Discover the best anime villains of all time and what makes them so compelling and unforgettable. From Light Yagami to Frieza, these villains have left a lasting impact on the world of anime.
20 Best Anime Villains of All Time
The recipe for a good anime is not only an interesting protagonist, the villain is also important. Over the course of anime’s existence, the world has seen many bad guys and so many of them have been loved by viewers. They can be controversial, charismatic, crazy and just bullies. I suggest remembering the twenty best of them all.
Kuroro Lucifer – “Hunter x Hunter”
The leader of the mafia group “Spiders”. If his group needs something, they will take it. A great leader who is the glue of his group. Knows the value of life and really cares about his comrades, but he is not so interested in the lives of others, especially if they are in his way. Touched the audience with his past, and his philosophy was quoted.
Himiko Toga – My Hero Academia
A certain Harley Quinn of the anime world. Always active, noisy and smiling, even during another murder. A charismatic psychopath with a perverted sense of love and a craving for blood since childhood, which is interesting and pleasant to watch.
Shogo Makishima – “Psycho-Pass”
In the universe of this anime, everything is ruled by the AI ”Sibyl”, which decides how and who to live. However, Shogo Makishima does not fall under suspicion, his soul is not tormented by doubts or guilt, even after all the murders, so his passport is clean. He likes to talk about good and evil, as well as the humanity of the AI invention.
Dio Brando – “The Bizarre Adventures of Jo Jo”
A walking meme, a jerk without gray morals and brilliant ideas, but very charismatic and has one of the coolest abilities in anime. Dio has boundless ambitions and love for power. Despite the lack of a heart-rending backstory, he leaves his mark on the plot and can specifically interfere with the heroes.
Alucard – “Hellsing”
Alucard is Dracula’s name backwards. Even those who don’t watch anime know his maniacal smile. The image of the strongest vampire in “Hellsing” is gorgeous – he is selfish, arrogant, merciless. Most of all, he desires not even blood or power, Alucard is looking for a worthy opponent who can interrupt his boring life.
Advertising
Yoshikage Kira – “Jo Jo’s Bizarre Adventure”
A villain who is feared because he is too realistic. He is a serial killer who exists among ordinary people. Few people would guess that the person riding the subway with you has a corpse in his apartment. He has a strong ability, but he has no desire to change the world, he wants to live an “ordinary” life.
Lelouch Lamperouge – Code Geass: Lelouch of the Rebellion
Arrogant and intellectual due to his aristocratic upbringing. This is just a mask behind which Lelouch hides his thirst for achieving his goal. A villain who can hardly be called pure evil. He wants to build a new world for his sister and the happiness of others, but does his end justify the means?
Zeref Dragneel – Fairy Tail
A desperate and lonely man who is slowly going mad from his power. Zeref would like to die for all the sins he has committed, but no one can defeat him. He destroys everything around him and brings pain to others, and then suffers from it himself, so the mage withdraws from society. He is not pure evil in the flesh, Zeref can show concern and caution, but he cannot cope with emotions.
Sosuke Aizen – Bleach
Aizen is calm and surprisingly polite, in battles he behaves relaxed, not showing true emotions, which gives him the lion’s share of charisma. He is always one step ahead, thanks to his intellect. All his politeness is just a mask, Aizen does not follow any rules of morality and uses any means to achieve his goals.
Griffith – “Berserk”
Griffith is ambiguous in that he sacrificed his comrades to achieve his goal, gradually losing his comradely feelings towards them. For the sake of his goal, he is ready to give up not only friends and affections, but also himself.
Donquixote Doflamingo – One Piece
Having lost everything once, Donquixote was never able to regain his strength and power, which is why he was filled with hatred for everyone. He has a wild charisma and leadership qualities, but is also two-faced and mean. He is involved in the underground, started wars, was involved in the slave trade, chemical weapons, and experiments on people.
Makima – “Chainsaw Man”
An excellent manipulator who uses her abilities to gain control over the main character and bind him to herself. She instills fear with her power, but does not show her true abilities and motives, hiding her worries and sadness behind a mask of a friendly smile and a pretty face.
Kenjaku – “Magic Battle”
Initially hiding in the shadows, he showed himself as an attentive observer. This type of villain can be called a waiting strategist. Either Kenjaku carries out his plan with the help of others, or he comes to the end of the battle to personally finish it. He acts behind the scenes and not all of his plans and power have been revealed yet. How can he influence the plot and the characters? This further fuels interest.
Askeladd – “Saga of Vinland”
A character who swings from one extreme to another. Sometimes he shows himself on the good side, then the viewer sees him rob and kill. Some of his actions are pure evil, although in the plot he is put on par with the hero. He is so charismatic that it is difficult to hate him, but the anime will not let you forget how cruel he can be.
Madara – “Naruto”
He was announced as a very strong character and did not disappoint fans. He can destroy an army of ninjas and drop meteors. His philosophy is seemingly good – peace in the whole world, but the ways to achieve this are ambiguous. He experienced the loss of a person close to him, which probably affected his worldview.
Junko Enoshima – “School of Despair”
She caused colossal damage to many, brainwashing people, forcing them to plunge into despair. A very extraordinary personality, initially seems like a frivolous, hot-tempered and flighty girl. Her official description: “expresses her dissatisfaction every time she opens her mouth.”
In fact, she is very apathetic, and her psyche is unstable. For Junko, having one personality is boring, so she changes them. The girl is quite smart and cunning, obsessed with despair and was able to make the whole world feel it. She is also a skilled manipulator who kills with other people’s hands.
Eren Yeager – Attack on Titan
The protagonist with pure morals, who in the end decides the fate of a thousand. The viewer watches throughout the anime as the events of the world of “Attack on Titan” change Eren, driving him crazy. Gradually, he perverts his principles and becomes a villain, which is a big word for this anime, it is difficult to call someone good and someone bad. However, Eren began to do reckless things and received the nickname “hysterical”.
Payne – “Naruto”
And again a wonderful antagonist from a cult anime. A strong, confident and ruthless character, he was not born that way, but became so after a long and thorny path, on which Pain gained a lot of experience.
His morals once coincided with Naruto’s morals, but Pain abandoned them and realized that there was no way back. Bright and kind dreams were destroyed and on these remains his new ideology was formed, that peace can only be maintained through pain. Many believe that this philosophy is the most developed in the title.
Bondrewd – “Made in Abyss”
An inhuman scientist, he experiments on children who love him because they believe in the good of experiments. Despite what he does to the children, Bondrewd loves them, albeit in his own way. The reasons for his experiments are not at all reckless, and the results are not disastrous, which makes him an interesting and controversial villain.
Yagami Light – “Death Note”
And another main character who eventually became a villain. Has an interesting moral and motives. The desire to achieve justice, to become the chief judge, takes him too far. He revels in his power. Also smart and charismatic, a manipulator of the kind, played a game with the police for a long time, remaining elusive.