20 TV Villain Performances That Are Practically Flawless
12. Walton Goggins - Boyd Crowder (Justified)
The overarching antagonist of FX's madly underrated crime drama Justified, Boyd Crowder was originally meant to die in the show's premiere episode before everyone realised how much potential they had with Walton Goggins.
The joy of watching Boyd comes from the fact that, like many of the best villains, he's tough to pin down. Simultaneously a racist career criminal and a born-again Christian, he counters the just nature of his old friend Raylan Givens at every turn.
Ruthless, murdering, paranoid, beaten down, tragic, amusing, intimidating and cold - Boyd is all of these things and more, and Goggins' commanding performance sells every one of his contradictions and deepest secrets.
Justified, a show underappreciated as much today as it was when it initially aired, is rife with career-defining performances (Timothy Olyphant is exceptional), but even so it's surely Goggins who pulls no punches to stand above the pack.