Many powerful villains have appeared throughout the years in live-actionDCmovies, but some of them are considerably more dangerous than others due to a variety of factors. DC’s power levels are rather inconsistent across all media. Sometimes the Flash is powerful enough to reboot the whole DC Universe, sometimes Superman wields the power of a million suns, and sometimes Batman is able to defeat Darkseid despite his lack of superpowers. Power levels are a little more consistent in the movies, with most movie Supermen struggling to save the world from apocalyptic threats andmost live-action movie Batman portrayalsfocusing on more realistic enemies.
The DC Extended Universe introduced some of the most powerful DC characters ever translated to live-action. For instance, Henry Cavill’s DCEU Superman is able to destroy the world inthe Snyderverse’s apocalyptic Knightmare timeline, and the whole Justice League failed to stop him in a one-against-all present-day battle inZack Snyder’s Justice League.DC movies have also presented extremely powerful villains, though their sheer strength and energy aren’t the only qualities that make them dangerous threats to the Earth and the universe. Their intellect, cunning, and cruelty also play a big role in their power.
10The Titanides
Shazam: Fury of the Gods (2023)
Shazam: Fury of the Godsmay not be the most serious of DC movies, but it does feature three powerful mythological characters that could pose a serious threat to the whole world.Helen Mirren’s Hespera, Lucy Liu’s Kalypso, and Rachel Zegler’s Anthea are three DCEU Titanides, daughters of Atlas and Nyx. As nearly immortal mythical figures,Shazam: Fury of the Gods’three villainous sistersare naturally strong, fast, durable, and agile. Hespera possesses telekinesis, can control the elements, and can cast magical spells. Anthea can manipulate matter and reality, and Kalypso can control minds.
In classic mythology, Atlas' daughters are called “Pleiades”. Atlas' sisters are the Titanides.
The Shazam family are able to contain and defeat the Titanides, but not without a sacrifice, as Billy Batson dies fighting the villains' dragon. It’s only because of Anthea’s reluctance, Darla’s connection to the unicorn, and Billy’s sacrifice that the Titanides can be stopped, and it’s only thanks to Wonder Woman that Billy is able to see another day. Otherwise, Hespera, Kalypso, Anthea, and their mythological creatures would have been able to destroy Philadelphia and move on to neighboring cities. Hence,Shazam: Fury of the Gods' Titanides are Justice League-level villains.
9Enchantress
Suicide SquadandThe Suicide Squadfollow a similar sequence of events.The Suicide Squad’s Starro is quite a challenge for Amanda Waller’s second Task Force X, as the monster can infect and control anybody with its offspring. However, Waller’s first Task Force X team have it more difficult. Cara Delevigne’s Dr. June Moone is just the mortal vessel that Enchantress uses to ground herself on Earth. The real Enchantress is an immensely powerful interdimensional being worshipped by ancient civilizations.Enchantress is connected to a source of almost unlimited magical power, and apart from her god-like physiology, she’s able to control minds, look into the past, and become intangible.
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Together with her brother Incubus, Enchantress comes close to destroying the world at the end ofSuicide Squad. What takes Enchantress' threat to another level is her weakness: sheer strength, energy, or magic are ineffective against the DCEU’s Enchantress, and the only surefire way to kill her is by destroying her heart. Amanda Waller is able to keep Enchantress under control by holding her heart, and Task Force X stops Enchantress by stabbing it. With a similar plan to General Zod, similar abilities to Hespera and Maxwell Lord, and a very specific weakness, Enchantress' defeat is nothing short of a miracle.
8Ares
Wonder Woman (2017)
Justice LeagueandZack Snyder’s Justice Leagueshow how Darkseid’s Apokoliptian forces forced the Amazons, the Atlanteans, humankind, and the ancient Greek gods to join forces in order to stop the invasion.Wonder Womanestablished that Ares singlehandedly massacred the Greek pantheonafterward. Therefore, it’s clear that Ares is one of the strongest characters in the whole DCEU. As the god of war, Ares can also manipulate minds and exacerbate conflicts, which allows him to initiate World War I in the DCEU’s fictional timeline.
In DC lore, the Olympian gods are Old Gods, and the New Gods include characters such as Darkseid and Mister Miracle.
Ares could have claimed the title of most powerful DC movie villain, but his lack of strategy is his biggest flaw. Ares could easily keep a low profile and cause a nuclear war, yet he chooses to stick around as a public figure on the side of the Allied Powers. The DCEU’s god of war also tries to befriend Diana Prince to distract her, and he doesn’t take her power seriously, which leads to his death. By the end ofWonder Woman, Ares is also way past his prime, so Wonder Woman is able to defeat him just with Steve Trevor’s help.
7Steppenwolf
Justice League (2017) & Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)
Steppenwolf is the reason the DCEU’s Justice League assembles for the first time inboth the DCEU’sJustice Leagueand Zack Snyder’sJustice League. As Darkseid’s uncle and servant,Darkseid is an incredibly strong extraterrestrial being with access to Apokoliptian technology and manpower, including Boom Tubes and Parademons. Steppenwolf beats up most of the Justice League and kills multiple Amazons effortlessly. InJustice League’s theatrical cut, it’s Steppenwolf who attempts to invade Earth eons ago instead of Darkseid.
The Justice League succeeds in resurrecting Superman, and Superman wipes the floor with Steppenwolf
Despite his innate power and his vast resources, Steppenwolf is terribly incompetent. Steppenwolf has the upper hand in every single one of hisJustice Leaguebattles, yet he keeps retreating and letting his Parademons deal with the heroes. Steppenwolf could easily pause his quest to retrieve the Mother Boxes and take some time to defeat the Justice League before continuing. In the end, the Justice League succeed in resurrecting Superman, and Superman wipes the floor with Steppenwolf. Steppenwolf’s relative weakness is confirmed at the end ofZack Snyder’sJustice League, where Wonder Woman decapitates Steppenwolf.
6Ocean Master
Aquaman (2018)
Patrick Wilson’s Orm Marius a.k.a. Ocean Master is just as powerful as his half-brother Arthur Curry a.k.a. Aquaman, and he’s much more ruthless and experienced in battle due to his lifelong training in Atlantis. However,what makes Ocean Master more dangerous than stronger DC movie villains is his influence over the underwater world. If all the underwater kingdoms agreed and Aquaman weren’t there to stop him, Ocean Master could launch a cataclysmic attack on the surface world, destroying all seven continents before any human could prepare.
Aquaman is the DC hero with the largest territorial reach on Earth
Ocean Master becomes even more dangerous for a brief time in his second DCEU appearance, asAquaman and the Lost Kingdom’s Black Tridentcorrupts Orm’s mind temporarily. Possessed by the Black Trident’s dark magic, Ocean Master could attack all seven kingdoms and all seven continents. Fortunately, Orm has already abandoned his villainous intentions by the time he arrives in the Kingdom of Necrus, which allows him to break free of the Black Trident’s influence. Black Manta, on the other hand, isn’t so lucky.
5Doomsday
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Doomsday is one of the most powerful villains in DC Comics history. By definition,Doomsday is an unstoppable entity, as he cannot be killed the same way twice, and damage only makes him stronger and more durable. The villain who famously killed Superman in the comics achieves the same feat in the DCEU’sBatman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, where Superman, Wonder Woman, and Batman’s efforts aren’t enough to stop the beast, and Superman sacrifices himself to kill it with a Kryptonite spear.
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Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’s Doomsday is capable of destroying the whole world on its own. This process would be much slower than other supervillains' plans given Doomsday’s animalistic nature. Still, no government would be able to stop Doomsday, as confirmed by the US Army and the US government’s reaction to their failed nuclear attacks on the monster. At this point in the DCEU timeline, it would be next to impossible for anybody other than the Trinity and Lex Luthor to fabricate Kryptonite weapons in time.
4General Zod
Man of Steel (2013)
General Zod might be the DCEU villain who has come the closest to destroying the Earth, partly because the world’s metahumans weren’t active at the time, but mostly because he had everything he needed to achieve it.General Zod is just as powerful as Superman, to the point that Henry Cavill’s Superman is unable to overpower him at any point inMan of Steel. This is the reason why Superman has to resort to lethal force in order to prevent further damage.
Zod was genetically designed to conquer, meaning that he can’t be bargained with
Like his mutated form Doomsday, Michael Shannon’s General Zod is technically capable of destroying whole cities singlehandedly. Compounded with his strategic mind and his Kryptonian weapons, General Zod’s sheer physical power makes him an extremely dangerous antagonist. Besides, Zod was genetically designed to conquer, meaning that he can’t be bargained with.The Flash’s final battleconfirms Zod’s unstoppable nature — it’s impossible for Sasha Calle’s Supergirl, Michael Keaton’s Batman, and two versions of Ezra Miller’s Barry Allen to stop Zod’s invasion in an alternate timeline. The only way Flash can save the world is by tinkering with the flow of time.
3Parallax
Green Lantern (2011)
Villains from non-DCEU and non-DCU movies generally rank lower in DC’s power hierarchy. However, one of the least popular DC movies ever introduced an incredibly powerful antagonist who could beat many DCEU and DCU villains. Despite focusing on Hal Jordan’s origin story,Green Lanternfeatured the Green Lanterns' biggest enemy, Parallax.Parallax is the very embodiment of fear — powerful enough to consume entire planets and corrupt both Guardians and Lanterns alike. Parallax’s long incubation period is one of the villains' only weaknesses.
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Unlike world-ending threats like General Zod, Doomsday, and Enchantress, Parallax moves incredibly quickly. Parallax feeds on fear, growing stronger with each victim as they succumb to terror during his attacks. While courage is the best weapon against him, the Green Lanterns and the Guardians of the Universe struggle to maintain the bravery needed to resist Parallax’s overwhelming fear. Ryan Reynolds' Hal Jordan makes a name for himself among the Lanterns by throwing Parallax into the sun. In the comics, though, even Hal Jordan buckles and becomes Parallax’s human vessel for some time.
2Darkseid
Zack Snyder’s Justice League (2021)
Darkseid hasn’t gotten the chance to be the main antagonist of a DC movie yet.Zack Snyder’s Justice Leagueadded several Darkseid scenes back into the team-up movie, setting up future movies that, unfortunately, will never be made. While the DCEU’s Darkseid barely displayed his power,Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice’s Knightmare visions andZack Snyder’s Justice Leagueconfirm that Darkseid can take over the universe.Not only is Darkseid powerful enough to kill the whole world’s metahumans, but he’s also clever enough to give the dirty work to others, including Steppenwolf and Superman himself.
The Anti-Life Equation makes Darkseid virtually invincible
InZack Snyder’s Justice League’srevised flashbacks, it’s Darkseid who attempts to invade Earth instead of Steppenwolf. This means that in his prime, Ares is strong enough to wound Darkseid. However, present-day Darkseid seems to be much stronger than all other DCEU villains, at least on a physical level. To top it off,the Anti-Life Equation makes Darkseid virtually invincible, and his evil influence on Superman gives him a virtually invincible bodyguard.
1Dark Flash
The Flash (2023)
In Reverse Flash’s absence, the most dangerous live-action DC movie villain is Dark Flash, introduced in Andy Muschietti’s DCEUThe Flash. In theory, Dark Flash is much weaker than most DCEU villains on a purely physical level, as he’s not only a regular human with access to the Speed Force, but also a younger version of Barry Allen with little experience as a superhero. However,Dark Flash is slightly faster than Ezra Miller’s prime Barry Allen at his peak speed, making him the fastest speedster in the live-action DCEU multiverse.
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Apart from his speed, Dark Flash resides in the Speed Force itself, and his powers damage the time-space continuum. While fighting the original Barry Allen in the Speed Force, Dark Flash breaks down the fabric of the DCEU and causes the whole universe to clash with other universes. Dark Flash is also stuck in a time loop, meaning that there’s nothing the original Barry Allen can do to stop him but go back in time and undo his own actions. By the end ofThe Flash, Dark Flash has caused every character in theDC Extended Universeto disappear without anybody noticing.
