9 Most Manipulative Characters In TV History

“For those of us climbing to the top of the food chain, there can be no mercy. There is but one rule: hunt or be hunted.”

The American political system is a slippery pole, and Frank Underwood will do anything to climb it. When he reaches the pinnacle, he is perfectly content to destroy anybody attempting to usurp his position at the top.

Sometimes that involves flattery, and deal making, at other times he employs threats and slander. And, occasionally, it requires pushing nosy investigative journalists in front of trains (which is manipulation, if only in the most literal of senses.)

When breaking the fourth wall, Frank Underwood shares more of his true thoughts with the audience than any character in the show, even his simiarly Machiavellian wife, herself a skilled manipulator. Frank Underwood is perhaps TV's purest example of a shark, operating beneath the surface, continually moving forward, and devouring everything in its path.