What is the Difference Between Villain and Antagonist?

The word villain traditionally summons up a certain image. We often think of someone in a black cape. Someone laughing manically while swirling their red wine from a comfy chair. They order the death or banishment of anyone who even mildly displeases them.

Many of them are more complex, with deep, tragic backstories and insecurities. They can, and should to at least some degree, be actual relatable characters. One of the most basic elements of villainy, no matter how complex or sympathetic, is antagonizing the heroes in some way. If the villains aren’t firmly standing between the heroes and their goals, then they’re just not doing their job!

Although, any character who gets in the way of a hero is not necessarily a villain. To put it in a straightforward way, villains are always antagonists, but antagonists aren’t always villains. What’s the difference between the two? Well, to answer that, we need to look at what makes a villain.

One of the most iconic characters in popular media largely fits with the above description of a villain.

(He’s wearing nothing but black, and his cape is the ominously in the wind. That’s how you tell he’s the bad guy. Image from Soul Caliber 4.)

In 1977, audiences first heard that deep, rasping breath as Darth Vader sauntered into the aftermath of a space battle and casually took in the destruction. Since then, the black-clad figure who is “more machine than man” has become one of the…