Year ender 2025: Villains who ruled the screen

As 2025 comes to an end, one thing is clear. Not many, but there were some notable villains who ruled the big screen this year.

These performances proved that negative roles can be the most powerful part of a film.

'Dhurandhar' – Akshaye Khanna

Akshaye Khanna delivered one of the most talked-about villain roles of the year in Dhurandhar. His performance as Rehman Dakait stood out for all the right reasons. The character had intelligence mixed with calm brutality. Akshaye, as always, avoided loud acting and instead used silence and sharp expressions. His introduction sequence mixed with FA9LA song went trending on social media.

'Kalamkaval' – Mammootty

Mammootty shocked audiences with his role as Stanley Das in Kalamkaval. Megastar played a serial killer and delivered a chilling performance in this crime drama. From the first frame itself, Mammootty's performance dominates the movie. No one expected a superstar like Mammootty to portray a character that has similarities to the brutal real life killer Cyanide Mohan.

Thudarum – Prakash Verma

Prakash Verma impressed as CI George Mathan in Thudarum. Interesting fact is that it was Prakash Verma's debut performance in a movie. His character appeared friendly at first, but slowly revealed a dark and evil side. There are several situations in the movie, where George dominates the screen with his presence and voice.

'The Ba*ds of Bollywood' – Bobby Deol

Bobby Deol continued his strong run in dark roles as Ajay Talwar. Directed by Aryan Khan, his performance was praised for its “formidable weight” and silent intensity. Although the climax sequence brings out the emotional side of his character, his intense performance as a villain till then, is surely impressive.

Officer on Duty – Vishak Nair

Another mentions is the Malayalam actor Vishak Nair. In the Kunchacko Boban starrer 'Officer on Duty', Vishak Nair earned praise for his villain role. His character added danger and depth to the story of a demoted police officer caught in a crime web. There are several instances where Vishak effortlessly steps into the psycho character which is so believable and raw.

'Kantara: Chapter 2' – Rukmini Vasanth and Jayaram

Kantara Chapter 2 surprised viewers with Rukmini Vasanth as Princess Kanakavathi. Her villain reveal shocked audiences as the sinister plot slowly unfolded. Jayaram also impressed as King Rajashekara. Both the actors nailed there performance as villains in the Rishab Shetty's film.

Retro – Vidhyashankar Neelamegham

The most overlooked villain of 2025 is surely the character Michaek Mirasu in 'Retro'. Vidhyashankar Neelamegham stood out as Michael Mirasu in Karthik Subbaraj's film His powerful and controlled performance , mixing a fun and serious elements surely stands out.

Kingdom – Venkitesh V. P.

Malayali actor Venkitesh V. P. nailed his role as Murugan in Kingdom. His performance in the Vijay Deverakonda starrer showed how strong negative characters can lift a film.


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