Why These Movie And TV Villains Look So Familiar

Will Smith's hip-hop genie became the main talking point when the first images from Disney's live-action retelling of Aladdin were released in 2018, but the internet was also fascinated by the studio's choice for the movie's villain. The term "Hot Jafar" was soon coined, and it's not hard to see why. In the 1992 animated classic, the treacherous Jafar is gaunt and decidedly unattractive (the animators are thought to have based the character on Conrad Veidt's antagonist of the same name from 1940's The Thief of Bagdad), though the actor portraying him in the remake is neither of those things. He's undeniably easy on the eye, but why does Hot Jafar look so familiar?

Marwan Kenzari is a Dutch actor who has spent the majority of his career to date working in Europe. He received widespread recognition in his home country after delivering a powerful performance in the 2013 crime drama Wolf, playing a recently paroled Moroccan kickboxer. Wolf put him firmly on Variety's radar, but it would take Kenzari a few more years to really start making inroads in Hollywood.

In 2016 he played alongside Anthony Hopkins, Felicity Jones and Nicholas Hoult in crime thriller Collide, and that same year he popped up in the big budget Ben-Hur reboot. 2017 proved a busy year for the jacked actor, who managed to properly establish himself Stateside with appearances in The Mummy, Netflix film What Happened to Monday, and Kenneth Branagh's version of Agatha Christie's Murder on the Orient Express.

James Wan's Aquaman was a billion-dollar hit for Warner Bros. and DC, thanks in no small part to a charismatic performance from its lead, Jason Momoa. The former Game of Thrones star enjoyed himself in the title role, but the supporting cast is also worthy of plaudits, especially the secondary villain. Take nothing away from Patrick Wilson (who provided adequate foil as Aquaman's warmongering half-brother King Orm), but in the scenes that he was given, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II really impressed as Black Manta.

The actor knew nothing about Black Manta prior to winning the role, but immediately became a fan of Aquaman's enigmatic nemesis after some research. "To me, Black Manta is not after world domination," Abdul-Mateen II told The IMDb Show. "He's not a villain. I don't think he's a villain. He wants one thing, a simple thing, which is revenge. My goal going into this was to steal as many fans away from Jason Momoa, and to pull them over onto my side."

The film's mid-credits scene suggests that he'll have another chance to bolster the Black Manta fan club in Aquaman 2, but if you can't wait until then, here's where else you can see Abdul-Mateen II in action — just don't expect to see him shooting red laser beams from his eyes. He played Cadillac in Baz Luhrmann's aborted Netflix show The Get Down, and in terms of feature films, he chipped in with supporting roles in the Baywatch reboot, smash hit musical The Greatest Showman, and Jordan Peele's Us.

A great many people expected the sniveling General Hux to meet his end in 2017's The Last Jedi, even Domhnall Gleeson. "I kind of imagined myself getting blown up in a ship pretty early on," the Irish actor told MTV's Happy Sad Confused podcast (via ScreenRant). The ambitious First Order officer will be extremely lucky to survive the events of The Rise of Skywalker, given the underhanded nature of his character. Gleeson excels in making Hux unlikable, but he's actually playing against type.

The Star Wars actor is the son of Brendan Gleeson, best known for his turn as Mad-Eye Moody in the Harry Potter films. This is where Domhnall first came to the attention of international audiences, playing Bill Weasley in the two-part franchise finale. Since then, he's made some incredibly smart choices. The actor has worked on a string of critically acclaimed films, from indie projects like the thought-provoking Frank and Oscar winner Ex Machina to big Hollywood productions like The Revenant and American Made. Show anyone under 12 a photo of Gleeson, however, and they'll likely say two words: Peter Rabbit.

Gleeson played grouchy gardener Mr. McGregor in the 2018 adaptation of Beatrix Potter's classic children's stories. It was far from high art, but that doesn't make it any less valuable to the actor. "A movie does not have to be serious to mean something, or to matter to people," he told The Independent. "Home Alone means as much to me as some really serious dramas. It's very similar to The Godfather, if I'm honest."

Fans of AMC's The Walking Dead will no doubt recognize the bushy upper lip of Steven Ogg, the actor who portrayed Negan's ruthless right-hand man Simon. He was the secondary antagonist for two and a half seasons and almost became the chief villain, but his coup against Jeffrey Dean Morgan's Negan didn't go to plan and he ended up just another walker. Even half-rotting and chained to the fence outside of the Sanctuary, Ogg looks annoyingly familiar, and here's why.

The Canadian played a fashion photographer in his first ever movie, 1999's Giving it Up. He was cast as an artist in Law & Order the following year, and he's largely plied his trade on the small screen since (the Henry Rollins vehicle He Never Died, in which Ogg was again the antagonist, being one notable exception). He appeared in the CBS cop drama Unforgettable and made a memorable cameo on Comedy Central's Broad City, though more recently he played a host in HBO's Westworld.

Ogg's most widely seen role (outside of TWD) isn't in film or television, however. The actor played the unhinged Trevor Philips in Grand Theft Auto V, the most successful game ever by some distance — it's sold over 90 million copies and generated an insane $6 billion in revenue. Ogg's pitch-perfect motion-capture performance has made him a legend among the fans. "I have been so thrilled that the GTA fans have responded so positively to the performance," he told BuzzFeed News. "They have enjoyed his impulsive, psychopathic nature but have reveled in his humor."

Gotham creators pulled off a shock when they revealed that the Riddler was being controlled by Bane, but that wasn't the only villain twist season 5 had in store. In the season's tenth episode, "I Am Bane," we learn that Bane was created by Theresa Walker, who is actually Ra's al Ghul's daughter, Nyssa al Ghul. The character is portrayed by Jaime Murray, who at the time was best-known for playing meth addict-turned-abstract artist Lila in Dexter. Lila was the titular serial killer's lover and the hit show's primary antagonist during season 2. It may have escaped your notice, but Murray has pretty much been a constant on American TV since.

She went on to appear in two teen dramas on the CW (Valentine and The Beautiful Life), and followed that up by playing redheaded Roman Gaia in Starz prequel series Spartacus: Gods of the Arena. The show expanded Murray's already large lesbian fanbase, something she greatly appreciates. "I got Spartacus and I was with Lucy Lawless (Lucretia), who was one of the biggest lesbian icons out there," Murray told Metro. "That show was way beyond its time and the first to really go into that territory. I realize that women really like seeing that."

Post-Spartacus, Murray has held down recurring roles in Sarah Michelle Gellar vehicle Ringer and Vampire Dairies spinoff The Originals (both CW shows), and more recently provided the voice of scheming vampire noble Carmilla in Netflix's hit anime adaptation Castlevania.

Madrid-born actor Sergio Peris-Mencheta didn't have any interest in the performing arts until he got involved in his school's drama program. The curious student caught the acting bug and decided to switch career paths (he initially planned to study law), a move that paid off in 1998 when he won a part in the Spanish soap opera Al Salir De Clase. He appeared in hundreds of episodes of the show before leaving (his character was conveniently killed in a car accident) to concentrate on making movies.

Peris-Mencheta quickly established himself in the Spanish film industry, but he didn't make his first assault on Hollywood until 2010, when Love Ranch came out. The athletic actor played a former boxer in the story of Joe and Sally Conforte, the married couple who ran the first legal brothel in the United States. He had to gain 40 pounds to play Armando Bruza, the film's version of Argentine heavyweight Oscar Bonavena. "I was supposed to be out of shape," Peris-Mencheta said. "Because Bonavena was out of shape. It was the end of his career... he was 33 years old, but he looked 45."

More recently, Peris-Mencheta has plied his trade on FX's Snowfall and he also showed up in Life Itself, Dan Fogelman's disappointing follow-up to This Is Us. He'll be hoping that Rambo V: Last Blood is better received by the critics — he's playing cartel leader Hugo Martínez, the action film's big bad.

Introduced in season 3 of The Handmaid's Tale, High Commander George Winslow is "at the center of the power structure of Gilead," as the man who portrays him puts it. Christopher Meloni debuted in the episode "Household," hosting Commander Fred Waterford and his wife Serena at his Washington home. "Fred comes with an idea... to make the story of Gilead and what we're doing not so onerous to outside nations," the actor explained.

Meloni was grateful when he got asked to join the cast of The Handmaid's Tale, not only because it's "an important show," but also because it was a chance to work with Ann Dowd again — the pair were on Law & Order: Special Victims Unit together. "It was beyond cool," Meloni said of the reunion. "12 years on SVU and I think I had seven or eight favorites, and she absolutely topped the list."

Many people recognized Meloni from SVU ("Is this Law & Order: Gilead or something?" Cosmopolitan quipped), but where else have you seen him? He's done several feature films (the most prominent being 12 Monkeys, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, and Man of Steel) but his most memorable work has been on the small screen. He played inmate Chris Keller on HBO's Oz; vampire Roman Zimojic on True Blood; and, more recently, he starred in Happy!, the TV adaptation of Grant Morrison's crazy comic. "It's a licence to be insane," Meloni said.