Musical theatre characters you love to hate. Well. Some of these musical theatre villains are so bad, you just hate them.

Unfortunately, bad guys are often necessary to create tension, drive the plot forward, or just make the leads look really good. Some have very human, misguided reasons for their actions. Some are out of this world. And some of them are just outright vile. But who’s the worst? Here are the 20 greatest musical theatre villains ranked.

20. Aaron Burr - Hamilton

Does incompetence and jealousy make you a villain? Well, in this case, yes it does. Hamilton’s narrator and Alexander’s rival, Aaron Burr, is a pitiful character that reminds us time and time
again why we should dislike him.

19. Heather Chandler - Heathers The Musical

She may be a victim, but she’s also a raging… tyrant. Heather Chandler - Heather Prime, if you will - is the leader of the popular clique at Westerberg High School. She’s beautiful. She’s smart. And she’s mean. So when our leading lady Veronica fights back, it feels like justice.

18. Audrey II - Little Shop Of Horrors

If it was their nature, can we blame them? When it comes to eating humans, we can! The peopleeating plant monster in Little Shop Of Horrors may not be able to control his hunger, but the everpresent threat of being devoured by a botanical beast is peak villainous behaviour.

17. Regina George - Mean Girls

What is it with high school girls? Regina George isn’t just one of the greatest musical theatre villains, she’s one of movie’s greatest villains, too. The conniving and manipulative mean girl loves to add a bit of sugar to her sour, making her traps even easier to fall into.

16. Hades - Hadestown

He’s the god of the underworld. It’s possibly the most villainous role there is! In Hadestown, Hades spends a lot of energy trying to save face when it comes to the mortals. Including tricking them into deals they have no way of fulfilling. He’s a power-hungry, laser-focused dictator. Sounds like the archetypal real-life villain.

15. Ursula - The Little Mermaid

Speaking of power-hungry, Ursula from The Little Mermaid is a manipulative queen with one goal in mind. She’s the villain we all secretly love and aspire to be. But it might just be the sass and confidence we crave. No one wants to treat a 16-year-old mermaid that badly.

14. Patrick Bateman - American Psycho

Antiheroes just hit the spot, and when it comes to villainous leads, Patrick Bateman means business. Based on Bret Easton Ellis’ novel of the same name, American Psycho focuses on a
competitive investment banker with a dark, violent secret. Though he may dress the part and sound the part, he can’t quite seem to make a good impression, and he’s mad about it.

13. Scar - The Lion King

A vengeful brother willing to do anything to claim a crown that doesn’t belong to him. Sounds like most second-born children. But Scar takes it one step further by acting on his wicked plans. Not only does he plot against the king, but he hires henchmen to take out his nephew. That’s pretty despicable if you ask us!

12. King George III - Hamilton

Pettiness and greed seem to be a theme with the baddies in Hamilton. And the true villain of the show is the evil King George III. The tyrannical King of England enforced heavy, restrictive taxes and trade laws on the American colonies, leading them to declare war and eventually take their independence. In the show, King George III only appears three times, reprising the same song. However, his presence is felt throughout the show.

11. Miss Hannigan - Annie

Most people hate their jobs. But Miss Hannigan took it to a whole other level! Despite being the manager of an orphanage, Miss Hannigan is cruel and manipulative, not only punishing the
children unfairly, but also trying to con Daddy Warbucks.

10. Miss Trunchbull - Matilda The Musical

From one authoritarian in charge of children to another. Miss Trunchbull is every kid’s nightmare. She’s the head teacher of Matilda’s school. She’ll throw you in the chokey if you dare even look at her in the wrong way. And though dreadful, she does have a flair for creative punishments.

9. Sweeney Todd - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

He literally kills his customers and bakes them into pies. You want more? Fine. Sweeney Todd is a twisted tale of revenge. After he loses everything, Sweeney Todd swears to exact retribution. But as people get in his way, they become his victims. Slowly, he turns his barber shop into a slaughterhouse, and the remains are turned into meat.

8. Judge Turpin - Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street

Sweeney Todd may seem like the ultimate villain of the show - given all the murdering - but it’s actually Judge Turpin who is the true fiend.

In the show, it is revealed that Judge Turpin forced himself on Sweeney Todd’s wife, before exiling Todd. Driven insane by the situation, Todd’s wife commits suicide leaving the Judge in charge of her daughter, Johanna. Despite being his ward, the Judge tries to marry Johanna… you get the drift. He’s an evil man with money and power. And he’s definitely one of the greatest musical theatre villains of all time.

7. Bill Sikes - Oliver!

Controlling, conniving and corrupt. Bill Sikes is the main villain in Oliver! Due to his viciousness and violent outbursts, Nancy is his reluctant partner. But even her gentleness can’t subdue him and he enacts some of the worst deeds in musical theatre history.

6. Lord Farquaad - Shrek

We may love to laugh at Lord Farquaad, but he is one scary dude. The short king’s modus operandi is to remove all fairytale creatures from the land and find the perfect wife. And he’ll do
anything to achieve those goals. And look, he didn’t have the best upbringing, but it doesn’t excuse his problematic behaviour.

5. Caboose - Starlight Express

No one likes a cheat, and it might as well be Caboose’s middle name. The villainous train from Starlight Express is all about getting ahead, no matter who gets hurt. He sabotages the other
engines in races and causes crashes. And in recent productions, he’s been money hungry and sly. Who knew a train could be so evil?

4. Orin Scrivello - Little Shop Of Horrors

The ultimate red flag. Toxic beyond belief. Should be arrested because he threw out the Hippocratic oath and does, indeed, do a lot of harm. Audrey’s sadistic boyfriend, Orin Scrivello, is
a dentist who treats nitrous oxide like a vape pen and loves to cause pain - to both his patients and Audrey. Though he gets his comeuppance, he’s still one of the most villainous characters in a musical.

3. Phantom - Phantom of the Opera

Look. We all get our hyper fixations, but not many of us choose to kidnap young starlets and trap them in an underground lair. Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera may be a sympathetic villain, but a villain he is nonetheless. Not only does he lure Christine into a trap by promising to teach her how to sing, he also destroys part of the opera house, and he’s not afraid of disposing of people who get in his way. Scrap what we said. He’s not that sympathetic.

2. Judas - Jesus Christ Superstar

This feels like an obvious one, but Judas is a complex villain in Jesus Christ Superstar, and here’s why.

During the show, Judas is our narrator, so we get insight into his decisions. Though he loves Jesus, Judas believes the self-appointed title “Son of God” may attract too much attention from the Romans and could cause trouble. In hopes of curtailing any potential conflict, Judas offers Jesus up to the powers that be, unaware of the harsh treatment his friend will face.

1. Javert - Les Miserables

Let’s be honest, if Javert didn’t exist, there would be no Les Mis. The morally confused jailer spends his whole life chasing after an ex-con just to satisfy his own sense of justice.

Throughout the show, Jean Valjean takes on new identities and moves around France in the hopes of evading the vigilante police officer. And even though he has become an honest man who provides for his community, Javert will only ever see him as Prisoner 24601, and will do anything to bring him down.

It’s the greatest tale of cat and mouse, and Javert is the greatest musical theatre villain in history

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