10 Movie Villains That Upstaged Other Villains

It can be tough to be the bad guy in a movie. There's the obvious ass-kicking and eventual defeat, naturally, but on a character level, it's not uncommon to be outshined by the story's hero. In fact, it happens far too often. Narratives are typically based around the main protagonist, which makes sense, but it does run the risk of leaving the villain feeling underdeveloped and trapped in their shadow. Almost an afterthought.

As if that wasn't bad enough, there's even the chance that the main antagonist of a movie can have their thunder stolen, not by the good guy they're squaring off against, but by another villain, and one that is supposed to play a lesser role.

There are plenty of reasons why this has happened in the past. Henchmen have made a bigger impression on audiences than those they worked for, actors have stolen the show with far stronger performances, and huge cameos have taken the shine off those who were supposed to offer the biggest threat to the hero, to name just a few.

Whether enjoying more screen time while the overarching villain lingers in the off-screen shadows, or utilising less screen time exceptionally well, these characters all took their secondary role and completely outshone the supposed big bad.

Generally, the Marvel Cinematic Universe has an exceptional track record when it comes to casting. However, there are certain blemishes that prevent it from being perfect. Up there with the worst casting decisions in the franchise, next to Ray Winstone as Dreykov in Black Widow, is Mickey Rourke as Ivan Vanko in Iron Man 2.

The poor performance and cringeworthy accent alone meant the villain struggled to make any real kind of impact, but his case certainly wasn't helped by the fact that there was a far more compelling bad guy alongside him. Both Mickey Rourke and Ivan Vanko were completely blown out of the water by Sam Rockwell and his typically wonderful performance as Justin Hammer.

Hammer was never supposed to be the main antagonist in Iron Man 2, merely instead a means to end for Vanko to implement his plan. The problem is, Sam Rockwell is so damn likable that he could even make the slimy and painfully arrogant Hammer compelling.

Against Vanko's bland and forgettable Whiplash, Hammer stood out and stole every single scene he was in, particularly the ones where the two shared the screen together. It was painfully obvious which was the stronger character.