Fans Are Divided Over Who is The Best Villain in Thor Movies
Which bad guy did it better?
In superhero movies, the role of villains is undeniably important, with baddies sometimes loved by the audience even more than the good guys. With the Thor movies, there is a good selection of villains to choose from, and it seems that fans are having a hard time trying to pick just one.
The first Thor movie, directed by Kenneth Branagh, had Loki as the main antihero, while Alan Taylor's 'The Dark World' introduced the Dark Elf Malekith. When Taika Waititi took over, he introduced Thor and Loki's sister Hela in 'Ragnarok', and Gorr the God Butcher in 'Love and Thunder'.
While a lot of people vote for Loki as the best antagonist in Thor films, other fans argue that the Trickster only became a compelling villain over the course of several MCU movies, but not in 'Thor 1' in particular. Malekith does not enjoy a lot of support from fans, but let's be honest, neither does 'The Dark World' in general.
"Loki, but Hela was cool and Gore was great. I'd love to see Ecclestonw given a chance to do what he signed on in the 1st place. War of The Realms would make a great crossover film series and I'm sure getting to chop off an arm would get him back." – @therealeverton
Despite the backlash that Waititi currently faces for the fourth Thor movie, it seems that fans do appreciate the villains in his movies. Having to choose between Hela and Gorr, fans find it quite difficult to pick one. With the wave of hate towards 'Love and Thunder' still fresh, many people opt for Hela because her character was not undermined by Waititi's "cringe" humor as much as Christian Bale 's Gorr.
"I never really think of Loki as a villain anymore, more like an Anti-Hero at this point. No loss of love for him though, so I'd say it's a close match between Hela and Gorr. Both insanely overpowered and some of the most hellbent villains ever." – @Jimmy_Mac_4701
Others argue that even the fourth movie's flaws cannot ruin the God Butcher.
"Have people not seen Gorr? One of the best Marvel villains in general, the movie wasn't great but he was." – @Buff_Harmonix
Still, the majority of fans side with Loki, even though he cannot technically be called a villain, rather being an antihero, especially if one takes into account his character journey in the MCU.
With Thor set to return to the screens, as teased at the end of 'Love and Thunder', it is possible there are more bad guys on their way to compete with Gorr, Hela, Loki, and Malekith (although the latter is highly unlikely to ever take the lead).