Warning: Spoilers for every movie before No Way Home
One of my favorite aspects of the Spider-Man films is that we constantly see new enemies and only rarely see any of them recast. With No Way Home promising to bring back at least three of the old actors (Dafoe, Molina and Foxx) and five of the old villains (the same plus Lizard and Sandman), these seem to have become the definitive versions of Spider-Man’s greatest foes. At this point, I don’t want anyone but Dafoe to play Norman Osborn but some of these other villains… let’s just say that if they’re in NWH, I hope they do get recast.
(Note: I’m not including James Franco Harry Osborn, because I don’t think he’s really a villain, and trying to judge a character who got two films of development before becoming a villain, but whose transformation was squandered, would be nearly impossible).
11. Rhino (Paul Giamatti)
I considered not even counting Rhino on this list because he’s only in two scenes of the film (one of which is before he transforms into the Rhino), but I decided that this terrible character deserved the ‘honor’ of being ranked at the bottom of the list. Even setting aside how horrifically wasted the Rhino was in terms of screen-time, Paul Giamatti delivered an abysmal performance (though not entirely his fault as he was given terrible dialogue and they seemed to have wanted him to act as cheesy and over the top as possible).
10. Venom (Topher Grace)
The casting for this character was already bad enough, but tacking him on at the end of the final film wasted one of Spider-Man’s best villains. At least he gets a real battle with Spider-Man, and his design isn’t bad, but turning one of Spider-Man’s deadliest and toughest enemies into a whiny loser who stalks Gwen Stacy and goes evil when she goes on a date with Peter Parker was one of the worst decisions in a movie that was full of bad decisions.
9. The Shocker (Bokeem Woodbine)
The Shocker doesn’t really do anything in Homecoming, but he wasn’t mismanaged nearly as badly as the two villains below him on this list are. He doesn’t detract or add anything from the film. I feel like the Shocker could do a little more than this for a movie (though he could never carry a whole film on his own), but he also is one of the least prominent of Spider-Man’s well known villains.
8. Harry Osborn/The Goblin (Dane Dehaan)
This is a controversial take, but I actually think Dane Dehaan was good… while he was still Harry Osborn. He conveyed a sense of desperation that made him sympathetic, while still giving us the sense that when he went bad, he was going to be all bad. Which does hurt his character later in the film, when we reach the point that he is completely unsympathetic. Also, his design as the Goblin is the worst design of any Spider-man movie villain so points off for that.
7. The Lizard (Rhys Ifans)
As the main antagonist of The Amazing Spider-Man, the Lizard doesn’t really stand out. Obviously, Andrew Garfield’s Spider-Man had to have a villain to fight in his origin story, but very little of the aspects that make the Lizard interesting in the comics are carried over. His design is good, and the action scenes with him are top-notch, but as a character, he’s pretty lackluster.
6. Sandman (Thomas Haden Church)
Like Lizard, Sandman is a somewhat bland villain who gets a lot of bonus points for his design and some solid action scenes. The things that they do with his character bring a lot of pros and cons with them (i.e.: Spider-Man wanting revenge against Sandman for killing Uncle Ben is good, but the twist that Sandman killed Ben is stupid), leaving him as an okay villain, but one who stands out from the rest of the film.
5. Electro (Jamie Foxx)
Like Sandman, Electro probably deserved better than the train wreck that was Amazing Spider-Man 2 (though, thankfully, he seems to be getting a big part in the upcoming film). Jamie Foxx is a great actor, and he does his best with a role that’s given some pretty weak motivations and cheesy dialogue. Visually, Electro is fantastic, and he places over Sandman and Lizard because he seemed to be a better defined character (even if that definition wasn’t always for the best).
4. Green Goblin (Willem Dafoe)
While the original Spider-Man film isn’t one of my favorites in the franchise, but Dafoe’s version of the Goblin is top-notch. He’s perfectly over-the-top and cheesy, but somehow his lack of subtlety makes him feel more menacing. Unlike a lot of the other villains on this list, the Goblin doesn’t seem to have any line he won’t cross. When he fights Spider-Man, he has a viciousness that Sandman, Dr. Octopus or the Vulture simply don’t have. Also, his personal connection to Spider-Man is possibly the most organic of any of the villains on this list.
3. Mysterio (Jake Gyllenhaal)
I feel like Mysterio, like the rest of Far From Home, doesn’t get enough praise. His false mentor-student relationship with Peter in the first half of the film was not only a great twist to Mysterio’s character, but also a great way to tie into Peter’s arch which was being carried over from Avengers: Endgame. Mysterio was a difficult villain to adapt to the big screen, but Gyllenhaal managed to convey a variety of emotions as Quentin Beck, and the con he tries to pull on the world is perfectly grandiose, making the film feel like the quintessential Mysterio movie. Also, his reveal of Peter’s identity at the end of the film earns him one of the biggest wins any villain has pulled over on Peter in the movies.
2. The Vulture (Michael Keaton)
In some ways, it’s surprising that the Vulture ranks this high on the list. His design, while fine, lags behind a lot of the other villains in this series, and there’s a frustrating lack of a great action scene between him and Spider-Man. The fact that, in spite of all of that, the Vulture places second on this list, is a testament to Keaton’s skill as an actor. He manages to play one of the most nuanced characters (hero or villain) in the entire series, with great motivations and a fascinating dynamic between him and Peter.
1. Dr. Octopus (Alfred Molina)
However, as great as the Vulture is, Dr. Octopus still places over him. Not only does Doc Ock get better design (and obviously better action), but Otto has a more complete and fulfilling character arc. Introduced as a warm, fatherly figure to Peter early in the film, we see his sharp descent into villainy when his brain is poisoned by the AI powering his tentacles. So, the audience is left with nearly an hour of seeing this once good person commit to evil, only for him to be redeemed by an amazing dialogue scene with Peter at the end of the film. His ultimate sacrifice to save the city remains the best conclusion to any villain in the franchise.
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