The Greatest Star Wars Villains, Ranked
By Lance Cartelli on

The Most Evil Beings in a Galaxy Far, Far Away
There might not be more evil beings in a galaxy than in the Star Wars universe. Following the latest film in the saga, Solo: A Star Wars Story, we've got another villain to add to list of vile creatures.
Join us as we rank the best of the worst and share their most villainous moments.

19. Director Orson Krennic
The Director of Advanced Weapons Research for the Imperial Military, Orson Krennic oversaw the construction of the Death Star in Rogue One. He later lost control to the malevolent Grand Moff Tarkin.
Krennic might be evil, sure, but all he’s trying to do is impress his boss. And we can’t really blame him for that.
(Photo: Walt Disney Pictures)

17. General Grievous
Grievous should be one of the most vicious villains in the saga. He’s got freakin’ robot arms equipped with lightsabers from fallen Jedi.
So why doesn't he rank higher? It's because the cyborg Sith could have done so much more evil with his nearly unlimited power.
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)

Stormtroopers' Most Villainous Moment
Stormtroopers come in all shapes and sizes, too. Some are much more deadly than others. As a whole, the stormtroopers' most evil moment has to be when Palpatine used Order 66 to turn the army against the Jedi Order.
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)

Jabba the Hutt's Most Villainous Moment
Crime lord Jabba has lots of villainous moments, from sending his personal dancer to her death in the rancor pit to putting Princess Leia in chains. His worst moment, however, is when he refuses to accept payment to spare Solo's life, instead ordering he and Luke be fed to his pet sarlacc.
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)

11. Darth Malak
The genocidal Dark Lord of the Sith was the main antagonist in the Knights of the Old Republic game. Malak was on a mission to become the most powerful being in the universe by acquiring the Star Forge, which had the capability to destroy the Jedi Order and the Republic.
(Photo: Bioware)

6. Darth Maul
Darth Sidious’ first apprentice, Darth Maul brought a flair and quiet viciousness to Star Wars villains that we hadn’t previously seen. Equipped with a double-bladed lightsaber, Maul made every battle more entertaining, but he didn’t really add much other than that.
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)

5. Supreme Leader Snoke
We never learned much about the Supreme Leader in his appearances in The Force Awakens and The Last Jedi. But from what we did see, Snoke was a callous leader hellbent on domination. Before being assassinated, the Force-sensitive Snoke was on a galactic conquest to exterminate the Jedi and the Resistance.
(Photo: Walt Disney Pictures)

Kylo Ren's Most Villainous Moment
Like his grandfather, Darth Vader, Ren struggled with the temptations of the dark and light side. Ren's most villainous moment is a no-brainer: The dark Jedi killed his father, Han Solo, by stabbing him with a lightsaber and then tossing him down a mine shaft.
(Photo: Walt Disney Pictures)

2. Emperor Palpatine
Palpatine was quite the mystery in the original Star Wars trilogy, until he flexed his Force muscles to show his true power. Despite appearing old and frail, Palpatine's understanding of the Force and his ability to manipulate even the most powerful beings in the galaxy made him one of the saga’s greatest bad guys.
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)

Emperor Palpatine's Most Villainous Moment's Most villainous Moment
While the cackling Sith lord was behind the deaths of countless Jedi — including Mace Windu — Palpatine's most evil moment was when he tortured Luke Skywalker with his devastating Force Lightning in Return of the Jedi.
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)

Darth Vader's Most Villainous Moment
At his core, Vader is a horror-movie villain who does nothing but conquer, and that’s why it's so tough to pick only one moment where he's at his most evil.
The Sith lord's most villainous moment is probably when he first turned to the dark side and "killed not only the men, but the women and children too."
(Photo: 20th Century Fox)