30 Best Star Wars Villains of All-Time

Commercial media does not like to deal in moral gray areas. There are good guys, bad guys and not a lot of nuance over which side to root for or against. Perhaps nowhere is this more evident than the Star Wars universe, which hits the nail on the head pretty hard with who is on which side in its stories and lore. There is a light side and a dark side, and both contrasting forces are proud to go by their names.

This makes for simple yet still compelling heroes. It also makes for some awesome villains. Most of the bad guys in Star Wars are fun and fascinating. In some cases, it’s because they have so much fun being evil. In others it is because of their quest for redemption.

The new movie is finally here.

Hold on. I’m going to pause so we can all take a breath and let that sink in.

(Wait for it)

(Wait for it)

Okay.

Anyway, the information we have about the future of the dark side is certainly interesting. In preparation I welcome Kylo Ren and company to meet their competition with this list of the best 30 villains in Star Wars lore.

Everything is on the table here. I spent time looking over bios online and in character guides. I cracked open a few old books and shows too. Yes none of it is technically canon besides the shows, but Star Wars is Star Wars so everyone is eligible.

It is hard to define what makes a great villain, especially in the deep and diverse lore of Star Wars. They can be good by being extraordinarily intimidating and powerful. They can be good by being particularly compelling on engaging personalities. They can be good by being completely insane, cruel and impossible to not hate.

Best is hard to define in this case. However, that does not mean that I cannot make a list on the internet doing so anyway. With that, lets begin.

Next: 30. Killer Robot