they’re big they’re bad and they’re
smarter than you because it’s all part
of the plan
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top ten
smartest movie villains I’m glad to have
your board mr. Bhalla
for this list we’re looking at big
screen bad guys with brains you must
break through the fog of Lies the Jedi
have created around you while they might
know how to throw a punch these
ingenious evildoers rely primarily on
their super smarts and complex plots
just so you know there are some pretty
big spoilers ahead so look out but until
then we do not alter the plan number 10
Colonel Hans Landa inglorious basterds
well I’m very familiar with you and your
family I have no way of knowing if you
are familiar with Who I am
are you aware of my existence a shrewd
detective like officer who speaks
multiple languages seniority
j’tia this nefarious Nazi is an evil
version of Sherlock Holmes complete with
his classy pipe sitting in your chair
would probably say the same thing only
instead of solving crimes Landa uses his
powers of deduction to hunt down runaway
jews an expert interrogator who reads
people instantly you’re sheltering
enemies of the state not Landa is smart
enough to never let patriotism get in
the way and knows when it’s time to
switch sides I would like the United
States of America to purchase property
for me of a Nantucket Island as a reward
for all the countless lives I’ve saved
by bringing an attorney of the National
Socialist Party to a swift death and
imagined in do you have all that Seth
while he occasionally struggles with
English expressions bingo this sly SS
officer is definitely the cleverest
character Quentin Tarantino has ever
created is that the way you say that’s a
bingo
you just say bingo
bingo how fun number nine
Khan Noonien Singh the Star Trek
franchise while you don’t want to meet
the Borg Queen or general Chang in a
dark alley
neither comes close to Khan I’ll chase
him round the moons of nubira and round
the antares maelstrom and round
perdition’s flames before I give him up
a genetically engineered dictator this
deep-space super human is brainy beefy
and isn’t big on forgiveness from in the
Wrath of Khan he goes full out a hab in
his quest to kill Kirk using everything
from a terraforming device to brain
parasites you see very young enter
through the ears and wrap themselves
around the city brew cortex this has the
effect of rendering the victim extremely
susceptible to suggestion over 30 years
later he returned as a one-man army
trying to take out Starfleet in star
trek into darkness a smokescreen to
conceal my true identity
my name is whether young or old Khan is
the most evil Einstein the enterprise
ever encountered
if you want to know why I did what I did
go and take a look
give me one reason why I should listen
to you I can give you 72 and they’re on
board your ship captain they have been
all along number eight John Kramer also
known as the jigsaw killer the Saw
franchise after learning he has an
inoperable tumor John Kramer tries to
end it all but when he survives his
suicide attempt Kramer decides to help
others stop wasting their lives by
building death traps an educated killer
with a civil engineering background
jigsaw puts his degree to use building
machines out of rube Goldberg’s worst
nightmares from razor wires to shotgun
collars jigsaw straps are sadistically
clever forcing victims to make
life-changing decisions that’s a problem
you’re gonna have to solve before it’s
too late
and either you learn your lesson or this
crafty killer says game over most people
are so ungrateful
but nah not anymore
number seven hans gruber diehard
impeccably dressed and incredibly suave
this cultured criminal killed as easily
as he quoted classic literature leading
a team of hackers and thieves hans
gruber planned on drilling into a
hi-tech vault and stealing six hundred
and forty million dollars in negotiable
bearer bonds and this german mastermind
came prepared
with his heist planned to a tee Gruber
masqueraded as a hostage taking
terrorists conning the FBI into playing
along with his elaborate scheme who said
we were terrorists if only a certain
cowboy cop hadn’t gotten a machine gun
this stylish supervillain would have
gotten away clean do you really think
you have a chance against us mr. cowboy
number six the Joker The Dark Knight
whatever doesn’t kill you simply makes
you
straining chair in this superhero
spectacle Bruce Wayne is equipped with
the latest crime-fighting gadgets and
still has trouble
outwitting the Clown Prince of Crime the
most philosophical baddie on our list
the Joker doesn’t care about money he’s
playing for bigger stakes like Harvey
Dent introduce a little anarchy this
self-proclaimed agent of chaos is a
first-rate trickster bluffing and
besting Batman at every turn while he
hates making plans this conniving crook
is more than a match for the Caped
Crusader
I took Gotham’s White Knight and I
brought him down to our level it wasn’t
hard see madness as you know is like
all it takes little push
number five auric Goldfinger Goldfinger
you expect me to talk Mr Bond I expect
you to die James Bond has battled some
fearsome foes but none was as wily as
auric Goldfinger price all paths have
crossed let’s leave it at that
as crafty as he is greedy this double-o
scoundrel is an inventive smuggler with
an outlandish plot to contaminate Fort
Knox’s gold supply with a radioactive
bomb an invisible nerve gas which
disperses 15 minutes after inducing
complete unconsciousness for 24 hours in
addition to his extravagant schemes
Goldfinger is one spectacular showman
using everything from gas to lasers to
gold paint to Isis enemies he might
monologue occasionally but this
brilliant bond baddie has certainly
earned the right this is gold Mr Bond
all my life I’ve been in love with its
color its brilliance number four Emperor
Palpatine the Star Wars saga
look up the word manipulative in the
dictionary and you’ll find a picture of
Emperor Palpatine son this guy he seems
like an upstanding senator but he’s
secretly the Dark Lord of the Sith you
would not stop me strong in the dark
side of the force as well as politics
Palpatine builds an army declares
himself Emperor and seduces Anakin
Skywalker and does all of this right
under the nose of the Jedi if you wish
to become a complete and wise leader you
must embrace a larger view of the force
over 20 years later he’s still the
smartest guy in the galaxy tempting Luke
and controlling Darth Vader who’s no
intellectual slouch himself what is thy
bidding my master
there is great disturbance
in the force I have felt it number three
Hal 9000 2001 a Space Odyssey good
afternoon how how’s everything going
good afternoon mr. Raymer everything is
going extremely well he’s efficient
effective and super intelligent let me
put it this way mr. aymer the 9000
series is the most reliable computer
ever made
unfortunately he’s losing his mind yes
it’s puzzling I don’t think I’ve ever
seen anything quite like this before
at first glance Hal 9000 is the perfect
choice to run a spaceship on its way to
Jupiter how despite your enormous
intellect are you ever frustrated by
your dependence on people to carry out
actions not in the slightest bit I enjoy
working with people but when he starts
to malfunction astronauts Dave Bowman
and Frank Poole decide to shut him down
unfortunately Hal reads lips and starts
killing off the crew
with his creepy calm voice courtesy of
Douglas rain Hal emits an aura of calm
and superiority that makes it all the
more disturbing when he won’t let Dave
inside how I would argue with you
anymore open the doors and this
conversation can serve no purpose
anymore
goodbye number two Roger verbal Kint the
usual suspects
his name is verbal verbal Kint verbal
yeah Roger really people say I talk too
much
yeah I was just gonna tell you to shut
up Kevin Spacey stole the show in seven
as religious Psychopaths John Doe but he
was at his bad guy best as verbal Kint
at that point I wasn’t scared I knew I
hadn’t done anything they could give me
four besides it was fun I got to make
like I was notorious a petty crook with
cerebral palsy Kent is one of the few
survivors of a heist gone very wrong the
driver didn’t see anybody but somebody
fucked up when interrogated by police he
tells an incredible story about how his
crew was manipulated by a mythical
gangster named Keyser söze outside
stuff somebody working for a guy work
for a guy I got some money from Keyser
söze you know shit like that
timid and naive it’s hard not to trust a
verbal story he becomes a myth a spook
story that criminals tell their kids at
night rat on your pop and Keyser Soze
will get you until the last scene when
we learned the smartest villains always
hide in plain sight
greatest trick the devil ever pulled was
convincing the world he didn’t exist
before we unveil our top pick here are a
few honorable mentions I had to kill him
then I neutralized Jon no easy
I put roughly 2 billion dollars into
tachyon research to pluck John’s vision
of the future how do you choose to
congratulate the greatest criminal mind
of our time huh you tell me that I’m
brilliant it’s been decided that you
will be dressed as a priest to help you
get away in the pandemonium afterwards
Jun Jin will give you a two piece of
Viet Army’s sniper’s rifle that fits
nicely into a special bag you know what
the scariest thing is to not know your
place in this world to not know why are
you here why do I think there’s never
been a Ripley rainy day
I know number one dr. Hannibal Lecter
The Silence of the Lambs
monie he was only on screen for sixteen
minutes but that was plenty of time for
Hannibal Lecter to terrify audiences
with his psychopathic brain power that
expires in one week an entree and a CI a
psychiatrist with a flair for fine
dining
this cannibal loves playing mind games
with FBI agent Clarice Starling and with
his keen understanding of the criminal
mind Lecter is the only man who can help
catch serial killer Buffalo Bill I’m
offering you a psychological profile of
Buffalo Bill based on the case evidence
I hope you catch him carrying but
Hannibal’s brilliance truly shines when
he uses brains and brawn in one of the
scariest jail breaks in cinema history
do you agree with our list who’s your
favorite smart movie villain for more
amazing top 10s published every day be
sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com
smarter than you because it’s all part
of the plan
welcome to watchmojo.com and today we’re
counting down our picks for the top ten
smartest movie villains I’m glad to have
your board mr. Bhalla
for this list we’re looking at big
screen bad guys with brains you must
break through the fog of Lies the Jedi
have created around you while they might
know how to throw a punch these
ingenious evildoers rely primarily on
their super smarts and complex plots
just so you know there are some pretty
big spoilers ahead so look out but until
then we do not alter the plan number 10
Colonel Hans Landa inglorious basterds
well I’m very familiar with you and your
family I have no way of knowing if you
are familiar with Who I am
are you aware of my existence a shrewd
detective like officer who speaks
multiple languages seniority
j’tia this nefarious Nazi is an evil
version of Sherlock Holmes complete with
his classy pipe sitting in your chair
would probably say the same thing only
instead of solving crimes Landa uses his
powers of deduction to hunt down runaway
jews an expert interrogator who reads
people instantly you’re sheltering
enemies of the state not Landa is smart
enough to never let patriotism get in
the way and knows when it’s time to
switch sides I would like the United
States of America to purchase property
for me of a Nantucket Island as a reward
for all the countless lives I’ve saved
by bringing an attorney of the National
Socialist Party to a swift death and
imagined in do you have all that Seth
while he occasionally struggles with
English expressions bingo this sly SS
officer is definitely the cleverest
character Quentin Tarantino has ever
created is that the way you say that’s a
bingo
you just say bingo
bingo how fun number nine
Khan Noonien Singh the Star Trek
franchise while you don’t want to meet
the Borg Queen or general Chang in a
dark alley
neither comes close to Khan I’ll chase
him round the moons of nubira and round
the antares maelstrom and round
perdition’s flames before I give him up
a genetically engineered dictator this
deep-space super human is brainy beefy
and isn’t big on forgiveness from in the
Wrath of Khan he goes full out a hab in
his quest to kill Kirk using everything
from a terraforming device to brain
parasites you see very young enter
through the ears and wrap themselves
around the city brew cortex this has the
effect of rendering the victim extremely
susceptible to suggestion over 30 years
later he returned as a one-man army
trying to take out Starfleet in star
trek into darkness a smokescreen to
conceal my true identity
my name is whether young or old Khan is
the most evil Einstein the enterprise
ever encountered
if you want to know why I did what I did
go and take a look
give me one reason why I should listen
to you I can give you 72 and they’re on
board your ship captain they have been
all along number eight John Kramer also
known as the jigsaw killer the Saw
franchise after learning he has an
inoperable tumor John Kramer tries to
end it all but when he survives his
suicide attempt Kramer decides to help
others stop wasting their lives by
building death traps an educated killer
with a civil engineering background
jigsaw puts his degree to use building
machines out of rube Goldberg’s worst
nightmares from razor wires to shotgun
collars jigsaw straps are sadistically
clever forcing victims to make
life-changing decisions that’s a problem
you’re gonna have to solve before it’s
too late
and either you learn your lesson or this
crafty killer says game over most people
are so ungrateful
but nah not anymore
number seven hans gruber diehard
impeccably dressed and incredibly suave
this cultured criminal killed as easily
as he quoted classic literature leading
a team of hackers and thieves hans
gruber planned on drilling into a
hi-tech vault and stealing six hundred
and forty million dollars in negotiable
bearer bonds and this german mastermind
came prepared
with his heist planned to a tee Gruber
masqueraded as a hostage taking
terrorists conning the FBI into playing
along with his elaborate scheme who said
we were terrorists if only a certain
cowboy cop hadn’t gotten a machine gun
this stylish supervillain would have
gotten away clean do you really think
you have a chance against us mr. cowboy
number six the Joker The Dark Knight
whatever doesn’t kill you simply makes
you
straining chair in this superhero
spectacle Bruce Wayne is equipped with
the latest crime-fighting gadgets and
still has trouble
outwitting the Clown Prince of Crime the
most philosophical baddie on our list
the Joker doesn’t care about money he’s
playing for bigger stakes like Harvey
Dent introduce a little anarchy this
self-proclaimed agent of chaos is a
first-rate trickster bluffing and
besting Batman at every turn while he
hates making plans this conniving crook
is more than a match for the Caped
Crusader
I took Gotham’s White Knight and I
brought him down to our level it wasn’t
hard see madness as you know is like
all it takes little push
number five auric Goldfinger Goldfinger
you expect me to talk Mr Bond I expect
you to die James Bond has battled some
fearsome foes but none was as wily as
auric Goldfinger price all paths have
crossed let’s leave it at that
as crafty as he is greedy this double-o
scoundrel is an inventive smuggler with
an outlandish plot to contaminate Fort
Knox’s gold supply with a radioactive
bomb an invisible nerve gas which
disperses 15 minutes after inducing
complete unconsciousness for 24 hours in
addition to his extravagant schemes
Goldfinger is one spectacular showman
using everything from gas to lasers to
gold paint to Isis enemies he might
monologue occasionally but this
brilliant bond baddie has certainly
earned the right this is gold Mr Bond
all my life I’ve been in love with its
color its brilliance number four Emperor
Palpatine the Star Wars saga
look up the word manipulative in the
dictionary and you’ll find a picture of
Emperor Palpatine son this guy he seems
like an upstanding senator but he’s
secretly the Dark Lord of the Sith you
would not stop me strong in the dark
side of the force as well as politics
Palpatine builds an army declares
himself Emperor and seduces Anakin
Skywalker and does all of this right
under the nose of the Jedi if you wish
to become a complete and wise leader you
must embrace a larger view of the force
over 20 years later he’s still the
smartest guy in the galaxy tempting Luke
and controlling Darth Vader who’s no
intellectual slouch himself what is thy
bidding my master
there is great disturbance
in the force I have felt it number three
Hal 9000 2001 a Space Odyssey good
afternoon how how’s everything going
good afternoon mr. Raymer everything is
going extremely well he’s efficient
effective and super intelligent let me
put it this way mr. aymer the 9000
series is the most reliable computer
ever made
unfortunately he’s losing his mind yes
it’s puzzling I don’t think I’ve ever
seen anything quite like this before
at first glance Hal 9000 is the perfect
choice to run a spaceship on its way to
Jupiter how despite your enormous
intellect are you ever frustrated by
your dependence on people to carry out
actions not in the slightest bit I enjoy
working with people but when he starts
to malfunction astronauts Dave Bowman
and Frank Poole decide to shut him down
unfortunately Hal reads lips and starts
killing off the crew
with his creepy calm voice courtesy of
Douglas rain Hal emits an aura of calm
and superiority that makes it all the
more disturbing when he won’t let Dave
inside how I would argue with you
anymore open the doors and this
conversation can serve no purpose
anymore
goodbye number two Roger verbal Kint the
usual suspects
his name is verbal verbal Kint verbal
yeah Roger really people say I talk too
much
yeah I was just gonna tell you to shut
up Kevin Spacey stole the show in seven
as religious Psychopaths John Doe but he
was at his bad guy best as verbal Kint
at that point I wasn’t scared I knew I
hadn’t done anything they could give me
four besides it was fun I got to make
like I was notorious a petty crook with
cerebral palsy Kent is one of the few
survivors of a heist gone very wrong the
driver didn’t see anybody but somebody
fucked up when interrogated by police he
tells an incredible story about how his
crew was manipulated by a mythical
gangster named Keyser söze outside
stuff somebody working for a guy work
for a guy I got some money from Keyser
söze you know shit like that
timid and naive it’s hard not to trust a
verbal story he becomes a myth a spook
story that criminals tell their kids at
night rat on your pop and Keyser Soze
will get you until the last scene when
we learned the smartest villains always
hide in plain sight
greatest trick the devil ever pulled was
convincing the world he didn’t exist
before we unveil our top pick here are a
few honorable mentions I had to kill him
then I neutralized Jon no easy
I put roughly 2 billion dollars into
tachyon research to pluck John’s vision
of the future how do you choose to
congratulate the greatest criminal mind
of our time huh you tell me that I’m
brilliant it’s been decided that you
will be dressed as a priest to help you
get away in the pandemonium afterwards
Jun Jin will give you a two piece of
Viet Army’s sniper’s rifle that fits
nicely into a special bag you know what
the scariest thing is to not know your
place in this world to not know why are
you here why do I think there’s never
been a Ripley rainy day
I know number one dr. Hannibal Lecter
The Silence of the Lambs
monie he was only on screen for sixteen
minutes but that was plenty of time for
Hannibal Lecter to terrify audiences
with his psychopathic brain power that
expires in one week an entree and a CI a
psychiatrist with a flair for fine
dining
this cannibal loves playing mind games
with FBI agent Clarice Starling and with
his keen understanding of the criminal
mind Lecter is the only man who can help
catch serial killer Buffalo Bill I’m
offering you a psychological profile of
Buffalo Bill based on the case evidence
I hope you catch him carrying but
Hannibal’s brilliance truly shines when
he uses brains and brawn in one of the
scariest jail breaks in cinema history
do you agree with our list who’s your
favorite smart movie villain for more
amazing top 10s published every day be
sure to subscribe to watchmojo.com
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