10 Best Evil Sorcerers in Movies, Ranked

These masters of the dark arts are the best of the worst.

Everybody loves a good villain; there are hardly better villains than evil sorcerers. The fantasy genre is full of incredible characters, but magic users will always rank highly in popularity and the power scale. Sorcerers are usually the most memorable figures in their movies, and if they are evil, their cool factor increases exponentially.

These evil sorcerers are among the most iconic characters in fantasy. Powerful, occasionally over-the-top, and consistently awesome, these figures are memorable and mighty, leaving a lasting mark on cinematic history and improving the fantasy genre with their devious deeds.

Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness is far from a perfect movie, but it's one of the most ambitious entries in the MCU. Sam Raimi's unmistakable style is an inspired choice for a magic story, and the director delivered one of the best magic fights in recent memory, featuring the disgraced Strange variant, Sinister Strange.

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Sinister Strange was corrupted by the Darkhold, leading to his universe's destruction. He is considerably powerful but fully dependent on the Darkhold, making him a mighty but easy-to-defeat opponent. Sinister Strange has only a few scenes in the film but leaves a lasting impression thanks to his striking look and creepy third eye.

One of the darkest Disney classics is also one of its most underrated. The Black Cauldron follows Taran, a young pig herder tasked with protecting the prophesying pig Hen-Wren. When the evil Horned King steals the pig, Taran must go on a dangerous quest to rescue the animal.

The Black Cauldron is an incredible dark fantasy adventure powered by a dark story and an excellent villain. The Horned King is cold, calculating, and ruthless; in short, he's among the best Disney villains. He is also a magic user, although he barely shows his abilities throughout the film, only using them to teleport and summon the spirit within the Black Cauldron.

The iconic David Bowie stars as Jareth, the Goblin King, in the cult classic fantasy film Labyrinth. The plot centers on Sarah, a 16-year-old who must venture into a massive, fantastical maze to rescue her baby brother from Jareth, the king of the goblins.

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Although he isn't necessarily a villain, Jareth is Labyrinth's main antagonist. Charming and manipulative, Jareth is a powerful, shape-shifting illusionist and sorcerer who uses his army and abilities to delay Sarah's quest. Jareth can fly, manipulate time, and completely controls his mighty kingdom and its army of goblins.

The 1977 animated dark fantasy film Wizards remains severely underrated. The film follows the battle between two wizards, Avatar, representing the gentler side of magic, and Blackwolf, who uses military technology to enhance his abilities and conquer Earth.

Wizards balances thought-provoking themes with a distinctive visual style, delivering a unique animated adventure. Blackwolf is an excellent villain; cruel, maniacal, and ruthless, Blackwolf is a Nazi-like figure with his sights set on world domination. Powerful and unafraid to use his newly-enhanced powers, Blackwolf is one of cinema's great underrated sorcerers.

The MCU has numerous villains, but only a few truly stand out: Loki is one. Played by Tom Hiddleston across multiple movies and shows, Loki is Thor's adopted brother, a powerful sorcerer and illusionist who longs to rule Asgard. He spends years pursuing the throne, allying with numerous evil foes to achieve his goals.

Loki is mischievous and treacherous. On top of his ability of crafting near-perfect illusions, he is also a capable hand-to-hand combatant with a resourceful mind and a gift to escape death, even if it seems certain. Many have underestimated him, with disastrous consequences.

The beloved 1997 animated classic Anastasia offers a heavily fictionalized version of the titular character's life. Reframing the story with magic elements, the film presents Grigori Rasputin as a powerful sorcerer who provokes the Russian Revolution with a curse after being exiled by the Romanovs.

Anastasia is among the all-time great animated movies, and Rasputin is a large reason for its success. Voiced by the always excellent Christopher Lloyd, Rasputin is an undead creature of pure hatred, refusing to die out of spite. Powerful and in control of a powerful army of demonic spirits, Rasputin is a brilliant villain who ranks among the all-time great animated antagonists.

Aladdin is one of the best movies of 1992, a charming and dazzling tale of magic and one of Disney's most beloved classics. Adapted from the famous Arabic folktale, the plot follows the titular character, a street thief who uses a magic lamp to pretend to be a prince and earn Princess Jasmine's love.

The film's main antagonist, Jafar, is the sultan's Grand Vizier, a power-hungry sorcerer obsessed with ruling the kingdom. Jafar is a master manipulator, using his magic staff to hypnotize his victims. Once he steals the magic lamp, he wishes to be the most powerful sorcerer in the world before becoming a genie himself. Jafar is extremely powerful but subdued by the magic lamp.

The Princess and the Frog marked Disney's return to traditional hand-drawn animation. Loosely based on the Brothers Grimm's tale "The Frog Prince," the film follows Tiana, an ambitious woman in New Orleans who becomes a frog after kissing a prince turned into a frog by a powerful witch doctor. Tiana and the prince must find a way to lift the spell before it's too late.

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The film's main villain, Doctor Facilier, is one of Disney's coolest. Voiced by the incredible Keith David, Facilier is a powerful and suave sorcerer capable of mighty magical feats with the help of his "friends from the other side." With a memorable personality and one of the best villain songs in the Disney canon, Facilier is an instantly iconic and formidable sorcerer.

Academy Award nominee Ralph Fiennes plays Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter series. Known throughout the Wizarding World as the most powerful dark wizard to have ever lived, Voldemort strikes fear in the hearts of every wizard and witch, to the point where they are terrified to even speak his name,

Voldemort is incredibly powerful, capable of magical feats previously unseen in the Wizarding World. Cruel and outright inhumane, Voldemort splits his soul into seven pieces, making himself nigh-immortal. Voldemort can also match Dumbledore in a one-on-one magical duel, although he notably never wins against his former mentor.

Middle Earth has several powerful beings, but few can match Saruman's might. Arguably the most powerful being behind the Dark Lord Sauron, Saruman the White is the leader of the Istari Wizards and a servant of Sauron.

Saruman has a more active and meaningful role in Peter Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy than in J. R. R. Tolkien's novels. He is as ambitious and cunning, displaying considerable power throughout the first two films even before allying himself with Sauron. Saruman is a mighty opponent and a worthy villain for the saga, even if he isn't the ultimate evil in Middle Earth.

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David is a 29-year-old Mexican writer and reader. Having studied Marketing in school, he spent three years working a nine-to-five desk job before deciding to pursue a writing career. He now works as a Senior Writer at Collider and contributes to other entertainment sites, specializing in movies and television while occasionally looking into video games and comic books. Currently, he's also writing his second novel while actively working on getting his first one published.