Fantasy

Okay, so hear me out: queer-coded villains in fantasy are kind of… irresistible. Not in a “yay, evil!” way (though sometimes, yes, also that), but in that messy, juicy, fascinating way where you’re halfway through a book or movie and suddenly realizing you’d rather spend three hours in a morally complex debate with the villain than go to brunch with the hero. Like, yeah, they’re probably about to summon an ancient shadow beast or stab someone in the back with an obsidian dagger shaped like a bat wing, but also? They’re making a point.

Let’s just get this out of the way first: the queer villain trope has a long, messy history. Historically, a lot of them were coded as queer because writers couldn’t openly make characters LGBTQ+ without network censors freaking out. So instead, we got the slinky, sarcastic, well-dressed, emotionally repressed villain with perfect eyeliner and a penchant for elaborate monologues. Think Scar from The Lion King, or Jafar from Aladdin. (Disney, we see you.)

But here’s where it gets interesting: somewhere along the way, the queerness became part of what made them compelling, not just threatening. These characters often live outside the rules of the world around them. They’re not afraid to be other, to lean into their difference, to challenge systems. And for a lot of queer folks—myself included—there’s something deeply cathartic about watching a character who’s been rejected or misunderstood flip the whole system the bird and build their own tower of power. (Maybe literally.)

One of my forever favorites is Melisandre from Game of Thrones. Okay, yes, she’s technically not queer-coded in a sexual orientation sense (though I dare you to find a straighter woman who births a smoke demon). But she’s deliciously Other, mysterious, powerful, devoted to something everyone else thinks is nuts, and unapologetically herself. There’s something inherently queer in that rejection of social norms and that extravagant performance of belief.

Then there’s Loki. Ah, Loki. Tom Hiddleston smirking through ten thousand morally ambiguous decisions in Thor and The Avengers. Canonically genderfluid and pansexual in Norse mythology—and finally acknowledged as such (sort of) in the Disney+ series—Loki is the poster child for the chaotic queer archetype. Mischief isn’t just his title, it’s a lifestyle. And somehow, even while lying to literally everyone and trying to take over Asgard, he’s still sympathetic. Because underneath all the trickery is that wounded kid who was never enough for his dad. That hits harder than a Mjölnir to the gut.

But let’s not forget our literary babes. The Picture of Dorian Gray is practically one long queer villain origin story. Dorian is gorgeous, narcissistic, and fully corrupted by Lord Henry’s flamboyant nihilism. There’s something deeply seductive about watching him fall—gracefully, glamorously—into darkness. Oscar Wilde, who wrote it while living in Victorian England and facing actual prison for being gay, wasn’t exactly being subtle. The real tragedy? Dorian’s villainy isn’t just aesthetic—it’s a metaphor for repression, and what happens when desire gets buried too deep.

Now, obviously, it’s important to draw the line between complex characters and damaging stereotypes. We’ve had enough “the gay guy dies horribly because of his evil ways” stories, thanks. But when done right—when they’re not just queer-coded, but queer—these villains become something else. They stop being symbols of danger and start becoming avatars of agency. Power doesn’t have to look noble or straight. Sometimes, it looks like Ursula the Sea Witch, repurposed from Divine the drag queen and singing “Poor Unfortunate Souls” like she owns the ocean. (Which, let’s be honest, she kind of does.)

And then there’s Castlevania’s Carmilla. Oh my god. She’s like if you took every power-hungry, femme-fatale vampire trope and wrapped it in velvet and bisexual rage. The way she struts through that show—dripping sarcasm, rolling her eyes at incompetent men, and plotting world domination like it’s a wine tasting—it’s art. She’s not queer-coded. She’s queer, full stop. And she’s tired of men screwing everything up. Hard relate.

And while we’re on vampires: Interview with the Vampire‘s Lestat. Good lord, Lestat. I’m not saying Tom Cruise was giving deliberate queer energy in the 1994 version (though I am saying that), but in the recent AMC adaptation? It’s full tilt. The man is drama incarnate. He turns people into vampires because he’s lonely, throws blood tantrums when his undead boyfriends don’t love him enough, and monologues like a Shakespearean theater kid in eyeliner. It’s not just compelling—it’s vampiric gay chaos with a body count.

Let’s pop over to comics for a second—because you cannot talk about queer villains without tipping your hat to Mystique from X-Men. Shapeshifter, bisexual icon, deeply jaded revolutionary? Yes, yes, and hell yes. She’s one of those characters who is constantly blurring the line between right and wrong, self and other. Her queerness isn’t just in who she loves (though yes, Destiny, we know), it’s in her refusal to be fixed or defined. She literally changes her body whenever she wants. That’s pretty queer, philosophically speaking.

And She-Ra and the Princesses of Power gave us Catra. Look, if you didn’t feel something watching that emotionally damaged, jealous, brilliant lesbian cat-girl struggle with her feelings for Adora while also trying to conquer Etheria… I don’t know, maybe your heart is made of beige carpet. Catra is a modern blueprint for the queer villain-turned-antihero: traumatized, defiant, full of unprocessed affection and rage. And her redemption arc? Gorgeous. But even when she was Bad™? Still compelling as hell.

Quick detour into video games: Dragon Age: Inquisition gave us Samson, a tragic fallen Templar with an implied queerness that feels less token-y and more baked into the heartbreak of his character. He’s not evil because he’s queer—he’s a villain despite being queer, and the queerness is just part of his messy humanity. And don’t get me started on Final Fantasy villains like Kuja from FFIX, whose entire vibe is “gender is a prison and I’m showing up to the ball in feathers and vengeance.” Iconic.

And if we’re talking animated brilliance, let’s not skip over HIM from The Powerpuff Girls. Look, I know it’s a kid’s show, but HIM was doing devil drag before most of us knew what that even was. High heels, cravat, lobster claws, and a falsetto that could slice glass—he scared the crap out of me and made me question the gender binary. Duality, baby.

Bottom line? These villains stick with us not just because they’re queer or fabulous or damaged (though, sure, all of that), but because they’re multidimensional. They’re allowed to be vain and vicious and vulnerable and seductive and petty and powerful. They’re not just queer-coded throwaways anymore—they’re whole damn people, and we crave that.

I’d love to keep going, honestly, because once you start unearthing these characters, it becomes this little queer archaeology project: “Oh, this is why I was obsessed with Maleficent at age eight.” (Wings? Horns? The cheekbones?? Come on.)

Honestly, maybe what we love most about these characters is that they feel like they’ve had to fight for every inch of themselves. They’ve often been rejected, othered, and pushed to the margins—and instead of folding, they get fabulous. They sharpen their claws. They set the world on fire, but with style. And even when we know we shouldn’t root for them… we kind of do anyway.

So yeah. If your villain has emotional baggage, sparkling dialogue, and an aura of tragic fabulousness, there’s a good chance I’m rooting for them. Or at least writing fanfic in my head.

P.S. If you’ve got a favorite queer villain, send ‘em my way. I’m always looking to expand my League of Fabulous Evil.