Paul Feig’s favourite movie villains
Since breaking out with Bridesmaids, Paul Feig has become a popular hired hand for Hollywood studio comedies. Some of his movies have been better than others, but Feig always does good work behind the camera. His most recent effort was the young adult novel adaptation The School for Good and Evil, released to Netflix in late 2022. The film centres on a school for heroes and villains of the fairytale world; it’s a great concept, so it’s unfortunate that this ended up being one of his less well-received ventures.
Around the time of the release, Tudum asked the acclaimed director to list his five favourite heroes and villains. When it came to the latter category, his choices weren’t necessarily what you’d expect – in that, on the surface, they didn’t reflect the genre he works in at all. None of his picks were from comedies.
Nonetheless, many of the villains he opted for do channel the exuberant, funny energy of his work and, therefore, reflect his filmography better than one might think.
These include Hans Gruber, the brilliantly entertaining lead villain of Die Hard and arguably the best action villain of them all, performed by Alan Rickman. Dr Pretorius from Bride of Frankenstein, who Feig described as the “funniest scary villain” of all time. And finally, It’s a Wonderful Life‘s Mr Potter, played by Lionel Barrymore, represents one of the most gloriously hateful, irredeemably loathsome villains out there.
These three villains are all energetic, larger-than-life presences with distinct, unmistakable comedic undertones, so it’s hardly surprising that Feig connected with them the most.
His other two picks diverged away from this trend to round out a unique, eclectic top five. These were Bond villain Le Chriffre from Casino Royale, played by Mads Mikkelsen – even though Bond villains are often flamboyant and over-the-top, Le Chiffre is easily the quietest and most down-to-earth antagonist to headline a Bond film.
Regarding his choices for his favourite heroes, Feig listed Mad Max Fury Road‘s Furiosa, Ellen Ripley from the Alien films, Harrison Ford’s Indiana Jones, his Star Wars counterpart, Carrie Fisher’s Princess Leia and Sarah Connor from the Terminator films – another fascinating round-up of legendary characters.
Paul Feig’s favourite movie villains:
- Hans Gruber – Die Hard
- Dr Pretorius – The Bride of Frankenstein
- Le Chiffre – Casino Royale
- Frankenstein’s Monster – Frankenstein
- Mr. Potter – It’s a Wonderful Life
