The Bad Guys Characters Ranked By How Villainous They Are
Warning: This article contains spoilers for "The Bad Guys." Proceed with caution.
While DreamWorks Animation regularly finds itself under the shadow of animation giants Disney and Pixar, the studio often releases great animated movies. They're behind massive franchises like "Madagascar," "Kung Fu Panda," "How to Train Your Dragon," and of course, "Shrek," the first of which took home the first-ever Oscar for Best Animated Feature. Their latest effort is Pierre Perifel's "The Bad Guys," a delightful crime caper. It follows the exploits of a group of animal criminals, who love nothing more than stealing and pulling off increasingly elaborate heists.
One fateful evening, the gang is apprehended, which is something they never expected. In order to avoid an enormous prison sentence, they have the opportunity to turn away from their life of crime to try and become upstanding citizens, something that proves more difficult for some than others. The film employs a unique animation style that makes "The Bad Guys" stand out in a world of CGI animation, and it's full of great moments and excellent vocal performances. What it has more than practically any other animated movie is pure, unfiltered villainy. The movie is unsurprisingly packed with baddies, and we're taking a look at the characters of "The Bad Guys" to see which of these wonderful characters is the baddest of them all. Here are "The Bad Guys" characters ranked by how villainous they are.
8. Police Chief Misty Luggins
Brought to life by the multi-talented Alex Borstein, Police Chief Misty Luggins is a devoted officer of the law. Her interests include bringing the titular bad guys to justice, her passions include taking down the bad guys, and her hobbies include arresting the bad ... you get the idea. Luggins is a pretty minor character in the grand scheme of things, but a committed vocal performance from Borstein keeps the character feeling fresh. Her character design is unique, as Luggins is a full-bodied, muscular, and menacing physical presence. While she's ferociously determined to take down the baddies, she often shows plenty of heart.
This is something that's frequently exploited by her enemies. For example, when she gets so very close to taking them down, Shark arrives in the nick of time, dressed as an elegant woman asking for directions to the bathroom. Instead of carrying on with her duties, she acquiesces, which allows Tarantula to finish pulling off the heist. She's a lot of fun to watch, and there's hardly a bad bone in her body. The closest she gets to evil is her views on criminal reformation, as she is left horrified by the plans to attempt to reform the baddies instead of locking them away for good. When it comes to downright villainy, though, Luggins is an easy choice for the bottom of the list.
7. Shark
Oh, sweet, sweet Shark (Craig Robinson). Sure, he's part of a pretty major criminal conglomerate that absolutely loves to pull off epic heists. It's clear why he's part of the group: He cleverly uses his size and status as a shark to instill fear into civilians, taking great pleasure in clearing beaches and sending people running away in terror. He's also something of a thespian, allowing Shark to regularly put his theatrical skills to the test and provide distractions for the group as the rest of the gang robs people without hesitation. His brightest acting moment comes when he's dressed in a dazzling red gown and fakes a pregnancy to distract a group of security guards so the gang can acquire the golden dolphin.
Make no mistake — Shark is a villain. He's more than willing to participate in heists and seems to take a great deal of pleasure in pulling them off. Compared to his fellow criminal aficionados, however, Shark feels far more interested in the performance aspects of criminality, preferring staged distractions over actually stealing. While Shark and his fellow crime-doers have mountains of gold and other exquisite treasures, there's little more that he wants than an ice-cold popsicle. Shark might be a criminal through and through, but if he was offered a career in the performing arts, he'd likely leave his criminal life behind in a heartbeat.
6. Governor Diane Foxington
A fox determined to make the world a better and brighter place, Governor Diane Foxington (Zazie Beets) is often seen alongside law enforcement and Officer Misty Luggins in an effort to restore peace to her constituents. When the police do finally apprehend the gang at an elaborate gala, Foxington surprisingly agrees to Professor Marmalade's plan to try and turn the bad guys into bonafide stand-up citizens, much to the dismay of Luggins. There's a hint of romantic interest from Foxington, who appears to have genuine chemistry with Wolf (though she met him while he was in a barely convincing disguise). Foxington wears her heart on her sleeve and truly wants to see the baddies improve, offering an impassioned plea to motivate Wolf to push for his gang to change their worldview.
So why is someone so determined to reform criminals and make the streets a safer place not at the very bottom of the list? In one of the movie's many wild, third-act twists, Foxington reveals herself to be none other than The Crimson Paw, a legendary thief. A criminal who is so impressive that she stole a legendary diamond twice — once to sell it for an enormous sum, and again just for the sheer pleasure of it. If this list was based purely on skill, you could bet on Foxington being at the very top, as her abilities to pull off epic heists all on her own and wiping out hordes of enemies are truly impressive.
5. Wolf
At first glance, the leader of the bad guys' gang, Wolf (Sam Rockwell), seems like villainy personified. Wolf is the character we get to know better than any other. We see him leading grand scale heists at extravagant galas, which result in the acquisition of immense wealth for him and his colleagues. He's also the leading force behind change in his crew, as he's the first to embrace the potential transition from bad to good. However, he assures his group that it's all for show. Their efforts to transition into goodness have a purpose, and it is to pull off their biggest heist to date: to finally steal the elusive golden dolphin.
Things change dramatically in the crime-loving Wolf's life when he stops an old lady from a potentially deadly fall. She calls him a good boy, and for the first time, Wolf feels a rush of joy, his tail adorably wagging uncontrollably. Wolf is at quite the crossroads for much of the film, as he tries to measure up his love of crime with a genuine desire to be a better person. Even though he's a criminal mastermind, he's also a character determined to do better. Plus, how can you find Wolf evil when he takes such pleasure in his relationship with an adorable cat he saved from a tree?
4. Tarantula
The lone lady in the criminal gang, Tarantula (Awkwafina) is the tech whiz of the group. She's probably the most integral character to the group's success, as her ability to bypass complicated technological systems provides something to them that's unique to the brute force and sly trickery of her companions. She's also able to use her size to her advantage. When not transporting via Shark's shoulder — she is a great deal smaller than her fellow criminals, after all — she's able to sneak around better than anyone else, easily infiltrating security rooms to upload her impressive programs that shut down defense systems.
Tarantula is also one of the most resistant characters in the group when it comes to reforming their bad ways. She delights in her abilities, and she's spent a lot of time perfecting them; why stop now? While Tarantula is deeply hesitant when it comes to being a model citizen, she gets into the groove eventually, thanks to a growing friendship with Foxington. There's no doubt Tarantula's skills will come in handy in fighting against evil, but she takes so much delight in thievery that being a villain will always be a part of who she is.
3. Piranha
There are a lot of really great character designs in "The Bad Guys," which allows for a group of characters with basic names to stand out, and nobody has a more strikingly lovable design than Piranha. Seeing the tiny little Piranha wear a series of increasingly adorable outfits almost makes you forget that he's the most violent and powerful bad guy in the bunch. He's always able, and incredibly willing, to get into a fight, and his power makes you wish you could run away faster. A vital part of the bad guys, Piranha is the brute force of the gang, though he regularly reminds us that he offers a lot more than just sheer brutality. His tongue is as sharp as his teeth, and he's got plenty of great one-liners and asides.
Piranha gets a real chance to show off his pipes, performing an amazing musical number as part of the team's efforts to steal the golden dolphin. It should come as no surprise that Piranha is played by the great Anthony Ramos, whose beautiful vocals were on full display in "In the Heights." Despite Piranha's penchant for brutality and violence and his deep-rooted love of crime, it's easy to see him pursue a career as a world-class crooner when the dust settles.
2. Snake
Don't let the charming red and white floral shirt and Panama hat fool you — Snake (Marc Maron) is just about as evil as it gets. He's Wolf's right-hand man and best friend, and the two are largely responsible for setting up the schemes for their grand robberies. While Wolf is moving the group steadily towards the world of goodness, Snake is without a doubt the most opposed of the bunch to the whole idea. He regularly checks in with Wolf to ensure that they aren't really crossing over to the good side, and that it's all still part of a major scheme.
In a stunning move, Snake ends up joining forces with Professor Marmalade to pull off the evilest quest imaginable, as he's devastated over Wolf and the gang trying to become good. It turns out, in a twist within a twist, that Snake is actually playing the long con on Marmalade, and his efforts to team up with him are actually part of an elaborate heist of Snake's own making to take him down. While this is certainly a heroic move, it speaks more to the incredible lengths Snake will go to con someone, and it's a choice that highlights the fact that of all the bad guys' propensity for villainy, none can quite compare to Snake.
1. Professor Marmalade
They say to never trust a wolf in sheep's clothing, but "The Bad Guys" reminds us that we should trust a guinea pig in wolf's clothing even less. Professor Marmalade (Richard Ayoade) at first appears to be the most generous philanthropist on the planet. A news reporter even refers to him as second to only Mother Teresa, though Marmalade rebuts that he's actually tied for first. That's our first subtle hint that there's a lot more to Marmalade than meets the eye. In the biggest third-act twist of all, it's revealed that Marmalade is the most sinister little guy in all the land.
His plans are laid bare: All of his endeavors to raise millions upon millions for charity have been in an effort to acquire a meteorite that has extraordinary power. His desire to reform the bad guys is purely selfish, as he uses them to be the ultimate distraction so he can get away with the prized possession. With it, he can harness incredible mind control powers and brainwash every guinea pig around to acquire a billion dollars of cold hard cash. There is plenty of glorious evil and delightful hijinks to be found in "The Bad Guys," but nobody is more downright rotten than Professor Marmalade.