Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice has been released and now we have a DC movie universe to go alongside Marvel’s. Later this year sees the release of Suicide Squad which will bring classic villains such as Deadshot, Killer Croc, and Harley Quinn among others to the big screen for the first time and also bring a brand new version of the Joker. Warner Bros. has announce the schedule for the DC movies through 2020 and it begs the question what villains will we be seeing.
We know that Dwayne Johnson is playing Black Adam in Shazam! but other than that there has not been much revealed about what threats the heroes will be facing in the movies coming up. Here we will discuss the six villains we hope to see in the DC film universe whether in the films already announced or down the line later. Note: We did not include Darkseid since, while not having been officially announced yet, all signs are pointing to him appearing in the DCEU with the reveal of the omega symbol in Batman v Superman.
6. Mr. Freeze
While we did get Mr. Freeze in a movie the less said about his portrayal in Batman & Robin the better. That being said a Mr. Freeze based on his role in the animated series with the tragic love story and the cold, emotionless portrayal would make for a great antagonist as an audience would be able to emphasize and understand what has led to his actions but also be put off by how disconnected he seems from everyone around him. It would beg the question that even if he could save his wife, would she still love him seeing what he has become?
5. Maxwell Lord
Maxwell Lord would be a perfect fit for a psychological villain for the Justice League who could end up dividing the League against themselves. He could be introduced as a business man who wants to help the League but not everyone trusts him. Later when it is revealed he is helping them for his own gain instead of wanting to protect the world, that he has powers, and has gained access to Batman’s satellites, as he did in the lead up to Infinite Crisis, the League will have to face someone who lied to them and manipulated them. Also the revelation of Batman having satellites that spy on the League will also cause conflict within the team as they will wonder what else is Batman hiding which when mixed with Lord’s betrayal will cause the team to become suspicious and unwilling to trust people.
4. Sinestro
Now yes we did get a version of Sinestro in Green Lantern played by Mark Strong but he was not a villain yet although they teased it in a mid credits scene, but the movie bombed and now we are getting a reboot titled Green Lantern Corps. Since they are putting emphasis on the Corps Sinestro would be the villain to have. You could have the classic story of the good cop gone bad who has to be taken down by his former colleagues, including the Lantern he trained. He could also have his Sinesto Corps to show that he has taken the lessons for the Lanterns and twisted them to his own gain against his former team.
3. Ocean Master
It’s pretty apparent that DC is doing all it can to separate Aquaman from the joke he is perceived to be from most general audiences by casting Jason Moama as the character. Ocean Master would be a great villain since he has the magic powers which would lead to some amazing visuals and representations of powers in a movie. More importantly it would make for a great plot as you have the brother who wants to rule for himself, but because he believes something needs to be done about humans and how they are polluting the seas. It isn’t that he hates his brother but he believes he is wrong about humans and he has to stop him from inadvertently causing Atlantis’ destruction, leading to an even more heartbreaking conflict in a family of rulers that would lead more to getting rid of the perception of Aquaman as a joke.
2. Court of Owls
Imagine you are the greatest detective in the world, but then you find out that everything you know about your city is a lie. This would make for one of the most compelling Batman films ever. As readers of the recent arc by Scott Snyder and Greg Capullo know we see a Batman who has to question everything he believes in and whether he lives up to the legend that has been created around him when he discovers that a secret society has been working behind the scenes in Gotham City since its inception. It would allow us to see a Batman unsure of himself and having to go up against a vast conspiracy that even he might not be able to solve.
1. Brainiac
Brainiac is Lex Luthor’s fears of Superman come true. A cold, calculating, individual who cares only about his own knowledge and once he retrieves all the knowledge from the worlds he invades, he destroys them. It would make for an interesting conflict as the alien who embraces his human side faces off against the alien who has turned himself into a supercomputer and only cares about logic and control. On a side not I would love to see them use the ending of Geoff Johns and Gary Frank‘s “Brainiac” arc in Action Comics where Superman beats Brainiac by taking him to Earth and throwing him into the mud causing him to lose his mind seeing all the life that he cannot control.
What do you think of our list? Is there any other villains you would like to see in the DCEU? Sound off in the comments or send us your thoughts on Twitter!