Other than in a few specific instances, every story needs a villain. They are crucial to driving the narrative forward through creating conflict (and yes, that the vast bulk of stories do require conflict of some sort is a hill I am willing to die on, or to kill on… choose your weapon.) The reality created by this conflict is often a key part of what makes your protagonist grow, which is an equally important feature of the story. A compelling villain will be a true match for your hero. They will test their moral convictions and skills, expose their vulnerabilities and tempt them into betraying all they hold dear, if they can. Audiences are often drawn to villains because they embody the urge to give in to our darkest impulses and to disregard taboos. They often come with tragic backstories so we, as readers, cannot help but yearn for their redemption, and they often shrug aside the social constraints and norms that our heroes obey. I’m unashamed to acknowledge I can see the appeal in that.
The reason it is important to humanize villains is not so you can condone their actions, it’s so you can understand that, given the right circumstances, you could become a villain too. Now that we have established why you need a great villain, let’s begin talking about some different types of villains you might utilize in your stories.
The Dark Reflection
As the name suggests, this villain is the shadowy mirror image of the hero in motive and means. They are dogmatic and unyielding where the hero is not.
The Familial Connection
A popular trope, this is "The Evil Twin" or the younger brother of the Prince. It is Loki to Thor, Scar to Mufasa. Sometimes it is an wicked older relative with designs on their younger counterparts wealth or power - like Richard III and the princes in The Tower or Count Olaf and the Baudelaire children.
The Mustache Twirler
An archetype most useful when your hero is NOT also your protagonist. They are simple characters whose villainy consists of throwing obstacles in the hero's way. They are best seen opposing a hero with little to offer outside good looks and muscles
The Fallen or Corrupted
Often beautiful, always flawed, they are what an anti-hero would become if not encountering a redeeming force. Like Lucifer, these are characters for whom the descent into villainy was precipitated by external forces. Thus exiled they now revel in their villainy and have usually moved beyond hope of redemption.
The Hero of their own story / The Zealot
This is often the most dangerous and brutal sort of villain as they are utterly convinced of
the rightness of their actions. Martyr or messiah with a mandate from God they are 100% convinced they are the hero of the tale and nothing is allowed to stand in their way.
Similar to “The Hero of their own story” is a slightly more nuanced and complex villain, The Ambivalently Evil Villain. This particular mode of villain may well not be the “big bad” or “final boss” of your story as a daily solid proportion of them choose to change sides or seek redemption through the course of the story.
The Ambivalently Evil Villain
A common plot device with this type of villain is for them to make a sacrifice for the hero. For example - giving up the chance to kill the hero if the circumstances are "unfair", dishonourable or outside the villain's personal code. An example of this would be Captain Barbossa obeying the pirate code of “Parlay” in Pirates of the Caribbean. In stories where this villain is present you will often see the reverse trope of the villain being tempted by good, rather than the hero being tempted by evil. Stories that feature an ambivalent villain will usually feature a story beat where they are faced by the reality of their actions and which might trigger some inward reflection and ponder a change of heart. It is following this beat that many of these characters begin a redemptive arc, often this is achieved in the story by the introduction of a greater evil or broader threat which forces this villain and the hero to put aside their differences and work together. When exposed to a more black and white type of villainy your ambivalent character is often seen waking up to how blind their loyalty has been which allows them to more fully become subject to good influences by the close of the story.
Part 2 of our Villains series will discuss some ways you can hide your bad guy in plain sight.