Why Do We Love Villains?

Whether it's in books, movies, or TV Series, you may find many people rooting for the good guy, however, there are just as many who love to see the bad guy win. Why is that?

To begin, much of the media's representation of "the Good Guy" shows them to be devout and good, however, rarely are they portrayed to struggle with less desirable, yet real human emotions, such as envy, selfishness, or awardees. We see that clearly in the portrays of Superman, in Man Of Steel (2013), Steve Rogers, in Captain America: The First Avenger (2011), and Peter Parker, in Spider-man (2002). All these characters play a single note, which makes them come across as one-dimensional.

If you look at their backstories, they appear almost interchangeable, a chosen hero with powers they use to defend those who cannot do it for themselves. More to the point, as righteous and heroic the narrative is, it is repetitive, which gets boring over time.

On the other hand, in many depictions of villains, they show how they got to where they are, the struggles they went through, and for better or worse, it makes the audience empathize with them, and perhaps feel more connected to them than they might the protagonists. Not to mention, villains are m0re intriguing and interesting to see, aside from their charisma and intelligence, their grasp on human morality gives a deeper and more complex look into the human psyche and how the human brain operates. For example, in the movie Joker (2019), the struggle that the lead character goes through, from financial troubles to mental health issues humanizes him beyond the reach of any hero, the movie resonated with so many and it went of to make 1.074 billion dollars in the Box Office.

All and all, heroes and villains exist within each other's orbit to allow for the continuous battle between good and evil to wage on, so whichever side you find yourself rooting for, remember that it is ultimately about perspective, as Tom Hiddleston, once said

"Every villain is a hero in his own mind"