually see him die.
00:55 By the end, Banks discovers that Shank was the real killer all along. You might not have
01:00 guessed his intricate plans before the climax, but you probably guessed that Minghella was
01:03 playing the villain.
01:04 Number 9, Yuri Kamarov, A Good Day to Die Hard.
01:12 This movie isn't exactly the most beloved entry in the Die Hard series, nor does it
01:15 have an especially memorable villain.
01:17 "Juggernaut's people will kill her."
01:19 It doesn't have a good ending, but it's a good start.
01:22 The movie's main villain is a character who's known for being a dangerous man, and
01:26 turns out to be even worse. Most audiences can't be that surprised by his evil turn
01:30 given his association with Russian criminals.
01:32 "That's no longer your concern."
01:37 Even before his villainy is revealed, he essentially uses the McClane Man to help him escape a
01:42 trial and take out several of his enemies. Kamarov's larger scheme revolves around making
01:46 lots of money selling uranium, a twist that isn't the jaw-dropper the film is trying
01:49 to make.
01:52 "Goddamn Americans."
01:54 Number 8, Staff Sergeant Barnes, Platoon.
01:57 During his first tour in Vietnam, Chris Taylor is influenced by two superior officers. He
02:01 sides with the more understanding Sergeant Elias and butts heads with the stern Staff
02:05 Sergeant Barnes.
02:06 "In the next sumbitch, I can catch a cop and Z's in the bush. I'm personally gonna
02:10 take an interest in seeing them suffer."
02:12 The second man always appears in an intense state, with a creepy glare and notable scar
02:16 on his face.
02:18 This is the first tip-off that something might be wrong with this guy. Even before he starts
02:21 committing war crimes, Barnes is clearly a negative influence in the platoon.
02:25 "Stay out of this, Elias. This ain't your show."
02:27 His disputes with Elias also signal to the viewer that he's a soldier that doesn't
02:31 care all that much about people. Considering the evidence, most audiences can spot this
02:35 villain within the first act.
02:37 Number 7, Vic Hoskins, Jurassic World.
02:43 It's not all that surprising that an in-gen security guard is a villain in this film.
02:47 This security guy has evil plans in this universe. Unlike good guy Owen, who respects the velociraptor's
02:52 nature and intelligence, Vic Hoskins hopes to turn them into weapons.
02:55 "Come on. We're the same. We're dogs of war. We know that the military needs to reduce
03:01 casualties."
03:02 According to the logic of this series, anybody who wants to defy nature or exploit the dinosaurs
03:06 for personal gain usually becomes an antagonist.
03:09 "Hey, yeah, it's me. We might have an opportunity here."
03:13 The fact that Hoskins is played by Vincent D'Onofrio might also tip off audiences that
03:17 he's destined to take a villainous turn. Jurassic fans know that he's up to no good
03:21 from the start, but his move to seize power the moment the park owner dies really seals
03:25 the deal.
03:25 Number 6, Chief Howard Hyde, Turner and Hooch.
03:33 If a movie character is named Hyde, he's always going to turn out to be a bad guy.
03:37 After a murder happens in a California town, Detective Scott Turner finds himself investigating
03:42 a larger conspiracy. He quickly runs into possible interference from Chief Howard Hyde.
03:46 "All right, all right. Just do the best job you can with the time you've got, all right?"
03:50 When we first meet the man, he looks like he's hiding something behind his dark sunglasses.
03:54 Throughout the investigation, Hyde criticizes Turner's methods. If that isn't enough,
03:58 there's also some not-so-subtle hints about the boss having friends involved in the case.
04:02 "I guess I can handle that. I mean, boy, it's a friend of mine. What's he gonna say? No?"
04:06 During the film's climax, the antagonist's ultimate reveal feels like it's been a long
04:10 time coming.
04:10 "Because you tipped him off, didn't you, Howard?"
04:12 Number 5, Mack, Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull.
04:16 This sequel, which takes place in the 1950s, was far from universally beloved,
04:21 and features a Soviet agent as the main villain. Along for the adventure with Indiana Jones is a
04:25 sidekick named George "Mac" McHale, who has some off-screen history with Indy that we never learn
04:30 much about.
04:30 "Why, Mac?"
04:36 "Yeah, what can I say, Jonesy?"
04:39 He double-crosses Indy early in the film, but later returns to his side,
04:43 claiming to be an agent working for the CIA. Obviously, that turns out to be a lie,
04:47 and he betrays Indy yet again, leading the Soviets right to them.
04:50 "Sorry, Jonesy."
04:51 "So what are you, uh, a triple agent?"
04:55 We eventually find out that he was doing it all for money,
04:57 which makes it pretty satisfying when he gets sucked up into the alien portal at the end.
05:08 Number 4. Blofeld - Spectre
05:10 Christoph Waltz seems born to play a Bond villain. In Spectre, his character, Franz
05:15 Oberhauer's identity and background are shrouded in secrecy throughout the adventure.
05:18 "What took you so long?"
05:20 "Cuckoo."
05:29 This made fans all the more suspicious that he would turn out to be more than an ordinary
05:34 opponent. We know that he's a bad guy from the start, but we later learn that he's actually
05:38 Ernst Stavro Blofeld, the head of the titular terrorist organization.
05:41 "The man you're talking to now, the man inside your head, is Ernst Stavro Blofeld."
05:48 Perhaps trying too hard to pay homage to the earlier Bond movies, the writers misplaced
05:53 an opportunity to give an iconic antagonist the memorable introduction he deserved.
05:57 "My wounds will heal. What about yours?"
06:02 Number 3. David - Alien Covenant
06:05 From the very first scene of this film, David comes off as an android that's up to no good.
06:09 His emotionless state is instantly creepy. When he later shows up to help the main crew members,
06:14 it's not crazy to question his motivations.
06:16 "I've been marooned here these many years."
06:18 The fact that the crew's companion android, Walter, looks identical to David means one
06:22 of them will definitely end up posing as the other at some point.
06:31 When David later disables Walter and takes his place on the ship,
06:34 literally no one in the audience is surprised. For skeptics of artificial intelligence,
06:38 David's very existence is a good reason to worry about the power given to machines.
06:42 Number 2. Roman Bridger - Scream 3
06:49 If someone is supposed to be dead in a horror movie, but you don't actually see them die,
06:53 always count on them making a surprise return. Roman Bridger's body appears without much of
06:57 an explanation, but we're to assume that Ghostface claimed him as a victim.
07:01 Bridger's reappearance doesn't seem all that absurd considering the Scream franchise's love
07:09 for fake deaths and twists. He's been running a long con the whole time,
07:13 hoping to get revenge on Sydney who, it turns out, is his half-sister.
07:16 "Roman Bridger, director."
07:24 "And brother."
07:27 While Sydney might not have seen it coming, fans could easily guess the climax.
07:31 Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel and ring the bell to get
07:42 notified about our latest videos. You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or
07:47 all of them. If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
07:54 Number 1 - Khan - Star Trek Into Darkness
07:57 Many people figured this one out before the movie was even released.
08:00 Benedict Cumberbatch's mysterious role plagued the internet with rumors,
08:11 but his eventual reveal as Khan was written on the wall the whole time.
08:14 His character was given the generic name John Harrison and a suspicious revenge story that
08:18 seems all too familiar. Given that the film is a follow-up to 2009's Star Trek, it also drew too
08:27 many parallels to the original sequel, Star Trek II - The Wrath of Khan. The boss' revelation was
08:31 just part of the larger backlash toward the film as a whole. Did we forget a notable villain turn
08:41 that you could see from a mile away? Let us know in the comments below.
08:45 "Okay. Okay. Let's do it."
08:50 Did you enjoy this video? Check out these other clips from WatchMojo
08:53 and be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.
08:58 [Music]