Top 10 Shocking Villain Reveals in Movies
#10: Leonard Forgot Something Important
“Memento” (2000) Leonard Shelby suffers from anterograde amnesia. But forgetting things hasn’t stopped him from pursuing John G., a man who attacked his wife and caused his condition. Leonard often compares his story to another man with amnesia, Sammy Jankis, who accidentally overdosed his own wife with insulin shots. After Leonard finds and kills the man he believes to be John G., his friend Teddy reveals to him that Leonard actually killed the real John G. years ago - but he forgot. So, Teddy has been using Leonard to kill ever since. Not only that, Leonard is actually the real Sammy! Leonard’s wife survived the original John G’s attack, but Leonard later administered a fatal overdose. So it’s really two villain reveals in one!
#9: The Real Jigsaw Stands Up
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“Saw” (2004) The “Saw” films may go overboard in later entries, but the original still has an incredible twist ending. It begins with two men, Adam and Dr. Lawrence Gordon, locked in a bathroom with a corpse. The duo are victims of the Jigsaw killer, a faceless serial killer who concocts elaborate games for his victims. Initially, a man named Zep seems to be Jigsaw, but after Zep is killed, a tape on his body indicates that he’s just another victim of Jigsaw’s machinations. That’s when the corpse stands up, revealing himself to be the true Jigsaw! Now that’s a reveal that no one saw coming!
#8: The Keys
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“Get Out” (2017) As he prepares to meet his girlfriend’s family for the first time, Chris worries about their prejudices toward Black people. His fears turn out to be justified, but there are also signs of something even more sinister. He insists to his girlfriend, Rose, that they leave, but as they’re getting ready, Rose’s parents and brother surround him. Chris has a tense back and forth with Rose’s dad, while she searches for her keys. And then - Rose reveals she’s had the keys the whole time. She’s not the exception to her family’s diabolical plans, she lured Chris here to enact them. The scene is already incredibly nerve-wracking, and this masterful reveal puts it over the top. The way Rose’s expression flips is truly terrifying!
#7: The Supplier
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“21 Jump Street” (2012) When Morton Schmidt and Greg Jenko go back to school as undercover cops to expose the supplier of a new drug, plenty of hilarity ensues. Along with cozying up to the primary dealer, Eric, they also suffer the drug’s side effects themselves in front of the P.E. teacher, rediscover high school life, and disrupt the school play. However, it isn’t until prom that they discover that Mr. Walters, the P.E. teacher, was the supplier all along. Walters’ blase attitude makes him an entertaining villain, and turns their confrontation with him and a local gang into an amusing finale - for us at least. Mr. Walters does not have a good time.
#6: The Party Crasher
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“Batman Begins” (2005) After being trained by the League of Shadows, Bruce Wayne learns of its plans to destroy Gotham, and burns down the League’s temple, killing its apparent leader Ra's al Ghul. He does save his mentor, however, Henri Ducard. After returning to Gotham and starting to clean up the streets as Batman, he’s blindsided at a party when Ducard shows up. Except, Ducard is actually the real Ra’s al Ghul, leader of the League of Shadows. Ra’s setting Wayne Manor on fire and leaving Bruce to die is pretty brutal. But arguably, even worse is Bruce’s realization that he saved the very person who wants to destroy his city.
#5: Not So Gone
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“Gone Girl” (2014) This thriller draws you in, and then pulls the rug right out from under you! After Nick Dunne’s wife Amy goes missing, public opinion, Nick’s attitude, and all the evidence points to him having killed her. But just when it’s clear to us he’s guilty, we learn that Amy is still alive! After learning that Nick cheated on her, she went to elaborate lengths to frame him for her murder and then left. Not only did this reveal blow us away, it also flipped the title and all our preconceptions on their heads. The victim … is the villain? While Nick is morally ambiguous, Amy turns out to be a straight up sociopath.
#4: Mother
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“Psycho” (1960) The original slasher film, “Psycho” tells the story of Norman Bates. The quiet, awkward hotel manager seems to be continually under the thumb of his domineering mother, Norma. Norma apparently kills young women who stay at the hotel, with Norman cleaning up after her out of misguided loyalty. She looms throughout the film, always in the shadows. However, in the film’s climax, Lila, the sister of one of the victims, learns that Norman’s mother is already dead! Norman has dissociative identity disorder, with the “mother” personality committing the killings. The reveal is just one of many iconic scenes in the film, and it works so well thanks to everything director Alfred Hitchcock does to mislead the audience.
#3: Keyser Söze
“The Usual Suspects” (1995) The story of this neo-noir mystery is related in flashbacks, with the criminal Verbal Kint explaining how he and other criminals were blackmailed into a job by the mysterious Keyser Söze. FBI agent Kujan deduces that Verbal’s associate Dean Keaton was actually Söze. However, after Verbal leaves, Kujan notices small details in the office that Verbal was using to make his story up. As Verbal walks away, his limp miraculously disappears. Kujan chases after him as he realizes the truth - Verbal is Keyser Söze. Söze may have gotten away, but this scene stays with us.
#2: “You Did This”
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“Knives Out” (2019) The sequel, “Glass Onion”, also has a great villain unmasking. But you just can’t beat the original. Rian Johnson mystery film subverts expectations by seemingly revealing who was responsible for mystery writer Harlan Thrombey’s death early. His caretaker Marta accidentally gave him the wrong medication, and he killed himself to prevent her from being blamed. The rest of the film sees Marta, and Harlan’s estranged grandson Hugh Ransom Drysdale, covering up evidence. However, in the end, detective Benoit Blanc deduces that Ransom switched the medication vials after he was cut out of the will. His second victim was right - “Hugh” did this!
#1: “But Here’s What Really Happened”
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“Clue” (1985) The ultimate whodunnit, based on the board game of the same name, “Clue” has several endings, all of which reveal various killers. But the third one is arguably the best. As in the other endings, the butler Wadsworth recounts the events of the evening step by step. However, this time, he reveals that each of the murders was committed by all the guests, except for Mr. Green. Well, all except for the singing telegram - Wadsworth killed her. Furthermore, he reveals that he’s the real Mr. Boddy - the man Professor Plum killed was his butler. It’s a septuple villain reveal, plus it’s packed with comedy as Tim Curry hams it up brilliantly throughout! We haven’t a clue how any antagonist announcement could top this!
