A villain is a character who opposes the protagonist of a story. Unlike heroes, villains often have no redeeming qualities and they act out of pure evil intentions. However, they’re not always purely evil--some villains are also complex and have good qualities. These are known as tragic villains. An example of a tragic villain is Shylock from William Shakespeare’s Merchant of Venice. He was a Jewish moneylender who was discriminated against and wronged by society and became an evil villain due to his desire for revenge.
A key element of a villain is their personality. Creating an intimidating persona isn’t easy but it can be done with the help of a good makeup and costume. A menacing look is achieved by narrowing the eyes and squaring the jaw. Shades of red are a great choice for villain costumes as they can be very threatening. Try to use a bright, bold red for outgoing characters or a deep maroon or brick red for a more reserved look.
To make your villain feel more realistic, give them a backstory that makes them seem relatable. This can be done by incorporating an aspect of their life that many people can relate to, like being from a broken family or feeling lost in their career.
The last step is to make sure that your villain doesn’t pass the moral event horizon. This means that they have crossed a line where the audience doesn’t want them to be redeemed. Torture is one of the biggest event horizons, but sexual violence, killing innocent animals, and hate crimes will also cause the audience to lose interest in your villain.