History Main / VillainByDefault

* The [[TheKlan Klansmen]] in ''Film/LiveByNight''.

** This was an EnforcedTrope. The villains produce pollution ForTheEvulz so that children whose parents work in polluting industries didn't think their parents were villains.

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency'' with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seen trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TheTrickster Joestar]], [[spoiler:a cool mechanical hand as a thank-you gift after he lost it in the final battle]].

[[folder:{{Anime}} and {{Manga}}]]
* Significant aversion: One episode of ''LightNovel/KinosJourney'' involves slavers who had [[IAmAHumanitarian eaten their "cargo"]] to survive in a snowstorm. However, the episode is devoted to showing that despite how wicked their profession, actions, and plan seem once revealed, they're people as well, with loved ones, hopes, and dreams. Which only goes to show that ordinary people, too, are capable of acts of astonishing callousness — and conversely, that no matter how callous a person is, they're still a ''person''.

[[folder:ComicBooks]]

[[folder:{{Film}}]]

[[folder:{{Literature}}]]

[[folder:{{Manhwa}}]]

[[folder:TabletopGames]]
* In ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' and most fantasy media, Necromancers (Or {{Necromantic}}s) invariably abuse their powers for fun and profit. Even though it's a player accessible subclass of the Wizard, it's rare to see a "good" necromancer. After all, a necromancer who can't cast spells with the "evil" subtype loses most of the necromancer's best spells.
* Quite simply ''everyone'' in ''TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}}''. When every major race in a setting is listed in ScaryDogmaticAliens, you know you're not looking at a happy galaxy. And it's not only human POV. For example, Eldars consider humans childish and ignorant at best while sharing humanity's views on other aliens.

[[folder:VideoGames]]
* You can pretty much count that any non-human robot in the ''Videogame/MegaManX'' and ''Videogame/MegaManZero'' series are down-and-out Mavericks, no exceptions; they're always either infected by TheVirus, criminally insane, or just plain fed up with humanity and aren't going to take it, anymore. Of course, this could also be considered a case of demonization; several Mavericks have called out the main characters as hunting them with little provocation, simply because the humans are paranoid and don't need a reason to point at a robot not doing what they think they should be doing and calling them "Maverick". And then they die at the protagonists' hands, anyway.
** Although, the animal Reploids of ''Zero'' were evil, they weren't considered Mavericks. You're playing on the side of the Mavericks, the bosses are fighting for humanity.
* In ''VideoGame/MirrorsEdge'' you've got the police which you're more than welcome to beat up, steal their weapons and if the need arises push off the side of a 110 storey building. Fair enough you might think in an "evil" government setting but the main character's sister is also a cop.

* Two of the bosses in ''VideoGame/TheSuffering: Ties That Bind'' are the spirits of a slave hunter (Copperfield) and a misogynistic serial-murdering pimp (The Creeper).
* The enemies in ''VideoGame/MaxPayne'' games tend to be TheMafia or other gangsters, mercenaries, {{Corrupt Corporate Executive}}s and [[spoiler:{{Dirty Cop}}s]] - all the sorts of nasty folk that few people would object to slaughtering.

[[folder:{{Film}}]]

** The BigGameHunter game warden in the first book also survives, and is much more useful. He actually kills a couple of the velociraptors, and indirectly helps Dr. Grant and the kids out when he shoots the T-Rex with a tranquilizer dart, which causes it to fall asleep long enough for them to get on a boat and escape downriver.
* Victor Quartermaine from ''WesternAnimation/TheCurseOfTheWereRabbit'' is depicted as an evil hunter; even though his stated goal is the acquisition of the leading lady's fortune, it doesn't explain his pathological need to shoot bunnies.
* The titular monsters from ''Film/{{Bats}}'' were genetically engineered by a "mad" scientist. When asked why he would create such a creature, his response basically sums up the premise of this trope: "Because I'm a scientist! [[ScienceIsBad That's what we do!]]"
* In lighthearted works set in American high schools or similar adolescent environments, it's TheBeautifulElite (the AlphaBitch, the JerkJock, etc.) who are usually automatically evil. This stereotype is so pervasive that even when a pretty girl or boy is not supposed to be a villain, or might even be TheHero, they will still tend to be depicted as deeply flawed.

[[folder:LiveActionTV]]

* ''Series/CSIMiami'' had a few NSA agents as foes of Horatio during the run since they cleaned crime scenes, took suspects or committed crimes and hid behind the Patriot Act.

[[folder:WebOriginal]]

[[folder:WesternAnimation]]

* Many of the villains on ''WesternAnimation/CaptainPlanetAndThePlaneteers'' are industrialists, whose sole motivation seems to be to produce as much pollution as possible. The exception is Looten Plunder, who is of course in it for the money. Hoggish Greedly was also in it for the buck, though he wasn't a billionaire like Plunder, but a less wealthy pioneer in dirty industry. However, their motives didn't remain consistent, and oftentimes, they would harm the environment out of sheer malice.
** This was an EnforcedTrope. The villains produce pollution ForTheEvulz so that children whose parents work in polluting industries didn't think their parents were villains.

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JojosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency'' with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seen trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TricksterArchetype Joestar]], [[spoiler:a cool mechanical hand as a thank-you gift after he lost it in the final battle]].

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventureBattleTendency'' with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seen trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TricksterArchetype Joestar]], [[spoiler:a cool mechanical hand as a thank-you gift after he lost it in the final battle]].

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure:BattleTendency'' with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seen trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TricksterArchetype Joestar]], [[spoiler:a cool mechanical hand as a thank-you gift after he lost it in the final battle]].

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' (''Part II: Battle Tendency'') with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seen trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TricksterArchetype Joestar]], [[spoiler:a cool mechanical hand as a thank-you gift after he lost it in the final battle]].

* [[PredatorsAreMean Carnivorous animals]], because not wanting to starve (or not wanting [[MonsterIsAMommy your offspring]] to starve) is evil when your food is meat and you have to kill it. This goes obviously for animals with human intelligence, given that in real life animals cannot understand such concepts.

* [[KnightTemplar Religious Fanatics]] (also, on the other end of the spectrum and less commonly portrayed, [[OutgrownSuchSillySuperstitions militant atheists]])

* And of course, [[DepartmentOfRedundancyDepartment the Nazis]]

Naturally, whenever a group is cast as Villains By Default without additional justification, there will be a part of the audience that's going to [[AlternativeCharacterInterpretation disagree with the assessment]]. This is particularly true of works that are [[PanderingToTheBase subtly or unsubtly pandering to one "fashionable" prejudice or another]], or that are aimed at very specific audiences. This is where ValuesDissonance will kick in: a work created by a fundamentalist Christian might have a "sinful" person (stripper, alcoholic, what-have-you) as an irredeemable villain, whereas a work by someone who despises Christians will want his/her audience to assume that ''Christians'' are the evil ones.

See also AcceptableTargets and DesignatedHero. Compare SympatheticPOV and DesignatedVillain.

* Significant aversion: One episode of ''LightNovel/KinosJourney'' involves slavers who had [[IAmAHumanitarian eaten their "cargo"]] to survive in a snowstorm. However, the episode is devoted to showing that despite how wicked their profession, actions, and plan seem once revealed, they're people as well, with loved ones, hopes, and dreams. Which only goes to show that ordinary people, too, are capable of acts of astonishing callousness -- and conversely, that no matter how callous a person is, they're still a ''person''.

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' (''Part II: Battle Tendency'') with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seem trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TricksterArchetype Joestar]], [[spoiler: a cool mechanical hand as a thanks gift after he lost it in the final battle.]]

** Marv has fought hitmen, a police death squad, a corrupt cardinal and a silent and deadly cannibal whose proclivities the cardinal shared.

* Intentionally averted in ''ComicBook/VForVendetta'', at least the comic book. Creator/AlanMoore initially intended to write his Nazi antagonists as straight-up cardboard villains, as per typical views of Nazis, before reflecting that Fascists are people, too, who usually have reasons for their actions a little more complex than [[ForTheEvulz evil for evil's sake]]. However, he does this without actually making them or their ideology any more sympathetic. They're mostly pathetic, insecure losers who use their ideology to compensate or ordinary people who were to cowardly to fight back, and instead just went with the flow. [[SympatheticInspectorAntagonist Inspector Finch]], the most humanized of them all, ultimately realizes that he can no longer ignore [[FinalSolution his government's crimes]], and, when given the opportunity to revive it, chooses to let it collapse.

** Any military officer of the Galactic Empire is treated as thoroughly evil. Though one might assume that some are {{Punch Clock Villain}}s, just about every one with any characterization [[KickTheDog kicks a dog]] in some fashion. For example, in ''Film/ANewHope'' one Imperial officer refers to Chewie as a "thing". In the books they enslaved his ''entire species''.

** Any military officer of the Galactic Empire is treated as thoroughly evil. Though one might assume that some are {{Punch Clock Villain}}s, just about every one with any characterization [[KickTheDog kicks a dog]] in some fashion. For example, in ''Film/ANewHope'' one Imperial officer racially abuses Chewie.

* Two of the bosses in ''TheSuffering: Ties That Bind'' are the spirits of a slave hunter (Copperfield) and a misogynistic serial-murdering pimp (The Creeper).

* Intentionally averted in ''ComicBook/VForVendetta'', at least the comic book. Creator/AlanMoore initially intended to write his Nazi antagonists as straight-up cardboard villains, as per typical views of Nazis, before reflecting that Fascists are people, too, who usually have reasons for their actions a little more complex than [[ForTheEvulz evil for evil's sake]]. Usually that they're pathetic losers who have become control freaks to hide their issues. Adam Susan is sexually frustrated and gets off on his MasterComputer, for example. Inspector Finch is a SympatheticInspectorAntagonist because his experiences in the riots that preceded the fascist government persuaded him that tyranny was better than chaos - so he helped them hunt down minorities because that was what they demanded in exchange for a stable government. The result is lots of GreyAndGrayMorality. The movie, however, plays the trope dead straight - except for Finch, who not only abandons fascism, but in the end permits V's final act of terrorism out of disgust for the government.

[[caption-width-right:350:So he's a [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi]], a [[TheUndead Zombie]], and a [[YouDirtyRat Rat]]. [[SarcasmMode Must be a good guy.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:So he's a [[ThoseWackyNazis Nazi]], a [[TheUndead Zombie]], and a [[YouDirtyRat Rat]]. Must be a good guy.]]

* Subverted to hell and back again on ''Manga/JoJosBizarreAdventure'' (''Part II: Battle Tendency'') with '''ThoseWackyNazis'''! No, really! Have we already mentioned that this manga is bizarre? To elaborate: At first, the Nazis are seem trying to revive an [[NinjaPirateZombieRobot ancient race of fossilized Mesoamerican vampires]], most likely for the sake of harnessing their power. However, later on it's revealed [[spoiler:that they were investigating them, from the very beginning, for the sake of finding [[{{Immortality}} a way to eliminate them]], as their resurrection would mean the end of the human race]]. In the end, they come up as heroic and badass. They even give the hero, [[CrazyAwesome Joseph]] [[TricksterArchetype Joestar]], a cool mechanical hand as a thanks gift after he lost it in the final battle.

* [[KnightTemplar Religious Fanatics]]

* Federal officers of any kind on the various ''LawAndOrder'' shows. One exception was a cameo by the woman from ''Series/InPlainSight''.

* ''Franchose/StarWars'':

* {{GrandVizier}}s on Literature/{{Discworld}}. Arguably, grand viziers ''everywhere'', but it's lampshaded every time one shows up in Discworld, sometimes by the Vizier himself. To the point where a new emperor chose a WrongGenreSavvy {{Cloudcuckoolander}} tourist to be his Grand Vizier on the rationale that someone who didn't ''know'' anything about the job would be ''good''.

** Of course, once we saw a lawyer appear in the first movie we ''knew'' he was going to get eaten; having him sitting on a toilet at the time was just lagniappe. Whereas in the book, the lawyer was a bit more of a JerkAss, but a severe BadAss who punched out a raptor in one scene in contrast to his {{Dirty Coward}}ice in the movie.

'''Demonization:''' Oftentimes a character's occupation is not inherently evil, but has been demonized by Hollywood. Some examples would be hunters (because they're bloodthirsty killers), land developers (who "rape the environment"), [[AmoralAttorney lawyers]] (who prey on others' misfortune, and just because they're lawyers) or [[CorruptCorporateExecutive corporate CEOs]] (because they're money-hungry). And don't forget scientists (especially those dealing with anything nuclear or genetic), who're often depicted as {{Mad Scientist}}s. Once demonized in the story, these ones are treated just as evil as a Nazi, terrorist, etc. For positions of Gods, the ones involving the Dead and Death almost inevitably [[EverybodyHatesHades get this treatment]]. Note that this has a postmodern effect, in that many people may now actually see such professions as wicked in and of themselves; on the other hand (and in all fairness), these tend to be professions that annoy people in the first place.

* Racial supremacists (unless [[TragicBigot they have a]] ''[[TragicBigot really]]'' [[TragicBigot good]] FreudianExcuse)

* [[PredatorsAreMean Carnivorous animals]], because not wanting to starve is evil when your food is meat and you have to kill it. This goes obviously for animals with human intelligence, given that in real life animals cannot understand such concepts.

* Slavers and slave-owners (unless in a society in which slavery is deeply ingrained and are shown to treat their slaves well.)

* [[DirtyCommunists Communists]], especially for works written in the Western countries during the UsefulNotes/ColdWar. Even more so if they are actual KGB agents
* [[PedoHunt Pedophiles]]