Playing the villain or bad guy, according to actors, is always the juicier role to be cast in for a film. Indeed, some of them seem, at times, to be having too much fun acting the dastardly part. Chewing the scenery, if you will. I have to keep reminding myself that they are actually nice, decent guys in real life.

So, I decided to sit down and list (I like using lists) the top 12 male villains I've seen at the cinema. I tried to stick to those actors from the past who still stand out in my mind. In no particular order, here's what I drew up:

#1. Jack Palance (in Shane)

#2. Anthony Hopkins (in The Silence of the Lambs)

#3. Anthony Perkins (in Psycho)

#4. John Huston (in Chinatown)

#5. Robert Mitchum (in Cape Fear and Night of the Hunter)

#6. Warren Beatty (in Bonnie and Clyde

#7. Dennis Hopper (in Blue Velvet)

#8. Kevin Spacey (in The Usual Suspects)

#9. Jack Nicholson (in The Shining)

#10. Ralph Fiennes (in Schindler's List)

#11. Paul Newman (in Hud)

#12. Humphrey Bogart (in the gangster B-movies he made before stardom hit)

Honorable mentions: Christopher Lee, John Malkovich, Sam Neill

By Ed Lynskey
Twitter: @edlynskey
Author of Lake Charles
"Definitely recommend you take a fictional journey to Lake Charles."
Elizabeth A. White's Musings of an All Purpose Monkey