Evil Cartoon Characters: 20 of the Most Iconic Villains

The Wicked Witch is one of the most memorable villains ever put on screen. She has haunted kids since the 1939 classic. The American Film Institute even ranked her among the greatest movie villains of all time. Her whole deal is power and revenge, and she does not care who gets hurt along the way.

Vicky is the babysitter from hell. She torments Timmy Turner for fun, and she clearly loves the power. She is cruel, but the show is light, so she never quite reaches true monster status. Still, every kid who had a mean babysitter felt this one.

The Lich is the big bad of the Cartoon Network series Adventure Time. He is ancient, powerful, and wants one thing: the end of all life. For a show this colorful and silly, he is shockingly dark.

Hades is the fast-talking god of the underworld in Disney’s 1997 Hercules. He wants to overthrow his brother Zeus and rule Olympus. He is one of the funniest Disney villains ever, mostly thanks to James Woods, who improvised a ton of his snappy dialogue. The blue fire hair helps too.

Sideshow Bob is a brilliant, eloquent villain stuck in a comedy. He is a former kids’ TV sidekick who turned to crime. Now he just wants revenge on Bart for exposing him.

HIM is the creepiest thing in The Powerpuff Girls, and that is saying something. He is described as “pure evil,” with a soft, switching voice and a genuinely unsettling design. He does not punch. He gets in your head. The show keeps him scary by using him sparingly.

In Disney’s Gravity Falls, Bill Cipher is a chaos-loving interdimensional demon shaped like a triangle. He manipulates everyone and wants to tear the world apart for fun. He is playful and funny, which somehow makes him more menacing, not less. That little triangle has earned a huge fanbase.

Gru flips the whole villain idea on its head. He starts as a proud supervillain, voiced by Steve Carell, whose biggest plan is stealing the moon. Then three little girls melt his cold heart. With his Minions and his eventual softie turn, he is a villain you end up rooting for.

Doofenshmirtz is the most lovable “evil scientist” on this list. He wants to take over the Tri-State Area with absurd “-inator” gadgets. But his tragic backstory and his rivalry with Perry the Platypus make him pure comedy. He is more sad and silly than truly sinister.

Plankton has one obsession: stealing the Krabby Patty formula. He runs the failing Chum Bucket and schemes endlessly against Mr. Krabs. He almost never wins, and that is the joke. Being tiny and furious makes him one of the funniest villains around.

Mojo Jojo is a super-intelligent monkey with a giant brain and a giant ego. He wants world domination and revenge on his creator, Professor Utonium. His big brain and his repetitive, roundabout way of talking make him iconic. He is the classic mad-genius villain.

Azula might be the best-written villain here. She is Fire Lord Ozai’s daughter and Zuko’s sister, and she is a prodigy who bends rare blue fire. She is a tactical genius and genuinely scary in a fight.

Frollo, from Disney’s 1996 film, is one of the darkest villains the studio ever made. He is a hypocrite who hunts down anyone he judges sinful. His obsession with Esmeralda destroys him.

Megatron is the ruthless leader of the Decepticons. He wants to conquer the universe and crush the Autobots and their leader, Optimus Prime. He is cunning, powerful, and never stops scheming. As far as classic toy-line villains go, he is the gold standard.

Aku is the shape-shifting demon who rules the future in Samurai Jack. He is pure chaos and destruction, and he flung Jack through time just to be rid of him. His bold design draws on Japanese art, and the late Mako gave him that unforgettable booming voice. He is menacing and weirdly charming at once.

The Joker is the most iconic villain in comics, and his animated version is a high point. He is chaotic, unpredictable, and terrifying under all the jokes.

Scar, from Disney’s 1994 classic, is jealousy in lion form. He wants Mufasa’s throne, and he murders his own brother to get it. Voiced with pure venom by Jeremy Irons, and armed with the showstopper “Be Prepared,” he is one of Disney’s all-time best.

Maleficent calls herself the “Mistress of All Evil,” and she earns the title. Snubbed at Princess Aurora’s christening, she curses a baby out of pure spite.

The Evil Queen is where it all began. From 1937’s Snow White, she is driven by jealousy and vanity. She just has to be the fairest of them all. She is the original Disney villain, and the blueprint every one after her followed.

Ursula is the cunning sea witch from 1989’s The Little Mermaid. She wants to overthrow King Triton and rule Atlantica. So she tricks Ariel into trading her voice for legs in a clearly rigged deal. Half-human, half-octopus, and all confidence, she is a fan favorite for a reason.

Evil Cartoon Characters With Mustaches

A good mustache twirl is practically villain shorthand. If that is the type you want, the classics are the place to look. Snidely Whiplash from Dudley Do-Right basically invented the trope. Dick Dastardly from Wacky Races is right behind him. Yosemite Sam from Looney Tunes has the biggest mustache in cartoon history, and Dr. Robotnik from Sonic the Hedgehog rounds out the crew.

Evil Scientist Cartoon Characters

The mad-scientist villain never goes out of style. This list already has two great ones in Dr. Doofenshmirtz and Mojo Jojo. Beyond them, Dr. Drakken from Kim Possible and Dr. Robotnik from Sonic are the go-to lab-coat schemers. They are proof that a clever brain can be scarier than any superpower.

Evil Purple Cartoon Characters

Funny how many villains share a purple color scheme. Here are a few of the best:

1. Thanos (Marvel): the purple-skinned titan obsessed with the Infinity Stones and wiping out half of all life.
2. Negaduck (Darkwing Duck): the evil doppelganger of Darkwing Duck, decked out in purple and yellow.
3. Frieza (Dragon Ball Z): the galactic tyrant whose final form has a purple sheen. He destroyed Planet Vegeta.
4. The Lich (Adventure Time): not fully purple, but his sickly color scheme leans that way.
5. Randall Boggs (Monsters, Inc.): the sneaky purple lizard desperate to be the top scarer.

The Big Disney Villain List

Disney alone could fill this whole article. Here is a quick reference list of notable villains from its animated films:

1. The Evil Queen (Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs)
2. Stromboli (Pinocchio)
3. Monstro (Pinocchio)
4. Chernabog (Fantasia)
5. Man (Bambi)
6. Captain Hook (Peter Pan)
7. Lady Tremaine (Cinderella)
8. Queen of Hearts (Alice in Wonderland)
9. Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty)
10. Cruella de Vil (One Hundred and One Dalmatians)
11. Madam Mim (The Sword in the Stone)
12. Shere Khan (The Jungle Book)
13. Prince John (Robin Hood)
14. The Sheriff of Nottingham (Robin Hood)
15. Madame Medusa (The Rescuers)
16. Ursula (The Little Mermaid)
17. Gaston (Beauty and the Beast)
18. Jafar (Aladdin)
19. Scar (The Lion King)
20. Governor Ratcliffe (Pocahontas)
21. Claude Frollo (The Hunchback of Notre Dame)
22. Hades (Hercules)
23. Shan Yu (Mulan)
24. Clayton (Tarzan)
25. Yzma (The Emperor’s New Groove)
26. Captain Gantu (Lilo & Stitch)
27. Dr. Facilier (The Princess and the Frog)
28. Mother Gothel (Tangled)
29. King Candy/Turbo (Wreck-It Ralph)
30. Prince Hans (Frozen)
31. Bellwether (Zootopia)
32. Tamatoa (Moana)

This covers main and supporting villains from Disney animated films. It leaves out live-action, Pixar, and TV-only characters, and a few gray-area baddies could go either way.

So that is my rundown of the most evil cartoon characters around. Some scared me, some made me laugh, and a couple still creep me out as an adult.

Who is your favorite cartoon villain, and which one did I leave out? Let me know in the comments.