Negative roles play a crucial role in any movie that requires one, and keeping this in mind, we have a list of 10 Hollywood actors As villains for you that would surely up the ante of such characters in movies. The industry has a long list of terrific actors who are yet to explore their negative side.
Speaking strictly in terms of acting, each of the actors mentioned in this list has the ability or at least should be given the opportunity to serve as an antagonist, a character no less important than the protagonist and one responsible for letting the latter shine. Why? Because they can do it in ways much better than we have ever seen.
10 Hollywood Actors As Villains
Bradley Cooper
We can all agree that Bradley Cooper’s eyes do the talking. We got a glimpse of his ability to pull off a scary character in 2016’s War Dogs wherein he played the role of arms dealer Henry Girard. While he has proved that he is a versatile actor, we are yet to have him as a true-to-form antagonist for example, in a gangster movie or a supernatural one and also one who has a style. Maybe he can play Satan in a film adaptation of Lucifer.
Keanu Reeves
The popular choice for MCU’s Ghost Rider, Keanu Reeves is an actor who people are eagerly waiting to see in a negative role, especially with movies like Constantine and John Wick to his name. We would love to see him in a dark role and we are pretty sure that be it as a regular human or an inhuman entity, the guy would nail it.
Maybe he could play the Devil’s new bounty hunter in Constantine 2 or even the Devil himself since he clearly has a lot of experience with the entity. While Constantine provides him with the supernatural aspect, John Wick makes him visceral, cold and unforgiving. The perfect evil combo. You would like to see that now, wouldn’t you?
Nicolas Cage
As someone who is known for the unhinged side that he brings to his characters, Nicolas Cage was born for negative roles that would scare the hell out of the viewers. This earns him a spot in any list of Hollywood actors As villains. His portrayal of Ghost Rider was bang on as we saw him struggling to control the demon that’s in him while owning it like a master. Hopefully, some director will realise this and reach out to him. Until then we can relish his negative side in 2023’s Renfield (not really).
Brendan Fraser
Fraser was waiting in the wings for a very long time. And I’m pretty sure that many would be thinking why I would mention his name in this list because he has only restarted his career with The Whale. But this is what maybe makes it the perfect time for him to explore what he can do. I am talking about a dark psychological thriller where he is a psychotic stalker who follows people to their houses only to disappear. What happens then? I’ll let you think about it.
Dwayne Johnson
Dwayne Johnson may believe that he was born to play Black Adam but I think he was better off as the Scorpion King. And what I would not give to see him as a villain who kills his enemies with the brute strength of his bare hands. It would also be nice to see him in a new Scorpion King movie where he is half human and half scorpion. Remember The Mummy Returns? Yes, that but a more visceral and visually appealing version. Though it looked bad, it was definitely cool. He needs to embrace his dark side even more tightly than he did in Black Adam.
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Sandra Bullock
She would have been perfect as the Evil Queen in Disney’s upcoming live-action Snow White adaptation. I have always found her suitable for a supernatural character, like Angelina Jolie’s Maleficent. She has voiced an iconic animated villain already i.e. Scarlet Overkill, in the movie Minions. And it is high time that she gets to play one for real. She has the looks that can kill and it can easily serve as her weapon to woo men and have them serve as per her needs. As far as her conviction is concerned, watch the following trailer of The Unforgivable.
Gwyneth Paltrow
You may not have expected her in this list but I think that she can be a strong negative character. Frankly speaking, when I saw her all “heated up” in Iron Man 3, thanks to the Extremis treatment developed by Guy Pearce’s Aldrich Killian, I was scared for a split second. This along with her unconventional looks will serve perfect for a villain. Think of Charlize Theron in the Fast and Furious movies but more furious and fatal. Speaking of fatal, here is the actress in a scene from Contagion.
Anne Hathaway
Despite her sweetness, Anne Hathaway has proved that she is ready to be a shrewd and wicked villain. This she has done with 2020’s The Witches and 2012’s The Dark Knight Rises. Now before you ask how her role as Catwoman has anything to do with her playing a villain, what I meant is that the characteristics of the character aren’t unusual for an antagonist who is a pro at taking advantage of people for her personal interest. What else would you call a person if not “bad”?
Natalie Portman
The only way for Natalie Portman to make up for the disaster that was Lady Thor or Female Thor is by changing her side to Gorr’s. Period. Black Swan is enough to prove that she is well-prepared to take on a dark role. And there’s something about her eyes too that will definitely add to her villainous character. She may not need many words for her part as her expressions would be enough to do the talking.
And let’s not forget that she won the Best Actress Oscar for her part in Black Swan. So just give the role to her already! I want to see her dark and beautiful smile.
Aubrey Plaza
I think Aubrey Plaza knows black magic. It’s just a feeling but I think that Marvel has realised this too because the actress will reportedly be playing the role of a witch in Agatha: Coven of Chaos. There is an unhinged side to her, like Nicolas Cage, and we shall not forget that she is best friends with Elizabeth Olsen aka Wanda Maximoff aka Scarlet Witch. She also plays a witch in the animated series Little Demon. So altogether, she deserves to be a villain.
P.S. – Little Demon is perhaps the best animated show I have ever seen.
Which of these 10 Hollywood Actors As Villains would you like to see? Let us know in the comments below.
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