Audiences are fascinated by anti-heroes, villains, and morally complex protagonists. Movies likeAmerican Psycho,The Godfather, andGone Girlall benefit from examining unlikeable protagonists.
RELATED:The Best Romantic Comedies on Netflix Right Now
However, there’s nothing worse than watching a movie where you hate the lead character, yet the filmmakers are somehow unaware of how detestable and annoying they are.Think Jar Jar Binksfrom theStar Warsprequels, Sam Witwicky inTransformers,or Bella Swan fromTwilight. It’s incredible how some directors manage to misjudge how unlikeable their “heroes” are.
Light Turner — ‘Death Note’ (2017, US)
You’d be hard-pressed to find a movie adaptation that so thoroughly misses the point of the original asAdam Wingard’s2017Death Note. In the anime and manga, Light Yagami is a Machiavellian genius with delusions of grandeur who uses a death god’s “Death Note” to kill people he considers “undesirable”. He gets away with his crimes by utilizing his charm, quick wits, and coolness to evade suspicion. In the 2017 U.S adaptation, Light Turner (Nat Wolf) is an overly emotional fool.
Though the writers insist through the dialogue that Light Turner is a genius, they fail to show it. He parades his Death Note in public, kills people in his general vicinity, and uses the notebook primarily as a tool to impress a girl (Margaret Qualley’sMia). What completely ruins this movie’s pale imitation of Light, (Light-lite?), is that Wingard refuses to make Light a villain. Moral ambiguity is stripped away from the protagonist, asMia is now the repository for all the evil tendenciesexhibited by the anime’s Light. Instead of a cool anti-hero akin toBreaking Bad’sWalter White, Light-lite is an insufferable child that somehow is more unlikeable than the mass murderer of the anime.
Jarrod — Eagle Vs Shark (2007)
Taika Waititi‘smovies are beloved by audiences for being packed with whimsy and charm. But this was not always the case.Eagle Vs Sharkis Taika’s directorial debut, and it’s a rough one. It’s a dry, quirky New Zealand rom-com that entirely missed the mark.
It’s a bad sign in a rom-com when the viewers hope that the couple never gets together in the end. The usually brilliantJemaine Clementis a dud here as Jarrod, a monotonal video game clerk with the charisma of a wet sock. Our heroine Lily (in a sympathetic performance byLoren Horsley) inexplicably falls for Jarrod despite him being the living embodiment of all the worst clichés of gamer-bro culture. He’s emotionally stunted, psychologically negligent, and a total bore. It’s only due to the rom-com checklist that Lily gets back with Jarrod at the end despite him treating her like trash. Lily rejecting Jarrod wouldn’t have madeEagle Vs Sharka good movie, but it would have at least made it a pleasantly average one.
Diana (AKA Dawn) — ‘Identity Thief’ (2013)
Identity Thiefis an unimpressive broad comedy aboutMelissa McCarthy’sDiana stealing the identity ofJason Bateman’sSandy. Over an excruciatingly bloated 111 minutes, Diana causes great physical and emotional distress to Sandy, as he desperately tries to get his life back on track. Diana is cruel, disgusting, and a compulsive liar whose behavior is downright evil at times.
Melissa McCarthy, likeAdam SandlerandWill Ferrell, has made a career out of playingdeplorable characters who grow into sympathetic people. McCarthy and director Seth Gordon try this same trick inIdentity Thief, but here it rings as insincere and manipulative. There is a typical makeover scene in which Diana puts on a nice dress and transforms in front of Sandy’s eyes as corny music swells. However, the movie doesn’t put in the effort to show why Sandy would come to like Diana at all. After the monstrous and dangerous things Diana does to Sandy, it’s frustrating to see him give her a free pass just because he feels sorry for her.
Troy Dyer — ‘Reality Bites’ (1994)
Ben Stiller’sdirectorial debutReality Biteswas a hit with angsty teens in 1994. It follows the tumultuous relationship between Troy (Ethan Hawke) and Lelaina (Winona Ryder) as they navigate thedisaffected landscape of the early 90s.
Lelaina and Troy are self-entitled jerks, but Stiller is unaware of how unlikeable they are. Troy in particular is a pretentious tool who mooches off his friends and justifies his casual cruelty by hiding behind his supposedly high IQ. Instead of portraying Troy as the selfish man-child, he is,Reality Bitesinstead frames him as an enlightened bad-boy who just needs to be understood. Lelaina unceremoniously dumps her nebbish but compassionate boyfriend Michael (Ben Stiller) for the crime of not being as “with-it” as Troy. It is appropriate Lelaina and Troy end up together, as they’re both miserable people. If only the movie was aware of that fact…
Tony Manero — ‘Staying Alive’ (1983)
In 1977’sSaturday Night Fever,John Travolta’sTony Manero is introduced as a hot-headed teenager obsessed with disco. Throughout the film (accompanied by some iconic tunes), Tony gains perspective about life following a myriad of sobering events that open his eyes to race, sex, and empathy. It’s a fantastic character arc for a coming-of-age movie, which is why it’s so baffling that writer-directorSylvester Stalloneresets Tony back to an immature brat in the oft-forgotten 1983 sequelStaying Alive.
RELATED:The Secret To Saturday Night Fever’s Success
Staying Alivesees Tony regress to misogynistic tendencies and obnoxiousness that permeated the character 6 years earlier. He cheats on his girlfriend while rising through the ranks of a New York theater company by back-stabbing his peers and sleeping with the star dancer Laura (Finola Hughes). For his indiscretions, he is rewarded with the lead role in a gaudy Broadway show called “Satan’s Alley” and his girlfriend (Cynthia Rhoades) forgives him, despite only groveling back to her after he’s rejected by Laura. Tony Manero’s complete departure back into a callous abuser is the final nail in the coffin of this embarrassing follow-up that everyone, especially Stallone, would love to forget.
Tyler — ‘The Visit’ (2015)
Never has a character embodied the word “cringe” as thoroughly as Tyler (Ed Oxenbould) in the 2015found-footage horror movieThe Visit.AnM. Night Shyamalanjoint,The Visitcenters around Tyler and his aspiring filmmaker sister Becca (Olivia DeJonge) visiting their grandparents for the first time. They soon discover that they’re in grave danger, as their initially sweet “Nana” and “Pop Pop” become increasingly unhinged when the sun goes down.
The most terrifying scenes in the film are not the horror moments, but the attempts by M. Night to be funny. Tyler is an aspiring rapper. Unfortunately for viewers, he reminds everyone of this fact by constantly breaking into freestyle. He also has a gimmick of using famous pop-star names in substitute for swear words, and it is extremely annoying and predictable. It wasn’t the director’s intent to make Tyler so unlikeable that you’re actively hoping the elderly couple takes him down, butShyamalan has never exactly been the most “aware” filmmaker.
Laurie Strode — ‘Halloween 2’ (2009)
Halloween 2(2009) is the sequel toRob Zombie’sHalloween(2007), not the originalHalloween(1978). It is also the second film calledHalloween 2,afterHalloween II(1981). It’s safe to say that the Halloween franchise is a mess, and ifHalloween Killsis any indication, it’s only going to get worse. The one stand-out aspect of Zombie’sHalloween 2, that being how irritating, unpleasant, and off-putting his version of Laurie Strode is.
RELATED:‘Halloween’ Movies Ranked from Worst to Best
Scout Taylor-Comptontakes over the role of Laurie fromscream queen legendJamie Lee Curtis, and the results are shocking. Though Scout is a talented actor who puts everything into the role, Laurie inHalloween 2is the human equivalent of nails on a chalkboard. Rob Zombie thinks that having his lead constantly screeching obscenities and throwing hissy-fits at her friends makes for compelling drama. Spectators are supposed to sympathize with Laurie due to the horror inflicted on her in Zombie’s firstHalloween, but in the end, they just hope for Michael Myers to take her out, so a more compelling hero can take her place.
Willy Wonka — ‘Charlie And The Chocolate Factory’ (2005)
Not since Jared Leto’sJokerhas an actor managed to ruin an iconic character with such ferocity. What makes this Willy Wonka so unforgivable is that we already have a perfect, 3-dimensional Wonka embodied by the irreplaceable Gene Wilder.Johnny DeppandTim Burtonmutateeveryone’s favorite chocolate connoisseurfrom a mischievous genius into an exasperating man-child with no relatable human emotions.
From the discountMarilyn Manson-esque costuming, to his alien mannerisms, to his ear-piercing voice and laugh, this Wonka reminded audiences more of a sleep-paralysis demon than a beloved children’s character. Gone are the subtle nuances of Wilder’s wide-eye performance. Here, Depp attacks the viewer’s senses with blunt-force unpleasantness. It also doesn’t help that Burton insists on upping the murky visuals and wide-angle lenses that only exacerbate all the flaws in Depp’s performance. We can only hopeTimotée Chalamet has more respect in his upcoming performanceof the legendary Willy Wonka.
Kitai Rage — ‘After Earth’ (2013)
One of the most notorious bombs of the 2010s,After Earthis a so-bad-it’s-good classic among many other titles by writer-director M. Night Shyamalan. Though the main facilitators inAfter Earth’s failure are thefather-son duo of Will and Jaden Smith. A clear vanity project by the Smith family,After EarthstarsWill Smithas stoic future warrior Cypher Rage (no, really?) andJaden Smithas his fail-son Kitai Rage (yes, really). Cypher is disappointed that his son is unable to “Ghost”, a technique wherein a soldier suppresses all fear. They soon find themselves crash-landing on a hostile planet (it’s Earth!) where Kitai has to protect his injured father and travel across treacherous landscapes to save the day.
RELATED:Dave Bautista to Star in M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Knock at the Cabin’
Jaden Smith is much more famous for his weird tweetsthan his acting, and for good reason. Even if Jaden was a good actor, he wouldn’t be able to save the character, as the script is fundamentally broken. Watching Kitai flail around, constantly making dumb decisions, and ignoring the advice of his father, despite Cypher being humanity’s greatest fighter, is an annoying experience. It’s only through plot contrivances and narrative conveniences that Kitai survives for more than 30 minutes.
Paul Ashworth — ‘Fever Pitch’ (1997)
It’s an extraordinary feat to makeColin Firthunlikeable. Somehow, directorDavid Evansachieved this miracle by casting Firth as Paul, a mad football fan who places his beloved Arsenal above anything in the world. A budding romance between Paul and fellow high school teacher, Sarah (Ruth Gemmell) is put through the wringer as Ruth has to cope with Paul’s fanaticism, which results in endless temper tantrums from him when his team loses.
There’s nothing wrong with loving a sport. There is however a massive problem with obsessing over a team to the point where one becomes furious and viciously lashes out at their partner. Paul is yet another example of a toxic character whose ugly behavior is rewarded with a relationship with a kind-hearted woman at the end. Paul is a miserable character who brings down the mood wherever he goes, not exactly the best lead for a romantic comedy.
