These Movie and TV “Heroes” Were Actually Villains, if You Really Think About It

14 Beloved Fictional Characters Who Are Actually Total Villains

Sometimes, the heroes in our favorite TV shows and films are actually the villains, depending on who you ask.

Take Skyler White in Breaking Bad , who creator Vince Gilligan gave props to for having a backbone. However, many viewers of the series absolutely hated her character , despite how she repeatedly tries to keep her family safe while Walter goes out and becomes the meth king of New Mexico.

There are several folks in this Reddit thread who picked their top movie "good guys" who are actually really, really bad. But before they share their opinions, I'd like to get this one off of my chest.

Rose from 'Titanic'

I personally don't care if you think this is low-hanging fruit or not, but there isn't anything you're going to say that convinces me Rose isn't a bad guy. She shacks up with a rich Billy Zane, not because she likes him but just because he has money.

Then, she cheats on him with some poor dude inside of a car ... inside of a boat. The same poor dude she ends up getting killed. We all know there was more than enough room on the piece of flotsam at the end of the film for both her and Jack, but she lets him freeze to death anyway. To top it all off, she forces a bunch of scientists to listen to her gross tales of debauchery as they search for the very diamond she's been holding onto the entire time.

Only to toss it into the ocean and then die in her sleep so no one will ever find it again. Rose sucks.

Oscar from 'Shark Tale'

This Redditor, @Dolphin-Aesthetic didn't have very good things to say about Will Smith's character in the 2004 animated film: "Will Smith Fish from Shark Tale. He's supposed to be the underdog that the audience is rooting for but he's an irresponsible jerk who lies to his friends, spends money that isn't his, and only realizes that he's 'in love' with Renée Zellweger Fish after he has a fling with Angelina Jolie Fish and then Renée Zellweger Fish confesses that she loves him. Also the character design in that movie is so ugly."

Annie Reed from 'Sleepless in Seattle'

Reddit user @Anotherd81 said: "Meg Ryan in Sleepless in Seattle. Also most lead roles of the RomCom age. Inconsiderate cheaters and liars who ruin the lives of everyone around them — but it's OK, because love."

@ Tammylan agreed, writing: "Reverse the genders in Sleepless in Seattle and it's a horror movie about a creepy stalker guy preying on a widow and her young daughter."

Glinda from 'The Wizard of Oz'

This Redditor thought the Good Witch was playing everyone: "Glinda. She could have told Dorothy about that whole click-your-heels-to-go-home thing in Munchkin Land. Instead, she saw a way to rid herself of her two main political rivals, and that phony Wizard, by close of business. She now reigns supreme over the Kingdom of Oz aided by her lackeys, the Scarecrow, Tin Man, and Lion. Good Witch, my a--!"

Santa Claus in 'Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer"

While you may think calling someone who dedicates their entire life to giving kids free presents is a villain, Reddit user @bicyclyemom stated their case: "Santa from Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer is a real jerk. He literally shames Donner for having a son with a birth defect. Then he thinks he can cancel a worldwide holiday just by not being able to fly around giving kids presents. What an a--hole."

The Nerds from 'Revenge of the Nerds'

@TomatoFettuccini simply wrote that they were bad guys: "The nerds from all of the Revenge of the Nerds movies." And another user who replied to their post added their two cents why: "Those nerds were rape-y."

Jim Levenstein from 'American Pie'

@Fat__Clemenza writes : "Jason Biggs’ main character in American Pie . He literally sets up a hidden webcam so he and his friends can secretly watch a girl (Nadia) changing clothes. And then it’s funny that he accidentally sends the webcam link to everyone in his address book. He’s only mortified later because he ended up getting in the video and didn’t know all those people were watching him have an embarrassing moment— but no one is mortified for Nadia, even though she was the one naked and being watched without any knowledge of it. She even lost her place in the exchange student program and got sent back home because of the scandal, but no one gives a s--t about what happens to her."

The entire cast of 'Rent'

@LivingstoneinAfrica thinks pretty much every character except Benny from the musical is a pretty awful human being: "Almost every character from Rent . A bunch of entitled a--holes who call anyone who decides to be a part of society a sellout and use human suffering as a performance piece. Except for Benny though. Benny's all right."

Claire Dearing from 'Jurassic World'

@DamnBlackTea wrote: "How can we not mention Claire Dearing who is the park operations manager for the dinosaur park in Jurassic World? "

Another Redditor piled on the Claire hate , writing: "Seriously. When the big super smart carnivorous dinosaur escapes its containment, you don't send a dozen guys with bean bag guns and tasers. You send them with missile launchers and attack helicopters. Your ultra-rich park can afford to breed another one and take better care to not let it out next time."

Ferris Bueller from 'Ferris Bueller's Day Off'

@VictorBlimpMuscle wrote that the King of Ditching just isn't a very good person overall: "Ferris Bueller — while portrayed as a teenage firebrand who offers up sage wisdom to his friends (and the viewer), he’s really just a spoiled, manipulative jerk-off with no regard for the consequences of his actions."

Maverick from 'Top Gun'

Don't count this Redditor as a fan of Iceman's rival: "Maverick is an egomaniac who routinely endangers himself and others during training. His love interest even actively covers up his flagrant disregard for the rules. He even abandons his wingman during a training scenario, resulting in his fellow pilot being notionally 'killed,' showing that he is not a team player but instead quite willing to endanger others in order to satisfy his own ego. Maverick's recklessness eventually results in the real death of Goose."

Greg Heffley from 'Diary of a Wimpy Kid'

Redditor @xKetjow listed the not-so-meritorious qualities of the movie (and book's) protagonist: "He tries to go up in society by 'using' people around him, and when it fails, he goes back to those people who he tried to use."

Snape from the 'Harry Potter' series.

The Redditor , whose account has been deleted as of this writing, wasn't kind in their assessment of the black-haired wizard at all: "Snape, he's a racist, self serving, jacka-- who treats kid terribly because said kid's father treated Snape terribly, when Snape was just as bad. But, Snape 'truly loved the kid's mother,' but he called her racial slurs, joined the magical Britain Nazis, and said it's 100 percent OK to kill her husband and son, 'cause he deserves her."