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How to Write a Villain Who Wants Something of Their Own

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A villain stops reading as a cardboard cutout once they want something of their own, for reasons that hold from their side. One author of a book on story goes further: the same goal as the hero.

A rival, not only an obstacle

Wikipedia defines the antagonist as "the main enemy or rival of the protagonist". The word is built on a Greek verb meaning "to contend for a prize".

An antagonist does not have to be evil. "Characters may be antagonists without being evil – they may simply be injudicious and unlikeable for the audience."

It does not even have to be a person. A tidal wave, or "Societal norms or other rules", can fill the role.

The villain is the narrower case. StudioBinder's guide draws the line: "A villain is an antagonist whose methods create genuine harm through violence, manipulation, corruption, or destruction."

A goal, and a reason for it

The same guide separates two things a flat villain often lacks: "Goal is external. Motivation is internal." The goal is what the villain wants in the world; the motivation is why they need it.

Its conclusion: "A villain with a goal but no motivation becomes a plot device. A villain with both becomes a character."

It lists four qualities that the strongest screen villains tend to share:

  • a specific goal;
  • a deeper motivation;
  • a meaningful relationship to the hero;
  • a moral framework they believe in.

The same prize as the hero

The author John Truby takes the relationship further. As Wikipedia summarises him, a true opponent "is competing with the hero for the same goal", not only blocking the hero's desire.

In the same article, Truby explains why it matters. Competing for one goal is what forces hero and opponent "to come into direct conflict and to do so again and again throughout the story."

The passage comes from The Anatomy of Story, pages 46 to 47 of the 2008 edition. The Greek root had already said it: to contend for a prize.

A logic that holds from their side

Wikipedia gives the villain's structural purpose: to "serve as the opposite to the hero character", with "their motives or evil actions" driving the plot.

A writing-practice site, The Write Practice, describes what writers can defend "In many stories": "in the villain's own mind, they are the hero of their own story." These villains "truly believe that what they are doing is right".

Not every villain works that way. The same post names Hannibal Lecter as possibly "one of the only exceptions to this trope": "He knows the wrongs he commits, and he's energized by them."

At the other end of the range, Wikipedia describes the sympathetic villain, anti-villain or tragic villain. It has "the typical traits of a villainous character but differs in their motivations."

Their intentions "may coincide with the ideals of a greater good", but "their actions are inherently evil in nature."

The scenes that show a villain

The Write Practice builds its advice around six scenes:

  1. The Backstory
  2. The First Look
  3. The First Confrontation
  4. The Hero's Temporary Defeat
  5. The Monologue
  6. The Moment of Partial Redemption

On the fourth, it is direct: "you have to be willing to let your hero lose . . . at least for a while."

Five questions to ask your antagonist

Put side by side, the sources become five questions. Here they serve as a diagnostic, not a mould: they show what a draft already does.

  1. What do they want, in the world? The external goal, in StudioBinder's terms.
  2. Why do they need it? The internal motivation.
  3. Is it the hero's goal too? Truby's test: one prize forces both into the same scenes.
  4. What do they believe is right? In many stories the villain is the hero of their own story, says The Write Practice; Lecter may be an exception.
  5. Where does the hero lose to them? The temporary defeat, one of the six scenes.

One way into the fourth question is a scene drafted from the antagonist's point of view, even one that never reaches the book.

In Scrin, a note written between double percent signs (%%like this%%) stays in the draft, visible while you write. It never counts toward the word count, and no export includes it unless you ask.

Questions

How do you write a villain who isn't flat? Give them a goal of their own and a reason for it. In StudioBinder's words: "A villain with a goal but no motivation becomes a plot device. A villain with both becomes a character."

What is the difference between an antagonist and a villain? An antagonist is "the main enemy or rival of the protagonist", and need not be evil or even a person. A villain, in StudioBinder's definition, is an antagonist whose methods "create genuine harm".

Should the villain want the same thing as the hero? John Truby argues that a true opponent "is competing with the hero for the same goal". Competing for one goal is what forces the two into direct conflict, again and again.

Does a villain have to believe they are right? Not always. In many stories, says The Write Practice, "they are the hero of their own story". It names Hannibal Lecter as a possible exception, who knows the wrongs he commits.

What scenes does a villain need? One writing-practice guide names six: the backstory, the first look, the first confrontation, the hero's temporary defeat, the monologue and a moment of partial redemption.

What is a sympathetic villain? One with the typical traits of a villain but different motivations. In Wikipedia's words, their intentions "may coincide with the ideals of a greater good", while their actions are "inherently evil in nature."

Sources