Our friends over at the Tampa Bay blog Stuck in the 80s has just concluded their list of the Top 80 Villains of the 80s early this morning after compiling up from everyone's suggestions. I'm dividing this up by 20 characters. Their list is:
1. The Kurgan (Clancy Brown) in "Highlander" 2. Khan (Ricardo Montalban) in "Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan" 3. Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) in "The Shining" 4. J.R. Ewing (Larry Hagman) on "Dallas" 5. The Terminator (Arnold Schwarzenegger) in "The Terminator" 6. John Kreese (Martin Kove) in "The Karate Kid" 7. Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) in "Wall Street" 8. Sgt. Barnes (Tom Berenger) in "Platoon" 9. Alex Forrest (Glenn Close) in "Fatal Attraction" 10. The Joker (Jack Nicholson) in "Batman" 11. General Zod (Terence Stamp) in "Superman II" 12. Raven Shaddock (Willem Dafoe) in "Streets of Fire" 13. Richard Vernon (Paul Gleason) in "The Breakfast Club" 14. The Emperor in "Return of the Jedi" 15. Katharine Parker (Sigourney Weaver) in "Working Girl" 16. Clarence Beeks (Paul Gleason) in "Trading Places" 17. Wes (Scott Glenn) in "Urban Cowboy" 18. Franklin Hart (Dabney Coleman) in "Nine to Five" 19. Steff McKee (James Spader) in "Pretty in Pink" 20. Chet Donnelly (Bill Paxton) in "Weird Science"
Posted by Leo Logan (Member # 9206) on :
21. Hans Gruber (Alan Rickman) in "Die Hard" 22. Jerry Hathaway (William Atherton) in "Real Genius" 23. Joan Crawford (Faye Dunaway) in "Mommie Dearest" 24. Darth Vader in "The Empire Strikes Back" 25. Clubber Lang (Mr. T) in "Rocky III" 26. Guido the Killer Pimp (Joe Pantoliano) in "Risky Business" 27. Victor Maitland (Steven Berkoff) in "Beverly Hills Cop" 28. Antonio Salieri (F. Murray Abraham) in "Amadeus" 29. The Duke (Isaac Hayes) in "Escape from New York" 30. Ed Rooney (Jeffrey Jones) in "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" 31. Belloq (Paul Freeman) in "Raiders of the Lost Ark" 32. The Heathers (Shannen Doherty, Kim Walker, Lisanne Falk) in "Heathers" 33. David (Kiefer Sutherland) in "The Lost Boys" 34. Freddy Krueger (Robert Englund) in "A Nightmare on Elm Street" 35. Tony Montana (Al Pacino) in "Scarface" 36. Al Capone (Robert De Niro) in "The Untouchables" 37. Alexis Colby (Joan Collins) on "Dynasty" 38. John Ryder (Rutger Hauer) in "The Hitcher" 39. Jimmy Serrano (Dennis Farina) in "Midnight Run" 40. Moody (Matt Dillon) in "My Bodyguard"
Posted by Leo Logan (Member # 9206) on :
41. Frank Booth (Dennis Hopper) in "Blue Velvet" 42. Buddy Revell (Richard Tyson) in "Three O'Clock High" 43. Brad Whitewood Sr. (Christopher Walken) in "At Close Range" 44. Cole Whittier (Robert Prescott) in "Bachelor Party" 45. Xur (Norman Snow) in "The Last Starfighter" 46. Beetlejuice (Michael Keaton) in "Beetlejuice" 47. Sam Stone (Danny DeVito) in "Ruthless People" 48. Sgt. Emil Foley (Louis Gossett, Jr.) in "An Officer and a Gentleman" 49. Boss Hogg (Sorrell Booke) on "The Dukes of Hazzard" 50. Mama Fratelli (Anne Ramsey) in "The Goonies" 51. Lord Humungus (Kjell Nilsson) in "The Road Warrior" 52. Ray Sinclair (Ray Liotta) in "Something Wild" 53. Lt. Thaddeus Harris (G.W. Bailey) in "Police Academy" 54. Rip (James Spader) in "Less Than Zero" 55. Racki (George Finn) in "Youngblood" 56. Col. Akir Makesh (David Suchet) in "Iron Eagle" 57. Boba Fett in "The Empire Strikes Back" 58. Lt. William Bligh (Anthony Hopkins) in "The Bounty" 59. Porky (Chuck Mitchell) in "Porky's" 60. Stan Gable and The Ogre (Ted McGinley and Donald Gibb) in "Revenge of the Nerds"
Posted by Leo Logan (Member # 9206) on :
61. Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) in "The Karate Kid" 62. Rachel Phelps (Margaret Whitton) in "Major League" 63. The Judge (Robert Prosky) in "The Natural" 64. Balbricker (Nancy Parsons) in "Porky's" 65. Sardo Numspa (Charles Dance) in "The Golden Child" 66. Hardy Jenns (Craig Sheffer) in "Some Kind of Wonderful" 67. Burt Johnson (Stephen Elliott) in "Arthur" 68. Randolph and Mortimer Duke (Ralph Bellamy and Don Ameche) in "Trading Places" 69. Judge Doom (Christopher Lloyd) in "Who Framed Roger Rabbit" 70. Ivan Drago (Dolph Lundgren) in "Rocky IV" 71. Tommy (Michael Bowen) in "Valley Girl" 72. Ed Dillinger/Sark (David Warner) in "Tron" 73. Ace Merrill (Kiefer Sutherland) in "Stand by Me" 74. Damon Killian (Richard Dawson) in "The Running Man" 75. Alexis Colby on "Dynasty" (twice!) 76. Bob Sheldon (Leif Garrett) in "The Outsiders" 77. Brad Wesley (Ben Gazzara) in "Road House" 78. Roy Stalin (Aaron Dozier) in "Better Off Dead" 79. Ming the Merciless (Max Von Sydow) in "Flash Gordon" 80. Thulsa Doom (James Earl Jones) in "Conan the Barbarian"
Posted by the young warrior (Member # 9554) on :
that's an awesome list of 80s villains leo but do you know someone i would of added to it even if it was just for comedy value - bennet from comando! "john,i'm not going to shoot you between the eyes,i'm going to shoot you between the #####! awnswers on a postcard please to the young warrior at irewind,all entries must be in by.... the bennet's dance video - http://youtu.be/Z7Sr0Qtd3Ro . and the best of bennet- http://youtu.be/5KjrP_knJco .
[ 19. June 2011, 15:27: Message edited by: the young warrior ]
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Too funny that Tommy from "Valley Girl" made the 80's villain list!
So if we combine .. John Kreese (Martin Kove) in "The Karate Kid" & Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) in "The Karate Kid" does that rank them as #1 all-time?
Personally.. I'd go with Darth Vader from the planet Vulcan as my #1. Seriously, Darth Vader was a meance! Maybe because the original "Star Wars" came out in the 70's?
And where's Nick Hauser from "Tuff Turf"?
Wait .. my #1 for the next 30 seconds is.. Raven Shaddock (Willem Dafoe) in "Streets of Fire"
Poor Buddy Revell doesn't even make the top 10 anymore.. so sad.
[ 19. June 2011, 12:51: Message edited by: Valley ]
Posted by Chris the CandyFanMan (Member # 3197) on :
No Biff? That's almost sacriledge around here. Leaving Walter Peck, Ursula, and Helmet off also doesn't quite seem right to this poster at least.
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Excellent point Chris .. no Biff Tannen is a rather major oversight in my opinion.
Posted by gordongecko (Member # 4685) on :
Ya doing that is as dumb as a screen door on a battleship! Posted by the young warrior (Member # 9554) on :
no murdock (charles napier) from rambo first blood part 2! "murdock i'm coming to get you" Posted by P_a_u_l (Member # 1022) on :
Simple response.....
Villain #1 - Hans Gruber
Villain #2 - basically everyone else.
OK - slightly less simple....
1. Hans Gruber 2. Kahn 3. The Terminator
That's about as far as I can go....
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Paul, I really like your top 3.. but I'd have to put Khan as number #1 .. his reign of terror lasted from 1990s all the way into the 23rd Century!
But as a movie .. I would put them in this order:
1. Terminator 2. Die Hard 3. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
Posted by P_a_u_l (Member # 1022) on :
Kahn needed far too much help from a Starfleet crew who couldn't see the big picture. I mean - first of all, opening the pods on the Botany Bay before identifying the contents - stupid. Then just abandoning him rather than putting him back into stasis - dumb. Then helping him to escape - crazy. Then giving him the Genesis device - incredible.
The amount of stuff he'd have been able to do, had Kirk and co NOT been so thick, wouldn't even have got him a decent Wikipedia entry....
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Ha!
Paul .. Hans Gruber appeared to be working with quite a few knuckleheads too.
But one of my fav parts of "Die Hard" is when Hans at first almost fools John McClane that he is frightened building employee .. then turns back as soon as he thinks he has the upperhand. Great performance by Alan Rickman.
Starting last year.. I made "Die Hard" a Christmas Eve movie tradition for me. Posted by the young warrior (Member # 9554) on :
out of all die hards i feel none of the villains in the sequels came close to rickmans gruber! don't get me wrong william sadler,jeremy irons and timothy olyphant were all good just not a patch on rickman's hans gruber! another 80s villain i think is missing from the list is bloodsports chong li (bolo yeung)!
Posted by P_a_u_l (Member # 1022) on :
quote:Originally posted by Valley: Ha!
Paul .. Hans Gruber appeared to be working with quite a few knuckleheads too.
Yeah - mainly named Dwayne T Robinson...
quote:Originally posted by Valley: But one of my fav parts of "Die Hard" is when Hans at first almost fools John McClane that he is frightened building employee .. then turns back as soon as he thinks he has the upperhand. Great performance by Alan Rickman.
Starting last year.. I made "Die Hard" a Christmas Eve movie tradition for me.
Alan Rickman IS the movie bad guy - for me, the two most effective and most brilliant villain performances of all time are Hans Gruber and The Sheriff of Nottingham in Robin Hood: Prince Of Thieves, which, surprise surprise, was also Mr Rickman. I just wich we'd seen the following quotes, which would have improved the Costner-fest immeasurably....
"Robin of Locksley, I am going to count to three. There will not be a four..."
"His Grace, The Duke of Northumberland will not be joining us for the rest of his life..."
"Find him. Kill him, and get me my arrow-heads..."
"I'm Friar Tuck, and this is Special Friar Tuck. No relation..."
Posted by aTomiK (Member # 6575) on :
Awesome to see Highlander get some credit. Underrated classic.
Posted by kevdugp73 (Member # 5978) on :
See now, trying to get info from other 80's sites just doesn't cut it! They forgot:
Stripe - Gremlins Ms Hannigan - Annie Medussa - Clash of the Titans Maax - The Beastmaster (he tried to throw a baby in a fire pit!!!) Ravley Wilkes - Lone Wolf McQuade The Killer - Silent Rage Morris - Purple Rain Albert - The Color Purple Walter Kornbluth - Splash Trucks - Maximum Overdrive Jerry Dandridge - Fright Night Creepy Guy - Poltergeist 2
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Now that Kev is getting serious with some great additions..
How about:
Roy Gaddis from "Out of Bounds"
And
The Killer from "Hiding Out"
Posted by P_a_u_l (Member # 1022) on :
Add:
Defense Secretary Brice (Gene Hackman) in Now Way Out
Posted by Valley (Member # 1322) on :
Good one Paul!
How about:
Grock in "Solarbabies"?
Posted by Kash (Member # 297) on :
Alan Rickman is too good an actor, in that he often makes you root for his villains and really has to push the envelope of evil to be de despised!
But if we’re talking real villains here, then look no further than Sgt. Tony Meserve (Sean Penn) from 'Casualties of War'.
Posted by Zach (Member # 9459) on :
I'm shocked to see Freddy Krueger ranked so low (#34), as he is perhaps the most famous and recognizable movie villain of the '80s, although I suppose you could make strong arguments for Jason Voorhees (who wasn't even ranked on this list), Darth Vader, the Joker, Jack Torrance, Ivan Drago, Khan (especially among Trekkies), the Joker, the Terminator, Clubber Lang, and Tony Montana. I would've at least ranked Freddy in the top 20, considering how iconic the image of the character is and its enduring popularity.
As a fan of the Porky's series, I was glad to see Porky and Balbricker make the cut. Unlike most '80s movie franchises, the Porky's trilogy doesn't seem to have caught on with the millennials (of which I am one), so I can't say I'm surprised with the low ratings for Porky and Balbricker. Among hardcore '80s movie buffs, however, I think Porky would be a solid name in the top 40 or 30.
Kevdug, I was happy to see you mention both Stripe and Jerry Dandridge as honorable mentions that should have made the list. I can't tell you how many times I got scared by the shopping center confrontation between Billy Peltzer and Stripe at the end of Gremlins growing up as a kid, especially the chainsaw/baseball bat brawl.
The fun thing about reading these kinds of lists is the friendly debates they spark. At the end of the day, everyone's personal list represents his or her individual opinion, but it is still loads of fun to read them.
Some of my favorite '80s villains are probably too obscure to crack even the bottom of a Top 80 '80s Villains list, but I'll mention them anyway:
Blade (William Smith) - Eye of the Tiger
Dargent Peytraud (Zakes Mokae) - The Serpent and the Rainbow
Young Warrior, I'm glad I'm not the only one who likes Bennett from Commando The character was played very over-the-top, but I feel that that was in keeping with the movie's nature, so it works for me Vernon Wells stole the show in Commando with some of his quotes, especially this gem:
"John, I feel good. Just like old times. What's it feel like to be a dying man? You're a dead man, John!"
Leo, good call on Alexis Colby being listed twice accidentally. That was probably a typo on the editors' part.
Posted by Johnny Roarke is reckless (Member # 9826) on :
I'd like to add two more that definitely fit the description :
- Peter Stegman from Class of 1984 (played by Timothy van Patten)
- Eddie Dutra from The New Kids (aka Striking Back) (played by James Spader)
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