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Ever watched a film and realized the character you were cheering for was the antagonist all along? This video explores 10 movies that masterfully pull the rug out from under the audience with shocking character revelations.
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00:00There are plenty of films that follow the action of the villain, such as American Psycho, Joker and Scarface.
00:06However, some stories pull a fast one, tricking the audience into believing such characters are the good guys.
00:12And only when the curtain is drawn does it become clear the heroes have conned us all.
00:17Sometimes viewers amongst us will wonder how they didn't see the truth sooner.
00:21Maybe the main character didn't realise they were wicked, or maybe the villain was a really, really good liar.
00:27So with that being said, I'm Jem from WhatCulture.com and here are 10 more movies you did not realise
00:33you were following the villain.
00:35Number 10. The Iron Giant
00:37After overactive child Hogarth sees a strange light in the forest, he ventures out to explore the woods and discovers
00:43a metal-eating robot who fell from the stars.
00:46Despite his intimidating appearance, Hogarth quickly develops a deep bond with the giant and also becomes incredibly protective of his
00:53new friend,
00:54knowing government officials will mistake the giant as a destructive weapon.
00:58That's why it's crushing to learn that giant is a destructive weapon.
01:02When the towering automaton sees Hogarth using a toy gun, a self-defence program causes him to instinctively attack the
01:10boy.
01:10In that moment, it becomes as clear as day the giant was initially designed to destroy.
01:15After Hogarth seemingly dies, the giant's initial programming activates, causing him to blast everyone and everything in sight.
01:23Even though Hogarth convinces the giant to abandon his destructive crusade, it's terrifying to think of what could have happened
01:30if he didn't.
01:31Also, a deleted scene shows how the giant's race has laid waste to numerous worlds, causing them to implode.
01:38Although he ultimately chose peace, it is possible the giant has taken countless lives in the past.
01:44Number 9. Samaritan
01:46Julius Avery's superhero flick centres around the super-powered Samaritan and his villainous twin, Nemesis.
01:52The story takes place 25 years after the siblings fought one another, leading to Nemesis' death.
01:58Hungry for power, gang leader Cyrus proclaims himself as the new Nemesis and begins inciting chaos throughout the city.
02:05Though Samaritan has tried to live as a civilian for decades as Joe Smith, he's forced to come out of
02:11retirement to stop Cyrus.
02:12When Cyrus taunts Joe for playing the hero, Joe informs him that he is the bad guy.
02:18In a flashback, it's revealed how Samaritan defeated Nemesis but refused to kill him.
02:22When the ground gave way, Nemesis watched Samaritan plummet to his demise, despite his best efforts to save him.
02:29After Samaritan spared his life, Nemesis swore to dedicate his life to peace to commemorate his fallen brother.
02:35Interestingly, Nemesis never lies about his identity at any point in the story.
02:39When he repeatedly denies he's Samaritan, it looks like he's protecting his secret identity.
02:44And when he tells others that Nemesis died that night, he is, in the words of Obi-Wan Kenobi, telling
02:50the truth from a certain point of view.
02:53Number 8. The Others
02:54The Others follows Grace Stewart, played by Nicole Kidman, a mother of two who lives in an isolated country house.
03:01Grace keeps her home in perpetual darkness to accommodate her children, Anna and Nicholas, who suffer from severe photosensitivity.
03:08When she notices the curtains around her home have been removed, Grace believes someone's trying to harm her children.
03:15After several supernatural incidents occur, Grace is convinced her house is haunted.
03:20Though Grace's concerns are proven correct, it's not in the way she presumes.
03:25In the third act, Grace discovers she and her children are The Others, and have been unintentionally haunting the real
03:31residents of the house.
03:33Grace remembers how she lost her mind when her husband died in the war, compelling her to smother her children
03:38before taking her own life.
03:40When Grace returned as a ghost, she convinced herself the murder-suicide she performed was nothing more than a bad
03:47dream.
03:47Upon learning this, the children are relieved to see they are no longer vulnerable to light.
03:52Nevertheless, it is horrifying how they have been reborn as wandering spirits that are unable to move on because of
03:58their mother's horrific actions.
04:01Number 7, Unbreakable
04:02In Unbreakable, David Dunn, played by Bruce Willis, is involved in a horrific train accident that results in the death
04:09of everyone on board, except for him.
04:11Soon after, he encounters comic book collector Elijah Price, played by Samuel L. Jackson.
04:16Since Price was born with brittle bones, he always believed there was someone on the other side of the spectrum
04:22who was immune to injury, and tells David he was given this power to help those in need.
04:27Dismissing Elijah's claims at first, David later embraces his destiny, becoming a street vigilante who protects the innocent and punishes
04:35the wicked.
04:35In the closing moments, it's revealed that Elijah was so obsessed with finding an indestructible saviour, he orchestrated several tragedies,
04:44including the train crash that befell David.
04:47Elijah shows absolutely zero remorse for his actions, believing the people he had murdered were a necessary sacrifice to find
04:54his hero.
04:55Not only is this a shocking revelation, it feels like a genuine betrayal to the audience.
05:00All this time, viewers thought Elijah Price was some sort of superhero mentor like Professor X, unaware that he was
05:07actually pretty much the opposite.
05:09Number 6. Red Notice
05:10Red Notice opens with FBI profiler John Hartley, Dwayne Johnson, arresting master thief Nolan Booth, Ryan Reynolds, after he tries
05:19to steal a bejeweled egg.
05:21Unfortunately, the artifact is swiped immediately after by another thief, Sarah Black, played by Gal Gadot, before John has a
05:28chance to track her down.
05:29Interpol arrests him after he's implicated in the theft.
05:33Out of desperation, John is forced to work alongside Nolan to track down Sarah, retrieve the egg and clear his
05:39name.
05:39Now, there are countless films like The Fugitive or Minority Report that follow this formula.
05:45As such, there's little reason to believe that the authorities' wild claims about our hero are actually valid at all.
05:51But after John locates Sarah during the climax, he reveals they were in on it from the beginning, proving that
05:57the authorities' suspicions were actually spot on.
06:00Upon revisiting Red Notice, there are stacks of hints that John is not who he says he is.
06:04In fact, he flat out says, I'm the bad guy, the first time he meets Nolan.
06:08Since he throws this line away, first-time viewers assume he's being sarcastic.
06:13But in reality, John gives away the twist in the opening five minutes.
06:18Number 5. The Founder
06:19The Founder starts off as a typical underdog story, with struggling salesman Ray Kroc selling milkshake machines when he stumbles
06:27upon a drive-in restaurant called McDonald's.
06:30After speaking to the sibling owners, Maurice and Dick, the three agree to expand the business together.
06:35And following many trials and tribulations, Kroc turns McDonald's into a global fast food chain, making him billions.
06:43On paper, the Founder sounds like an uplifting story, if not for one issue.
06:48Ray Kroc is a tyrant. He worked extremely hard, we'll give him that, but he stepped on everyone to accomplish
06:55his goals.
06:55At first, Kroc's behaviour seemed somewhat justified.
06:59After all, business men and women have to be ruthless to make it to the top, right?
07:03However, it becomes impossible to defend Kroc when he goes against his partner's wishes, sabotages the original restaurant, and abruptly
07:11leaves his wife too.
07:12The stress of it all is too much for Maurice, causing him to go into a diabetic shop.
07:17But rather than recognising that his erratic behaviour almost killed him, Kroc pushes the McDonald's brother to sell him the
07:24business while he's vulnerable.
07:26Despite getting what he wanted, Kroc did not stop there.
07:29He never gave the McDonald's brothers the royalties he promised, which were worth $100 million annually.
07:35To spite them further, Kroc set up a McDonald's across the street from the original restaurant, putting the brothers out
07:41of business.
07:42Although Kroc often comes across as a jerk, it's only in the third act when viewers really realise what an
07:48absolute monster he is.
07:49Number 4. Nightmare Alley
07:51From the get-go, it's apparent that Nightmare Alley's protagonist, Stan Carlyle, is a big manipulator.
07:56Carlisle pretends to be psychic to worm his way into people's hearts and wallets, although he doesn't come across as
08:02a typical bad guy, since he starts off as a down-on-his-luck bumpkin who's just trying to make
08:07ends meet.
08:08When he rebrands himself into a suave psychic for aristocrats, it's hard not to be impressed by his transformation, but
08:14he goes a bit too far.
08:16A powerful industrialist named Grindle asks Stan to speak to a dead woman, Dory.
08:20Since Grindle blames himself for her death, Stan realise he can milk this deal.
08:25So instead of giving Grindle a straightforward cold reading, Carlyle offers multiple spirit sessions, bleeding his client dry.
08:33And rather than leaving it there, Stan convinces his partner to meet Grindle while impersonating Dory's spirit.
08:39By making this decision, Stan is no longer just telling his customers what they want to hear, but giving them
08:44false hope.
08:45And when Ezra sees through the ruse, Stan murders him and his bodyguard.
08:50Somehow, it actually does get worse, as a flashback reveals Carlyle lived with his bedridden father before pursuing his deceptive
08:57lifestyle.
08:58Tired of caring for his old man, Stan killed him so he could start his life anew.
09:03So not only is Stan Carlyle now a cold-blooded killer, he always has been.
09:083. Saltburn
09:09In Saltburn, loner Oliver falls in love with a handsome jock called Felix Catton, played by Jacob Elordi, shortly after
09:16starting at Oxford University.
09:19After the two hit it off, Felix invites Oliver to his luscious family estate to Saltburn.
09:24Though Oliver tries to enjoy him, Felix's family routinely makes jabs at him, causing a lot of friction in the
09:32house.
09:32Now, it is obvious early on that Oliver is deeply disturbed, especially after watching that scene.
09:39But viewers should still be rooting for Oliver, considering his horrific upbringing.
09:43So when Felix learns Oliver lied about his tragic life for attention, it is evident that he's far more two
09:49-faced than the Catton family could have imagined.
09:52However, the extent of Oliver's deception is only truly comprehended near the end.
09:57Oliver manages to kill, or permanently remove, every single Catton from the Saltburn estate, allowing him to become the solitary
10:04owner.
10:05In the last few minutes, a flashback reveals how Oliver manipulated his boyfriend and his family since day one.
10:12At first, Oliver came across as a pretty weird dude, but after watching the final scene, there is no question
10:19that Oliver is a complete psychopath.
10:21Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below, and while you're there, drop us a like, share and
10:26subscribe too.
10:27Number 2. A Perfect Getaway
10:29In a perfect getaway, newlyweds Cliff and Sydney are on their honeymoon in Hawaii when they meet another couple, Nick
10:35and Gina.
10:36After hearing reports of a man and woman committing murders in the area, tension between the four is sky high.
10:42However, when Gina checks out Cliff and Sydney's so-called wedding photos, she's horrified to see that they are of
10:48a different bride and groom, meaning the newlyweds are the reported serial killers.
10:53What makes this twist effective is how the film spells it out in almost every single scene.
10:58For instance, one of the first things Sydney says to her partner is,
11:02Are you insane?
11:03Later, when Cliff pulls out a wad of cash, he seemingly jokes that he robbed a bank.
11:08Elsewhere, Nick says he recognises Cliff's face, implying he's seen him on the news,
11:13and although the film opens with footage of Cliff and Sydney's supposed wedding, they themselves are never actually seen at
11:18that wedding.
11:19And number 1. The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
11:22In the movie, Jean Brodie, played by Maggie Smith, teaches at a strict all-girls school that's overseen by Miss
11:28McKay.
11:29Unlike the other tutors, Jean is a passionate free spirit who refuses to abide by the rules.
11:34Rather than just focusing on the curriculum, Jean pushes her doting pupils to break down barriers, explore their passions, and
11:41forge their own paths.
11:43When McKay tries to fire her, it's not hard to cheer when Jean pulls the stuffy-head mistress in her
11:48place.
11:49When it turns out that Jean admires some questionable figures, such feelings appear to stem from naivety rather than malice.
11:56On the surface, our whimsical protagonist seems like the mentor every student dreams of having.
12:02But over time, it's unmistakable that Jean's demeanour is a calculated performance.
12:07Slowly but surely, the charismatic teacher is proven to be a delusional, hypocritical, and deceitful bully.
12:13She doesn't just manipulate her students, but grooms them, using her dogmatic views to encourage one student to venture into
12:20the war, which leads to her death.
12:22What's worse is Jean shows zero regret or shame no matter how often her influence wrecks the lives around her.
12:30She often plays the victim, almost like she's oblivious to how destructive her actions are.
12:34Unlike the other entries on this list, there isn't a specific moment when the penny drops.
12:39Due to the subtlety of Jean, different people pick up on her true character at different times,
12:45but once viewers recognise how staggeringly manipulative she is, they'll find it hard to believe they ever sided with her
12:51in the first place.
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