The top 25 most popular villains determined by GIFs

To celebrate this year’s Halloween, the team at Go.Frontier has put together the top 25 most popular villains based on GIFs. In creating the list, the Go.Frontier team first determined the most famous movie antagonists of all time by consulting seven different sources, including Ranker and 24/7 Wall St. They then ranked the characters that made the cut based on the number of existing GIFs they have on Giphy.com as of July 2020. To obtain more interesting details, they also used Tenor.com to find the frequency of each villain searched and the dates it was most and least popular. Check out the ranking below: #1 Scar Number of GIFs: 15,720 Peak Search Date: December 12th, 2019 Voiced by Jeremy Irons in Disney’s 1994 animated feature The Lion King, Scar killed his own brother Mufasa to become the king of the Pride Lands. #2 Michael Myers Number of GIFs: 13,336 Peak Search Date: October 31st, 2019 Alongside The Wicked Witch of the West from The Wizard of Oz, Michael Myers from the Halloween slasher franchise had the highest search volume on Halloween last year. The knife-wielding maniac appears in all of the Halloween films except Halloween III: Season of the Witch, which did not feature any elements from the preceding two films. #3 The Wicked Witch of the West Number of GIFs: 10,013 Peak Search Date: October 31st, 2019 As mentioned above, The Wicked Witch of the West was tied with Michael Myers for having the highest search volume on Halloween last year. The witch has been depicted several times in movies, TV series, and stage musicals, but the most iconic portrayal of the character was in the classic 1939 film The Wizard of Oz, in which she was portrayed by Margaret Hamilton. #4 Jason Voorhees Number of GIFs: 8,349 Peak Search Date: September 13th, 2019 The main antagonist and centerpiece of the Friday the 13th franchise, Jason Voorhees had the most search volume on September 13th, 2019, which was a Friday. Driven by a burning need to avenge the death of his beloved mother, Pamela Voorhees, Jason is the iconic madman who haunts Camp Crystal Lake, slaughtering anyone he encounters. #5 Agent Smith Number of GIFs: 8,139 Peak Search Date: September 6th, 2019 Portrayed by Hugo Weaving, Agent Smith is the main villain in the first three Matrix movies. Known for his uncanny ability to copy himself over the minds of bluepills, redpills and programs alike, Agent Smith manifested as a computer virus after being initially destroyed by Keanu Reeves’ Neo. Unfortunately, due to scheduling conflicts, Weaving was not able to reprise his role in upcoming The Matrix 4. #6 Patrick Bateman Number of GIFs: 6,809 Peak Search Date: October 1st, 2019 Though technically the protagonist of 2000 film American Psycho, Patrick Bateman has been considered by many as a villain, as the materialistic Wall Street investment banker is secretly a serial killer. He was played by Christian Bale in the Mary Harron-directed film. #7 Jack Torrance Number of GIFs: 6,493 Peak Search Date: October 13th, 2019 Stanley Kubrick’s 1980 film The Shining, which is based on Stephen King’s novel of the same name, introduced Jack Nicholson’s Jack Torrance as the protagonist of the movie. But halfway through the movie, the evil spirits that inhabited the Overlook Hotel drove Jack insane and convinced him to attempt to murder his own family. #8 Tony Montana Number of GIFs: 6,242 Peak Search Date: April 18th, 2019 In the 1983 film Scarface, Cuban exile Tony Montana, portrayed by Al Pacino, became one of Miami's biggest drug runners. But to achieve such position of power, Montana committed a number of illegal and immoral acts, including several counts of murder. #9 Pennywise Number of GIFs: 5,606 Peak Search Date: September 6th, 2019 Search volume for IT villain Pennywise GIFs peaked the highest when IT Chapter Two hit theaters on September 6th 2019. It then increased again on Halloween of that year. #10 Sauron Number of GIFs: 5,064 Peak Search Date: February 22nd, 2019 Sauron is the titular character in J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, in which he rules the land of Mordor and has the ambition of dominating the entire Middle-earth. Sauron was voiced by Alan Howard in Peter Jackson’s The Lord of the Rings film adaptation. #11 Saruman Number of GIFs: 5,055 Peak Search Date: February 16th, 2019 Played by Christopher Lee in the trilogy of films, Saruman was initially the leader of the wizards that opposed Sauron. But his extensive studies of dark magic eventually led him to desire the One Ring. Thinking he could gain it for himself or become Sauron’s servant alone, Saruman allied with Mordor in the War of the Ring. #12 Norman Bates Number of GIFs: 3,047 Peak Search Date: February 2nd, 2019 In the 1960 version of Psycho directed by Alfred Hitchcock, Anthony Perkin’s Norman Bates murdered his domineering mother and subsequently developed a split personality based on her. He soon started to commit murders under his “Mother” personality. #13 Lord Voldemort Number of GIFs: 2,731 Peak Search Date: August 5th, 2019 Considered as the most dangerous Dark Wizard in the Harry Potter franchise, Lord Voldemort, aka Tom Riddle, committed countless murders and atrocities personally and through his followers while attempting to take over the Ministry of Magic. The character was portrayed by Ralph Fiennes in the Harry Potter film series. #14 The Joker Number of GIFs: 2,690 Peak Search Date: October 6th, 2019 Search volume for The Joker GIFs peaked the highest on October 6th, 2019 ― two days after Todd Phillips’ DC film Joker, starring Joaquin Phoenix in the title role, opened in theaters. #15 Hans Landa Number of GIFs: 1,862 Peak Search Date: September 29th, 2019 Hans Landa is the main antagonist in the 2009 Quentin Tarantino film Inglourious Basterds. The Nazi colonel was nicknamed The Jew Hunter in the movie due to his involvement in hunting down Jews in France during WWII. Actor Christoph Waltz won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor, the Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actor, and the Best Actor Award at the 2009 Cannes Film Festival for his performance as Landa. #16 Hans Gruber Number of GIFs: 1,833 Peak Search Date: December 24th, 2019 While the debate on whether or not Die Hard should be considered as a Christmas movie is still up in the air, it appears that GIF fans think the 1988 feature is a Holiday film. The movie’s villain Hans Gruber was one of the most searched villain GIFs on Christmas Eve last year. #17 Freddy Krueger Number of GIFs: 1,602 Peak Search Date: September 13th, 2019 Like Friday the 13th’s Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger had the most search volume on September 13th, 2019. The main antagonist of the original A Nightmare on Elm Street film series, Freddy attacks his victims from within their dreams. #18 Darth Vader Number of GIFs: 1,246 Peak Search Date: May 4th, 2020 The primary antagonist in the original Star Wars trilogy, Darth Vader was unsurprisingly the most popular villain GIF on May 4th, 2020, aka Star Wars Day. #19 Thanos Number of GIFs: 660 Peak Search Date: August 18th, 2019 Seeking to bring “balance” to the universe by eliminating half of all living beings, Thanos collects the six Infinity Stones and gains god-like powers, bringing him into conflict with both the Avengers and the Guardians of the Galaxy, who ultimately join forces to defeat him. Initially played by Damion Poitier in his original appearance in 2012’s The Avengers and by Josh Brolin in subsequent appearances, Thanos has been described as the best villain in the MCU so far. #20 Loki Number of GIFs: 540 Peak Search Date: April 26th, 2020 Played by Tom Hiddleston, Loki, aka the God of Mischief, was the top most-searched villain GIF on April 26th, 2020 ― the first anniversary of the theatrical release of Marvel’s Avengers: Endgame. #21 Bane Number of GIFs: 505 Peak Search Date: April 4th, 2020 Portrayed by Tom Hardy in Christopher Nolan’s 2012 movie The Dark Knight Rises, Bane was the most popular villain GIF on April 4th, 2020 ― the same date actor Jay Benedict died due to complications arising from COVID-19 infection. Benedict played the role of Rich Twit in the movie. #22 Hannibal Lecter Number of GIFs: 444 Peak Search Date: March 4th, 2020 Notorious for consuming his victims, Hannibal Lecter earned the nickname Hannibal the Cannibal. After he is caught and incarcerated for his crimes, Lecter, who is also a forensic psychiatrist, consults with the FBI to assist them in finding other serial killers. Anthony Hopkins won an Academy Award for his portrayal of the character in the 1991 movie The Silence of the Lambs. #23 Palpatine Number of GIFs: 393 Peak Search Date: October 20th, 2019 Also known as Darth Sidious, Palpatine is recorded by history as the most successful Dark Lord of the Sith who had ever lived. Known for his sadistic and self-serving intentions just as well as his ability to conceal them, Palpatine impacted the Star Wars galaxy perhaps more than any other single individual. #24 The Grinch Number of GIFs: 373 Peak Search Date: December 24th, 2019 An anti-icon of Christmas and the winter holidays, The Grinch was unsurprisingly the most searched villain GIF on December 24th, 2019, sharing the spot with Hans Gruber from the Die Hard franchise. #25 Gollum Number of GIFs: 225 Peak Search Date: October 19th, 2019 The least popular villain in the list is Gollum from The Lord of the Rings. Originally known as Sméagol, Gollum had been deformed and twisted in both body and mind after he was corrupted by the One Ring.

Powerbeats AMBUSH are first Beats headphones to glow in the dark

Comcast intros a 24/7 security package for $10 a month

Win a custom-designed OnePlus 8T + $5000 cash!

MediaTek unveils Dimensity 700 and two new Chromebook chipsets

The Mandalorian AR Experience brings Baby Yoda into the world around you

What are the Supernatural actors doing now?

Here’s our first look at Jared Padalecki in Walker, Texas Ranger reboot

Netflix’s Cowboy Bebop is reimagining Gren as nonbinary with a nonbinary actor

All the canceled TV shows of 2020

50 Greatest TV shows ever made

50 celebrities we lost this year

25 Best Sci-Fi TV shows ever made

Which BTS song is the soundtrack of your life?

How Well Do You Know BTS?

Rate these food items, and we’ll reveal which TV show you should binge watch next

Go on a shopping spree, and we’ll guess who your favorite BTS member is

QWIN Delta-8 review: Reduce anxiety without feeling stoned

LG Wing 5G review: Thinking outside the box

OnePlus Nord N10 5G review: good 5G phone, bad tagline

Eufy Smart Floodlight Camera review

The top 25 most popular villains determined by GIFs

The Wicked Witch of the West and Michael Myers had the highest GIF search volume last Halloween

#1 Scar

Disney villains reimagined as princesses

All the canceled TV shows of 2020

50 Greatest TV shows ever made

50 celebrities we lost this year

#1 Scar

Add to Collection

No Collections