Top 5 Lifetime Movie Actresses Who Need to Play a Villainess (At Least Once)

I've been a fan of Lifetime movies for at least 20 years, especially due the immense amount of villainesses featured. I also love that the same group of actors and actresses are featured in Lifetime's films, and regarding the actresses, some have done more Lifetime films than others and are very well known to fans of those films. Notable Lifetime film actresses include (but aren't limited to) Ashlynn Yennie, Grace Patterson, Crystal Allen, Cindy Busby, Lindsay Hartley, and Christina Cox, just to name a few.

All of the actresses I've named have been on the villainous side of a Lifetime film at least once. However, there are some regulars who have never played baddies, and this fan of villainesses thinks it's a shame. The last year has seen Jhey Castles, Laurie Fortier, Kelcie Stranahan, Cristine Prosperi, and Nicky Whelan (to name a few) finally join the fictional dark side after playing protagonists. It gives me hope for the actresses I am about to mention; I've come up with five good ones who definitely need to be cast as villainesses in a Lifetime film (at least once):

5. Triana Browne: A former Miss Oklahoma, Triana Browne has been quite busy as an actress this year. She has appeared in four, count 'em, four Lifetime movies in 2021 alone: Deadly Dating Game, The Single Mom Conspiracy, Tracking a Killer, and Sorority Sister Killer. Yet in all of them, Browne played supporting roles, and after watching her fourth film, Sorority Sister Killer, I thought, "That's her fourth Lifetime film already this year. That's too many without playing a villainess."

I think Browne has the look and the ability to play a very dangerous villainess if given the chance. I could see her playing a crooked cop, I could see her playing a deranged stalker/ex-girlfriend. I loved Browne's performances in each of the Lifetime films she was in; but now it's time for her next Lifetime film--whenever and whatever it is--to see her really go all out as a villainess.

4. Kate Drummond: I had been planning on writing this for a while, and it was watching Kate Drummond in 2019's Secrets of a Small Town that inspired me to finally make this list. Drummond has definitely done her share of Lifetime films, but never as a villainess. In the aforementioned film, Kate ended up battling against an evil Rya Kihlstedt, and this film and 2020's Pretty Cheaters, Deadly Lies have both featured Drummond as heroic mothers to main protagonists.

While Drummond has excelled in those roles, I watched Secrets thinking, "She really needs to play a villainess...badly." I can definitely see Drummond as a wicked stepmother type villainess, either that or a twisted therapist. I've been hopeful that we Lifetime film fans will eventually see Drummond "break bad" in a film; she'd definitely shine.

3. Danica McKellar: As a fan of The Wonder Years, she'll always be Gwendolyn "Winnie" Cooper to me. Danica McKellar has gone on to be a prominent name in TV films; playing Angie Dove in the Matchmaker Mysteries series, but regarding Lifetime, she's done the Inspector Mom films and web series, and she played main protagonist Ellen Plainview in The Wrong Woman and its sequel, Mommy, I Didn't Do It.

However, as great as McKellar has been as a strong protagonist, she'd be equally as stellar as a main villainess in a Lifetime film. I truly think she could do it; Danica McKellar is an amazing actress who I've enjoyed watching on TV for a long time. I mentioned The Wonder Years; her co-star, Olivia d'Abo, has played a number of Lifetime villainesses in her career. Here's hoping it rubs off on Danica McKellar.

2. Jacqueline Scislowski: Jacqueline Scislowski is relatively new to the Lifetime movie scene, having done just two films that came out in 2020. One of them, however, was Killer Competition, the film that featured Cristine Prosperi's first villainous role in a Lifetime film. As much as I loved Prosperi's Lifetime film heel turn, I couldn't help but think the following: "Jacqueline needs to be next."

To my knowledge, the only time I had ever seen a villainous Scislowski was in one of Chris Cantada's short films. Even in that brief instant, Scislowski showed that she could really excel as a villainess if given the chance. I could see her playing the typical evil "Queen Bee" type, or an obsessed girlfriend in a Lifetime film.

1. Kate Watson: Kate Watson has done plenty of Lifetime films, but never as a villainess. One of the films she did was the aforementioned Killer Competition, where she played Jacqueline Scislowski's mother. The capture of Watson's character in a hoodie as she keeps a close eye on her daughter was all of the convincing I needed to put her on this list, as even though her intentions are good, Watson definitely looked sinister donning the "hoodie of evil."

There are so many different villainesses that Kate Watson could play in a Lifetime film, and she'd excel in any of them. Obsessed/scorned stalker, vengeful wife, wicked stepmother, evil teacher or principal, you name it. However, if I had a choice, I'd love to see Watson as a ruthless and evil businesswoman, because she'd have underlings doing her dirty work. That would be epic! Lifetime needs to make that happen!

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