15 Worst Comic Book Movie Villains Of All Time

8. The Octopus - The Spirit

Played By: Samuel L Jackson

When The Spirit came out, comic book movie misfires were actually pretty rare and it was released to a boom period in which most were doing huge numbers for everyone involved. Sadly, it ended up being the exception that proved the rule of success.

It also proved that Frank Miller probably shouldn't be handed the reins to his own comic book movies. Despite looking just about as cool as 300, The Spirit fundamentally lacks story direction and the charms of the more popular adaptations.

It's an exercise in self-congratulation - stylistically in particular - and it feels more like artistic fetishism than coherent story-telling. And that imbalance does terrible things for all of the performances too, particularly Samuel L Jackson's horribly over-the-top villain The Octopus. He aims for cool and posturing, but he lacks finesse, smart characterisation or any means to make anyone care about him.

The result is a clownish caricature.