Geeks logo

Ten terrible characters

A list of really hateable people from TV and movies

By John H. KnightPublished about a year ago 7 min read
Like

You know the feeling when watching a movie or TV show, a point comes after which we cease to root for the hero and hate the villain and with all our existence we wish for that one annoying, entitled, spoiled, hateful, terrible horrible character to die finally? Or at least to move to somewhere very unpleasant, like Hell, or some kind of negative dimension full of monsters or perhaps Florida.

These despicable characters are so bad that they steal the show, not in a good way, even though they were meant to be supporters who remain on the sideline or even the ones we were supposed to like. Here are 10 of these unbearable people, without ranks, because it’s impossible to pick one that is even worse than the others.

Oh, and possible spoilers ahead!

1. Lori Grimes - The Walking Dead

Nobody likes Lori. She was manipulative, she kind of cheated on her husband (kind of, it’s debatable if she thought or hoped Rick to be dead), she lived for the drama and she enjoyed it a little too much when two men, once best friends, were fighting for her. It’s just a thing being stuck in a post-apocalyptic world for which she was definitely not ready, but going out of one’s way to make everything and everyone around much more miserable is something else entirely. It’s safe to say that nobody shed a tear when she met her not-so-untimely demise.

2. Ross Geller - Friends

While posing as the ultimate “nice guy”, Ross was as toxic as it gets, overcompensating, overbearing, a control freak, condescending, homophobic, and utterly, suffocatingly jealous. He was selfish beyond measure, his big heroic moment being willing to date a high school girl while at college. Though all of the Friends had several negative personality traits, Ross still managed to be the absolute worst among them and did not deserve the happy ending he got. Or perhaps he did, seeing that his happy end was to be with Rachel, who is a close second as spitefulness goes regarding Friends characters.

3. Skyler White - Breaking Bad

Skyler is often referred to as “the blonde Lori”, and for a reason. She has all the unpleasant traits of Lori, but she actually, undeniably did cheat on her husband and made serious efforts to be in his way in every single step he took, to be as hostile and hurtful towards him as possible. And her world wasn’t even a post-apocalyptic wasteland ridden by zombies and sociopaths. Well, not far off considering she is from the US, but still.

Provided, Walter White was far from the ideal husband, him being a drug lord, but Skyler’s main problem wasn’t breaking the law, wasn’t her family being in danger, wasn’t her husband lying to her: she basically threw a five seasons long tantrum because things didn’t happen the way she wanted them to. Being the most hated in a show that features Walter White, aka the devil himself and Hank Shrader, the racist, verbally and emotionally abusive jerk of a husband, now that’s no little feat.

4. Thanos the Mad Titan - MCU

Thanos, as opposed to others on this list, was an actual villain, and the biggest one the Marvel Cinematic Universe has seen so far. Yet, a lot of people are sympathetic towards him or even agree with him being not as much a villain as a misunderstood hero who was able and willing to do what nobody else could. If you are one of them, well, you’re wrong. Sorry. Not only this big purple idiot could have found a way to save the world without genocide once he had the stones, but he very clearly enjoyed every moment he spent killing or torturing others. And let’s not forget that long before he even thought of collecting the Infinity Stones, his go-to solution to every problem was his favourite pastime: genocide. If anyone really needs this spelt out: nobody who thinks genocide is the answer is a good guy.

P. S.: The Joker is an insane mass murderer, too.

5. Jim Halpert - The Office

This is a tricky one. Though he was funny and charming and often the voice of common sense in an environment full of peculiar people, he was far from normal, or even from being a nice guy. Sure, we could say that he was a hopeless romantic suffering from watching her beloved Pam being engaged to another man. Or that he stood up against Dwight when he became a little too high on his nonexistent power and influence. But we can also say that Jim was a straight-up bully who was willing to let Michael do obviously ill-advised things for his own amusement. He was also a terrible boyfriend for everyone else he was involved with in the course of the show, and even though he did steal the girl of his dreams eventually, he was not really a good husband to her either, never supporting her efforts as an artist or even helping out as a dad.

6. Jeri Hogarth - Netflix’s Marvel Universe

Just an altogether bad, bad person. Not only defended people who were guilty above all doubt, and made a fortune out of it as an attorney, but she was also ruthless, emotionally abusive and manipulative to an extent when she orchestrated murders. Her “biggest hit” was when she knowingly destroyed a family just to be with a woman she thought she loved, even though at that time she was dying. Destroy a family, steal a woman, and then make her watch you die. Elegant, isn’t it? It’s doubtful if she will appear in any upcoming Marvel production now that the main cinematic universe includes her as a character, but if so, she hopefully will be recognised for what she always had been: a real villain. Kudos to Carry Ann Moss for portraying her, though, she did an amazing job.

7. Jar-Jar Binks - Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace

This slightly frog-like creature was a native of the planet Naboo, where a good chunk of the first movie took place. He talked funny, he was criminally clumsy (so much so that his people actually banished him for it) and a real coward. He was intended to be comic relief, but the only relief the fans felt came when his screen time was drastically cut for the next movie. If the movie itself would have been better, maybe his annoying presence would have been pardoned, but in the end, he just became one of the things people hate about the prequel trilogy.

8. Frodo Baggins - The Lord of the Rings trilogy

Okay, this one might not be a universal thing, but if you ask me, Frodo was the worst. I know, I know, the Ring affected him. I understand that you have to be a special kind of humble for not wanting to keep the Ring or to fight its influence for any period of time. Still, he was whiney and often rude to poor Sam, who just wanted to help. The great Bearer of the One Ring… He wouldn’t have made it out of the Shire if it wasn’t for his friends, and would have certainly died around day two after he got separated from the Fellowship without Samwise. He had one skill, that he used to great effect every time he had the chance: he was really good at having to be saved. He might not have been as bad as some of the others on this list but was very, very annoying to watch and read for sure.

9. Bella Swan - Twilight Saga

This is an easy one. With her almost perfect lack of any kind of personality (except for loving the ensuing drama around regardless of the damage it will cause), she stumbles through 5 movies without doing much at all, apart from being brought to places and being saved by people. She gravitates to the closest male specimen of any fantasy species and when given vampire powers, she becomes a Mary Sue instantly, somehow remaining about as interesting as a loaf of dry bread. And those aren’t even the worst things about her: with her biggest accomplishment being getting married and bearing a child, the character sends the message to millions of fans that this is the only way to be a woman, even when a war of fantasy creatures is about to start.

10. King Triton - The Little Mermaid

Before all the drama about skin colour, we had another little mermaid, whose story wasn’t the least bit less problematic. We could talk about how the titular character, Ariel was willing to give up what family she had left and all her underwater friends because she saw a good-looking man once, but there is someone even more annoying in that movie.

Triton, Ariel’s father was probably the most useless parent in the entire Disney universe, dead ones included. He was abusive and had anger management problems, refused to talk to her daughter about anything important or just act like she was a person at all. An altogether terrible, terrible (fish)person.

tvpop culturemovielistentertainmentcomedy
Like

About the Creator

John H. Knight

Yet another aspiring writer trying his luck on the endless prairie of the Internet.

Reader insights

Be the first to share your insights about this piece.

How does it work?

Add your insights

Comments

There are no comments for this story

Be the first to respond and start the conversation.

Sign in to comment

    Find us on social media

    Miscellaneous links

    • Explore
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms of Use
    • Support

    © 2024 Creatd, Inc. All Rights Reserved.