Jennifer Lawrence
Superhero movies are known to be big box office draws in Hollywood. Getting cast in a superhero movie often sets an actor up as a ‘brand’ on their own, and often sets them down that path for many years. Think Robert Downey Jr., and his role as Iron Man, for example.
While much of the movie industry, and the superhero genre is usually male-oriented, there are some incredibly-talented actresses who’ve managed to steal the show as they play the role of the villain. These women play their parts quite well, and happen to look great while doing it. You’ll certainly recognize more than a name or two from this list…
Famke Janssen
Jennifer Lawrence got the role of Mystique after Hollywood decided to reboot the X-Men franchise. This movie put Lawrence on the map and arguably made her into the star that she is today.
She is so good in this role that she was able to reprise it three more times! After this role, Lawrence went on to star in the Hunger Games franchise.
Alicia Silverstone
James Bond girls are known for being some of the most beautiful women in the world and Famke Janssen exemplifies this perfectly. This Dutch actress stole the show when she played Xenia Onatopp in GoldenEye back in 1995.
Janssen also famously portrayed the super-villain named Phoenix in the X-Men Films, and she took our breath away (along with a few of the X-Men’s breath away quite literally).
Rachel Weisz
The same woman who played Cher in 1995’s Clueless took on another iconic role just two years later, in Batman & Robin (1997). Alicia Silverstone played Batgirl, a highly prized role that she was handpicked to play.
Since that time however, she’s criticized the hype surrounding the Wonder Woman films, based on another famous female superhero. So perhaps she’s not a fan of the ‘super-hero’ genre of movies anymore?
Rebecca Romijn
Having a great villain can make or break or movie, which is why Rachel Weisz was so perfect for Oz: The Great and Powerful where she portrayed Evanora, the wicked witch of the East.
Weisz’s next big movie is Black Widow, and we’re not entirely sure if she’ll be playing a hero or a villain. All we do know is that she is bound to show us her talented fighting skills when she takes down her foes.
Sienna Miller
Mystique is one of the most intriguing characters from the X-Men universe, and Rebecca Romijn was the first actress to bring that character to life on the big screen. Romijn played Mystique in the first three X-Men movies and makes a brief appearance in the rebooted prequel, X-Men: First Class.
Romijn played a huge part in making the X-Men franchise the box office success that it was. Romijn was born in California, and she was a model before she began to act. The next Hollywood celebrity on our list is also known for playing a newer version of Mystique.
Rachel McAdams
G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra hit theaters back in 2009, and it was exactly what we needed; two hours of mind-numbing action, and one thing that really stood out was Sienna Miller who played Ana.
One of the reasons why this movie was so successful is because Sienna Miller played the villain so well. Miller was born in New York City, but she was raised in London. She is a household name because of her dedication to the craft, and we’ll watch any movie she’s in (as a hero or a villain).
Carla Gugino
While a comedy about fitting in in high school is certainly in a different category than a superhero or action movie, the 2004 film Mean Girls has become iconic. Part of its success is owed to Rachel McAdams, portraying an everyday villain, school bully Regina George.
The role helped skyrocket Rachel McAdams’ career to the next-level because of her dedication to play such an awful person. While McAdams plays an evil bully on screen, she could not be more different in person, which makes us appreciate her in this role even more!
Now what about superheroes? Can’t be all about the baddies, right? Well, here are some more villains, but also some heroes mixed in as well…
Amy Adams
You might recognize Gugino as the crime-fighting mom in the Spy Kids franchise. She’s been in some other high-profile roles however, as she also played Sally Jupiter in Watchmen (2009), and voiced Kelor in Man of Steel (2013), as well as the Ship Voice in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016).
You might also recognize her from her appearances in the HBO hit series Entourage, as one of Vincent Chase’s (Adrian Grenier) many love interests.
Emma Stone
Amy Adams first stepped into the shoes of the intrepid reporter Lois Lane in 2013’s Man of Steel. She played the role again in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016).
You can rest assured that anytime Adams is called upon to play a role of significance, especially one with the cache of Lois Lane, she won’t underwhelm or under-deliver.
Teri Hatcher
Emma Stone has been a Hollywood-mainstay for over a decade at this point and her star is only rising. While she often portrays the protagonist’s love-interest or “good girl” in many of her roles, she has rapidly proving her versatility.
In 2021, she stepped into the furs of iconic Disney villainess Cruella de Vil in the titular film Cruella. Stone’s likability, easygoing nature, charm make her a fan-favorite in nearly every project she’s in, so it was nice to see her use her acting chops to play a completely different kind of character.
Elizabeth Olsen
Teri Hatcher took on the role of the TV version of Lois Lane in the four-season series Lois and Clark: The New Adventures of Superman. The series ran from 1993 to 1997, and was a smashing success.
This role catapulted Hatcher to new heights, and she’s since been working steadily in Hollywood. No matter her role on-screen, she’s always commanded a chunk of the spotlight, thanks to her remarkable beauty, and her skills as an actor.
Lena Headey
Elizabeth Olsen joined the Avengers cast as Scarlet Witch in 2014’s Captain America: The Winter Soldier, and was also in Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015), Captain America: Civil War (2016), Avengers: Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019) as this same character.
Her power is to manipulate “chaos magic,” which seems impressive and terrifying all at once. Her presence is definitely felt on-screen, as she commands attention with not only her beauty, but her impressive acting skills.
Margot Robbie
Lena Headey is an actress who took the world by storm with her portrayal of Cersei Lannister in Game of Thrones. While Game of Thrones has ended, we can’t forget how good of a villain she was. She’s able to strike fear in every scene that she acts in, which is why she sells this role.
She is said to play such a good villain that fans are afraid to meet her when they see her at conventions. Headey also starred in some epic movies like 300 and Dredd.
Malin Akerman
There was no way that we were not going to include Margot Robbie on our list. This actress managed to steal the show with her portrayal of Harley Quinn during the Suicide Squad movie, and she ultimately went on to star in her own Harley Quinn movie called Birds Of Prey.
Robbie’s portrayal of Harley Quinn is so special because she is able to get us to root for her even though she is a villain. Robbie will also portray Harley in the new rebooted Suicide Squad movie that’s being directed by James Gunn.
Sarah Jessica Parker
You might recognize Malin Akerman for her role in the hit TV series Billions, but once upon a time she played the lead role of Laurie Jupiter/Silk Spectre II in Watchmen (2009).
‘Super-hero’ movies are probably good actor prep for playing a money-wielding billionaire’s wife, right?
Eva Green
Even though Sarah Jessica Parker might be known for her role in Sex in the City, she is also great at playing villains and she was able to show this off when she played in Hocus Pocus as one of the three Sanderson witches.
Jennifer Connelly
Tim Burton made one of the best decisions of his life when he hired Eva Green to play the role of the villain in his 2012 horror movie, Dark Shadows, which also stars Johnny Depp. Green has quite an impressive list of credits, and she is one of the most underrated actresses in Hollywood today.
Her ability to play villainous roles is unbelievable, and we can’t wait to see what she’ll star in next.
Uma Thurman
In 1991, Jennifer Connelly starred as Jenny Blake, the girlfriend of stunt pilot Cliff Secord, in The Rocketeer. Secord finds a hidden rocket-powered jet pack and ends up getting mixed up with some bad peeps. Jenny is kidnapped too, but also ends up helping save the day.
Like a true hero, good prevails in the end, and looks mighty spectacular all the while. A true Hollywood ending.
Angelina Jolie
We can’t make a female villains list without including Uma Thurman as Poison Ivy. While Batman & Robin was critically skewered, it has attracted a cult following over the years, and people can’t get enough of it. Think Tommy Wiseau’s The Room, but for superhero movies.
The movie had an insane plot and awful dialogue, but Thurman could not have been more perfect for this cheesy iteration of Batman. This movie is completely ridiculous, but we can’t stop watching.
Anne Hathaway
Angelina Jolie took on the role of an evil fairy in the movie Maleficent, and she transformed into one of the scariest villains to appear on the big screen. Her sharp jawline alone is enough to scare us, which is why we had to put her on this list.
While Jolie has played lots of heroes in her time, there’s nothing better than Jolie switching to the dark side. Jolie has won an Academy Award and three Golden Globe Awards over the course of her career, and she has been named Hollywood’s highest-paid actress multiple times. No wonder she makes such a good villain!
Cate Blanchett
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Anne Hathaway has come a long way since playing a princess in The Princess Diaries. In one of her most famous roles, she plays Catwoman, and she does it so well. There have been a few Catwoman iterations, but no one pulls off the catsuit like Anne Hathaway in The Dark Knight. It’s as if Hathaway was born to play this role, and we hope to see her return one day to the DC universe!
We can also look forward to Hathaway portraying the Grand High Witch in The Witches reboot coming to theaters soon. Don’t miss the original star of the original Witches movie further down the list.
Dakota Fanning
Cate Blanchett is easily one of the most versatile actresses in Hollywood, which is why we couldn’t wait to see her play the villain in the latest Thor movie, Thor: Ragnarok. Blanchett plays Hela, Thor’s long lost sister in the movie, and she does an incredible job selling the part.
So far, Blanchett has won two Academy Awards and three Golden Globes, which is why we had to include her on this list. Sign us up if she ever decides to play a villain again!
Helena Bonham Carter
Even though teenagers are not known for playing villains, Dakota Fanning made an exception to that rule when she took on the role of Volturi Jane in the Twilight Saga. Fanning was a huge child actor and starred in films with some of Hollywood’s biggest names.
While most child actors lose touch with the world and go off the deep end, Fanning continues to thrive in Hollywood. She still makes great movies, and she continues to pleasantly surprise us at every turn.
Rosamund Pike
When we think of the ideal female villain, Helena Bonham Carter checks all of the boxes. While she has acted in some of the biggest movies over the past 30 or so years, her roles that make her stand out are her villainous ones.
Most famously, she plays Bellatrix Lestrange in the Harry Potter series, and we are completely frightened of her in every scene she’s in. She also plays Mrs. Lovett in Sweeney Todd, which is also an incredibly dark movie, but we can’t get enough of her evil performance in it.
Faye Dunaway
The movie Gone Girl was directed by David Fincher, and boy are we lucky that he was able to cast Rosamund Pike who stole the show with her jaw-dropping performance. Pike plays a complex character who isn’t everything that she seems to be, and we love every second of her performance.
Pike began her career on stage in productions like Romeo and Juliet, and she hasn’t looked back since. Pike’s first movie role was in James Bond’s Die Another Day, and she’s starred in plenty of big hits since.
Zoë Kravitz
The story of Bonnie and Clyde is a tale as old as time, and Faye Dunaway managed play the role of Bonnie perfectly. This role earned Dunaway her first Academy Award nomination. Dunaway went on to star in many more movies, and she had a very successful career.
While Dunaway is very protective of her personal life and rarely gives interviews, Dunaway says that it was an honor for her to play such an iconic role.
Jessica Alba
Before she was telling “Big Little Lies”, Zoë Kravitz starred as Angel Salvadore in X-Men: First Class (2011). She followed that up with action roles in the Divergent series, as well as Mad Max: Fury Road (2015).
She’s now slated to be playing Catwoman in the new The Batman (2021), starring Robert Pattinson. This could be a defining role for Kravitz, and she’s proven to be up to the task of taking on a gig of this stature.
Karen Gillan
The Honest Company mogul was part of the Fantastic Four franchise in the early 2000s; she played Susan Storm in Fantastic Four (2005) and Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer (2007).
Later in her career, Alba admitted that the filming of the Fantastic Four movies drained her immensely, and that she almost gave up the film industry entirely at one point because of it.
Liv Tyler
Karen Gillan played Nebula in Guardians of the Galaxy (2014), Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 (2017), Avengers Infinity War (2018), and Avengers: Endgame (2019). Considering the enormous box office success of these films, you’d think that all that success might go to Gillan’s head, but that hasn’t been the case.
She’s stated repeatedly in interviews that she thoroughly enjoys acting for the entertainment and distraction of the fans, and hopes to bring smiles to kids’ faces.
Margot Kidder
Liv Tyler played Betty Ross, Bruce Banner (Edward Norton)’s love interest, in the 2008 version of The Incredible Hulk. She also appeared in Super (2010) as Sarah Helgeland, a recovering drug addict; it’s the mission of her ex-husband, Frank Darbo/The Crimson Bolt (Rainn Wilson), to save her from a dangerous life with her new husband, Jacques.
The range and breadth of the characters played by Tyler has often been underrated or forgotten, but she more than takes her share of the spotlight almost anytime she’s on the big screen.
Michelle Pfeiffer
Margot Kidder, who passed away in 2018, played Christopher Reeve’s love interest, Lois Lane, in the 1978 movie Superman. She reprised her role in 1980’s Superman II and again in 1983’s Superman III.
Lois Lane might be the original, most iconic female lead role in the history of super hero movies, and Kidder more than did the role justice, as her presence and poise alongside Reeve was far more than that of a supporting actor.
Helen Slater
Michelle Pfeiffer played Selina Kyle/Catwoman in Batwoman Returns (1992), opposite Michael Keaton as Bruce Wayne. She also had to face off with a pretty creepy-looking Danny DeVito as Penguin.
In every role that Pfeiffer has taken on, she’s either held her own alongside some strong leading actors, or has taken the spotlight all to herself- her presence is that fierce.
Halle Berry
In 1984, Helen Slater played Kara Zor-El/Supergirl, Superman’s cousin, who returns to Earth to retrieve a powerful orb. Once there, she comes up against a wicked witch. Yes, this was a real storyline.
Helen Slater has appeared in all sorts of feature films during the course of her career, with one of her early standout roles being alongside Michael J. Fox in The Secret of My Success.
Jennifer Garner
Halle Berry first donned the Catwoman suit in 2004, when she played the title role in the film, but was critically-panned. She also played Ororo Munroe/Storm in X-Men (2000), X2-X-Men United (2003), X-Men: The Last Stand (2006) and 2014’s X-Men: Days of Future Past.
No stranger to massive blockbuster movies, Halle Berry’s screen presence is palpable. Her beauty is perhaps only superseded by impressive acting talent.
Kim Basinger
Jennifer Garner might be in the baby food business now, but long before that, she dabbled in the dangerous world of superheroes way back in 2005, when she played Elektra, an assassin-for-hire in the movie of the same name.
Garner also played an international spy for five seasons in Alias, which is somewhat adjacent to the superhero life. Suffice to say, she’s no stranger to the genre, and has brought a lot of attention to it.
January Jones
Kim Basinger starred in Tim Burton’s Batman, in 1989, as Vicki Vail. She played Bruce Wayne/Batman’s love interest, and also a dedicated reporter- not a bad role model.
It’s easy to forget that Basinger ever starred in a ‘super hero’ flick, as she’s appeared in so many other memorable movies, and has taken on many memorable roles.
Kirsten Dunst
While January Jones is best known for her role as Betty Draper in Mad Men, she also famously played Emma Frost in the X-Men prequel movies. Frost is a villainous mutant with telepathic abilities and the ability to change her entire body into hard diamond.
Jones is from a small town in South Dakota (population 400), which is what pushed her to get out into the real world and become a huge star.
Anjelica Huston
There have been many Spiderman iterations over the years, but who can forget the early 2000s adaptations. In Sam Raimi’s early 2000s Spiderman trilogy, Dunst played Mary Jane Watson, Peter Parker’s love interest (2007-2009).
Not only did she share the spotlight beautifully with Tobey Maguire, she also held her own to the point that her presence became a huge reason for the success of the franchise.
Lynda Carter
The Witches is a movie that launched back in 1990, and it’s known for being one of the scariest movies to launch in the UK. Because of its financial success and cult following, this movie is currently being rebooted with the aforementioned Anne Hathaway leading the way.
Anjelica Huston also starred in The Addams Family, which is arguably her most famous role to date. Most recently, she starred in the newest John Wick film, and she’s showing no signs of slowing down!
If you ask any baby boomer who Wonder Woman is, they’d probably say Lynda Carter. Carter originated the role in the TV series that ran from 1975-1979, and captivated audiences with both her beauty and her acting ability.
Carter has since come out and criticized James Cameron for his commentary on the Wonder Woman character, as she feels a strong tie to its identity to this day.