Top 10 Exact Moments We Realized We Sided with the Villain

We’re actually pretty sympathetic to Syndrome’s villain origin. He was crushed when his favorite hero, Mr. Incredible, treated him like a nuisance when all he wanted was to be a superhero like him. After growing up, he returns as Syndrome, a supervillain with the power to finally best all the heroes he once idolized. His philosophy boils down to the belief that no one should be put on a pedestal. A lot of heartache could’ve been avoided if Mr. Incredible would have just been kinder to a young kid who admired him. Then, you remember that Syndrome’s been offing supers, and you become a lot less empathetic.

We first meet General Francis Hummel when he visits his wife’s grave, and asks her not to think less of him for what he’s about to do. The movie then finds Hummel leading a group of renegade soldiers taking over Alcatraz with a load of deadly weapons aimed right at San Francisco. Hummel’s distrust of the government rings true. He is finally hitting back at his superiors’ carelessness with the lives of its soldiers. The rest of the movie proves him to be a noble man, in spite of everything. Even this early into the movie, Hummel sounds more like a whistleblower than a traitor. Ed Harris’ powerful performance also makes his insane plot feel justified.

In one of the most ridiculous superhero movies ever made, what choice do we have but to root for the villains? Gotham’s environmentalist femme fatale starts this misbegotten sequel as a nerdy, socially awkward scientist. After her creeper boss tries to kill her with some hazardous biochemicals, she revives as the toxic and seductive Poison Ivy. With her newfound poisonous kiss, she immediately gives her boss a taste of his own medicine. As far as Batman supervillains go, we’re not mad at Poison Ivy. Yes, she’s a murderer, but at least she cares about the environment.

Honestly, Kate and Peter McCallister have a lot of nerve. They’re the ones who accidentally left for a vacation without their young son twice, but the staff of New York’s famous Plaza Hotel are to blame? Although the Wet Bandits are the main villains, Kevin spends a lot of time outsmarting and outrunning the staff of the hotel he’s conned into giving him a room. Tim Curry’s conciérge has spent the past several days being terrorized by the McCallisters’ son. If anything, they should be giving him the fattest tip for showing as much restraint as he did.

By virtue of being a prequel, we know how a lot of the story in the “Star Wars” prequel trilogy ends. The Emperor is sewing the fabric of his oppressive empire right under the Jedi Order’s noses. Episode II’s big bad, Count Dooku, is a disillusioned Jedi who’s grown skeptical of his fellow knights’ influence in the galaxy. Although he is actually working with the Sith, Dooku is absolutely right when he tells Obi-Wan Kenobi that the dark side has already invaded the Galactic Senate. Obi-Wan denies it, his hubris getting in the way. By the end of the next movie, however, he’ll know just how right Dooku is.

In this scene, Batman finds himself listening to the Joker’s musings on human behavior. The latter’s warped sense of morality and general nihilism about the world clearly strikes a chord with the Caped Crusader. According to the Joker, he and Batman need each other. To him, heroes and villains are all the same. They’re outcasts who will be thrown to the wolves when they’re no longer needed. The most profound and disturbing thing about his monologue is that it makes sense. What will the people of Gotham do when the chips are down? Luckily, the movie proves him wrong, but he has you for a minute there.

This movie is a classic fairytale. Applying things like logic and reality just takes all the fun out of it. But you do have to wonder how you would feel if the person whose house crushed your sister then stole her shoes for no reason other than another witch told her to. It isn’t until we find out Dorothy always had the power to go home that we start to think about how the Wicked Witch got a raw deal. Who’s to say how things would have played out if Glinda, the so-called Good Witch, hadn’t suggested Dorothy keep the slippers? Unfortunately, we'll never know. Dorothy melted her and the entire kingdom of Oz cheered.

In the pantheon of baffling decisions, “Bee Movie” getting the green light is near the top of the list. It’s about Barry B. Benson, a bee who sues the human race. But, the star of the show is really Ken. Portrayed as a guy with some anger issues, Ken ends up trying to kill Barry because he, let us just check our notes here, is trying to steal Ken’s girlfriend… who is a human. And the crazy thing is, it’s kinda true. Ken’s girlfriend, Vanessa, is actually flirting really hard with this bee. Between just how weird the whole ordeal is and how annoying Barry is, you really can’t be too hard on Ken. Imagine how you’d feel if your love rival was an insect.

Wakanda is a utopian nation hidden in the middle of Africa, whose advanced technology is miles ahead of the rest of the world. Erik Killmonger’s father was cast out because he did not agree with Wakanda’s isolationist policy. Haunted by his deceased father’s exile, Killmonger adopts the belief that Wakanda should announce itself to the world and share its resources. His methods prove extreme, to say the least. However, his message is heard. Even the hero ends up siding with the villain, in a way. The film ends after Killmonger’s death, with T’Challa, the Black Panther himself, making Wakanda’s presence known on the world stage for the first time.

No matter which version of Ridley Scott’s sci-fi masterpiece you watch, Roy Batty wins you over. The movie follows Rick Deckard, a former officer tasked with tracking down and killing four escaped humanoid androids. One of them, Roy Batty, has developed a sense of emotional depth that puts him on par with any human. So, while our hero hunts him down, it becomes clear that Batty is not a monster. He’s a man-made machine who has become hungry to understand his place in the world. His final scene, where he gives a heartbreaking speech about his memories becoming lost once he dies, make it impossible not to feel for him.

What movie villain did you find yourself rooting for? Tell us in the comments.