20+ Villains Of TV Shows That We Ended Up Simping For Instead Of Hating

How can you even hate Sue Sylvester?

Sophia

• Published in Film & TV
• June 23, 2022

Most of the time, we TV show fanatics get sucked into a show because of the exemplary execution of the storyline as well as the characters involved in it. Scratch that—even if the writing may sometimes be bad and obviously poorly planned, we just keep watching the show because of how we just love to watch that one character or duo that has us wrapped around their finger.

While we are usually drawn to like one of the main characters in a show, sometimes, an odd thing happens when we find ourselves seemingly sympathizing with the one character we're supposed to hate: the antagonist. As a general, unspoken rule, antagonists are made for the audience to hate, especially since their main role is to always be in the way of the main characters' plans—but sometimes, these villains are so cruelly good that we almost find it hard not to root for them.

Maybe it's just the actor's sheer charisma, or it's the fact that deep down, the character seems like truly nice people, or it could just be the plain fact that everything this villain does is so cool and iconic. One way or another, there are a lot of TV show villains that the audience finds hard not to like; whether it's the writers' intention or not!

Now, take a look at the following TV show antagonists that many people just couldn't help but root for because they're so bad it's so good!

1. Edie Britt from Desperate Housewives

I think she was misunderstood and had an untimely death. She spoke her mind, lived her life, and called people out on their bullshit. She was a strong, independent, successful woman. —alexb414f74e77

2. Lord Petyr Baelish from Game of Thrones

He was cunning, sneaky, and helped control the narrative. —samanthat416ded614

3. Mr. Gold / Rumpelstiltskin from Once Upon A Time

You knew he was the one you could always count on to screw people over, but the more you learned about him, the more you realized he was only evil because he was screwed over time and time again by the people who were supposed to care for him the most. —n4119eafd5

4. Serena Joy from The Handmaid's Tale

I go through stages with her because she can be very awful, but at the end of the day, she also falls victim to the oppression of women in Gilead. Plus *spoiler alert* she allowed Offred to escape because she knew her daughter couldn't grow up in Gilead and face the same oppression she faces. AMAZING CHARACTER ARC, IMO! —megb8787

5. Hannibal Lecter from Hannibal

We aren't supposed to like a serial killer/cannibal antagonist, but he's so damn charming and, not to mention, an amazing chef that makes (human) food look like art. His character is so well written, that all of his flaws are almost forgiven. —mitsukol

6. Marina Andrieski from The Magicians

She dressed impeccably and took shit from nobody. Plus, even when she *spoiler alert* was murdered by a demon, she was still a boss lady up until the very end. —awkwrdcait

7. Cersei Lannister from Game of Thrones

She's the definition of a powerful woman. She literally blew up a portion of the city because they “made a fool of her.” She's passionate about her family and ensuring the survival of her bloodline and will do anything she can to keep herself on the throne. She may be an evil, backstabbing person, but man, she will do whatever it takes to get what she wants. Can't help but respect that. —jessicaivyf

8. The Evil Queen from Once Upon A Time

Usually, I never like villain characters — that is, until I watched Once Upon A Time and came across the Evil Queen Regina. Her backstory added so many layers to her character that I couldn't help but shift my allegiance to her. Honestly, Regina did deserve a happy ending, especially after Robin died.—aselaleek

9. Spike from Buffy The Vampire Slayer

I hated him when we first met him, but I loved him when we came back! He’s definitely my favorite character from BTVS. He's hilarious, witty, charming, and I love that there's nothing he wouldn't do for Buffy and Dawn. —amber1441

10. Lucifer from Supernatural

He was just so sarcastic and witty. I know we were supposed to hate him, but I just couldn't help but laugh during his scenes. —niknak119

11. Deucalion and Theo from Teen Wolf

They're so evil, but then, in the last season, they turned out to be a great allies to Scott's pack and managed to redeem themselves along the way. —fabarreraguer

12. Negan from The Walking Dead

He was set up as the formidable antagonist to Rick and the gang after he killed Glenn. Yes, he's an evil asshole, but he's also great comic relief and incredibly smart, if you think about it. —dominiquej49afefded

13. Villanelle from Killing Eve

She’s brilliant, witty, and strong. —danielled4a0e60e12

14. Kai Parker from The Vampire Diaries

He's so witty and funny that it became really hard to root against him. I wish they wrote him into the spin-off like they did Klaus. —laurissahuff

15. Jim Moriarty from Sherlock

Like every other Sherlock fan, I really loved Moriarty. Like, he was supposed to be the most evil character, but it didn't stop my love for the complex character. And his evil was just. So. Good. —courtneys419945b93

16. Klaus Mikaelson from The Vampire Diaries

Originally, he was an immortal, heartless villain, but later on in The Vampire Diaries, and then in The Originals, he showed that there was so much more to him than met the eye. Sure, his methods were unconventional, but he always believed he was the doing the right thing for his family. —spinbarre123

17. Petra Solano from Jane The Virgin

She was problematic at first, and sometimes still is. But she gradually became this funny and highly relatable character who I love dearly ❤️. —izzim4071cf87e

18. Jasper from Steven Universe

I know she's a bully and is kind of horrible, but she just makes every scene she's in so amusing and 10x more interesting. Even when Jasper eventually got her much-deserved comeuppance, I felt really bad for her and it only made my intrigue in her grow. —kaylynnnarwhal

19. Mona Vanderwaal from Pretty Little Liars

I know she can be awful at times, but she's also brilliant and funny and went out of her way to save the Liars multiple times in the later seasons! I love to watch her scheme. Mona's a total badass! —cdehon

20. Count Olaf from A Series of Unfortunate Events

We never want to see him again when he leaves, yet, we eagerly anticipate his return every time. —chrisjammedel

21. Tywin Lannister from Game of Thrones

He was a cold and calculating asshole, but he knew that and didn’t care. He was very intelligent — probably one of the best strategists on the show. He was the only person who could keep Cersei and Joffrey in line...to an extent. He was the only person Joffrey was afraid of and, because of that, he was the only person who had a modicum of control over him. The only person he couldn’t control was Tyrion, and that eventually lead to his death. Yes, he was a terrible person and father and I’m not really sad that he’s dead, but he was efficient. —amazinganne90

22. Georgina Sparks from Gossip Girl

Every time Georgina came around, you knew things were going to get interesting. She is sassy, funny, and unapologetically savage. —morgenk

23. And of course, Sue Sylvester from Glee

She's always the bad guy, but does it in such an entertaining way. And, deep down, she really does enjoy the Glee Club, even if she always denies it. She loves those students and Will Schuester, even when she acts like she doesn't. —sarahw46

Some villains are just so irresistibly likable that sometimes, it's safe to say that they definitely carried the whole show on their backs. Props to the writers as well for creating such complex characters that the audience got lured in to like them even if they shouldn't even be!

Do you agree with this list? Comment down your thoughts, or share this article for all your family and friends to see!

Sophia