The look of an evil genius is much different than it used to be. The cliched image of the mad scientist in a laboratory or a corporate business man looking over a city that he economically sucks dry, has been exchanged for the faces of new, more modern villains. Movie fans have already been treated to more than a few memorable bad guys and the year is still far from over. The following movie villains all demonstrate a high intellect, while using their powers of manipulation to achieve extraordinarly ambitious goals. These are the most diabolical masterminds of 2015.
Immortan Joe – Mad Max: Fury Road
Much like everyone else on this list, Immortan Joe has somehow managed to use his intellect to amass a gluttonous amount of wealth. Which in the world of Mad Max: Fury Road, is measured in natural resources such as water and gasoline. The beauty of Joe is that his strategies for domination work just as effectively in a post-apocalyptic wasteland, as they would in a modern corporate boardroom. He has thousands of low or unpaid laborers, working hard to fulfill their ruler’s dream and all he gives in return is just enough water to keep their organs functioning. This dude is ruthless.
Nathan – Ex Machina
There is an effective build up of tension before Oscar Isaac’s character, Nathan, is revealed in Ex Machina. He is one of the richest, most elusive men in the world and when we find the mystery man, he is seemingly the picture of physical fitness and mental acuity. Additionally, his presence only highlights the physical and possibly intellectual inadequacies of Domhnall Gleeson’s character.
Isaac’s performance is so powerful because he is impossible to read and gets the viewer asking so many questions that they can’t answer until the movie is over. Even then, you may still be searching for answers. However, things don’t exactly go as planned for the robotic genius during the course of the movie. And a prerequisite for any mastermind, is the ability to execute their self-designed plan. So despite a memorably diabolical beard, Nathan won’t be able to top this list.
Ultron – Avengers: Age of Ultron
As long as there are Avenger films, there will always be an issue of finding a nemesis worthy of combating the mighty superhero conglomerate. There are endless ways to top a list of diabolical masterminds. However, one way to shoot to the top of the list, is by singlehandledly causing an extinction level event.
Ultron is brought to life by veteran actor James Spader and it’s hard to not be impressed by the robot’s ambitious nature. First of all he literally built himself from the ground up. He wasn’t happy with his lot in life as a disembodied voice on the internet, so he upgraded himself physically and mentally until he was almost impenterable. Even more impressive was his scheme that must have made him want to twirl his fiber optic mustache. Ultron lifted the fictional country of Sokovia a mile into the sky, with the intention of letting it crash to the Earth and wiping out the hu man race. Only a true mastermind has the imagination to come up with a scheme so creatively dastardely. Much like Steve Jobs’ Apple computer slogan, this guy definitely thinks differently.
Whitey Bulger – Black Mass
There are a lot of despicable men on this list. However, there might not be anybody any lower on the scale than Johnny Depp’s portrayal of James “Whitey” Bulger in Black Mass. Bulger was one of the most successful criminal masterminds in recent history, by manipulating the FBI to help him fight his gang war. It resulted in one of the most powerful and ruthless mob bosses in Boston history.
While Bulger did have an effective exit strategy once his empire crumbled. He was unable to account for those that were closest to him ratting him out. Since he was an informant for years, he surely should have seen the betrayals coming in advance. His lack of foresight keeps him from the top of the list, despite a metamorphic performance from Depp that will make you forget about his Jack Sparrow antics.
Indominus Rex – Jurassic World
This is no ordinary reptile. In Jurassic World, they take genetic engineering to the terrifying next level by creating an dinosaur with a deadly combination of attributes, starting with an advanced level of intelligence. We first witness the Indominus Rex when he outsmarts the dinosaur behavior specialist played by Chris Pratt, into locking himself into his cage. So by the time the Rex is commanding squadrons of flying dinosaurs or consciously throwing its human pursuers off of its tracks, it’s clear that this is the supreme mastermind of the animal kingdom.
Steve Jobs
Steve Jobs is latest film by screenwriter Aaron Sorkin and director Danny Boyle. The movie is a behind-the-scenes drama about the co-founder of Apple, which exposes his volatile and unsavory personality traits that led to a mixed personal legacy. While he is one of the minds behind some of the most important inventions in human history, Jobs will be equally remembered for the lives he negatively affected. His Machiavellian machinations are explored in the film, as well as the impact that the man behind the machine had on those closest to him.
Fassbender delivers one of the best performances of the year and you won’t find a more mesmorizing real-life evil genius on-screen this year. Whether Jobs is threatening to expose members of his development team for worldwide public mockery or throwing his Apple co-founder, Steve Wozniak, under the bus. Jobs manages to achieve an ends to his means, with callous calculations that would make Dr. Evil proud. Ultimately Jobs is the only mastermind on the list whose diabolical ways actually ended up benefiting (most) of humanity.
As you can tell there are many roads to becoming a diabolical mastermind in 2015. (So don’t give up kids!) Whether they are found in the popcorn fun of Jurassic World or a movie that has gotten Academy Award buzz like Steve Jobs, there are some brand new faces of villainy this year, that may stand the test of time. Typically the presence of quality bad guys, signifies a challenge that neccesitates a great adventure for the movie’s heroes and usually that results in a great movie. Whether its Darth Vader in Star Wars or the Joker in The Dark Knight, a great diabolical mastermind can make a film last the test of time. In 2015, we just might have some more faces of villainy to add to the all-time list.