Highlights
- Star Wars villains strike fear into the hearts of fans, from the ruthless Grand Moff Tarkin to the vengeful and violent Darth Maul.
- The Grand Inquisitor and Mother Talzin are equally terrifying with their relentless pursuit and dark powers.
- Darth Nihilus and Darth Sidious showcase their unparalleled evilness and strategic brilliance, making them some of the most fearsome villains in the galaxy.
Star Wars is viewed as the ultimate battle between good and evil as the Rebellion, the Jedi, and the Resistance take on the evil Sith, the Empire, and First Order. One side is presented as the Light Side of the Force fighting for the good of humanity, while the other is the Dark Side and terrifying.
Many villains in Star Wars produce a fear factor that can scare any fan, from the youngest child to the oldest adult. Whether they are volatile, unpredictable of have an evil nature, these characters find a way to strike fear into the hearts of viewers and readers.
10 Grand Moff Tarkin
Grand Moff Tarkin is a human who shows no Force abilities during any of his appearances, but that doesn't make him any less villainous or frightening. He is cruel, intelligent, articulate, and ruthless. He climbed through the ranks of the Empire and was the only person other than the Emperor who could give orders to Vader.
He wouldn't beat any of the other frightening villains in a fight, but the fact that he carried that much sway with them without the same abilities or prowess makes him even more terrifying. He shows no fear even when the Rebels are attacking the Death Star, and he is always confident he and the Empire will win.
9 Grand Inquisitor
While the Inquisitors made their live-action debut in Obi-Wan Kenobi, they made their presence felt on Rebels. The Grand Inquisitor is essentially the second in command, with the Inquisitors behind Grand Admiral Thrawn. Deadly with a lightsaber, the Grand Inquisitor has a fearsome look with sharp teeth and yellow eyes.
The Grand Inquisitor takes joy in murdering the Jedi, and that can be seen in his relentless pursuit of Kanan Jarrus and Ezra Bridger. He shows almost no fear. The only time he seems scared is in the presence of someone higher up in the Empire, which makes him more intimidating when he squares off with rebels.
8 Mother Talzin
While not a traditional villain, Mother Talzin was no less scary than anyone else who wielded the Dark Side of the Force. She is a Dathomirian Witch who could manifest the Force through black magic. She used mind control, spiritual divination, and torture similar to voodoo.
Mother Talzin also spawned someone even scarier as she was the mother to Darth Maul. While Maul was a Sith, Talzin kept her allegiances to the Nightsisters. She had no evil ambition. She didn't want galactic domination, but she was still devastating to anyone who crossed her path.
7 Darth Maul
Watching the films in chronological order, Darth Maul is the first Sith apprentice Star Wars fans meet. He debuts as an iconic villain before being cut in half at the end of The Phantom Menace. While that would've been one great appearance, the cartoons brought him back to continue being one of the most frightening villains out there.
Maul is angry, vengeful and lusts for power. He is also violent and ruthlessly driven. Maul takes over the crime syndicate Crimson Dawn, turns Han's first love against him and tries to sway Ezra Bridger away from the Light Side of the Force. In the end, he still meets his end by Obi-Wan's blade.
6 Darth Nihilus
While little is known about this Sith Lord, what is known is enough to strike fear into the hearts of any person. Nihilus started out human, but his body was severely damaged by the Mass Shadow Generator superweapon. Nihilus essentially became one with the Force in one of the cruelest and most evil ways possible.
Nihilus developed a hunger for Force energy. He would absorb it from anyone he could find, especially his former master Darth Traya. He infused his spirit into his armor and mask to stay alive and led a campaign to try to annihilate the Jedi Order.
5 Darth Malgus
Darth Malgus is almost like a prototype for what would become Darth Vader. He and Vader dress similarly and have suffered devastating wounds requiring life support systems. Darth Malgus also took part in several Sith attacks on the Republic. He even entered a fake peace deal that made Coruscant easier to attack.
During the days of the Sith Empire, Malgus was loyal to the Sith but was often disillusioned with the then-Emperor's decisions. His insubordination led to Darth Ban implementing the Rule of Two for the Sith.
4 Grand Admiral Thrawn
One of the scariest Imperial officers the Rebellion ever faced, Grand Admiral Thrawn is considered to be one of the most genius villains ever in Star Wars. He is articulate, intelligent and ruthless in everything he does. This is demonstrated perfectly with his hunt for the crew of the Ghost during Rebels.
Thrawn has a deep understanding of the art of war and can identify treachery at every turn. He is also a skilled hand-to-hand combatant. It took Ezra Bridger and the Purrgil to remove Thrawn's threat during the timeframe of Luke Skywalker.
3 0-0-0
0-0-0 (sometimes called Triple-Zero) is the perfect antithesis to C-3PO when it comes to protocol droids. The droid's body is a dark silver and his photoreceptors glow a menacing red, making it easy to distinguish him from other protocol droids.
However, it was 0-0-0's programming that made him so terrifying. This evil droid once refused to shake hands with Darth Vader because he feared killing the Empire's second in command. 0-0-0 was known for torture and interrogation and draining the blood of his victims.
2 Darth Vader
Few villains in pop culture are as known or as feared as Darth Vader. When he is first introduced, his ominous black suit relays a presence of power and fear that few others can match. He threatens Leia, who only believes to be a Princess at the time, and tries to freeze his own son.
While that was fearful enough, the prequels and Rogue One have made him even more terrifying. He slaughtered an entire village of Tusken Raiders before he went full evil. Then, he would later kill a room full of children and the crew who were stealing the Death Star plans.
1 Darth Sidious
The only person more frightening than Darth Vader would be someone strong enough to control the Sith Lord. First a Senator, then a Supreme Chancellor and then finally an Emperor, Darth Sidious' rise through government as Palpatine was matched by his rise as the most powerful Sith as they made their presence known to the Jedi.
By appearances, Darth Sidious isn't too frightening, but he is always many steps ahead of his opposition. He killed his master, swayed two of the best Jedi to the Dark Side, took control of the Senate, and even created clones to continue life when he was inevitably betrayed. His look was creepy, but that brilliance is what made him truly terrifying.