There are few things more effective in a movie than a good villain. While we cheer for the heroes, we are always fascinated by the bad guys, especially the ones who truly terrify us. The 1980s was a decade that saw huge changes in film genres like action, horror, and sci-fi. This allowed for a lot of noteworthy villains to emerge.
Some villains from this era have failed to maintain a legacy. They might have initially appeared intimidating, but they're now laughable from a modern perspective. Other villain characters may have become more sympathetic over time and it's hard to see them as villains anymore. Then there are those classic villains from the '80s that still inspire fear all these years later.
10 Al Capone - The Untouchables (1987)
Brian De Palma's crime epic The Untouchables takes a look at the fight against organized crime during America's Prohibition era. Though this movie certainly didn't introduce the infamous figure of Al Capone to the world, it did provide what is likely the most iconic depiction of the real-life gangster.
The performance by Robert De Niro is a big part of what makes the character so memorable as De Niro plays him with a seductive charm which can turn into violent rage on a dime. The scene in which Capone beats one of his own men to death with a baseball bat is an unforgettable moment of brutality.
9 Hans Gruber - Die Hard (1988)
While John McClane became an action movie icon thanks to Die Hard, the more you watch the classic film,it becomes clearer that the villain Hans Gruber steals the show. Played to perfection by Alan Rickman, Hans Gruber helped usher in a new era of action movie villains.
Gruber is a sophisticated bad guy who has a plan and is smarter than the hero. While you might think his calm demeanor would put you at ease, it does the opposite as he could kill someone in cold blood and not even break a sweat.
8 Wez - The Road Warrior (1981)
American audiences first came to know the hero Max Rockatansky in The Road Warrior. The follow-up to Mad Max found the lone highwayman in the post-apocalyptic wasteland where he must do battle with evil warlord, the Humungus. However, it is Humungus' henchman Wez who is really the intimidating threat.
Wez is a mohawk-sporting madman who seems more like a wild animal than a human. He attacks his enemies with such crazed ferocity that they can't help but cower in fear at the mere sight of him.
7 Roy Batty - Blade Runner (1982)
Ridley Scott's sci-fi masterpiece Blade Runner is set in a world in which android replicants are used for hard labor. Roy Batty is a replicant who leads a rebellion against the human masters and is then hunted.
Batty is a rare kind of villain as he is completely sympathetic in his journey and what he wants to achieve, yet he is still terrifying. His chilling persona, performed exquisitely by Rutger Hauer, makes him seem extremely human yet also eerily detached.
6 The Predator - Predator (1987)
It takes a pretty impressive movie monster to make Arnold Schwarzenegger look scared. Predator is a thrilling action-adventure in which Schwarzenegger leads a team of special forces into the jungle where they are stalked by an alien who hunts for sport.
The creature design of the Predator is really what sells this as an instantly iconic movie monster. His cool armor and weaponry mixed with his ability to camouflage make him a formidable foe. But when he removes his helmet, his face is the stuff of nightmares.
5 Ace Merrill - Stand By Me (1986)
Though Stand by Me is a Stephen King adaptation, it is a much less terrifying story than what the author usually delivers. But even with a coming-of-age story of four friends on a summer adventure, the movie still delivers a really chilling villain.
Kiefer Sutherland plays Ace Merrill, the local teen psychopath who seems to get his kicks by threatening other people. Even Ace's friends are terrified of him. And when he meets up with the young heroes of the story, it feels like he is really willing to kill them.
4 Pinhead - Hellraiser (1987)
Though the Hellraiser series might not be as iconic as some other horror franchises, like Halloween or Nightmare on Elm Street, the villain at the center is one of the most effective and unsettling bad guys ever created.
Though he is credited as Lead Cenobite in the first film, the character has become known as Pinhead, thanks to the nails sticking out of his head. His booming voice and relentless nature add to the horrific nature of the character. And the fact that he tortures his victims for all eternity is certainly intimidating.
3 Henry - Henry: Portrait Of A Serial Killer (1986)
The depiction of serial killers in movies was nothing new, but Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer made the killer the main character. Audiences were forced to follow this deranged man around on his killing spree where he continued to claim many innocent victims.
Michael Rooker gives a chilling performance in the lead role. The rage and cold-blooded nature of Henry's crimes made it a haunting movie and truly disturbing to experience.
2 Judge Doom - Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
Many young movie fans were thrilled by seeing the animated and live-action worlds mix together in Who Framed Roger Rabbit. Those same young fans were also probably terrified by the film's villain, Judge Doom.
Christopher Lloyd, usually such a lovable actor, brings real menace to this man who wants to destroy "toons." But as scary as he is at first, it's the twist that he is a toon himself that really makes him a terrifying and unforgettable bad guy.
1 Jack Torrance - The Shining (1980)
Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is perhaps the most famous Stephen King adaptation that the author doesn't like. It centers on Jack Torrance, a washed-up writer who takes a job as a winter caretaker of an isolated hotel. While secluded with his family, Jack gradually grows more unhinged and dangerous.
Jack Nicholson fully embraces Jack's deranged downward spiral. Seeing this family man turn into a cold-blooded murderer is upsetting and horrific. When he starts going after his wife and child, he becomes a force of nature that is impossible to forget.
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