Cruella de Vil, Voldemort and the 25 greatest movie villains of all-time

5. Dolores Umbridge

Sometimes we forget that there are more than one bad guy in the world of Harry Potter, and while Voldemort may have been the overarching villain of the series, there is something about Dolores Umbridge that helps make her just as bad as “he who shall not be named.”

For a lot of people, just the thought of Umbridge is enough to make their skin crawl. Not only was she unnecessarily cruel, but she was also highly condescending. She did not care if you were a student or a colleague, she clearly thought that she was above everyone and she wielded the power that she gave herself with a sharpness that left many of us feeling dirty just watching her in action.

Here was a character so sadistic, offensive, and evil that she was willing to leave people homeless if it made a point. And who will ever forget that moment when she fired Professor Trelawney and made it clear that she had no empathy or compassion? Plus, she looked down at other magical creatures if they did not live up to her standards and had no problem calling centaurs, “filthy half-breeds,” which is such a derogatory statement all on its own.

The fact that even Stephen King has called her one of the most horrifying characters since Hannibal Lecter might prove our point. After all, the king of horror might know a thing or two about villains.

There are simply no redeeming qualities when it comes to Dolores Umbridge and the fact that she surrounded herself with cats and wore pink did nothing to make her a better person. In fact, I think it just highlighted how awful she really was, since it acted as a stark contrast to her personality.