10 Greatest Movie Villains Of The Last Decade
2. Thanos - The Marvel Cinematic Universe
The MCU’s finest villain to date is so perfect because he is a madman, a monster, but ultimately well meaning and timely. Thanos is a proud child of Titan, whose fears about the planet’s overpopulation led to a wild proposition: wiping out half the world’s inhabitants at random so that the rest could prosper.
Unsurprisingly this didn’t go down well, and Thanos was politely asked to leave Titan, which subsequently crumbled. This only made the guy more convinced by his plan. He was to attempt it again, though from a position of greater power.
Thanos is an unstoppable warlord, conquering planets throughout the cosmos. By the time he enters the story he has amassed incredible strength, and the power he wields in Infinity Wars is petrifying: collecting a full set of Infinity Stones, he snaps his fingers and wipes out 50% of the universe’s life.
Played with great restraint by Josh Brolin, Thanos is no cartoonish supervillain. He is fully shaded, with ideals and principles, though he’s no less terrifying for that. He’ll be a hard act to follow for Marvel’s next phase.