15 Most Nefarious TV Villains of 2016

2016 was the year of the villain. It is a year that will live in infamy as the dumpster fire of American history that saw the worst aspects of humanity rise and take the form of careless demagogues, racist and homophobic sadists, and mass murderers.

And that’s just what happened on television.

Lest we forget our history and condemn ourselves to repeat it in lesser, subpar forms, here’s a list of Tell-Tale TV’s favorite villains of 2016.

Warning: spoilers follow.

1. Negan (The Walking Dead)

Nothing screams “bad guy” like a bat wrapped in barbed wire. The anticipation began last season with the most sadistic game of eeny-meeny-miney-moe ever played and continued building over the summer, culminating in what think-pieces are calling the bloodiest episode in The Walking Dead history.

Negan manages to kill not just one, but two beloved characters by smashing their brains in. While other villains on the list may have a higher body count, none of them are as personal and no death as visceral as what Negan brings to the table.

2. Cornell “Cottonmouth” Stokes (Luke Cage)

Every great hero needs their foil and no one serves as a juxtaposition to the titular hero more than Cottonmouth.

Like Luke Cage, Cornell “Don’t Call Me Cottonmouth” Stokes loves Harlem and only wants to see the city succeed. His methods, however, are a bit unorthodox as they include drug-running, extortion, and murder. Love’s a funny thing.

3. Demogorgon (Stranger Things)

The Demogorgon hails from the parallel dimension affectionally called “The Upside Down” from the Netflix smash hit, Stranger Things. He loves long, dark walks in the woods, feasting on the flesh of nerdy red-heads, and getting caught in the rain.

4. Hive (Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.)

Nothing is scarier than a villain who can take over the body of a frenemy and use their memories against you. So when Hive shows up clinging to the body of former S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Grant Ward, the experience is a little unsettling. Hive’s first appearance on Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is as a mysterious hooded figure on a desolate planet trying to kill Agent Simmons.

The inspiration behind H.Y.D.R.A., Hive eventually escapes to Earth, amassing Inhuman followers in his goal to enslave every human on Earth (the ones that survive being turned into Inhumans, that is.) Once he kills Agent May’s husband and turns Daisy into a proverbial suicidal drug addict, his place in MCU villain history is solidified.

5. Damien Darhk (Arrow/DC’s Legends of Tomorrow)

Thanks to his nuclear antics, this magic man has the largest body count of anyone on this list. Damien “Where the hell does that H in your last name go” Dahrk/Dhark/Darkh/Darhk also spearheaded the anti-Black Canary campaign and gave us one of the most rage-inducing character deaths in the history of Arrow.

He’s now a foe of the DC’s Legends of Tomorrow crew and an unrelenting poison thorn in everyone’s side. Bonus evil points for looking like one of the alt-right’s wet dreams.

6. Rose “Sin Rostro” Solano (Jane the Virgin)

Oy. How much time do you have?

Let’s just say, briefly, that this fiery femme fatale is responsible for two seasons worth of turmoil for all of our main characters, with a growing list of grisly murders, a list which almost included Michael just as Jane the Virgin is about to lose the last part of her title. Downright despicable.

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