Michael B Jordan Reveals His Two Greatest Movie Villains of All Time
The Black Panther star opens up about his legendary Killmonger role and shares which two iconic comic book antagonists he considers the absolute best in cinema history.
The Marvel Cinematic Universe had mastered casting its heroes, but creating memorable villains proved much trickier. Most early MCU bad guys were instantly forgettable until Michael B Jordan changed everything with his portrayal of Erik Killmonger in Black Panther. His character stood apart from typical antagonists because his anger made sense – an abandoned child who witnessed the racism and hatred his people endured worldwide, he felt driven to seize control of Wakanda to make a difference.
While Chadwick Boseman's King T'Challa believed in peaceful solutions, he hadn't experienced global racism the way Killmonger had, making the villain's mission feel more urgent than simple peacekeeping efforts.
What Makes a Great Villain
Speaking with W magazine, Jordan explained why complex antagonists like Killmonger work so well. These nuanced bad guys "are the most interesting characters," he noted. Even when their methods are destructive, viewers can connect with their reasoning. "They are the ones you can empathize with," Jordan added. "They want you to not like them, but you can still understand their motivation."
Jordan shared an amusing example of this complexity: "Even though you're the villain in Black Panther, do people on the street still say 'Wakanda forever' to you? They don't immediately realize that my character is not exactly pro-Wakanda. Midway through saying something, it registers: 'Oh, he wasn't really with Wakanda'. But, by then, they've already committed."
Jordan's Ultimate Villain Picks
When asked to name his favorite screen antagonists, Jordan couldn't choose just one. "It's a tie" between Heath Ledger's Joker and Michael Fassbender's Magneto, he revealed.
Ledger's Joker transformed superhero movies forever when The Dark Knight hit theaters. Christopher Nolan's crime thriller explored deep themes about escalation, obsession, and heroism, but Ledger's chilling performance stole the spotlight. Though Ledger tragically died before the film's release, his portrayal became a cultural phenomenon and earned him a posthumous Oscar for Best Supporting Actor.
Unlike Killmonger's relatable motivations, Ledger's Joker wasn't sympathetic, but he raised fascinating questions about society's acceptance of chaos. Fassbender's Magneto offers a different kind of tragedy – he starts as Charles Xavier's friend before darkness consumes him.
The Evolution of Magneto
Ian McKellen had already brought Magneto to life in the original X-Men trilogy, but Fassbender added fresh layers starting with X-Men: First Class. His version revealed Erik Lehnsherr as a Holocaust survivor hunting down his mother's killers while slowly embracing vigilante justice.
Disney's acquisition of 20th Century Fox ended Fassbender's run as Magneto with Dark Phoenix, but rumors suggest the upcoming Avengers: Secret Wars might reunite fan-favorite characters from different universes. This could finally create the showdown between Jordan's Killmonger and Fassbender's Magneto that fans never knew they wanted.