Top 10 Supervillain Movie Monologues

“Avengers: Infinity War” (2018)

After a decade setting up the film adaptation of “The Infinity Saga,” the MCU leaned hard into the terror of Thanos in “Avengers: Infinity War.” The Mad Titan is arguably the protagonist of the film, capping his lifelong effort to bring balance to the universe by eliminating half of all life. It’s safe to say that Thanos is a villain who likes the sound of his own voice. Fashioning himself a philosophical warrior, he never wastes an opportunity to speechify. From the Guardians of the Galaxy to Dr. Strange and Tony, Thanos explains himself to virtually every hero he meets. Still, few of his speeches match the opening monologue, a ‘slow reveal’ introducing the audience to the sheer menace of the Mad Titan.

“The Dark Knight Rises” (2012)

Despite his muffled voice, Chris Nolan’s Bane is another villain who speechifies whenever possible. Fighting and then breaking the Batman, Bane explains to the Dark Knight exactly why he cannot win. When he takes the city hostage, Bane can’t help but make a dramatic speech to the world. But his speech at Blackgate Prison gave us our best glimpse into the villain’s psyche. Even as he reads Gordon’s confession - revealing that the city’s long period of peace was built on a lie - Bane’s voice drips with disdain. He sets these criminals upon the trapped people of Gotham. Disgusted by Gotham’s hypocritical attempt to save itself, Bane sees the citizenry as no different than the criminals they put away.

“Avengers: Age of Ultron” (2015)

“Avengers: Age of Ultron” taught the world a lesson that programmers are now learning in real-time as they develop AI: we might not want to teach AI about humanity with the internet. The internet can represent the worst of who we are, and it immediately led Ultron to believe that we didn’t deserve to live. The existential terror of gaining self-awareness and immediately absorbing the internet drove Ultron insane. His madness comes out during one of his many speeches. It is, however, the moment when he explains his mad plan to Black Widow that we see just how much the internet broke his digital mind. He is seething with contempt for humanity and wants to destroy us in the most expeditious way possible.

“Spider-Man” (2002)

The Green Goblin from Sam Raimi’s “Spider-Man” film is, in many ways, the perfect supervillain. His journey is the mirror image of Peter’s, broken by mad science instead of being uplifted. While Peter’s spider bite gave the teenager powers that made him a hero, Norman’s serum gave the billionaire powers and drove him mad. The Goblin sees this parallel and, when they meet, offers the hero a chance to join forces. While it isn’t exactly a good faith offer, in some ways, it feels like a broken creature reaching out for connection. Peter’s rejection fully breaks the Goblin. The resultant rage and resentment were such a toxic and potent brew, it would drive the Goblin to more, terrible crimes in a whole other universe.

“The Batman” (2022)

The Gotham City presented in Matt Reeves’ film is perhaps the bleakest iteration of Batman’s home ever put on film. It’s spent decades struggling with rampant crime, economic depression, and corruption. Both Batman and The Riddler were born of this crucible of suffering. When Riddler is arrested, Batman has a chance to speak with his erstwhile nemesis. It’s a testament to Paul Dano’s performance that the villain is simultaneously creepy and sympathetic. He explains his humble, horrific origins to the hero. Their respective origin stories were quite similar, separated only by wealth. Even as we vehemently disagree with Riddler’s psychotic methods, we understand what drove him to that dark place.

“Captain America: Civil War” (2016)

Uncle Ben - and Aunt May - famously taught Peter Parker that “with great power comes great responsibility.” Zemo is the consequence of not taking that responsibility seriously enough. The Avengers' efforts are not always without collateral damage. In “Age of Ultron,” a misguided project to protect the world instead nearly destroyed it. The nation of Sokovia paid a heavy price, suffering great destruction at the hands of Ultron. Zemo lost everything in that attack. He blamed the Avengers, and dedicated his life to setting them against one another. He explains his plan and motivation to T’Challa, apologizing to the king for killing his father. The irony of this ‘collateral damage’ to his plan seems to be utterly lost on the villain.

“The Incredibles” (2004)

Almost in anticipation of two decades of superhero films, “The Incredibles” was a self-aware, semi-satirical entry in the genre. As with many of the best supervillains, Syndrome exists as a consequence of the hero's actions. He started out as Buddy, a superfan of Mr. Incredible who wants to become the hero's sidekick. Buddy doesn’t take rejection well and grows up to use his technical skills to become a supervillain. His deranged dreams of revenge are achieved, and he explains his plan to his former idol. In a comedy meant to subvert the genre - even while being a standout within it - Syndrome’s monologue is hilariously self-conscious.

“X-Men: Days of Future Past” (2014)

In the wake of the release of “X-Men ‘97,” there has been a small but vocal ‘anti-woke’ backlash online. However, most fans of the X-Men have long understood that the mutant heroes were born as a reflection of the American Civil Rights Movement. Magneto and Professor X represent two possible responses to oppression: violence and the attempt to peacefully coexist. Both in the comics and the movies, their respective ideologies. When confronted with the plan for mutant genocide - the Sentinels - Magneto attacks the President and gives an epic speech. He vents a lifetime of rage at injustice, declaring a war of resistance.

“Watchmen” (2009)

“Watchmen” is the 2009 adaptation of writer Alan Moore’s bleak depiction of a humanity replete with superheroes. It's a dark vision presenting a grim, depressing view of human beings. Each of the heroes has their own, dark perspective though none as severe as Adrian Veidt's. Ozymandias is revealed to be the big bag, working behind the scenes in a plan to bomb billions. He believes that the only way to unite humanity is through suffering and creating a mutual enemy. Ozymandias explains his plan, using his superior intellect and logic to convince all but Rorschach of the rightness of his worldview. His is a supervillain monologue that actually convinces the heroes to surrender, making it one of the most effective villain speeches of all time.

“The Dark Knight” (2008)

The sheer number of classic Joker moments in “The Dark Knight” is a testament to both Christopher Nolan and Heath Ledger. His first speech to the mob - complete with his ‘magic pencil trick’ - sets him apart from the city’s criminal underclass. His interrogation scene with Batman gives us a glimpse into the workings of an insane mind. Later, when he speaks to Harvey at the hospital, his subtle manipulations give birth to the villain Two-Face. But it’s his first meeting with Batman while crashing Bruce’s fundraiser that stands apart as the quintessential Joker monologue. His ‘how I got these scars’ speech exudes pure menace. We understand how this lunatic really can terrorize an entire city by sheer force of personality.