By Frank Lucasale Christian Bale is not afraid of going to the dark side
While Bale, 50, is certainly recognized for his role as the selfless superhero Batman, the Academy Award-winning actor is arguably best known for his role as ultimate bad boy Patrick Bateman. Bale’s villainous character in 2000’s American Psycho has become synonymous with corporate greed and toxic masculinity, all while wielding a chainsaw.
More than 20 years after Bale taught Us to background check our first dates, he stretched his villain muscle again in 2022’s Thor: Love and Thunder as Gorr the God Butcher. In a noir-style performance, Bale served as the antithesis of all things joyful and good — the ultimate bad guy of the multiverse.
“There’s a great pleasure in playing a villain,” Bale said of his Thor: Love and Thunder character during a 2022 press event. “It’s a lot easier to play a villain than it is to play a hero — Chris [Hemsworth] had a much tougher job. You know, everyone is fascinated with the bad guys, immediately.”
Bale went on to say that a well-written bad guy can evoke both hatred and empathy, adding that when an actor successfully plays a villain “you sort of understand maybe why this guy is making awful decisions.”
“He is a monster and he is a butcher, but is possibly a little understanding of why he came to be that way,” he concluded.
From a polarizing political figure to an all-powerful demigod, here are Bale’s most iconic villain roles, ranked:
The 2005 film tackled a slew of difficult topics, from the state of veteran’s affairs and support in this country to United States’ international policy and how it impacts communities in third-world countries. While Bale played protagonist Jim Davis, a troubled Army Ranger struggling to return to civilian life, he is arguably villainous in his actions — the only “language” Bale’s character understands is violence and he wields it with a vengeance.
Walter Wade Jr. — ‘Shaft’
Bale took on the bad guy role of Walter Wade Jr., a sleazy, racist and rich New York City playboy who brutally murders Trey Howard (Mekhi Phifer) and sets off a chain of events that only highlight his depravity. Through his actions, Bale’s character embodies racist real estate policies, upper-class snobbery, and shameless elitism. By the end of the film, viewers love to hate Bale’s Walter Wade.