History Main / VillainProtagonist

* ''{{Megamind}} counts... Sort of.

* DespicibleMe, it's hero is Gru, he's a villain but he isn't the best in the world.

* ''Manga/OokamiNoKuchiWolfsmund'''' is a series of tragic stories only connected by the presence of Wolfram and the eponymous border pass that he oversees. As of the first volume, no one has gotten past Wolfsmund alive or unscathed thanks to him.

** Sage, who [[EvenEvilHasStandards disgusts and terrifies even That Guy with the Glasses]], and may or may not be {{Satan}}.

** Ralph is actually a bit of a subversion, since he's [[PunchClockVillain the villain]] [[MeanCharacterNiceActor in name only]]. He's actually just as much of a hero as Felix, but because it's his job to be the bad guy, the [=NPCs=] are [[Jerkass assholes]] to him.

* Francis Urquhart in the BBC series ''Series/HouseOfCards'' and its sequels ''To Play the King'' and ''The Final Cut''. Urquhart is a ''Theatre/RichardIII''-esque British MP who schemes his way up to being Prime Minister via various sneaky and some downright evil acts.
* Frank Underwood in ''Series/HouseOfCardsRemake'' is a ruthless politician who will do literally ''anything'' for more power. In Shakespearean tradition, he frequently gives snide, sneering and self-satisfied asides to the audience, letting the viewer see inside his twisted mind.
* LexLuthor in ''Series/{{Smallville}}''. Although the show is supposed to be about [[Franchise/{{Superman}} Clark Kent]], it focuses on Lex just as much and his descent into becoming the ArchEnemy of Superman.

* Terrence [=McDonaugh=] in ''Film/TheBadLieutenantPortOfCallNewOrleans''. He's a RabidCop who also a drug and gambling addict, steals from other cops and suspects, tortures people he interrogates, and blackmails female suspects to have sex with him. The only redeeming qualities he have is he still loves his family and girlfriend, and draws the line at point blank murder. [[spoiler:By the time the film's ending came around, he's still haven't changed his drug inducing habits one little bit.]]

The point of this trope is for the protagonist to be the villain; it doesn't count if the hero's girlfriend or best friend is the villain.

* [[Literature/TheMonk Ambrosio]], who was never a particularly nice or forgiving person to begin with, quickly falls from what grace he had and over the course of the story gets involved in BlackMagic, rape, and murder.

An interesting twist on conventional storytelling is to make TheProtagonist a villain. Sometimes (but not always), this villainous main character will even get the SympatheticPOV or be portrayed as an AntiVillain. Although "[[HeroicArchetype hero]]" and "protagonist" are frequently used interchangeably, it can be fun to take the side of evil. However, it is not necessary for a villain to be sympathetic for them to be this trope. Sometimes it's done by having the protagonist facing [[EvilVersusEvil even worse people]].

* {{Music/{Metallica}}'s "Jump in the Fire" is sung by the Devil.

* In the Norwegian film ''Film/{{Insomnia}}'', the protagonist Engstrom begins as a moderately corrupt detective (though he's highly regarded by his peers). By the end, he's descended into pure evil, partially caused by the madness of working in 24-hour sunlight above the Arctic Circle but mostly due to his own inner lack of humanity. The final shot of [[spoiler:his dead, haunted eyes]] is one of the creepier endings in film.

* O-Dog in ''Film/MenaceIISociety''. He, unlike some other examples of villains protagonists, he is not sympathic or nice, has no redeeming qualities, and has very few traits of AffablyEvil. Rather he is a sadistic AxCrazy who does not hesitate to kill.

* Gerald Tarrant of the ColdfireTrilogy is the true embodiment of a villain hero. From the beginning of the first book he is foreshadowed as the boogieman of a country. He is what parents threaten their children with to get them to go to their beds on time, and it is completely justified. The only reason he is a protagonist is because the thing that is threatening the world just happens to be a threat to him as well. He is a Magnificent Bastard who feeds on suffering and fear. But he also has an amusing side, in a state of near exhaustion in a land where he might be attacked at any moment, he still uses a part of his magic to fix his clothes and hair to look dashing.

* {Music/{Metallica}}'s "Jump in the Fire" is sung by the Devil.

* Though not specific to any system in particular, it's very much the point to many campaigns. the "evil campaign" is often used to change things up where the [=PCs=] are the group of troublesome goblins, the terrorizing bandits or eclectic grouping of monsters. the goals tend to vary from pure destruction for the sake of destruction, sticking it to a certain group, actual goals of city/country/world domination or even a subversion of the genre.

* Brain and Pinky of ''WesternAnimation/PinkyAndTheBrain'' the first is a DiabolicalMastermind out for world conquest -- OncePerEpisode, because FailureIsTheOnlyOption, and the other is his Dragon.

** A milder example, but one that shouldn't be overlooked regardless, is any of the chapters set in the [[BadFuture Epilogue timeline]]. Being a VillainWorld where [[TheBadGuyWins Discord won]], it's to be expected that about 99% of the story is told from the POV of either [[CompleteMonster Discord]] himself or the [[BrainwashedAndCrazy discorded Mane Six]], who now serve as his CoDragons. [[spoiler:At least until Twilight Tragedy performs a HeelFaceTurn, followed shortly there after by Liarjack. They then redeem Rarigreed and, much later, Traitor Dash and Angry Pie.]]

* ''Series/TheBorgias'': Rodrigo Borgia, also known as Pope Alexander Sextus, is this. He's AffablyEvil, has four kids and an openly-known mistress, and has no problem with blackmail or bribery, and pimps his kids out to the highest bidder. Plus, there's all of the less-than-ethical executions he's considered, and the situations his children have had to endure--in what amounts to emotional abuse. His elder son, Cesare, is an even better example, what with the killing people, having a personal assassin as a best friend, and [[BrotherSisterIncest really]] loving his sister, though that's probably the least villainous part of his personality. [[TruthinTelevision If history has anything to say about it,]] he gets worse.

* Killface of ''FriskyDingo'' is a ''super''villain protagonist who's way more sympathetic than {{Jerkass}} superhero Xander Crews.

* The seven issue miniseries {{Empire}} centers around a DoctorDoom-esque protagonist finalizing his conquest of the Earth, and dealing with the question "what next?"

* SonicTheHedgehog fanfic ''[[http://www.fanfiction.net/s/7189428/1/Prison_Island_Break Prison Island Break]]'' has all the main cast as violent convicted criminals. They don't even have a particuarly heroic goal; they just want to escape. But because the story is centered on them, they get the SympatheticPOV and you completely forget they're a collection of terrorists, serial killers and rapists (even though the writer never lets you forget).