History Main / DiabolicalMasterMind

** ''VideoGame/EverythingOrNothing'' has Nikolai Diavolo, who wishes to use {{nanomachines}} to overthrow the Russian government and install himself as dictator, and then conquer Europe from there.

* Edwin [=VanCleef=] in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' was the mastermind behind the criminal organisation the Defias that has its tentacles everywhere. He was otherwise unusual for the role of being a WellIntentionedExtremist whose AuthorityEqualsAsskicking.
** In the ''Cataclysm'' expansion [[spoiler:his daughter Vanessa does daddy proud by murdering his enemies and setting Sentinel Hill ablaze, all while hiding her true identity until the final reveal.]]

* Gru, the VillainProtagonist of ''WesternAnimation/DespicableMe'' is a career supervillain who even looks something like a cartoon version of Blofeld.

* Izaya Orihara from ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'' manipulates people and supernatural beings just because he can, and [[ForTheEvulz it's fun]]. He is an information broker who has a hand in everything that happens in Ikebukuro and is arguably the most dangerous out of a cast of very dangerous people.

* Subverted in ''Anime/MobileSuitGundam00''. We all thought the true Diabolical Mastermind was [[spoiler: Alejandro Corner]]... but it was [[spoiler: his EnigmaticMinion, Ribbons Almack]].

* Gendou Ikari from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' is a famous example.

* ComicBook/TheJoker shows himself to be this throughout the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamSeries'', especially in [[spoiler:''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamOrigins'', where he takes over from Roman Sionis as TheDon of Gotham without anyone the wiser for a long time]].

* ''City of Villains'' features a character class devoted to this trope, appropriately named the "Mastermind." Your primary ability is summoning henchmen, be they a [[MechaMooks robotic army of doom]], waves of the undead, heartless mercenaries, armed thugs, or ninjas. Since you can always resummon more, you're expected to let them die in your name -- and one support power called "Detonate" specifically is described as giving your minion an explosive device, then while he's trying to set it up, you blow the device and the minion sky high. Also true to the trope, you have the least hit points of any class in the game -- but any damage you take can be funneled through your minions in certain situations.
** The parent game, ''VideoGame/CityOfHeroes'', actually has its share of these as well- almost every group of NPC villains has at least one of these at the top, as well as a few Diabolical masterminds-in-training amongst the lieutenants.

* ''VideoGame/GrandTheftAutoSanAndreas'' has an over-arching plot involving the murder of the hero's mother, Beverly Johnson, as part of a coup d'état within the Grove Street families. Corrupt junk squad officer Frank Tenpenny is behind it, promoting Grove Street capo [[spoiler:Big Smoke]] to drug baron in exchange for his cut. [[spoiler:Smoke]] takes over as lead villain once Tenpenny is tried for murder (though he is later [[MiscarriageOfJustice acquitted]]), with numerous gangs answering to him, including the Ballas, the Los Santos Vagos, and the Russian mob.
** ''Videogame/GrandTheftAutoV'' has Lester Crest, a criminal mastermind with resources at his disposal who helps the protagonists plan their various heists.
* In ''VideoGame/HitmanCodename47'', all of your missions are coming from the same buyer: Dr. Otto Ortmeyer, a human cloning pioneer and "father" to 47. He uses 47 to kill the other genetic donors and reap the rewards for himself. He is later killed after summoning 47 back to the lab he originated from.
* In ''VideoGame/Hitman2SilentAssassin'', 47 falls for the same trick as before. His client this time is Sergei, a Russian mob boss and 47's 'uncle'. (His brother was Boris, the final target in 47's previous outing.) Sergei is not interested in revenge but merely wants to assemble a nuclear missile that is undetectable by radar. Your targets each own a component for the missile which Sergei asks you to collect.
* ''[[VideoGame/HitmanBloodMoney Blood Money]]'' introduced The Franchise, a rival outfit to the protagonist's murder-for-hire "Agency." As Mr. 47 climbs his way up the criminal ladder, killing off the Franchise's mooks, he's captured by the authorities in an untimely raid -- whereupon the Franchise's founder is revealed to be [[spoiler:the game's narrator, a composite character of Blofeld and Le Chriffe from ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'']]. The real objective was to get his hands on 47's enhanced DNA to produce more assassins like him: he systematically backed 47 into a corner by killing his associates, hiding behind a phony contract killing business to divert them, all the while giving interviews to the press condemning human cloning (to remove the competition).
* The ''Videogame/WorldOfAssassinationTrilogy'' has the Shadow Client, who [[VideoGame/Hitman2016 in the first game]] manipulates the ICA into eliminating those connected to [[AncientConspiracy Providence]] to dismantle that organisation. In [[VideoGame/Hitman2 the second game]], it's revealed [[spoiler:he has a personal connection to 47; he's another clone; Lucas Grey; A.K.A Subject 6, a former friend of 47 who is trying to break Providence's hold over the world and [[VideoGame/Hitman3 in the third game]] The Constant, who had already displayed great amounts of this behind the scenes anyway, displays his smarts by killing Grey and hunts down 47.]]
* In ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'', we have Kai Lan the Serpent, who is the local figurehead of TheSyndicate in the Imperial Capital Arena. It eventually turns out he's not as high-ranked as you're initially led to believe, as he seems to have superiors of some sort (who only contact you [[spoiler:if you kill him in the arena]]).

* The ''Film/JamesBond'' video games, of course, have plenty of these, much like their cinematic inspirations.

* The Flash game "VideoGame/MastermindWorldConqueror" has game mechanics and cutscenes all mastermind-style, in stylish red and black (much like mastermind morality). [[http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/463278 Play it here.]] The character himself in the game and the flash series is more a Dr. Evil-like parody who often gets into petty grudges and arguments with his underlings, whom he's way too eager to kill off.

** Kuroto Dan in ''Series/KamenRiderExAid'' is the CEO of video game company Genm Corp, who works with CR to combat the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Bugsters]] while also working with the Bugsters to enact his own megalomaniacal plan to TakeOverTheWorld.

[[caption-width-right:350:"[[WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries That's why I'm]] [[Characters/MarvelComicsTheKingpin the Kingpin]]."]]

[[folder:Visual Novels]]
* Invoked (delusionally) by Cecilia to refer to the protagonist of ''VisualNovel/DaughterForDessert''.
* Dennis’s dad from ''VisualNovel/DoubleHomework'' is this. Dennis tried to copy him, possibly to finally win his father’s approval.
[[/folder]]

** ''Series/TokusouSentaiDekaranger'': Agent Abrella is a black marketeer who deals to all of the [[MonsterOfTheWeek Alienizers]] the [[SpacePolice Dekarangers]] face and is responsible for enabling them to be as big of threats as they are, making him one of the most influential figures in the {{space|X}} criminal underworld even though the Dekarangers don't even know who he is. When he decides to get serious in opposing the Dekarangers, he's able to bust out four of the deadliest Alienizers, pull off a successful scheme to [[AllOfYourBaseAreBelongToUs capture DekaBase]] and nearly bring about the destruction of the SpacePolice as a result.

** In ''[[VideoGame/Hitman2SilentAssassin Silent Assassin]]'', 47 falls for the same trick as before. His client this time is Sergei, a Russian mob boss and 47's 'uncle'. (His brother was Boris, the final target in 47's previous outing.) Sergei is not interested in revenge but merely wants to assemble a nuclear missile that is undetectable by radar. Your targets each own a component for the missile which Sergei asks you to collect.
** ''[[VideoGame/HitmanBloodMoney Blood Money]]'' introduced The Franchise, a rival outfit to the protagonist's murder-for-hire "Agency." As Mr. 47 climbs his way up the criminal ladder, killing off the Franchise's mooks, he's captured by the authorities in an untimely raid -- whereupon the Franchise's founder is revealed to be [[spoiler:the game's narrator, a composite character of Blofeld and Le Chriffe from ''Film/CasinoRoyale2006'']]. The real objective was to get his hands on 47's enhanced DNA to produce more assassins like him: he systematically backed 47 into a corner by killing his associates, hiding behind a phony contract killing business to divert them, all the while giving interviews to the press condemning human cloning (to remove the competition).
** The [[Videogame/WorldOfAssassinationTrilogy]] has the Shadow Client, who [[VideoGame/Hitman2016 in the first game manipulates the ICA into eliminating those connected to [[AncientConspiracy Providence]] to dismantle that organisation. In [[VideoGame/Hitman2 the second game]], it's revealed [[spoiler:he has a personal connection to 47; he's another clone; Lucas Grey; A.K.A Subject 6, a former friend of 47 who is trying to break Providence's hold over the world and [[VideoGame/Hitman3 in the third game]] The Constant, who had already displayed great amounts of this behind the scenes anyway, displays his smarts by killing Grey and hunts down 47.]]

** The [[Videogame/Hitman2016 2016]] sequel has the mysterious Shadow Client, who manipulates the ICA into eliminating those connected to [[AncientConspiracy Providence]] for unknown reasons. He also seems to have a personal connection to 47. [[VideoGame/Hitman2 The sequel]] reveals him to be a former friend of 47 who is trying to break the Illuminati's hold over the world and [[VideoGame/Hitman3 in the third game]] The Constant takes over this role.

* ''[[Series/{{Life}} When you reach out for Roman, he's not there.]]''

[[quoteright:350:[[ComicBook/SpiderMan https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/secret_empire_vol_1_9_villain_variant_textless.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:350:"[[WesternAnimation/SpiderManTheAnimatedSeries That's why I'm the Kingpin]]."]]

[[quoteright:350:[[Characters/MarvelComicsTheKingpin https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/secret_empire_vol_1_9_villain_variant_textless.png]]]]

* ''{{Series/Wiseguy}}'' villain Mel Profitt. He controls a [[TheSyndicate multi-billion-dollar criminal empire]] from [[NoOneSeesTheBoss so far behind the scenes]] that the FBI has never even heard of him. He lives on an [[WealthyYachtOwner opulent super yacht]] year-round. He employs a [[CIAEvilFBIGood CIA agent]] with [[CoolCar a tricked-out car]] as his [[TheDragon personal assassin]]. He finances revolutions in {{Banana Republic}}s and plans to buy Major League Baseball franchises. And he's [[TheCaligula completely batshit insane]], just for good measure.

* [[ManipulativeBastard Slade]], [[PsychicPowers Brother Blood]], and [[BrainInAJar the Brain]] on ''WesternAnimation/TeenTitans'' all qualify. Slade does serve as TheDragon for [[{{Satan}} Trigon]] at one point, but that's purely for personal gain rather than loyalty -- his only affiliation is ever himself.

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[[quoteright:350:[[Characters/MarvelComicsTheKingpin https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/secret_empire_vol_1_9_villain_variant_textless.png]]]]

* Makoto Shishio from ''Manga/RurouniKenshin'' seems to be a combination between a Diabolical Mastermind and a badass.
* Gendou Ikari from ''Anime/NeonGenesisEvangelion'' is a famous example.
** Keel Lorenz, Gendo's boss and [[BigBad Number One]] of [[TheOmniscientCouncilOfVagueness SEELE]].

* Crocodile from ''Manga/OnePiece''. He's even based on Mafia-type gangsters, and he leads a secret criminal organization that out to overthrow a whole kingdom. What sets him apart from other masterminds, is that Crocodile has superpowers.
* Izaya Orihara from ''LightNovel/{{Durarara}}'' manipulates people and supernatural beings just because he can, and [[ForTheEvulz it's fun]]. He is an information broker who has a hand in everything that happens in Ikebukuro and is arguably the most dangerous out of a cast of very dangerous people.

* In contrast to his predecessor, Muruta Azrael, who operated publicly as a legitimate (if still exceedingly evil) politician and lobbyist, Lord Djibril of ''Anime/MobileSuitGundamSEEDDestiny'' prefers to operate as the terrorist version of this. He rarely leaves his hidden lair, from which he pulls the strings on Blue Cosmos, the Atlantic Federation, and eventually the Earth Alliance. Comes complete with RightHandCat, AGlassOfChianti, and no moral compass.
* Gouda in ''Anime/GhostInTheShellStandAloneComplex'' clearly qualifies. That he is actually a high-ranking officer of the national security services acting out in the open and on behalf of his superiors only shows how corrupt and divided the government is.
* All for One from ''Manga/MyHeroAcademia'' was this at the height of his power before being deposed by [[BigGood All Might]] years before the start of the series. He ruled the criminal underworld with an iron fist and snuffed out any potential threat to his rule [[spoiler: all past users of One for All.]] In the present day, he's refocused his efforts in reestablishing his criminal empire and raising his successor, Tomura Shigaraki to be the head of it.
* William James Moriarty, ''Manga/MoriartyThePatriot'''s version of Professor James Moriarty, is the mastermind behind the criminal organization that stands as The Lord of Crime and everyone answers to him.

* ComicBook/IronMan's {{archenemy}} the Mandarin is a classic example, with a YellowPeril twist.
* The Octopus, archfoe of Will Eisener's much-acclaimed ''ComicBook/TheSpirit'', is a classic example. Debuting in the 1940s, he anticipated both Dr. Claw and Blofeld in that his face was never seen -- even on those occasions when he confronted the Spirit in person, his face was always in shadow, his most distinctive feature being his purple gloves with three yellow lines down the back. Initially a crime boss, the modern-day reboot by Darwyn Cooke recreates him as the leader of a terrorist group -- the Octagon.

* Hunter Rose, the original Grendel in ''ComicBook/{{Grendel}}'' is a Diabolical Mastermind with a carefully developed and successful plan to take over all organised crime in the USA. He differs from the usual archetype in being an enthusiastic and very competent fighter who much prefers getting his own hands dirty to telling other people to do so.
%%* The ComicBook/RedSkull is a major one of these.
* Roberto Rastapopolous from ''The Adventures of Franchise/{{Tintin}}'' occasionally gets high-tech enough to deserve this description.

* Mr. V, aka "Faceless" from the early ComicBook/MartianManhunter comics was a [[FatBastard fat guy]] in a [[FashionVictimVillain horrible costume]] and [[MalevolentMaskedMan mask]]. He was also the head of [[TheSyndicate international crime syndicate Vulture]], and [[EvilGenius vexed]] the Manhunter for years with [[EvilPlan one scheme]] and [[MadScientist scientific gizmo]] after another. Even his inevitable defeats didn't stop him, because whenever he was captured and unmasked it was always revealed that it was just another one of his [[BodyDouble henchmen]] under the mask and that the real [[FailureIsTheOnlyOption Mr. V had gotten away again]]. As this [[http://idol-head.blogspot.com/2010/10/mr-v-fourth-most-important-martian.html blog]] notes Mr. V is this trope, boiled down to its most simplistic and archetypal. "Faceless was the embodiment of crime, without any character depth or motivation beyond the desire to successfully commit crime and to put down those who would prevent crime."

* In ''ComicBook/{{Runaways}}'', [[BadassNormal Alex]]'s [[ArchnemesisDad par]][[EvilMatriarch ents]], Catherine and Geoffrey Wilder are this, controlling most of the LA underworld through fear and intimidation. They have agents within the LAPD, execute anyone who commits a crime without asking their permission first, and have successfully kept most superheroes and supervillains out of the city. The Pride as a whole might actually count, but since Geoffrey is the BigBad, and the one who handles affairs in LA directly, he and Catherine are the clearest examples (the rest being a collection of {{Mad Scientist}}s, {{Evil Sorcerer}}s, time-travellers, {{Mutant}}s, and HumanAliens who have their own areas of responsibility in TheSyndicate). Bonus points for being {{Badass Normal}}s to boot.
** In subsequent chapters, [[spoiler: 1985!Geoffrey]] shows himself to be an example as well. Having just been pulled into the future he forms The New Pride, while successfully manipulating a superhero group and the Runaways into doing exactly what he wants them to, ultimately [[spoiler:killing one of them]] before being returned to the past.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheGreatMouseDetective'': Professor Ratigan's VillainSong explicitly points out that he is "the world's greatest criminal mind".
* ''Anime/TheCastleOfCagliostro'': Count Cagliostro.

* The vast majority of Film Serial villians qualify.
* Doctor Evil from the ''Film/AustinPowers'' movies is a parody of diabolical masterminds in general and Blofeld in particular.
* ''Film/{{Fantomas}}'', in the 1964 film, takes more after Blofeld than his “elegant anarchist” character from [[Literature/{{Fantomas}} the novels of the same name]].
* Sr August de Wynter in ''Film/TheAvengers1998''.

* Judge Doom from ''Film/WhoFramedRogerRabbit''. Became Toontown's judge for the sole purpose of erecting a freeway on its site. Also a sole stockholder in the construction company handling the demolition.

* Dr. Arliss Loveless in ''Film/WildWildWest'', an ex-Confederate scientist who plots the rise of "The ''Dis''united States of America."

* In ''Film/{{Unbreakable}}'', this trope is discussed by Elijah's mother near the end, who says that her son refers to these types of supervillains as "The Real Threat" as opposed to villains who simply resort to brute force. [[spoiler:As it turns out, Elijah himself is one of these]].

* [[OneBadMother Ma-Ma]], the drug-lord of the Peace Trees tower block and the villain of ''Film/{{Dredd}}'', is a RareFemaleExample.
* ''Film/TheLeagueOfExtraordinaryGentlemen''. The main villain is the Fantom, a wealthy arms manufacturer with highly advanced technology (that he forced a group of kidnapped scientists to make for him) and a desire to start a world war to drum up business. In fact the Fantom is [[spoiler: James Moriarty, the brilliant criminal mastermind from the ''Literature/SherlockHolmes'' stories, who wants to analyze the League's super abilities and reproduce them in a form that can be given to others]].
* Baron de Marchant (Creator/CurdJurgens) in ''Film/MissileXTheNeutronBombIncident'', who wants to start a nuclear war.
* ''Film/OnceUponASpy'': Marcus Valorium is a scientific genius who plans to use his ShrinkRay (combined with a computer program that allows him to convert any satellite into a KillSat by bouncing the ShrinkRay off it) to wreak havoc across the world by doing things like shrinking dams to cause widespread flooding (his first target is the Hoover Dam). His goal is to create chaos out with will emerge a ruling intellectual elite, unfettered by the chains of democracy, which he regards as an inefficient tool that allows the ignorant to drag down their intellectual betters.

* ''[[Series/{{Life}} When you reach out for Roman, he's not there.]]''

* ''Series/BurnNotice'' had two, both ex-CIA men who blackmailed spies into working for their Murder Inc. operation. The first was colloquially referred to as "Management", and a second "silent partner" named Anson Fullerton.
* ''Series/LifeOnMars2006'' finds the unit in pursuit of the Morton brothers (a fictitious analogue to the Kray twins), a gangster duo seizing control of Manchester's racketeering outfits by killing their rivals. Their only lead on the brothers' whereabouts is Sam's father, Vic Tyler, a petty crook and the only person to lay eyes on the Mortons. [[spoiler:Vic is later revealed to be the true gang leader, with the "Morton brothers" acting as his nonexistent bosses]].

** Walter White seeks to [[ProtagonistJourneyToVillain establish himself as one]] in his alter ego of Heisenberg, although for the first half of the series his operation is simply too small (consisting only of himself, his partner Jesse, and one or two dealers) to qualify him as such. By season 5, with his connection to [[MegaCorp Madrigal]], alliances with other drug dealers and his use of the Aryan Brotherhood as muscle, Heisenberg could accurately be described as the "king of meth".
* Some of the smarter Gou'ald System Lords fit this to a T on ''Series/StargateSG1''. Particularly the big three that SG-1 faced off against; (in escalating order of how well they fit) Apophis, Anubis, and MagnificentBastard Ba'al.
* ''Series/ThatMitchellAndWebbLook'' had a recurring sketch about one of these and his frustrations with certain aspects of the job. Such as a contractor's requirement that a secret revolving wall have a clearly visible sign on it saying "Warning: Wall may rotate", and his henchmen responding to the instruction "Let's hope he meets with an unfortunate accident" by ''hoping'' that the man in question met with an accident.
* In the ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' episode "Our Man Bashir" most of the crew's transporter beam patterns are accidentally put in a holosuite portraying characters in Dr. Bashir's 1960s spy program. Captain Sisko plays a mad supervillain planning to flood the world called "'''Dr. No'''ah".
* Dr. Miguelito Loveless in ''Series/TheWildWildWest''.
* Earth-2 Lionel Luthor in Season 10 of ''Series/{{Smallville}}''. By fusing [=LuthorCorp=] and the Metropolis underworld, he's become the most powerful man on Earth-2 and is one step short of becoming the CorruptCorporateExecutive version of TheEmperor. A ruthless SocialDarwinist, he values power and control not so much for their sake, but as proof that he, by virtue of his position, is the greatest survivor on Earth-2. Having an [[EvilTwin evil]] ''ComicBook/{{Superman}}'' at your [[TheDragon beck and call]] can help with that.
* Jim Moriarty, the BBC series ''Series/{{Sherlock}}'''s interpretation of the literary character, is a "consulting criminal", which winds up being a cross between Diabolical Mastermind and PsychoForHire. Moriarty is portrayed as rivaling Sherlock in terms of intelligence; but where Sherlock stimulates himself by solving crimes and mysteries, Moriarty plans perfect crimes (mostly for other people to actually commit) for the same kind of rush. The money and (incidental) power are just pleasant bonuses for him.
* ''Series/PersonOfInterest'': Elias, the self-styled "evolution of organized crime".

* The Clairvoyant, mysterious leader of a NebulousEvilOrganisation called Centipede, in ''Series/AgentsOfSHIELD''. [[spoiler:Played with. It turns out he himself is a mid-level member of HYDRA.]]
* ''{{Series/Wiseguy}}'' villain Mel Profitt. He controls a [[TheSyndicate multi-billion-dollar criminal empire]] from [[NoOneSeesTheBoss so far behind the scenes]] that the FBI has never even heard of him. He lives on an [[WealthyYachtOwner opulent super yacht]] year-round. He employs a [[CIAEvilFBIGood CIA agent]] with [[CoolCar a tricked-out car]] as his [[TheDragon personal assassin]]. He finances revolutions in {{Banana Republic}}s and plans to buy Major League Baseball franchises. And he's [[TheCaligula completely batshit insane]], just for good measure.
* All over the place in {{Series/Alias}}. Arvin Sloane, Julian Sark, and [[spoiler:two out of the three Derevko sisters]] all fit the bill at various times. Basically, anyone who wants to lay a claim to being a season's BigBad.
* Most American soaps feature an all-knowing, all-seeing, wealthy businessman who secretly controls a small town. Sometimes there is overlap with a corrupt CEO, like J.R. Ewing, but generally these guys remain in their mansions and don't get much work done. See Stefano from ''Series/DaysOfOurLives'', Adam Chandler on ''Series/AllMyChildren'', Victor Lord on ''Series/OneLifeToLive'', Victor Newman on ''Series/TheYoungAndTheRestless'', Alan Spaulding on ''Series/GuidingLight'', James Stenbeck on ''Series/AsTheWorldTurns'', Carl Hutchins on ''Series/AnotherWorld'' (replaced much later by Alexander Nikos, after Carl [[HeelFaceTurn reformed]]), numerous mob bosses on ''Series/GeneralHospital'' (particularly Mikkos Cassadine, a discount Blofeld with his own WeatherControlMachine) Gregory "COLD DAY IN HELL" Richards Esq. on ''Series/SunsetBeach'', and Alistair Crane on ''Series/{{Passions}}'' (a ridiculous pastiche of each these villains).

* The Flash game "VideoGame/MastermindWorldConqueror" has game mechanics and cutscenes all mastermind-style, in stylish red and black (much like mastermind morality). [[http://www.newgrounds.com/portal/view/463278 Play it here.]] The character himself in the game and the flash series is more a Dr. Evil-like parody who often gets into petty grudges and arguments with his underlings, whom he's way too eager to kill off.
* Nicole Horne, the corrupt pharmaceutical pusher from ''VideoGame/MaxPayne''. Starting out as a government chemist, she began peddling a rejected super-soldier drug on the streets. Horne used her old government contacts to assemble an army of mobsters, ex-government agents, and junk squad cops to do the heavy lifting for her.
** The sequel, ''[[VideoGame/MaxPayne2TheFallOfMaxPayne The Fall of Max Payne]]'', gives us [[spoiler: Vladimir Lem]], also known as [[spoiler: Vlad]], harmless club owner/shadow leader of the "Cleaners" hit squad/leader of the Russian mafia. The Squeaky Cleaning Company goes into buildings dressed as custodians, kill their targets, and then use cleaning materials to remove any trace. Their main purpose is stomping anyone standing in the way of [[spoiler:Vlad]]'s control of the underworld. He finally overreaches when trying to take over the Illuminati.
* "Big Boss" in the first two MSX ''VideoGame/MetalGear'' titles. In both cases, Solid Snake is called in to neutralize a foreign power before it can launch a nuclear weapon, and the American spymaster Big Boss is the shadow dictator of both nations. In addition to hinting at his "final boss" status, his name is an old colloquialism from Wall Street--the "boss" whom all other bosses answer to.
** Solidus Snake functioned as one during the events of ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid2SonsOfLiberty''. Unfortunately for him, in a series where triple-crosses and ManBehindTheMan reveals are commonplace, he didn't last past two games. In the original ''VideoGame/MetalGearSolid'', he was technically the U.S. President, but had little freedom and mostly carried out whatever TheIlluminati told him to do. He broke out of the system by attempting to form a coalition with Russian troops in Alaska, an operation spearheaded by Liquid Snake, who believed he was acting alone. When this fell through, Solidus went underground (though publicly he resigned and suffered a heart attack) and regrouped with the Russians, this time seizing an offshore battle cruiser and declaring Manhattan a "free" republic. Just as before, Solidus accomplishes this task by hiding behind a phony hostage-taking.
* The game ''VideoGame/EvilGenius'' and [[VideoGame/EvilGenius2 its sequel]] is a Diabolical Mastermind simulation, where you select one of several evil supergenius characters and build up a globe-spanning criminal empire, dealing with any spies or secret agents sent to take you out or disrupt your operation.
* Giovanni, the cat-stroking head of Team Rocket, from ''VideoGame/PokemonRedAndBlue''. He was only TheFaceless on the Gym Leader page in the manual and in parts of the ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'' anime prior to the release of ''Anime/PokemonTheFirstMovie'', though.

* Mr X of ''VideoGame/StreetsOfRage'' manages to take over the city. Pity he didn't arm his mooks with any of the guns there... He got a nice one for himself though.

* Mention must be made of Geese Howard, the best-known villain of ''VideoGame/FatalFury''. Based on Creator/JeanClaudeVanDamme's character in ''Film/{{Bloodsport}}'', he's a German-American crook who once rose as high as the city's Police Commissioner, but decided to ditch the artifice and become a full-time kingpin. He's been 'killed' more than once, but [[KilledOffForReal his second death actually stuck]], and he appears now in {{dream match|game}}es.
* Geese's counterpart in ''VideoGame/TheKingOfFighters'' is Rugal Bernstein, an arms dealer with a taste for merlot, pet cougars, and [[ShrineToSelf portrait galleries of himself]]. In a running theme for fighting games, he's been killed multiple times and resurrected just as often. Interestingly, he seems to have some Orochi power in him, which explains how he can go toe-to-toe with the likes of Akuma.
* M.Bison seems to be behind all the mischief in every ''Franchise/StreetFighter'' game after II, barring the third installment which introduced too many new characters for some fans' tastes. He straddles the Evil Overlord line, but his criminal syndicate and (thankfully) ineffective world domination plots land him a spot on this list.
* In ''VideoGame/JadeEmpire'', we have Kai Lan the Serpent, who is the local figurehead of TheSyndicate in the Imperial Capital Arena. It eventually turns out he's not as high-ranked as you're initially led to believe, as he seems to have superiors of some sort (who only contact you [[spoiler:if you kill him in the arena]]).
** Another example is Gao the Greater, another high-ranking member of the same syndicate.
* Edwin [=VanCleef=] in ''VideoGame/WorldOfWarcraft'' was the mastermind behind the criminal organisation the Defias that has its tentacles everywhere. He was otherwise unusual for the role of being a WellIntentionedExtremist whose AuthorityEqualsAsskicking.
** In the ''Cataclysm'' expansion [[spoiler:his daughter Vanessa does daddy proud by murdering his enemies and setting Sentinel Hill ablaze, all while hiding her true identity until the final reveal.]]

* In the NES adventure game ''VideoGame/{{Nightshade}}'', you play as a wannabe crime fighter seeking to fill the vacuum left by Vortex, the city's late superhero. On the flip side, the criminals have their own vacuum to fill: without a hero to fight, the gangs descend into all-out war until a Pharaoh-themed supervillain, Sutekh, proposes that they unite. As his reward, Sutekh is now at the helm of a mega-gang that controls the city.

** A more straightforward example is the Great Dragon Lofwyr. Like most dragons, he sees his company as a [[DragonHoard treasure hoard]], and his employees (which includes the protagonist) are little gold coins that he keeps well-polished. He's concerned with the end of the world, and plays chess on a global scale to prevent it--but he wants to be on top at the end, not just get through it. His involvement in the dissolution of the Flux State is a growing concern in ''Dragonfall'', as anarchy (especially on Lofwyr's front doorstep) is just bad for business. [[spoiler:Vauclair]]'s research is a good instrument for the Flux because APEX unshackled is more of a god in its reign than dragons will ever be in meatspace. But it apparently has no effect, because Lofwyr still invades the F-State and wins anyway in the epilogue. [[ForegoneConclusion It was always going to happen]] and is canon.

* One of the big bads in ''VideoGame/DieReiseInsAll'', is one. Not a big surprise, as it is [[spoiler: [[Literature/SherlockHolmes Profesor Moriarty]] himself. And now he [[MadScientist is even more dangerous]].]]
* ComicBook/TheJoker shows himself to be this throughout the ''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamSeries'', especially in [[spoiler:''VideoGame/BatmanArkhamOrigins'', where he takes over from Roman Sionis as TheDon of Gotham without anyone the wiser for a long time]].
* ''VideoGame/{{Overwatch}}'' has a rare female example in Sombra, a hacker who has built quite the criminal empire off of stolen top-secret information. She is pretty much the most actually powerful person in the world at this point: able to hack any device and blackmail any foe in order to get what she wants. She takes down TheDon Katya Volskaya with a few threats and a little infiltration assistance from Reaper. Not exactly a villain though. She behaves more like an EldritchAbomination in that it's not clear exactly what she wants, and it's entirely possible all her experimentation on herself has actually made her something not quite human.
* The ''Film/JamesBond'' video games, of course, have plenty of these, much like their cinematic inspirations.
** ''VideoGame/AgentUnderFire'' has Adrian Malprave, who is out to KillAndReplace various world leaders with clones under his control.
** ''VideoGame/{{Nightfire}}'' has Raphael Drake, whose business decommissioning old nuclear reactors and missiles is actually a front for his plot to hijack an American military space station and TakeOverTheWorld.
** ''VideoGame/EverythingOrNothing'' has Nikolai Diavolo, who wishes to use {{nanomachines}} to overthrow the Russian government and install himself as dictator, and then conquer Europe from there.

* Daedalus from ''Webcomic/SluggyFreelance'' is a light parody of the concept, or else is trying too hard to cleave to it: he has all the trappings, such as the always-shadowed face, but usually manages to spoil the mystique.
* Mr. Sin from ''Webcomic/SamAndFuzzy''.

* Subversion: The Monarch, would-be superfoe of Doctor Thaddeus Venture and ''WesternAnimation/TheVentureBrothers'', spent his trust fund becoming a diabolical mastermind purely so that he could ''be'' a diabolical mastermind. He has no desires beyond killing Doctor Venture, despite the fact that Venture couldn't care less about him.
** Phantom Limb has aspirations as such, and in the fourth season has taken multiple steps in that direction by expanding the Revenge Society's roster with [[SanityHasAdvantages real supervillains instead of a mug, toaster, and high-heel shoe.]]
** The Sovereign is the official Diabolical Mastermind of the series as the head of the Guild of Calamitous Intent. It's technically an elected position, but it fits the rest of the trope well. He also flexes his muscle as a fiendishly powerful shapeshifter and has some hand-to-hand skills, but the majority of his power comes from the vast, high-tech Guild he leads.

* ''WesternAnimation/KimPossible'' is positively lousy with Diabolical Masterminds--except that none of them are actually any good at it.
* Number One, leader of F.E.A.R., in ''Birdman''.
* Lawrence Limburger from the original ''WesternAnimation/BikerMiceFromMars'' series. Voiced by William Morgan Sheppard.

* Dr. Heinz Doofenschmirtz from ''WesternAnimation/PhineasAndFerb''. Although it could be argued that he is half Diabolical Mastermind and half AbsentMindedProfessor.

* Stewie from ''WesternAnimation/FamilyGuy'', especially in the early years. It kinda petered out for a while & got replaced with a TransparentCloset schtick, but they've been trying to bring it back recently.
* Taurus Bulba from ''WesternAnimation/DarkwingDuck''.
* Dark Kat from ''WesternAnimation/SWATKats''.
* Dr. Zin in ''WesternAnimation/JonnyQuest'' TOS. He has at least two major bases, a castle and an ElaborateUndergroundBase inside a volcano, plus an army of {{mooks}}s. He's also a technological genius, who developed a robot spy and a beam that can shoot down airplanes.
* Cybron in ''WesternAnimation/SkysurferStrikeForce''.
* Gorilla Grodd in the ''WesternAnimation/JusticeLeague'' cartoon, especially the JLU where he founded the Legion of Doom and charged each member 20 percent of the profits from their crimes. ComicBook/LexLuthor became one after losing his CorruptCorporateExecutive and MadScientist guises, eventually taking control of the Legion from Grodd.
* ''[[WesternAnimation/BeastWars Transformers Beast Wars]]'' Megatron is a prime example. Unlike other Megatrons, this one didn't have any political power in his faction. (The Council considered him a dangerous rogue.) He's described as brilliant in the cleverly crafted strategies he uses to thwart the Maximals throughout the show. He has a handful of lackeys (half of them traitorous, and the other half stupidly loyal) and he takes the time to incorporate their plans against him to further his agenda without them knowing.
* Belphegor, the main villain from the French-Canadian animation ''Belphegor'', fits this trope very well. Unlike most diabolical masterminds, however, he gets in on the action just as much as his mooks and underlings, if not more so.
* Baron Silas Greenback from ''WesternAnimation/DangerMouse'' usually sits behind his desk stroking his pet and organising villainy, leaving his henchman Stiletto to do the work.
* Cobra Commander in ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeARealAmericanHero'' is a worldwide wanted terrorist that leads the Cobra Organization, which sows discord and chaos with aims of world domination. His effectiveness as a leader varies: in the original cartoon, he was such a failure with a long string of defeats that his comrades created [[TheEmperor Serpentor]] to become a proper leader to Cobra and the Commander getting DemotedToDragon with an EnemyCivilWar ensuing as result. Later cartoons portray him as a more scary villain, being able to overthrow the US government and getting bumped up to ShadowDictator.
** In the original cartoon continuity he's also a KarmaHoudini. In a surprise guest appearance on the third season of [[WesternAnimation/TheTransformers the Transformers cartoon]] (taking place in the then-distant future of 2005), it's revealed that while Cobra as an organization no longer exists, the Commander (as Old Snake) is a respected older statesman of the criminal underworld.

In politics, this character would resurface as the ShadowDictator. Quite frequently is TheFaceless ("''next'' time, Gadget!") and a BadassNormal.

* Earth-2 Lionel Luthor in Season 10 of ''Series/{{Smallville}}''. By fusing [=LuthorCorp=] and the Metropolis underworld, he's become the most powerful man on Earth-2 and is one step short of becoming the CorruptCorporateExecutive version of TheEmperor. A ruthless SocialDarwinist, he values power and control not so much for their sake, but as proof that he, by virtue of his position, is the greatest survivor on Earth-2. Having an [[EvilTwin evil]] {{Superman}} at your [[TheDragon beck and call]] can help with that.

* ''Film/{{Fantomas}}'', in the 1964 film, takes more after Blofeld than his “elegant anarchist” character from [[Literature/Fantomas the novels]].

* ''Film/{{Fantomas}}''.