Tropescilloscope: Villain with Good Publicity

A villain who's popular with the general public. (read more at tvtropes.org)

More Tropes Artistic License – Gun Safety Contrived Coincidence True Companions Gold Digger Everyone Calls Him "Barkeep" NO INDOOR VOICE Ambiguously Gay Boom, Headshot! Hypocritical Humor Armor-Piercing Question Vitriolic Best Buds Kill 'em All Men Are the Expendable Gender Serial Killer Say My Name What Happened to the Mouse? Five-Man Band Bloodless Carnage Narrator Protagonist Title Author Avatar Dramatic Irony Ghost Fiction Stalker with a Crush Groin Attack I Need a Freaking Drink What the Hell, Hero? Celebrity Paradox Disappeared Dad Nice Hat Those Two Guys Villain Protagonist Accidental Misnaming Drugs Are Bad The Dog Bites Back Rule of Cool Undying Loyalty The Quiet One Gone Horribly Right Arson, Murder, and Jaywalking Dirty Coward Unspoken Plan Guarantee Get Out! A Date with Rosie Palms Humans Are Bastards Laser-Guided Karma Reasonable Authority Figure How We Got Here Comically Missing the Point Character Development The Hero Abhorrent Admirer Naïve Newcomer Bad "Bad Acting" My God, What Have I Done? Drill Sergeant Nasty La Résistance Worthy Opponent Dull Surprise Smoking Is Cool Card-Carrying Villain The Un-Favourite aka: The Un Favorite Cool Old Lady Disney Death Hope Spot Black Best Friend Sports Stories Gilligan Cut Death by Adaptation Our Zombies Are Different Novelization Chuck Cunningham Syndrome Death of a Child Crazy Jealous Guy Shoot the Shaggy Dog No-Sell Dropped a Bridge on Him Monumental Damage Offscreen Teleportation Black Dude Dies First Badass Grandpa Sequel Escalation Dramedy Guile Hero Meaningful Echo Karma Houdini The Ace Better to Die than Be Killed Brother–Sister Incest Big Bad Big Eater Random Events Plot Adaptational Attractiveness 20 Minutes into the Future Darker and Edgier Disproportionate Retribution The Cameo Improbable Infant Survival aka: Infant Immortality Make It Look Like an Accident Scenery Porn "Shaggy Dog" Story Berserk Button Mood Whiplash Suspiciously Similar Substitute Central Theme Leave the Camera Running The Stoner Neck Snap Shell-Shocked Veteran Asshole Victim The End... Or Is It? Retired Badass Scenery Gorn Grey and Gray Morality Easily Forgiven Properly Paranoid Double-Meaning Title Good Is Not Nice An Aesop Music Stories Not What It Looks Like Big Bad Duumvirate Ascended Extra Fun with Acronyms "Well Done, Son!" Guy Dogged Nice Guy Bar Brawl Fat Bastard Enemy Mine I Have Your Wife Creative Closing Credits Dark Reprise Wicked Cultured She's Got Legs Hooker with a Heart of Gold Zombie Stories Your Cheating Heart Real Life Writes the Plot Failed a Spot Check Woman in White Manic Pixie Dream Girl Mind Screw Attempted Rape Grievous Bottley Harm Pretty in Mink The Remake Eldritch Abomination Television Movie Index Gainax Ending Deliberate Values Dissonance Black and Gray Morality World of Ham Take That! Dark Action Girl I Want My Beloved to Be Happy Bittersweet Ending The Bully Taking You with Me Dissonant Serenity The Hero Dies Pre-Mortem One-Liner Crucified Hero Shot Homage Fatal Flaw Psychological Thriller Dark and Troubled Past Breaking the Fourth Wall Abusive Parents Names to Run Away from Really Fast Foregone Conclusion Gender Flip Red Eyes, Take Warning The Mafia Big Brother Instinct Punch-Clock Villain Dirty Old Man Evil Plan Kill It with Fire Chekhov's Gunman Fantasy Films Friend to All Children Slap-Slap-Kiss Adaptational Badass timeperiod Canon Foreigner Never Found the Body Playing Gertrude Improvised Weapon Corrupt Corporate Executive Awesome, but Impractical Love at First Sight Big "NO!" Karmic Death Politically Incorrect Villain Beta Couple Badass in a Nice Suit Show Within a Show Black Comedy Almost Kiss Red Right Hand Russian Films Screw the Rules, I'm Doing What's Right! Only a Flesh Wound Mistaken for Gay Reckless Gun Usage Slasher Smile Ragtag Bunch of Misfits British Films Suddenly SHOUTING! Closed Circle Never Trust a Trailer Bitch in Sheep's Clothing Arranged Marriage One-Word Title Blackmail Not So Above It All Major Injury Underreaction Eye Scream Adaptational Villainy Insult Backfire Dual Wielding Eiffel Tower Effect Hair-Trigger Temper Non-Indicative Name Thriller Department of Redundancy Department Shut Up, Hannibal! Pragmatic Adaptation Ripped from the Headlines Immune to Bullets Meaningful Background Event Mercy Kill Butt-Monkey Deconstruction A God Am I Star-Crossed Lovers Together in Death Evil Brit Death Seeker Ironic Echo Film Noir Index From Nobody to Nightmare The Un-Reveal Pragmatic Villainy "Awesome McCool" Name Freeze-Frame Bonus Sealed Evil in a Can Calling the Old Man Out Psychopathic Manchild Shirtless Scene The Atoner Bullying a Dragon Interrupted Suicide Aluminum Christmas Trees The Chick Parental Substitute Depraved Bisexual Adaptation Distillation Only Known by Their Nickname Curb-Stomp Battle Truth in Television Alas, Poor Villain Small Name, Big Ego Romantic False Lead Beard of Evil Fatal Family Photo Why Did It Have to Be Snakes? Antagonist Title Bond One-Liner Beware the Nice Ones Girl-on-Girl Is Hot BFG Red Herring Happily Married Horror Comedy For Want of a Nail The Vamp Manly Tears Jerkass Has a Point A Father to His Men Bloodier and Gorier Kubrick Stare It's Personal Room Full of Crazy Action Prologue Took a Level in Badass Military and Warfare Films And the Adventure Continues Eyepatch of Power Catch-Phrase Faux Affably Evil Actually Pretty Funny Mythology Gag Male Gaze Reality Ensues Early-Bird Cameo Authority Equals Asskicking Broken Aesop Even Evil Has Loved Ones Nice Job Fixing It, Villain! An Arm and a Leg Setting Update Dirty Cop Off with His Head! It Will Never Catch On Daddy's Girl Idiot Ball Funny Foreigner Rewatch Bonus Would Hurt a Child Rape as Drama Straight Gay Serious Business Victoria's Secret Compartment Soundtrack Dissonance Race Against the Clock Neck Lift Sci-Fi Horror Crazy-Prepared Only in It for the Money Accidental Murder Older Than They Look Diabolus ex Machina Continuity Nod Hoist by His Own Petard Epic Fail Deadpan Snarker Final Girl Despair Event Horizon Chiaroscuro Mr. Fanservice My Greatest Failure Blood Knight Fish out of Water Unresolved Sexual Tension Aww, Look! They Really Do Love Each Other Evil vs. Evil Leitmotif Chase Scene Actor Allusion Bond Villain Stupidity Take a Third Option Tagline You Have Outlived Your Usefulness Children Are Innocent Recycled IN SPACE! Those Wacky Nazis Adaptation Expansion Parental Neglect Arc Words Evil-Detecting Dog Genre Savvy Have a Gay Old Time It Can Think The Place Spell My Name with an "S" The Sociopath Jerk with a Heart of Gold Anguished Declaration of Love Hollywood Darkness Does Not Like Shoes Evil Sounds Deep Time Skip Fanservice Extra Green-Eyed Monster Very Loosely Based on a True Story Vomit Indiscretion Shot Slasher Movie Left the Background Music On Book-Ends I Just Shot Marvin in the Face Morality Pet Recap / RiffTrax aka: Riff Trax Movies The '80s Man on Fire Your Head A-Splode Arch-Enemy Knife Nut Advertised Extra Works Set in World War II Exactly What It Says on the Tin Nice Job Breaking It, Hero! MacGuffin Mystery and Detective Films You Have Failed Me The Ditz Sinister Minister Obviously Evil All Just a Dream No Antagonist The Smart Guy Maybe Ever After Film Noir Adult Fear Disguised in Drag Taking the Bullet "The Reason You Suck" Speech Spanner in the Works Camera Abuse Getting Crap Past the Radar Dressing as the Enemy Fingore Kick the Dog Video Credits Spiritual Successor Not So Stoic Historical Hero Upgrade Lampshade Hanging War Is Hell Demoted to Extra Running Gag Race Lift Creator Cameo The Mole Stealth Hi/Bye Needs Wiki Magic Love Last-Name Basis Artistic License – Biology Refuge in Audacity From Bad to Worse Big Applesauce Aside Glance Action Film, Quiet Drama Scene Casting Gag Fire-Forged Friends Rasputinian Death Alpha Bitch N-Word Privileges Tempting Fate Cowboy Cop The Smurfette Principle Fan Disservice The Reveal The Chessmaster Implacable Man Covers Always Lie Empathic Environment Broken Pedestal Action Genre There Is No Kill Like Overkill Intrepid Reporter Determinator Chewing the Scenery Faking the Dead Bi the Way Dumb Blonde Self-Deprecation Sadistic Choice Black Comedy Rape Even Bad Men Love Their Mamas As the Good Book Says... Damsel in Distress Credits Gag A Minor Kidroduction The Faceless Historical In-Joke Cloudcuckoolander Pre-Asskicking One-Liner Badass Boast Only Sane Man Police are Useless No Celebrities Were Harmed Face–Heel Turn More Dakka Improbable Weapon User Greater-Scope Villain Important Haircut Roaring Rampage of Revenge Scare Chord Bolivian Army Ending All There in the Manual Mundane Made Awesome Stock Footage Wounded Gazelle Gambit You Have Got to Be Kidding Me! Heroic Sacrifice Deus ex Machina Market-Based Title Ship Tease Obstructive Bureaucrat Offscreen Moment of Awesome Biopic Jump Scare Annoying Younger Sibling Red Oni, Blue Oni Not Even Bothering with the Accent Ungrateful Bastard Villain with Good Publicity Informed Ability Death by Irony Shipper on Deck A.I. Is a Crapshoot Mama Bear Honor Before Reason Heel Realization The Stinger Defrosting Ice Queen Bottomless Magazines Retcon Never Trust a Trailer aka: Trailers Always Lie Bald of Evil Manchild Brutal Honesty Canadian Movies Affectionate Parody Redshirt Army Sanity Slippage She Cleans Up Nicely Match Cut Be Careful What You Wish For O.O.C. Is Serious Business Big Damn Heroes Anti-Villain Captain Obvious Bilingual Bonus An Axe to Grind Training Montage Facial Horror Instant Death Bullet Anachronic Order Screw This, I'm Outta Here! Here We Go Again! Ominous Latin Chanting Death by Sex Artistic License – History Animal Title Index Sole Survivor As Long as It Sounds Foreign Throwing Your Sword Always Works Killed Mid-Sentence Adaptation Name Change Unwitting Instigator of Doom Based on a True Story Put on a Bus Call-Back Does This Remind You of Anything? Disney Villain Death The '60s Sacrificial Lion Shower Scene Japanese Films Dark Is Not Evil Overprotective Dad Red Shirt Age Lift Face Death with Dignity Title Drop One-Man Army Storming the Castle Pyrrhic Victory Hate Sink Bring My Brown Pants Apocalypse How Mighty Whitey Early Installment Weirdness Batman Gambit Coming-of-Age Story Fate Worse than Death Epic Movie Catapult Nightmare Ass Shove Eureka Moment Malevolent Masked Men Married to the Job Pay Evil unto Evil Badass Bookworm Humiliation Conga Naked People Are Funny Gratuitous English Danny Peary Cult Movies List Pun aka: Incredibly Lame Pun Papa Wolf Male Frontal Nudity All Men Are Perverts Betty and Veronica Documentary Rich Bitch Silent Movie Deliberately Monochrome Corpsing Creepy Child Soft Glass Jitter Cam No-Holds-Barred Beatdown Cain and Abel Badass Normal Bavarian Fire Drill The Power of Love Costume Porn Sequel Hook He Knows Too Much What You Are in the Dark The Ghost Loads and Loads of Characters No Good Deed Goes Unpunished Heroes Want Redheads Composite Character Fanservice After the End Cool Old Guy Did Not Get the Girl Air-Vent Passageway Vomit Discretion Shot Body Horror Reality Has No Subtitles Driven to Suicide Same Language Dub Mexican Standoff Psycho for Hire Token Minority Adorkable Irony Amusing Injuries Defiant to the End The Casanova May–December Romance Super Strength Bloody Hilarious Babies Ever After Even Evil Has Standards Took a Level in Jerkass Colour-Coded for Your Convenience aka: Color Coded For Your Convenience Deal with the Devil Stuff Blowing Up Decoy Protagonist Cool Shades Woman Scorned Translation Convention Twist Ending Overly Long Gag Expository Hairstyle Change Dutch Angle Hair of Gold, Heart of Gold '80s Hair Police Brutality Frame-Up Extreme Doormat Improbable Aiming Skills Blood from the Mouth Silence Is Golden Dwindling Party Bunny-Ears Lawyer Anyone Can Die Flashback I'm a Humanitarian Crapsack World Determinator aka: The Determinator Lock and Load Montage Well-Intentioned Extremist My Beloved Smother In Name Only Shown Their Work Brainless Beauty Chekhov's Gun Mad Scientist Plot Hole Distracted by the Sexy Artistic License – Physics The Load Logo Joke The '90s Genre Throwback Hell Is That Noise Wham Shot Outrun the Fireball Badass Longcoat Ooh, Me Accent's Slipping In the Back Madness Mantra Evil Cannot Comprehend Good Suspiciously Specific Denial Obfuscating Stupidity Animal Motifs Cruel and Unusual Death Horror Films folderlabel Artistic License – Law Ambiguous Ending Due to the Dead Shout-Out Up to Eleven Line-of-Sight Name Curse Cut Short Amoral Attorney Conspicuous CG Half the Man He Used to Be Villain Ball Wham Line Would Hit a Girl Jerkass Evil Is Hammy Cat Scare Kick the Son of a Bitch Rousing Speech Handicapped Badass Developing Doomed Characters Action Survivor Sassy Black Woman Anachronism Stew Romantic Comedy Anti-Hero Auto Erotica Wrong Genre Savvy Earn Your Happy Ending The Brute Jerk Jock Captain Ersatz Dramatic Gun Cock The X of Y Combat Pragmatist Italian Films Spared by the Adaptation Bland-Name Product The Oner Smug Snake It's All About Me Foreshadowing Belligerent Sexual Tension Real Life Country Matters Fiery Redhead Riddle for the Ages Missing Mom Only One Name He Who Fights Monsters Didn't Think This Through Martial Arts Movie Evil Is Petty B-Movie Daylight Horror Revenge Destination Defenestration Exact Words Fantastic Racism Break the Haughty Poor Communication Kills As Himself One Steve Limit Oh, Crap! Bury Your Gays Dying Moment of Awesome Skewed Priorities Retirony Blonde, Brunette, Redhead Trailers Always Spoil Roger Ebert: Great Movies List Drowning My Sorrows The Cavalry Ms. Fanservice Maybe Magic, Maybe Mundane Hypocrite The Great Depression Our Vampires Are Different Chekhov's Skill Becoming the Mask Vacation Films Unreliable Narrator Nice Guy Yandere Pet the Dog Leaning on the Fourth Wall You Killed My Father Screw the Rules, I Have Money! Product Placement Sexy Discretion Shot Rape Is a Special Kind of Evil Call-Forward Henpecked Husband Blatant Lies Beauty Is Never Tarnished Woobie, Destroyer of Worlds French Films Guns Akimbo Villainous Breakdown Artistic License – Geography Bad Boss Sir Swears-a-Lot Historical-Domain Character Kids Are Cruel Domestic Abuse The Alcoholic Totally Radical Punctuated! For! Emphasis! Hong Kong Films Horror Doesn't Settle for Simple Tuesday Cat Fight Toilet Humour aka: Toilet Humor Screw the Money, I Have Rules! Double Entendre Insane Troll Logic The Film of the Book Science Fiction Films Precision F-Strike Plucky Comic Relief Impaled with Extreme Prejudice Foil Fainting Whole Plot Reference Unusually Uninteresting Sight The '50s Punny Name Affably Evil Eagleland The Lancer Camp Gay Stylistic Suck Stealth Pun Rated M for Manly Loophole Abuse Parental Incest I Did What I Had to Do Ax-Crazy Pretty Little Headshots Cold-Blooded Torture Made of Iron The '70s Brick Joke Rule of Funny Nothing Is Scarier Made of Explodium Toplessness from the Back Imagine Spot Let's Get Dangerous! And I Must Scream Motor Mouth Hollywood Law Cluster F-Bomb Cool Guns Imperial Stormtrooper Marksmanship Academy Dies Wide Open Femme Fatale Why Don't You Just Shoot Him? Back from the Dead Genre Shift Drives Like Crazy Framing Device Meet Cute Peek-a-Boo Corpse Funny Background Event Australian Movies The Big Guy Slashed Throat No Name Given Adapted Out Heel–Face Turn Not So Different Too Dumb to Live Ambiguous Disorder Those Two Bad Guys Wretched Hive Love Triangle The Dragon And Starring Word of God Rule of Symbolism Mr. Exposition All There in the Script Big-Bad Ensemble Hidden Depths Darkest Hour No Ending Death Glare Adaptation Dye-Job No OSHA Compliance As You Know Once More, with Clarity! Meaningful Name Action Girl Agony of the Feet Christmas Movies Index Intergenerational Friendship Broken Bird Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism Cassandra Truth Fake Shemp Ugly Guy, Hot Wife Insistent Terminology Gory Discretion Shot Vampire Fiction Superhero Manipulative Bastard Artistic License – Military Parental Abandonment Film Series Not Quite Dead Mooks Reality Is Unrealistic Scary Black Man Animated Credits Opening Gorn Off-into-the-Distance Ending Heterosexual Life-Partners Stepford Smiler The Lost Lenore Bait-and-Switch Spiteful Spit The Stoic Tranquil Fury Rule of Three Hero Antagonist Visual Pun Bound and Gagged In Medias Res Posthumous Character Unusual Euphemism Heroic BSoD Really Gets Around Every Car Is a Pinto Adaptational Heroism German Films The Voiceless Villain Opening Scene Four-Temperament Ensemble Knight Templar Jack Bauer Interrogation Technique Alliterative Name Freudian Excuse Car Fu Expy Evil Laugh Author Appeal Paper-Thin Disguise Villain Song Lighter and Softer Historical Villain Upgrade Never My Fault Break the Cutie Hero of Another Story Laughing Mad Flipping the Bird Adults Are Useless Not Using the "Z" Word The Alleged Car Famous Last Words The Musical Public Domain Feature Films Mugging the Monster Sudden Sequel Death Syndrome Large Ham The Starscream Bare Your Midriff Big Fancy House Downer Ending Fourth Date Marriage Noodle Incident The Dreaded Tap on the Head "Where Are They Now?" Epilogue All for Nothing Award-Bait Song The Bad Guy Wins Crouching Moron, Hidden Badass Establishing Character Moment Redemption Equals Death All Girls Want Bad Boys Everyone Has Standards Index of Film Westerns This Is Gonna Suck Bowdlerise Re-Cut Evil Counterpart Cool Car Light Is Not Good Extremely Short Timespan Demonic Possession For the Evulz Moment Killer Sir Not-Appearing-in-This-Trailer Pimped-Out Dress