4. Dennis Hopper - Blue Velvet
Dennis Hopper's portrayal of Frank Booth is simply one of the finest screen performances of all time. Even in the nightmarish world of David Lynch, Frank Booth is the scariest, leeriest and most venomous creation from his entire catalogue. Hopper got the role of Booth by convincing Lynch that he was Booth and his performance gives the unsettling insight that he wasn't exaggerating. Hopper's performance is full on odd-ball. In one scene, he is sexually humiliating Isabella Rossellini's Dorothy and in another, he breaks down after hearing Roy Orbison's In Dreams. Hopper does not hold back a single bit. He snarls with venom, his profanity laced rants are relentless and he spits with such hate it leaves you feeling deeply unsettled. He's an outrageous character and Hopper's lurid eccentricity made him one of the finest screen villains in American film history.