5. General Zod
When the eerie and unsettling
"Fate of Your Planet" trailer (below) hit the web, I knew that General Zod would be something special. Michael Shannon's unleashed performance brought the character to new heights and places him in the pantheon of great cinematic villains. Since the thematic element of
Man of Steel dealt with Kal-El making a choice between Earth and Krypton, Zod was the
perfect choice to be Superman's adversary in this origin story. Representing the last of the Kryptonian race, Zod offers Kal-El the chance to rebuild Krypton and allow their people to reclaim their lives. Yes, Zod causes a lot of destruction and death, but the filmmakers made him a sympathetic, well-rounded character. Watching the film, you understand where Zod is coming from. He's not your generic, mustache-twirling villain who's there just because the movie needs a bad guy. He has clear motives that are actually easy to get behind. When he says that all of his actions are "for the greater good of my people," he's honestly telling the truth. He wanted what was best for his race. Shannon was right when he said that
if you're a human, Zod's evil, but Kryptonians probably think he's an OK guy. In a twisted way, Kal-El is betraying his kin by helping the humans. This moral complexity is something we've never seen in previous Superman films and it was a welcome addition to the franchise. Typically the first film in a series features a weak villain since so much time is dedicated to the origin of the heroes (see: Nero in 2009's
Star Trek and even Scarecrow in
Batman Begins). Even if the overall product is great, not many people walk away saying how terrifying the villain was. Snyder managed to buck that trend with Zod. Already pushing Kal-El to places he's never been before (including one
shocking neck break), Zod has set the bar for future villains in this franchise to high levels. Genetically engineered to defend Krypton, Zod is just doing what he feels is right and it's hard not to feel for him.