Highlights
- Gaston –
Beauty and the Beast
: Narcissistic antagonist - Callaghan –
Big Hero 6
: Painful backstory, sets fire killing Tadashi - Lady Tremaine –
Cinderella
: Cruel, wicked stepmother
While Disney is known for a plethora of creations, the company has iconic animated films with some great performances, creative art styles, and emotional storytelling. With princesses, magical creatures, evil monsters, and so much more, these animations are able to tell endearing narratives that are beloved around the globe. So many of the characters have become staples of pop culture, especially in terms of their cinematic impact.
However, just as the Disney protagonists are beloved, so are their villains hated, with so many antagonists being responsible for making their respective movies great. Within the animated movies, there are evil, complex, smart, dumb, and many other types of villains, all impacting their stories in different ways. Yet, there are certain Disney villains that are so vile, yet charismatic, which makes it easy to love hating them.
10 Gaston – Beauty And The Beast
An Annoying Antagonist With Narcissistic Motivations
- Release: November 22, 1991
- Director: Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise
- Runtime: 87 minutes
While he is definitely not one of the most evil villains in the animated Disney features, Gaston is a character that was made to be hated, even if that makes Beauty and the Beast more endearing. The villain is a narcissistic, egotistical man who cannot and will not hear ‘no’ for an answer, even though he is not particularly scary or the most evil.
While that makes him easy to hate, these are the qualities that make him a good villain, and make the movie more entertaining to watch, especially when he’s locking Belle up and trying to kill the Beast all so he can marry the protagonist himself.
9 Edgar Balthazar – The Aristocats
Tried Killing Cats For Money
- Release: December 11, 1970
- Director: Wolfgang Reitherman
- Runtime: 78 minutes
While some might think that the rich Madame Bonfamilile might be a bit crazy for leaving her whole fortune to her kittens, no one can really blame her for doing so. Except the loyal(ish) butler who is outraged by the decision, stepping into his villainous shoes by going after the kittens and their mother.
Edgar might not be much of a villain, but he definitely warrants the audience’s dislike, as his main goal involves killing innocent, cute cats, and being especially bad at it, ranking him among the worst animated Disney villains.
8 Callaghan – Big Hero 6
An Antagonist Who Suffered, But Also Caused A Lot Of Suffering
- Release: October 23, 2014
- Director: Don Hall and Chris Williams
- Runtime: 102 minutes
Despite being a genius, Hiro did not have an easy life in any way, losing his parents at an early age and struggling to find his place in the world. Yet Callaghan makes this young hero’s life so much more difficult and painful by killing his older brother, Tadashi, Hiro’s role model.
Despite a complex and emotional backstory, Callaghan becomes an unforgivable antagonist when he sets a fire that kills Tadashi, leading Hiro to fulfill his origin story. What makes this villain even more hateable is knowing that he was Tadashi’s professor and mentor.
7 Ernesto De La Cruz – Coco
Capable Of Anything In The Name Of Fame And Glory
- Release: October 20, 2017
- Director: Lee Unkirch and Adrian Molina
- Runtime: 105 minutes
Coco is, deservedly, one of the best Disney movies of all time, with an emotional narrative and great characters that take the audience on a journey about family, culture, life, and death. However, a big part of the movie’s emotional impact and high stakes come from the popular and charming Ernesto de la Cruz, a musician who puts fame above everything.
While initially he acts like one of the friendliest and most charming characters, Ernesto represents all that is wrong with choosing glory over everything. Famous even in the afterlife, this singer killed his best friend to steal his songs, befriending Miguel only for personal gain. His true character makes him detestable, fulfilling his role as a true villain.
6 Lady Tremaine – Cinderella
Cruelty And Wickedness As An Evil Stepmother
- Release: March 4, 1950
- Director: Clyde Gernimi, Wilfred Jackson, Hamilton Luske
- Runtime: 75 minutes
As one of the most unlikable villains, Lady Tremaine, also known as Cinderella’s evil stepmother, is one of the Disney’s best female villains. Cruel, horrible, and wicked, there are so many aspects that make Tremaine a hated antagonist, as she possesses a lot of qualities that are essential for an evil villain.
Enslaving her orphaned stepdaughter and forcing the young girl into a life of servitude, she does not have a lot of redeemable characteristics, and her absolutely detestable treatment of Cinderella just makes the protagonist that much more sympathetic.
5 Lotso – Toy Story 3
A Charismatic Dictator And A Vile Teddy Bear
- Release: June 18, 2010
- Director: Lee Unkirch
- Runtime: 100 minutes
They may be toys, but they have feelings, and Toy Story proves Disney Pixar’s ability to make people care about inanimate objects. So it’s no surprise that one of Disney’s best but most hated villains is also a cruel toy, with a complex backstory and a charismatic personality on the outside that makes his true intentions all the more reprehensible.
Ruling Sunnyside Daycare like a stuffed dictator, Lotso seems friendly at first, yet this antagonist has a whole system in place to take out all toys, be it through the chaotic toddlers’ room or the toy-melting furnace. Even though he is a literal teddy bear, he definitely makes it easy to hate a stuffed animal.
4 Mother Gothel – Tangled
Stole A Baby And Locked It In A Tower
- Release: November 24, 2010
- Director: Nathan Greno and Byron Howard
- Runtime: 100 minutes
Mother Gothel will not be winning any mother of the year awards since she not only stole her baby, but kept her hidden away in a tower to use her power. Rapunzel carries the power of a magical flower, which is able to keep the antagonist young for centuries, and Gothel does everything in her power to keep that power for herself.
She might not seem like much at first glance, but she is definitely twisted, vain, and worst of all, intelligent, which makes her a great but detestable villain, especially as she is willing to do just about anything to keep herself young.
3 Claude Frollo – The Hunchback Of Notre Dame
Irredeemable Villain Doing Evil In The Name Of Righteousness
- Release: June 20, 1996
- Director: Gary Trousdale and Kirk Wise
- Runtime: 91 minutes
There is so much of Claude Frollo’s personality that warrants dislike, especially considering how ruthless and sadistic this justice minister really is. As one of the best male Disney villains, there are so many times when Frollo crosses a line, be it by humiliating Quasimodo, torturing people, or trying to burn Esmeralda for saying no to him.
There is very little that makes Claude Frollo redeemable. He embodies all of humanity’s worst traits in a hypocritical villain who truly believes he was a righteous man on a quest to rid the world of sin.
2 Cruella De Vil – One Hundred And One Dalmatians
Evil Incarnate, Willing To Kill Puppies For Fashion
- Release: January 25,1961
- Director: Clyde Geronimi, Hamilton Luske and Wolgang Reitman
- Runtime: 79 minutes
Trying to skin puppies to make fur coats definitely warrants a negative reaction from the audience, and Cruella de Vil is truly that vile, making her one of the most evil Disney villains. While other villains seek power, Cruella kills for fashion, seeking to use 99 dalmatian puppies for her new spotted coat.
While the live-action adaptation humanized her a little, the animated movies show a twisted and purely evil character who completely deserves to be hated for her vile actions.
1 Scar – The Lion King
Killed His Brother In Front Of His Nephew To Become The King
First place had to be reserved for the one villain who marked cinema history by killing his own brother and blaming his young nephew for it, all to become king. While Scar is a beloved character, he is a character that people love to hate, and his actions make it easy to do so, especially with an iconic Disney villain song that covers his personality in a nutshell: ambitious, bewitching, and heartless.
What makes him such an abominable yet iconic villain is the fact that he actually succeeded for years, convincing Simba to run away, taking the blame for his father’s death. He may be a great villain, but Scar is probably the one who made viewers cry the most, earning himself the title of despicable antagonist, are certainly the most hateable of Disney’s villains.
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