Whenever you watch a superhero movie, you kind of expect the good guys to prevail. More often than not, the entire point of the film is to see the characters we love overcome the most difficult of odds and come out on top. These movies, like the comic books they’re typically born from, are usually meant to be feel good stories. Of course, there are cases where the villains ultimately win out in the end. You might not feel all that great when the credits roll, but these stories are also important to tell.
It shows that good doesn’t always win and yet many of the films that pull this off still feel like satisfying conclusions to what you just witnessed. It’s easier to have the villain win in a comic or on television because more stories are on the way, while movies tend to need a sequel for this kind of tale to work. You might not think about it much but some of the biggest and most popular superhero films of all time ended with the hero on the losing side. In fact, what many consider to be the greatest DC film ever saw the villain come out on top.
M. Night Shyamalan had a lot to live up to with Unbreakable after his previous project, The Sixth Sense, put him on the map and was a huge hit. He delivered on the hype with a movie that kind of deconstructed the superhero genre. The story follows David Dunn as he learns that he has the superhuman ability of invulnerability. That puts him on the path to meet Mr. Glass, a domestic terrorist with brittle bone disease. The idea of polar opposites worked well and made them perfect rivals.
The climax of the movie explains that Mr. Glass was the person behind the train crash that caused David to learn about his powers. It proved the existence of superhuman beings and validated his own existence as a villain. It was part of what Mr. Glass wanted all along and although he ended up in a psych ward, the reveal showed that he was right and that his plan worked.
The first Marvel Cinematic Universe film to really allow the villain to win was Captain America: Civil War. Most people viewed the movie as basically a mini Avengers project because so many heroes came together and it introduced Black Panther and Spider-Man. Somewhat lost in the midst of all that action is Baron Zemo, a simple man with no superpowers who came up with a cunning plan to get revenge on the people he blamed for the loss of his family.
Zemo hatched a plot to reveal to Tony Stark that Steve Rogers’ friend Bucky Barnes was actually the person who killed Tony’s parents. That led to a huge fight that broke up the Avengers far beyond whatever damage the Sokovia Accords did. Even after Zemo is sent to prison, he points out that he didn’t lose. His plan had a ripple effect too, as it caused the heroes to be split when their greatest threat, Thanos, arrived a few years later.
Watchmen is, in general, a far darker superhero story than most people are used to. It’s gritty, features flawed heroes, and isn’t all that interested in wrapping things up in a neat bow. The movie did just that, pulling off an unexpected move for those unfamiliar with the source material. When the heroes investigate the death of a member of their team, they are brought in front of the villain, Adrian Veidt, aka Ozymandias.
Adrian confesses the murder and totally lays out his plot, which is to frame Dr. Manhattan as the actual villain. His belief that the world would band together with Dr. Manhattan as their common enemy is actually so convincing that Dr. Manhattan himself agrees with it. Rorschach is the one character who disagrees, but everyone else is on board, allowing Ozymandias to win for the greater good. Interestingly, the Watchmen sequel miniseries on HBO picked up where this left off and showed us what Ozymandias’ world is like.
The most famous instance of a villain beating the heroes is Avengers: Infinity War. The film grossed over $2 billion and the shocking ending became so notable that it will be a pop culture staple for decades to come. Done in a more stunning way than in the comics, Thanos comes to Earth and succeeds in his plan to collect all six Infinity Stones. He gathers them all before Thor is on the verge of killing him, only for Thanos to snap his fingers.
This wiped out half of all life across the universe. We watched in terror as Black Panther, Wanda Maximoff, Spider-Man, and so many more blipped out of existence. It was a bold move to end the film on a simple shot of Thanos calmly sitting down after doing such a horrible deed. While we knew a sequel was coming, Avengers: Infinity War left us without most of our heroes as Thanos did exactly what he said he’d do.
By most metrics you can look at, The Dark Knight is the greatest DC Comics movie ever made. It made history by grossing over $1 billion at the box office and won an Academy Award, while holding an astounding 94% rating on Rotten Tomatoes. The film sees Batman facing off against the Joker, while also following the journey of Harvey Dent as he falls from grace and becomes the villainous Two-Face.
By the end of the film, Batman seemingly has Joker defeated and even thwarts his plan with the boats. However, Joker reveals that Two-Face is the ace up his sleeve, proving that even the best of us can be corrupted. Batman chooses to paint Harvey in a good light for the public, positioning himself as the menace and going away for nearly a decade. The Joker’s plan worked and proved he was always one step ahead of everyone else. This was a case of the villain winning, yet the story still felt like a satisfying ending.
Which superhero film with a villain winning is your favorite? Let us know in the comments!
