There are many movies where you think the villain is too strong and may manage to defeat the hero. Most filmmakers want good to prevail over evil as that’s what many viewers expect, so they avoid letting the bad guy win in the end.
However, if the antagonist manages to win, that may make for a better story as the hero may lose faith or try to come back stronger in a sequel. Some of the greatest movies have the villain win or even if they fail, their actions have lasting consequences.
8Captain America: Civil War
Helmut Zemo
Captain America: Civil War has a stellar cast and is one of the most popular Marvel movies. The basic premise is simple: the Avengers are divided into two factions when the government wants to regulate superheroes. Captain America is the leader of the group that refuses, and Iron Man leads the party that goes after Cap’s team.
Captain America’s wartime friend Bucky Barnes returns in the movie as an enemy who kills the king of Wakanda. Iron Man later finds out that Bucky has been brainwashed by Hydra and framed by Helmut Zemo. He strikes a truce with Captain America and Bucky, but then he discovers that Bucky is responsible for his parent’s death. While Zemo fails to make the Avengers kill each other, hecreatesa large enough riftto divide them and make them weak.
7The Omen
Antichrist
An American diplomat’s wife gives birth to a boy who dies immediately after birth. To avoid having her live with the grief of child loss, he secretly adopts a boy whose mother died during childbirth. The couple care for and love the boy as their own, but they start noticing ominous omens and deduce that the boy is evil.
The duo attempts to kill the boy to prevent him from destroying the world with his evil. Unfortunately, the movie ends with the couple dying and the boy apparently being adopted by the President of the United States. In the last scene, he looks at the camera and smiles, likely hinting that he’ll continue his mission.
6The Silence Of The Lambs
Hannibal Lecter
Clarice Starling, a novice FBI trainee, is recruited to interview the cannibalisticserial killer Hannibal Lecter. Clarice goes to the hospital where Hannibal is admitted and attempts to get his help without letting him know that it’s for an FBI case. Hannibal realizes the true intentions of the FBI and is offered a fake deal in return for his help.
While Clarice ultimately wins and succeeds in rescuing the innocent woman, Hannibal Lecter manages to escape. Hannibal is also a serial killer, and his escape means that he’ll likely continue his killing spree. While the movie shows the good guy saving the day, a villain also lives to kill again. In the last scene, Hannibal tells Clarice he will have an old friend for dinner and starts to trail his next victim.
5Se7en
John Doe
Se7en opens with two police detectives, William Somerset and David Mills, investigating multiple murders that seem to be committed by a serial killer. Every crime scene is marked by one of the seven deadly sins, whether it be gluttony or greed. The duo comes close to capturing the serial killer known as John Doe, but he ultimately escapes and lets Mills live.
John Doe later surrenders himself but threatens that he will plead insanity and persuades the detectives to take him to the last two remaining sins he needs to kill, though Mills shoots John. Before dying, John Doe reveals himself as envy and gives Mills the severed head of his wife who, unbeknownst to Mills, was pregnant. This pushes the distraught detective over the edge, who shoots John dead, tapping into the sin of wrath.
4Star Wars: Episode 5 - The Empire Strikes Back
Darth Vader/Empire
Star Wars: Episode 5 - The Empire Strikes Back takes place when Darth Vader and the Empire are at the peak of their strength. The last Jedi, Luke Skywalker, seeks out the old Jedi Master Yoda to train using the Force. However, Luke is forced to stop his training and join the fight when the Rebels get caught by the Empire. Luke tries to save his friends from Darth Vader, but things take an unexpected turn whenhe fights Darth Vaderone-on-one.
In one of the most surprising reveals in movie history, Luke finds out that Darth Vader is his father. While the Rebels eventually escape, Han Solo gets captured, Luke gets his hand severed, and the Empire ultimately wins the battle.
3Basic Instinct
Catherine Tramell
Basic Instinct follows the murder investigation of a retired rock star. Detectives Nick Curran and Gus Moran question the deceased’s girlfriend, Catherine Tramell, who they think may have killed him because her novel depicts the exact crime scene. After jumping through multiple hoops, Nick manages to shoot who he believes to be the killer, Catherine’s obsessed ex-girlfriend.
Once the case is closed, Catherine and Nick continue the intimate relationship formed during the investigation. However, the viewers see an unexplained ice pick below the bed before the scene cuts out, suggesting Catherine may have been the real killer all along.
2The Dark Knight
Joker
Batman, Police Lieutenant James Gordon, and District Attorney Harvey Dent form an alliance to remove all the criminals from the streets of Gotham City. Their plan is successful, but the top criminals get desperate and avail the services of a madman known as Joker, who tests the limits of Gotham and its people.
Batman defeats the Joker and seemingly wins, but the Joker’s plan technically works when Harvey, the hope of the people, is tested mentally and physically to turn into the villain Two-Face. In a way, the Joker wins by corrupting Gotham’s White Knight, forcing the former hero to perform villainous acts. Batman takes the fall for Dent to ensure his legacy remains intact. However, Batman’s admission of guilt is also his biggest loss, because he can’t be the hope that inspires others.
1Avengers: Infinity War
Thanos
Avengers: Infinity Warsees all the heroes divided and trying to accomplish different things. Thor is in space when Thanos arrives and kills Loki before destroying the Asgardian ship. Captain America is on the run and Iron Man is planning his wedding. Thanos manages to get all the infinity stones except for the time and mind stones.
In a surprising turn of events, Dr. Strange willingly gives Thanos the time stone in exchange for Iron Man’s life. Right after, Thanos heads to Wakanda and rips the mind stone out of Vison’s forehead. With his infinity gauntlet complete, Thanos snaps his fingers and half the life across the universe disintegrates. This is one of the most in-the-face wins of a villain in cinema, even if Endgame makes it so, it technically doesn’t matter.
