10 Most Satisfying Villain Deaths In Superhero Movies

With the massive popularity of superhero movies in the 21st Century, we’ve seen many iconic heroes brought to life on the big screen. Of course, all those superheroes would not be nearly as iconic without some formidable villains to face off with. And while some of the villains of the genre have fallen flat, there are plenty that audiences loved to hate.

A really effective villain in a superhero movie puts the hero through hell as they try to save the day. And when they are finally defeated for good, the audience wants to stand up and cheer. It’s always fun to see a really bad guy meet their much-deserved demise.

10 Alexander Pierce – Captain America: The Winter Soldier (2014)

While Captain America thought he had defeated the evil Nazi organization Hydra during World War II, he finds that they have been operating in secret for years. Not only that, but they also infiltrated the highest levels of S.H.I.E.L.D. led by Alexander Pierce.

After Pierce orders the assassination of his friend Nick Fury and turns Bucky Barnes into a tortured and brainwashed killer, he became a pretty easy guy to hate. He lives just long enough to see his genocidal plan fail before being gunned down by Fury.

9 Ronan The Accuser – Guardians Of The Galaxy (2014)

Though he is somewhat regarded as a lesser MCU villain, Ronan the Accuser was a pretty evil guy. He is a Kree fanatic who sought to cleanse the universe of lesser beings. He also bathed in the blood of his enemies which is pretty evil.

After getting his hands on the Power Stone, Ronan seeks to destroy Xandar. Before he can, he is distracted by Peter Quill’s dance-off challenge allowing the Guardians to take the Power Stone and use it to destroy Ronan.

8 Ra’s Al Ghul – Batman Begins (2005)

When Bruce Wayne first meets Henri Ducard, he invites Bruce to be a member of the League of Shadows led by Ra’s Al Ghul. However, Bruce finds that their murderous method of handling justice is not for him and he becomes the Batman instead.

It is later revealed Ducard is the real Ra’s Al Ghul and he plans to destroy Gotham City as it is overrun by crime and corruption. As they fight on a speeding train, Batman gets the upper hand. While he is still not willing to kill, he tells Ra’s he doesn’t need to save him either and leaves him to die as the train crashes.

7 Pierce – Logan (2017)

Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine gets his dark and violent farewell in Logan in which the hero is trying to protect a young mutant from some bad people. One of those bad people is Pierce, a sadistic mercenary who seems to have no problem hurting children if he’s being paid right.

Pierce tracks down Logan and his young companion to a compound where other young mutants are hiding out. Fittingly, it is the group of youngsters who finally give Pierce what’s coming to him. They combine their powers to give him a very painful death.

6 Creedy – V For Vendetta

Based on Alan Moore’s graphic novel, V for Vendetta follows a masked vigilante whose quest for revenge against those in power ignites a revolution in the dystopian future of England. Among his targets is Creepy, a brutal government operative who kills anyone who speaks out against the status quo.

Creedy finally corners the vigilante V and he and his men open fire on him. To Creedy’s amazement, V is still standing and proceeds to kill all of Creedy’s men before explaining, “Beneath this mask, there is an idea, Mr. Creedy. And ideas are bulletproof” before killing Creedy.

5 Ajax – Deadpool (2016)

After Wade Wilson is diagnosed with cancer, he undergoes an experimental treatment overseen by a sadistic man named Ajax. As it turns out, Ajax never planned to cure Wade but used tortures methods to kickstart his mutation. While Wade eventually finds himself to have a healing factor, he is left disfigured.

Wade spends the rest of the film hunting down Ajax. After Ajax takes Wade’s girlfriend, it becomes even more personal. Wade finally beats Ajax but Colossus encourages Wade to be a hero and spare his life. Wade shoots Ajax dead, preferring revenge instead.

4 Joker – Batman (1989)

Jack Nicholson helped bring Batman’s most iconic villain to life in Tim Burton’s Batman. Nicholson clearly had a great time with the role of the deranged clown who wants to poison all of Gotham City just for the fun of it.

The climax of the film takes place on a large tower where Batman and Joker face off. As Joker attempts to make his escape in a helicopter, Batman ties a statue to his leg, preventing him from fleeing. As the statue breaks off, it pulls Joker from the tower and he plummets to his death, laughing the whole way down.

3 Syndrome – The Incredibles (2004)

Though not based on a comic book like the other films on this list, Pixar’s The Incredibles is a very fun superhero movie. It follows a family of superpowered people trying to keep their amazing abilities a secret.

They are soon targeted by a villain named Syndrome who wants to wipe out all superheroes so he can be the only one. After his plan is foiled, Syndrome attempts to kidnap the family’s baby only to realize it is more powerful than he thought. As he tries to make his getaway, his cape is caught in his jet engine and sucks him in as well. That’s why capes are a bad idea.

2 Sebastian Shaw – X-Men: First Class (2011)

Matthew Vaughn’s X-Men: First Class takes an earlier look at the lives of Professor X and Magneto. It is a particularly tragic origin for Magneto whose mother was executed by a Nazi scientist named Sebastian Shaw who then experimented on Magneto.

Professor X and Magneto eventually team up to stop Shaw from starting a war. After Professor X freezes Shaw with his mind, Magneto takes a coin Shaw gave him as a child and slowing pushes it through Shaw’s head.

1 Thanos – Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Audiences were used to seeing the Avengers defeat the villains but Thanos flipped those expectations by coming out victorious in Avengers: Infinity War. After wiping out half the universe, the remaining heroes try to undo what he did in Avengers: Endgame.

The climax of the film is an epic battle with all the Avengers against Thanos’ army. Thanos manages to get his hands on the Infinity Gauntlet again but Tony Stark steals the stones and snaps his fingers. As Thanos watches he entire army evaporate, he accepts his defeat, sits down, and fades away into dust.

About The Author

Colin McCormick
(2037 Articles Published)

Colin McCormick is a Senior Writer with Screen Rant and has been a proud member of the team since 2019. In addition to his work as Screen Rant, Colin is also a writer of News, Feature and Review pieces at Game Rant. Colin has had a long passion and obsession with movies going back to the first time he saw The Lion King in theaters. Along with movies, Colin stays up-to-date on the latest must-see TV shows. While he loves to find interesting projects in any kind of genre, he has a special movie of crime stories that are infused with a little dark humor much like the work of his favorite author, Elmore Leonard.

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