Not every story needs a hero , but every tale worth telling always has a villain.
That’s why I’ve compiled these 10+ movies and shows who tried to hide the real villain from us.
With a fresh perspective, you’ll never look at these characters the same way again.
Movie Villain: The Joker VS Actual Villain: Alfred Pennyworth in *Batman*.
Make no mistake: Batman is a curse. Instead of getting the poor boy someone to talk to, Alfred turned a blind eye and fed into Bruce’s desire for vengeance.
Had he done the responsible thing, Batman would never have darkened the door of Wayne Manor.
TV Villain: Lilith Sternin VS Actual Villain: Frasier Crane in *Frasier*.
The entire Crane clan (especially Martin) used to love making jokes at Lilith’s expense.
A closer look reveals Frasier to be quite the insufferable bore himself. He’s selfish, prone to jealousy, and a bit of a womanizer.
It’s no wonder that Lilith left him.
Movie Villain: Frank D’Amico VS Actual Villain: Damon Macready AKA Big Daddy in *Kick-Ass*.
Frank never wanted his son to follow in his footsteps. As a matter of fact, he did everything in his power to shield him from anything nefarious.
Big Daddy, on the other hand, turned Hit-Girl from an innocent child into a trained killing machine!
TV Villain: Walter White VS Actual Villain: Skyler White in *Breaking Bad*.
Skyler was the one who turned Walt from an RV-bound meth cook, into the great Heisenberg.
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She might come off as holier-than-thou, but don’t forget that it was her idea to launder the money through the car wash in the first place.
Movie Villain: Arthur Brooks VS Actual Villain: Sonny Koufax in *Big Daddy*.
Arthur Brooks may have been painted as the bad guy, but he was only looking out for the well-being of Julian.
Sonny, on the other hand, commits identity fraud, kidnapping, assault, as well as a litany of other crimes while in the presence of the child.
TV Villain: Tony Soprano VS Actual Villain: Olivia Soprano in *The Sopranos*.
Don’t let her meek demeanor fool you. Olivia Soprano is as deadly as they come and has been calling the shots from the sidelines for decades.
She even once tried to kill Tony — her own son!
Movie Villain: Lex Luthor VS Actual Villain: Batman in *Batman VS Superman: Dawn Of Justice*.
Lex may be a megalomaniac but his fears regarding Superman are not only rational but justified.
Batman can hardly be called a hero. He kills about a half-a-dozen people (at least) and bat-brands the others whom he leaves alive.
TV Villain: Dwight Schrute VS Actual Villain: Pam Beesly in *The Office*.
Pam completely crapped all over Jim’s dream of starting his own company and made him feel like a neglectful husband and father.
He was just trying to build a better life for you and the kids, Pam! And what exactly was going on behind-the-scenes with Brian?
Movie Villain: Thanos VS Actual Villain: Captain America in *Avengers: Infinity War*.
Okay, so Steve Rogers is definitely not a VILLAIN, but he IS blinded by his ego and his own twisted sense of morality.
But obviously, in the big picture, Thanos is definitely the big baddie. But Cap definitely had to take a moment to evaluate his choices.
TV Villain: Eric Northman VS Actual Villain: Bill Compton in *True Blood*.
Eric, despite his many shortcomings, still commands a great deal of respect in the Vampire world. He is a Sherriff, after all.
Bill is a puppet; a liar and a manipulator. Every single bad thing that ever befell Sookie was either directly or indirectly his fault.
Movie Villain: The Clovers VS Actual Villain: Big Red in *Bring It On*.
All that the Clovers wanted was their fair shot; is that so much to ask?
For years, ‘Big Red’ benefited from someone else’s hard work. She took full advantage of her status and privilege.
Movie Villain: Miranda Priestly VS Actual Villain: Nate in *The Devil Wears Prada*.
Nate is the definition of male insecurity. He attacks Andy because he feels threatened by her success, and lashes out accordingly.
More than anything else, Nate is a walking stereotype dripped in toxic masculinity.
TV Villain: Newman VS Actual Villain: Jerry Seinfeld in *Seinfeld*.
Newman may have been cast as the Bond villain, but few TV characters in the history of television are more reprehensible than Jerry Seinfeld.
He’s so insecure that he manifests shortcomings in the women he dates and uses it as an excuse to justify treating them terribly.
TV Villain: Clay Morrow VS Actual Villain: Jax Teller in *Sons Of Anarchy*.
Jax’s good intentions ended up paving a road straight to hell. As soon as he picked up the gavel, slowly but surely Prince Charming became everything he once claimed to hate.
TV Villain: Janice Litman VS Actual Villain: Ross Gellar in *Friends*.
Ross is a mean friend; he belittles Joey and openly challenges Phoebe’s spiritual beliefs.
He’s also a deadbeat dad who didn’t even have the decency to invite his own son to his second wedding. I’m not going to even mention how he made Rachel get off the plane…
