Lucifer Fans Make It Abundantly Clear Who Their Least Favorite Character Is
"Lucifer" had an interesting journey on the small screen. Originally airing on Fox, the series was canceled after three seasons, much to the dismay of fans everywhere. Fortunately, that was only one chapter in the show's story, as Netflix swooped in like a guardian angel and resurrected the acclaimed fantasy series for three more seasons. "Lucifer" came to an end on its own terms back in 2021, but fans continue to celebrate its legacy to this day.
Loosely on Neil Gaiman, Sam Kieth, and Mike Dringenberg's DC Comics character of the same name, "Lucifer" centered around the eponymous fallen angel (Tom Ellis) as he navigated life in Los Angeles. The charming devil spent his time running a hip nightclub and helping the police solve crimes, proving that he wasn't as evil as religious history would have you believe. Living on Earth actually softened Lucifer, as he developed a soft spot for humanity in the end.
The title character was portrayed as likable and fun on "Lucifer," making it easy for fans to root for him. That said, the downside of having a good devil meant that other characters had to pale in comparison. "Lucifer" fans were divided over Eve, but there was one character on the series who was unanimously loathed by the show's base.
Lucifer fans cannot stand Michael
Every hero needs a villain to go up against. A yin to their yan. For Lucifer Morningstar, his twin brother, Michael (Tom Ellis), was that menace. Michael was a conniving, scheming, power-hungry villain who occasionally dabbled in identity fraud and generally made life hell for his sibling. In fact, some fans on Reddit believe that Michael was the worst character to ever grace "Lucifer."
"It's a testament to Tom Ellis' skill as an actor that you can adore Lucifer and absolutely loathe Michael. Such a slimy insecure creep," u/coterie wrote.
Fellow Redditor u/Grantorno agreed with this sentiment, stating that the writers should have "killed him off" because everyone hated the character. In the end, Michael was given a fate worse than death, yet it was one that offered him a chance to redeem himself eventually.
However, some viewers, such as u/Duckman896, sympathized with Michael and felt that his eventual punishment was too severe. "As much as Michael was an a******. Just leaving him to scrub the floors of hell seemed cruel and unresolved. Surely there is something else they could have had him doing."
Tom Ellis felt like a fraud playing Michael
Tom Ellis wasn't thrilled about playing Michael on "Lucifer." After all, he'd spent years playing the titular archangel and everyone had gotten used to him in that role by the time Michael was introduced in Season 5. For Ellis, changing characters was a strange experience, especially considering that Michael was the polar opposite of his sibling, despite their uncanny resemblance.
Ellis revealed that he felt like he was deceiving everyone who was accustomed to seeing him portray the suave, charming devil at the heart of the series. "It was such a strange feeling to start with because I'm so used to stepping into the skin of Lucifer and just, at a flick of a switch, going in and out of it," he told Syfy Wire. "[Playing Michael] was strange for me, to be honest. I did feel like a massive fraud a lot of the time."
The "Lucifer" star went on to say that his main goal was to make Michael feel "really different" from the title character. To accomplish this, Ellis and the creators gave the villainous angel an American accent and a hunched posture to counterbalance Lucifer's British bravado. These days, most fans would agree that the actor did a great job performing duel roles — even if they can't fully get behind Michael as a character.