Top 10 Greatest Female Movie Villains of All Time

Top 10 Greatest Female Movie Villains of All Time

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They may appear to be angels; they may look beautiful; but rest assured these dames are deadly. Welcome to WatchMojo.com, and today we’re counting down our picks for the top 10 greatest female movie villains of all time. For this list, we’ve included the cream of the crop of femmes fatales, regardless of whether they’ve appeared in our other top 10s on dangerous ladies. We’re also not limiting the roles to live-action only, so you can bet that a few animated and comic book characters made the cut as well.

Some would argue that beauty is only skin deep. If that’s the case, Mystique is the ironic embodiment of that idiom. A mutant with the ability to shape-shift into anyone she chooses, she’s the right-hand woman of the X-Men’s mortal enemy, Magneto. But that wasn’t always the case: she was once the valued friend of Charles Xavier himself. Besides her unlimited camouflage abilities, she’s also a flexible hand-to-hand combatant who has no quarrels about killing. Hell hath no fury indeed.

If you thought the most you could lose because of an affair was your marriage, think again. Alex Forrest is the worst kind of stalker you could imagine: when her obsession for Michael Douglas boils over following what was supposed to be a weekend affair, she ends up spying on him constantly, emotionally blackmailing him, and even killing his daughter’s rabbit. Wow, if any movie ever taught us a lesson about the consequences of adultery, it’s this one.

The best villains are the ones with minions that are batshit insane. Lord Voldemort is one such villain, and Bellatrix Lestrange is one such minion. Obsessively loyal to her dark wizard master, this highly skilled and dangerous witch lives for two things: serving He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named and torturing others. Aunt to Harry Potter nemesis Draco Malfoy and former prisoner of Azkaban, Bellatrix revels in the pain of others – especially if they’re not pure bloods. With her, what you see is what you get, and what you see is wild.

#7: Queen of Hearts “Alice in Wonderland” (1951)

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While Helena Bonham Carter did offer up a valiant and villainous portrayal of the Red Queen; we’re going back to the original bigheaded psycho, who made all children cry in fear when they first heard – “Off with his head!” While we may’ve originally been entranced – if somewhat perplexed – by Wonderland’s characters and scenery, this monarch with her vile temper and curious croquet matches turned that into fear. Surprising how easily a dream can become nightmare, huh?

#6: Catwoman “Batman Returns” (1992)

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Victim, lover, villain. Catwoman blurs the lines between all these things to become one of Batman’s most tragic opponents. From shy assistant to unstable enigma, Selina Kyle is someone whose allegiance you can’t count on: you can never tell whose side she’s on or who she’ll backstab next. What’s so poignant about Catwoman is no matter how many times she betrays the Dark Knight or commits a crime; we can’t help but root for her. Some say beware the bat, but we say be cautious of the cat.

#5: The Evil Queen “Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” (1937)

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Along with Cinderella’s foul matriarch Lady Tremaine, the Evil Queen is the reason children used to fear stepmothers. Icy, vindictive and vain, she’s a powerful sorceress with a Magic Mirror that’ll tell her anything she wants. Her desire to become the fairest one of all leads her to make every attempt possible to destroy Snow White. And when a hired huntsman fails to get the deed done, she gets her own hands dirty and tries to end Snow’s life via a poisoned apple. Selfish to the end.

#4: Nurse Mildred Ratched “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” (1975)

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As emotionless and unfeeling as any lady on our list, Nurse Ratched is a woman on a power trip. You can almost sympathize with her for having a tough job – after all, she is head nurse at a hospital for the mentally ill. You might even commend her for her soft and caring outward appearance. But when Jack Nicholson starts making trouble, the gloves come off. She resorts to any means necessary to maintain control, using sedatives and threats of lobotomies to rule the hospital with an iron fist.

If sex is a weapon then this lady is an arms dealer. As Catherine Trammell, Sharon Stone brought men to their knees, and then made them cross their legs in fear. A crime writer with no visible morals and a degree in psychology, she manipulates the officers pursuing her for a murder and gets them wrapped around her little finger until they’re either dead or a slave to her desires. Guys, ask yourselves: is sleeping with her really worth the possibility of an ice pick to the face?

Fans can be funny, annoying, charming and obsessive. Annie goes the extra mile to show that fans can also be insane. After saving the author of her favorite book series from a car crash, she fixes him up and cares for him during his recovery. But, when he kills off her favorite character, it becomes apparent that Annie’s not exactly right in the head. Switching between psychotic and eerily sweet, this fangirl is willing to kill for what she wants. She is every author’s worst nightmare. Before we reveal our number one dangerous damsel, here are a few honorable mentions: - Regina George “Mean Girls” (2004) - Ursula “The Little Mermaid” (1989) - Lady Tremaine “Cinderella” (1950) - Cruella De Vil “One Hundred and One Dalmatians” (1961)

She may not be as crazy as some of our entries, but she’s been the poster girl for female villainy for decades, and you can’t top longevity. With her green skin, hooked nose and trademark pointy hat, she’s the iconic vision of a witch, and one that scared the hell out of us when we were kids. Constantly taunting Dorothy on her journey along the Yellow Brick Road with her powerful brand of magic, the Wicked Witch is one of those villains that will last through the generations. Do you agree with our list? Who do you think is the greatest female movie villain of all time? With new videos published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.