“ | There was me, that is Alex, and my three droogs, that is Pete, Georgie, and Dim, and we sat in the Korova Milkbar trying to make up our rassoodocks what to do with the evening. The Korova milkbar sold milk-plus, milk plus vellocet or synthemesc or drencrom, which is what we were drinking. This would sharpen you up and make you ready for a bit of the old ultra-violence. | „ |
~ Alex narrating the film's introduction. |
“ | The era of games has begun. It's time to start a game where I am the main character. Where I will unify my soon-to-be empire. A game that will bring me a glorious ending. | „ |
~ Kuroto Dan |
A villainous protagonist or protagonistic villain is a character who is the central focus of a story but isn’t the hero of its story (unless they are redeemed/on & off/fallen). In short, these villains are the main characters of their own stories. Due to them being the protagonists of the story (and in many cases, knowing their motives) the audience commonly and mistakenly nickname them "Anti-Heroes".
Light Yagami, Michael Sullivan, Zim, Trevor Philips, Eren Yeager, Walter White, John Milton's Satan, Brightburn, Joe Goldberg, The Crusader, Thomas Shelby, Arthur Fleck, Tony Soprano, Rick Sanchez, Saul Goodman, Tony Montana , and Michael Corleone are prime examples of villain protagonists.
Villainous deuteragonists and tritagonists fall under this category too. (e.g: Sasuke Uchiha, Carlos De Vil, Griffith, Jax).
There can be more than one villainous protagonist in a same story, but each one has to share the same amount of screen time in order to qualify. In video games, any playable character(s) can qualify (e.g. Michael De Santa, Franklin Clinton, and Trevor Philips, who are the protagonists of Grand Theft Auto V; and Daniel Lamb and Leo Kasper, who are the protagonists of Manhunt 2). Also, former protagonists who became antagonists (often fallen heroes) can be included, given that they played a large part in the story, even if they no longer function as protagonists (e.g. Darth Vader, Dark Danny, Rex Dangervest, Griffith, victim, Nolanverse's Two-Face). The same applies to antagonists that protagonize their own stories (Joker, Yoshikage Kira, Thanos, Poison Ivy, Vez'nan); on-off and redeemed villains who used to oppose the heroes but later joined the heroic cause temporarily or definitively (Zuko, Vegeta, Plankton, Magolor, Obito Uchiha, Omni-Man, Thel 'Vadam, Beerus, and Bowser), villains who start out as allies in early story arcs but then reveal to be antagonists (Makima, Walter C. Dornez), and even in more rarer cases overarching protagonists who were planning everything from behind. (Calypso, O5 Council and Shinigami King)
Such characters can be found in almost every work of fiction, however, they are quite uncommon in works aimed for children, as these protagonists are usually meant to convey moral values. Examples of children's entertainment protagonist villains are: Wario, Megamind, Mr. Krabs, Brain, Ross, The Grinch, Felonius Gru, Scratch and The Once-Ler.
Some can be falsely seen as the "protagonist hero" as they are seen on the cover of the movie/book and there for the reader/watcher are being lured to believe that the character is the main hero of the story, while they are in fact the main antagonists. One example is Chip Hazard from Small Soldiers.
These characters are rarely Pure Evil, because it is uncommon for a leading character to actually be that evil, due to most protagonists being anti-villains , grey zoned , villains by proxy, redeemed, insecure, and/or On & Off (e.g Ainz Ooal Gown, Andrew Detmer, John Wade, Mark Davis, Alucard, Bluey, Billy Butcher (TV Series), Dexter Morgan, The Mask etc).
In addition, protagonists that are villainous usually set the villainy standards in their story. However, protagonists can still be Pure Evil if they have no redeeming, sympathetic qualities, know right from wrong, and the surrounding characters are visibly distressed or repulsed by their actions, thus meaning that they meet the criteria (e.g. Patrick Bateman, Louis Bloom, Frank Underwood, Light Yagami, Kurt Kunkle, King Richard III, César the Concierge, Henry, Nemesis and The Plutonian). In addition, horror works and exploitative medias often feature purely evil protagonists who are meant to be feared as mascots of their own franchise (e.g. Chucky, Michael Myers, Sweet Tooth and Alan Yates). Additionally, there have been cases of where their roles as protagonists are unrelated to their usual roles and motives (William Afton, Dr. Eggman, Bowser, Plankton, Megatron, The Ink Demon, and The Lich).
They are the exact inverted opposite of heroic antagonists.
All items (5870)
- A housekeeper in a hotel
- A.J. the Alien
- AAARRRGGHH!!!
- Aaravos
- Aaron Burr (Hamilton)
- Aaron Dingle
- Aaron Siegel's Brother (Dr. Mann's Proposal)
- Aarti Kaushik
- Abaddon (Arknthology)
- Abby (Let Me In)
- Abby Anderson
- Abby Russell
- Abdulla
- Abduwali Muse (Captain Phillips)
- Abi Branning
- Abigail (Metal Slug)
- Abigail Hill
- Abigail Roberts
- Abigail Walker
- Abigail, Amy and Sebastian Van Oddly
- Abobo
- Abraham (My Virtual Escape)
- Accelerator
- Ace (TwinBee)
- Ace Rothstein
- Achmed the Dead Terrorist
- Acidicus
- Ada Wong
- Adam "Kane" Marcus
- Adam (Dark)
- Adam (Kamen Rider Dragon Knight)
- Adam (Welcome to the Game)
- Adam Barlow
- Adam Claiborne
- Adam Groff
- Adam Kane
- Adam Meiks
- Adam Murray
- Adam Sorg
- Adam Stanheight
- Adam Veile
- Adamaï
- Adelaide Wilson
- Adina
- Admiral Bubbles
- Admiral-General Aladeen
- Adolf Hitler (Downfall)
- Adolf Hitler (Heil Honey I'm Home!)
- Adolf Schatz (Faces of War)
- Adonis (The Kingdoms of Ruin)
- Adrian (Macbeth)
- Adrian Powell
- Adrius Ossian
- Adu Du
- Adéwalé
- Aeron Greyjoy
- Aerospace Sanitation Inc.
- Affogato Cookie
- African Rat
- Agatha Harkness (Marvel Cinematic Universe)
- Agatha Harkness (Marvel)
- Agent 47
- Agent Jack Burns
- Agent Johnson (K.C. Undercover)
- Agent Kallus
- Agent Whiskey
- Agnes Skinner
- Agâh Beyoğlu
- Ah Puch
- Ahab
- Ahkmou
- Ahmed & Salim
- Ahri
- Ai (Yu-Gi-Oh!)
- Ai Magase
- Aiden (Beyond: Two Souls)
- Aiden Walker
- Aileen Wuornos (Monster)
- Aina Sahalin
- Ainz Ooal Gown
- Aisrehdar
- AJ Gilbride
- AJ Styles
- Ajax (The Warriors)
- Aji Min
- Akagi (Azur Lane)
- Akai and Kanie
- Akane Hiyama
- Akane Shinjo
- Akari (Hello? Hell...o?)
- Akari Abe
- Akasha (Dragalia Lost)
- Akaspetchi & Pipospetchi
- Akemi Nakajima
- Akira (Akira)
- Akira Shimura
- Akito Hyuga
- Akuma Shogun
- Al Chapman
- Alain
- Alain Magnan
- Alamar (Enroth)
- Alan (Alantutorial)
- Alan (Children Shouldn't Play with Dead Things)
- Alan Blunt
- Alan Yates
- Alan Yates' Crew
- Alana Bloom
- Alarak
- Alastor (Hellaverse)
- Alastor (Viewtiful Joe)
- Albedo (Ben 10)
- Albedo (Overlord)
- Albert Arlington
- Albert James Moriarty
- Albert Wesker (Resident Evil)
- Albert Wesker (Resident Evil: Welcome to Raccoon City)
- Albus (Castlevania)
- Aldo Trapani
- Alessa Gillespie
- Alex (A Clockwork Orange)
- Alex (Control Z)
- Alex (Elephant)
- Alex and Ash
- Alex Forbes
- Alex Kralie
- Alex McFarlane
- Alex Mercer
- Alex Romero
- Alex Wilder
- Alex Wright
- Alex's Droogs
- Alexander J. Mercer
- Alexander Romanov
- Alexander the Great (Rise and Fall)
- Alexander Thorkel
- Alexis Butler
- Alexis Reeves
- Alfred Alfer
- Alfred Vint Svent
- Alice (Arrowverse)
- Alice (Bibliomania)
- Alice Cotton
- Alice Morgan
- Alice Spages
- Alicent Hightower
- Alie Peters
- Alien (Spring Breakers)
- Alien Assassin
- Alien Slave Boss
- Alien X (2016 Series)
- Aliens (The Jackbox Party Pack)
- Alison DiLaurentis (Television)
- Alistair (Tower Heroes)
- Alistair Ryle
- All-Star
- Allen (Happiness)
- Allen Avadonia
- Allen Nasty
- Allison Hargreeves
- Ally Mayfair-Richards
- Alonzo Harris
- Alpha (The Walking Dead)
- Alpha Series (BioShock)
- Alpha Twins
- Alric (Wolfblood)
- Altaaf Khan
- Alucard (Hellsing)
- Alyce
- Amanda Evert
- Amanda the Adventurer
- Amanda Waller (Arrowverse)
- Amanda Waller (DC)
- Amane Momose
- Amazing Bulk
- Amazo (DC Animated Universe)
- Amber Pollock
- Ambusher (Town of Salem)
- Ameisha Kichougasaki
- Amenadiel (Lucifer)
- Amentia
- Amerika
- Amir Blumenfeld
- Amita
- Amnesiac
- Amon (Devilman)
- Amon (Shadow Hearts)
- Amy Barlow
- Amy Hughes
- Amy Sorel