5) Simple Villains CAN Work (But Give Them Motivation)
Superheroes movies are only as good as their villain. If you don’t allot a proper amount of time for your antagonist, then your movie WILL suffer for it. So often you see film that may nail the heroes, but lack a proper adversary to balance it out. JL‘s antagonist Steppenwolf was a suitably imposing force, but he won’t be topping many “best of” lists – if any.
His motivations are quickly glossed over and he offered little more to the movie than a strong fighter. He mentions being exiled and how he’ll regain his place in his society, but it’s only once and is a mostly throwaway line. Without an easily-identified motivation, viewers didn’t really have a means of connecting with the character. It makes sense why they didn’t want to dedicate too much time to a villain when the focus is on the heroic ensemble, but Steppenwolf’s backstory is one that was perfectly interesting enough to allot some time to develop on screen. Instead, there’s a quick “this is who he is” narration scene and then it’s over.
For a frame of reference in how to do a simple version, use MoS‘s General Zod. He gets a limited amount of set-up, but the movie firmly establishes his personality and motivations right away. These motivations are maintained throughout while still providing a character that’s never bad for the sake of it. Simple villains like Steppenwolf CAN work well, but similar to the heroes they face, they need some screen time to earn the audience’s attention/hatred.