10 Greatest Christmas Movie Villains Ever
9. Oogie Boogie (The Nightmare Before Christmas)
Contrary to common belief, Tim Burton did not direct The Nightmare Before Christmas, but many of its creations clearly stem from his unique mind. Chief among these is Oogie Boogie, who can best be described as a sentient sack full of worms, who is hell bent on murdering Santa Claus. When it comes to Christmas baddies, that’s pretty villainous.
Voiced with aplomb by Ken Page, Oogie Boogie gets his share of fun scenes in the animated classic. His motivations, admittedly, are a little unclear (he goes from finding out about Santa to deciding to kill him in mere moments), but like all the best villains, he takes a lot of joy in his job. He appears to run some kind of underground casino, and it’s here he traps poor old Saint Nick, and subjects him to a toe tapping tune detailing the horrors he’s about to endure. It’s a fiendish plan, but a song so catchy Santa himself can’t help but join in with.
As a dancing pillow man, Oogie is goofy, but when he comes unravelled, revealing swarms of worms within, he’s actually pretty frightening. The Nightmare Before Christmas brilliantly straddles that line of daft festive fun and something that could truly traumatise a child, and nothing accomplishes that better than Oogie Boogie.