10 Perfect Villain Performances in Modern Sci-Fi Movies

Great sci-fi movies need great villains, and there have been some villains in recent sci-fi movies that seem destined to go down in history. Many of the best modern sci-fi movies are elevated by their villains, and compelling performances are vital to that. If a sci-fi movie does things well, the villains can be just as compelling as the main characters, and they can become just as popular.

Villains have to push the heroes in interesting ways, so many of the best recent villains are designed to counteract the qualities of other characters. This means that actors playing villains need to be in tune with their own character’s motivations as well as the other characters in the movie. An intriguing dynamic between the hero and the villain can make both characters more memorable.

10

The Colonel – War for the Planet of the Apes (2017)

Woody Harrelson

Woody Harrelson often does his best work in comedy roles, but his performance in War for the Planet of the Apes Serves as a reminder that he doesn’t have to be funny to be captivated. He plays a rogue colonel who resorts to desperate measures to avoid the new strain of simian flu. He is first introduced when he murders Caesar’s family, but his motivations and his philosophy are revealed to be surprisingly complex.

The Colonel is the kind of character who knows he might be seen as a bad guy, but he doesn’t care because he’s firm in his beliefs. He’s seen a series of good guys lead humanity to the brink of extinction, and he’s taking matters into his own hands. Harrelson nails the Colonel’s stern look. He makes him physically imposing enough to reflect his position of power. The future of the Planet of the Apes Saga couldn’t have room for many more human villains.

9

Baron Harkonnen – Dune Part One & Two (2021 and 2024)

Stellan Skarsgård

Baron Harkonn was already an iconic sci-fi villain before Stellan Skarsgård took on the role, thanks to the enduring popularity of Frank Herbert. Don novels. The Baron is a mysterious sadist with far more power than he initially lets on. He seems to be little more than a frail elderly man at first, but this turns out to be misleading. As well as his strange powers, the Baron is a master manipulator.

The Baron is able to bend all those around him to his will. When his advisors and allies suggest more direct and violent actions, he seems to know the perfect way to make House Atreides destroy themselves without much input. in Dunn: Part Two, He lets his nephew Fayed Rauta do most of his dirty work. Austin Butler’s performance is just as impressive, and he and Skarsgård develop a strange chemistry from very early on. Dunn: Three parts Will have to function without any character. The Baron’s presence will be missed.

8

Immortan Joe – Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)

U Keys-Byrne

Hugh Keays-Byrne played Tokater in the first Mad Max MovieAnd he returned to the franchise 36 years later to play an even more terrifying villain. Immortal Joe is a powerful warmonger who leads a cult of loyal followers. He maintains his iron grip over his people by rationing their water in the post-apocalyptic desert landscape, but his war boys seem as if they would put their lives on the line for him without any external motivating factors.

Immortan Joe’s brilliant character design and his legions of War Boys immediately set him apart as an imposing villain. Hugh Keays-Byrne knows he doesn’t have to do too much to complete the effect. In contrast to Chris Hemsworth’s Dementus in Furious, Keays-Byrne is relatively reserved. Immortal Joe devotes most of his energy until absolutely necessary, however Mad Max: Fury Road Build his legend around him.

7

Luv – Blade Runner 2049 (2017)

Sylvia Hoeks

Love begins as a curious and innocent replicant, but she soon reveals a tendency to violence. When she is ordered to find the replicant child, she stops at nothing to calmly dispose of anyone who stands in her way. Her devotion to Neander Wallace is so overwhelming that she does not stop to think about the consequences of her actions. Sylvia Hoeks rose from relative obscurity to deliver an outstanding performance in Blade Runner 2049.

Hoeks’ performance is so effective because it captures every stage of LW’s progression. She can change her entire attitude in a moment, just like in her confrontation with Joshi, which reflects the emotional inexperience of replicants. Luv lacks the humanity of some other replicants Blade Runner. She gives her most simplistic emotions, and she only allows herself to be controlled by Wallace’s instructions.

6

Nathan Bateman – Ex Machina (2014)

Oscar Isaac

with these Star Wars sequel trilogy, Destruction and his role as Leto Atreides in don, Oscar Isaac has been a big name in science fiction for the past decade. It all started with Alex Garland ex machine, A gripping thriller in which Isaac plays a reclusive inventor pushing the limits of artificial intelligence. Nathan lives in a secluded house with only his own robotic creations for company.

Isaac helps bring out the nuance in Nathan’s character. He is a sort of mad scientist with a god complex, one who has abandoned any idea of ​​humanitarianism in his pursuit of perfection, but he is also a deeply troubled man. Isaac reveals just enough of the fragile loneliness that hides beneath Nathan’s manipulative facade. He also nails Nathan’s intense, analytical gaze.

5

Andrei Sator – Tenet (2020)

Kenneth Branagh

Tenet Certainly has its problems, and it doesn’t get as much love as many other Christopher Nolan movies. One of the great positives of the movie is Kenneth Branagh’s performance as Andrei Sator. If Tenet Is Nolan’s version of a James Bond Movie, as some critics have suggested, Branagh brings the perfect level of evil mania. He is as chilling as Blofeld, and as unhinged as Stromberg.

Branagh would make a good Bond villain if he ever got the chance, but for now his performance is in Tenet Will have to do. He plays Sator with a level of cool detachment that perfectly aligns with the character’s omnicidal intentions. Sator does not think about life in reasonable terms, so it makes sense that he is impossible to relate to. Branagh makes the most of the few scenes he has.

4

Kylo Ren – The Star Wars Sequel Trilogy

Adam Driver

Although the sequel trilogy has divided opinion among the Star Wars Fan base, Adam Driver’s portrayal as Kylo Ren has received widespread acclaim. This should come as no surprise, as Driver has continued to establish himself as one of the best actors of his generation ever since. The Force Awakens. He has worked with directors such as Ridley Scott, Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and Michael Mann. It is not always easy to break away from the company of an icon Star Wars character, but Driver has proven that he is so much more than just Kylo Ren.

Kylo Ren’s tragic past is part of what makes him so appealing. In a way, he is tied to the legacy of Darth Vader. Not only is he a direct descendant of Vader, but he also succumbs to the dark side of the force after being thought of as the Chosen One. What sets Kylo apart is his all-absorbing rage. Darth Vader is driven by revenge and hatred as well, but he puts on a much more controlled persona in front of his people. Driver only reveals a counterpoint to Kylo’s anger when he starts to bond with Rey.

3

Killmonger – Black Panther (2018)

Michael B. Jordan

Thanos is the most consequential MCU villain of the last decade, but Killmonger might be the most compelling. Before these “Thanos was right” Arguments started, there was a similar response to Killmonger’s philosophy in Black Panther. In the end, even T’Challa realizes that Killmonger’s plan to share Wakanda’s resources is a noble one. A lot of Killmonger’s ideas are extremely relevant in the current global political landscape.

Michael B. Jordan manages to inject just enough menace into Killmonger to ensure he remains the villain, even when he’s on the right side of history. The key difference between Killmonger and T’Challa is Killmonger’s reckless tactics. Jordan swaggers around with a level of arrogance that comes off as almost petulant. Killmonger is a compelling villain with a checkered past, and Jordan shows that his ego is a coping mechanism.

2

Minister Mason – Snowpiercer (2013)

Tilda Swinton

Tilda Swinton has the rare ability to disappear into any roleNo matter the age, personality or nationality of her character. Minister Mason is one of her most memorable roles, as she brings a lot of real-world influence to a larger-than-life character. Minister Mason is a despotic ruler SnowpiercerIt’s a grim dystopia, and it often seems detached from reality. However, Swinton draws few comparisons to actual dictators from history.

As well as some authoritarian gravitas, Swinton often plays Mason with the self-important superiority of a schoolteacher. She speaks to the passengers from the end of a train, as she speaks to a group of innocent students. By infantilizing the passengers, she reasserts her authority. Swinton manages to make Mason a surprisingly funny character too. She has a pathetic quality about her, as if her grandstanding is a way of proving her importance to herself.

1

Jobu Tupaki – Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)

Stephanie Hsu

Stephanie Hsu lost the Oscar for best actress Everything everywhere all at once co-star Jamie Lee Curtis, but she would have been a worthy winner. Hsu plays Joy Wang, Evelyn’s daughter, but she also plays the villain Jobu Tupaki, whose conscience is split across the multiverse. Jobu plans to destroy the multiverse, using the immense powers she has accumulated from a lifetime spent jumping between different realities.

Hsu’s performance as Jobo is central to the absurdist philosophy of everything everywhere all at once, As well as its zany, fast-paced humor. She delivers an eye-catching performance that shows the endless variety of the multiverse, but she’s still grounded enough to hammer home the emotional ending alongside Michelle Yeoh. Jobu only works as a character thanks to Hsu’s full-throttle performance.