32 Incredible TV/Movie Hero-To-Villain Transformations
32 Incredible TV/Movie Hero-To-Villain TransformationsSkip To Content
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32 Impeccably Executed Hero-To-Villain Transformations From TV And Movies
"Harvey Dent from The Dark Knight pretty much set the standard for a fallen hero."
by Hannah Marder StaffLink
A while back, we asked the Community what hero-to-villain story they thought was done well. Here are some of the best responses!
SPOILERS AHEAD!1. Angel from Angel
The WB "When Angel (not Angelus) goes dark in Season 2 of Angel! The whole arc with Darla...and when he locks the lawyers in it's chilling!"—margolehane44"He still had his soul; he knew what he was doing was wrong or at least morally gray; he did it anyway. I liked that about Angel as a show. They made their hero much more fallible, and that made it a much more interesting show."—tuffylrue 2. Varian from Tangled: The Series
Disney "It was absolutely heartbreaking to see this sweet dorky kid turn into a villain — the best villain in any Disney animated spinoff, in my opinion. His villain arc was painful to watch but also brilliant as you see him spiral further and further into madness."—currently_fangirlingxd
3. Nancy from Weeds
Showtime "My favorite show is Weeds, but Nancy Botwin goes from this woman trying her best to stay afloat, to a mother who puts her own love of danger before her children. She makes so many bad decisions that impact her kids in a negative way."—jacksonek94
4. Felix Gaeta from Battlestar Galactica
Sci-Fi "An underrated one: Felix Gaeta from BSG. He’s a loyal, brilliant officer who always does his best. But after the cylons nearly wipe out humanity, kill or nearly kill everyone he loves in the fleet, and one of them shoots his fracking leg off, he has to watch as his superiors ally with the enemy and refuse to explain why. The Mutiny plot made perfect sense, because you understand exactly why he hit his breaking point."—reginaldcartwright 5. Trish from Jessica Jones
Netflix "She was really happy and nice, and then she started to become really nasty after she found that weird inhaler."—fuzzywuzzykoala"That was a rough one — I kept thinking Jessica could pull her back until it became obviously too late."
—shannonquinn
6. Wesley from Angel
The WB "I know Wes didn't exactly become a villain, per se, but her certainly became an antagonist to Angel in what I think is one of the best TV betrayals of all time. You completely understood why Wesley did everything he did, while at the same time wanting to scream at him to stop. His character development from bumbling sidekick to a morally gray antihero was a sight to see."—hannahmarder 7. Harvey Dent from the Dark Knight trilogy
Warner Bros. Pictures "Gotta be Harvey Dent to Two Face. He pretty much sets the standard for a fallen hero. The whole 'live long enough to see yourself become the villain' bit is his line!"—greyladybast"He had a brilliant mind and kind soul that was darkened by the evil of the world."—ktparrish 8. Will Graham from Hannbial
NBC "He went from being a 'good guy' and working for the FBI's Behavioral Unit that caught serial killers and murderers to literally working with Hannibal and KILLING PEOPLE HIMSELF. It was a glorious spiral into madness if I've ever seen one."—gabbyloverne 9. Vanya Hargreeves from The Umbrella Academy
Netflix "Vanya spent her entire life being overlooked, and this deep-seeded pain growing and being unleashed as she was manipulated by Leonard was done so well. It was heartbreaking to see her own family (with the exception of Allison) be scared of her and lock her up, basically ensuring she explodes. Vanya may always be the bomb, but her family is always the fuse."—theshadowartist 10. Angela Moss from Mr. Robot
USA Network "Though I hated how she treated Elliot, I feel like her turn as a villain was really interesting. It really showed how her plotline contrasted to Elliot's and how much her desires ended up being her downfall."—tanyam44ab2253d11. Carrie White from Carrie
United Artists "Seeing her as a bullied outcast reach her breaking point and finally lash out at not only her tormentors but anyone who happened to be in the area was heartbreaking."—eclipsecat14 12. Light Yagami from Death Note
Nippon TV "He started the show as someone who wanted to make the world a better place, and it was pretty heartbreaking to see him become mad with this god-like power. He became everything he stood against and hurt so many people along the way...yet you still couldn’t fully hate him because you remembered the person he was before."—kgillie93 13. Olivia Crain from The Haunting of Hill House
Netflix "She became so protective of her kids, and Poppy used this against her, causing Olivia to kill Abigail and attempt to do the same to the twins. It’s so tragic, especially when we see her willingly step off the staircase after she realizes what she’s done."—sophmar 14. Faith from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel
The WB "She was an outsider from the beginning, but her descent into chaos is done so well. You want to hate her, but you still feel bad for her at the same time."—tatertots03 15. Lex Luthor from Smallville
The WB "Over the seasons, he went from an eager to please nice guy and friend of Clark's to the silver-tongued nemesis of the friendly neighborhood Kryptonian. It was a challenge Michael Rosenbaum more than lived up to."—jbmasta"I mean, you knew he was going to be a villain at the start. But to see how he developed into the notorious villain and Superman’s archenemy over time was amazing. Props to Michael Rosenbaum for his acting skills."—zoepaynecarter 16. Alice from The Magicians
SyFy "She goes from shy, traumatized school girl, to murderous magical creature, to kind of terrible human being, and the whole time she is the BEST!"—margolehane44 17. Morgana from Merlin
BBC "She started off as this kind, selfless person who cared so deeply about helping others, and so it was heartbreaking to watch her turn into the person she became. As she discovered her own magical abilities, you could literally watch the self-loathing grow inside her until it filled her up with nothing but revenge and hate. Watching people she once trusted persecute and kill others simply for having magic slowly stripped away her empathy. Her journey was a poignant allegory for the way self-hate can grow and destroy a person in our own society through persecution, discrimination, and being forced to hide a part of yourself."—Spn42 18. Ally from American Horror Story: Cult
FX "Seeing the season end with her basically taking Kai’s place but from the opposite political direction was CHILLING."—oldsoulphoenix19. Saul/Jimmy from Better Call Saul
AMC "I remember when they announced Better Call Saul and I said, 'There’s no way I want to watch that slime ball,' and yet, the show made me genuinely care about him. His arc from down-on-his-luck Jimmy to completely criminal Saul is unmatched."—meghanb4efb79fb1 20. Walter White from Breaking Bad
AMC "Walter White is THE most epic protagonist to villain story. When he’s staring down Skylar and says, 'I am the one who knocks,' I get chills every single time."—turnipcakeafficionado 21. Kuvira from The Legend of Korra
Nickelodeon "We first meet her in Season 3 when Korra and the group travel to see Suyin and her family so Korra can better train as an Earthbender. And you can see throughout the season the disconnect that Kuvira started having with Suyin and the other Earth Kingdom leaders. Kuvira does make some good points as a leader, but seeing her take on this evil dictator style of leading in Season 4 really shows how absolute power can ruin someone. I thought the writers did a really good job showing how someone you know and trust can easily exploit that trust for their own self-gain."—megana459810788 22. Emma from Once Upon a Time
ABC "Don’t @ me for this but...Emma as the Dark One in Once Upon a Time Season 5. Even if you thought it was poorly executed, you have to admit it was clever to make the SAVIOR the villain."—sarabi_slytherclaw 23. Anakin from the Star Wars prequels
Lucasfilm "I know a lot of people complain about Anakin's change from hero to villain, but I think it was very well done. Throughout the prequels and especially the Clone Wars TV series, you see how Palpatine manipulates him by taking advantage of the Jedi Order's wariness of him in order to befriend him. He was never a bad person in the start, and you especially see how his love for his friends and natural compassion gradually distanced him from the Jedi Order, which was fundamentally opposed to the attachments he maintained and screwed him over multiple times. In the end, his switch to the Dark Side, though admittedly a little rushed, was justified because of how the opposing forces around him forced a decision that had been brewing ever since he joined the Jedi in The Phantom Menace."—femkat
24. Barbara from Gotham
Fox "I’m sorry, but her transformation into a villain was *chef's kiss* and I absolutely LOVED her for every minute that she was evil after she turned."—lastparismango22 25. Kate Barlow from Holes
Buena Vista Pictures "Ooooh, I gotta say when Miss Katherine from Holes turned into Kissin’ Kate Barlow after the townspeople killed sweet 'I can fix that' Sam. I hated that he died, and I wanted her to burn it all down after that, so I kinda loved her villain arc."—bfranks87 26. Dan from Gossip Girl
The CW "Dan is the villain of Gossip Girl, and I will die on this hill. Even if he was Gossip Girl all along, I think he was an OK person in the beginning. But as the seasons progressed, he took more and more advantage of his Upper East Side status while still proclaiming that he was an 'outsider' and had the moral high ground, despite consistently manipulating and lying to his friends. As he continued to lose/not get things he felt he deserved (acclaim for his book, recognition as an author, full acceptance to the Upper East Side, and Blair), he became even more bitter and entitled. He was truly a manipulative, horrible person in Season 6. Gossip Girl is literally the origin story for You, and you can't tell me otherwise."—laurenb429c9f902 27. Galleria from The Cheetah Girls
Disney Channel "She was so eager to make it big and sign a record deal that she treated her friends and family and everyone around her for that matter as trash. Even poor Toto had to suffer because of her self-centered ways."—Bluelily45
28. Magneto from the X-Men films
20th Century Fox "Even though he was only really the good guy for a handful of X-Men films, First Class and Days of Future Past did a really good job pushing Erik toward evil."—bennbennmw 29. Buddy/Syndrome from The Incredibles
Pixar "In the beginning of the movie, Buddy is a bright-eyed kid who admires his favorite superhero, Mr. Incredible, and genuinely wants to help the world. Mr. Incredible discounts Buddy because Buddy has no powers, and Buddy's resentment fuels his innovation of high-tech weapons. I know this movie is for kids, but Syndrome's character arc poses vital considerations about underlying motivations and dependence on public image."—hiitsnicetomeetyou 30. Willow from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
UPN "She turned bad after the heartbreak of her girlfriend being killed and used too much bad magic in her pursuit of vengeance. Luckily, she was saved by the Scooby Gang before she destroyed the world."—clareamyhewitt4"Willow’s journey from sweet kind girl to full-on villain was great. She was one of the best Big Bads the show ever had, and then she got a redemption at the end too."—thetimble 31. Michael from The Godfather
Paramount Pictures "Michael Corleone went from World War II hero who didn't want to be part of the family business to becoming The Godfather."—joan6 32. And finally, Selina Meyer from Veep
HBO "At the start of the show, she seems like a hilariously power-hungry but incapable politician, but as the seasons go by, she does more and more horrible things in order to fight and cheat her way to the top. After the series finale, I sat there with my jaw open, realizing that what I thought was just a political comedy was actually the origin story of a lifelike supervillain."—chrism1290 Note: Submissions have been edited for length and/or clarity. Share This Article
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