Most Disney villains in the pantheon have at least one rage fit in their respective stories. Even patient or goofier villains, like Lady Tremaine and King Candy, have bursts of anger and impatience. When careful planning falls apart, minions are killed or proven horribly incompetent, and everything goes to the dogs, it feels good to just let it out.
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Many Disney villains are bad-tempered by nature. They are notorious for their constant rage and for taking their anger out on their minions and anyone else they have available. These tantrums are sometimes played for laughs, but the joke stops when the innocent victims get hurt. Sometimes, it gets to a point where even the minions are tired of their master's abuse and turn on them.
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10 Madame Medusa Has No Chill
The Rescuers
One of the lesser-known Disney villains, Medusa is loud, tacky, aggressive, and impatient. She's constantly insulting her assistant and smacking her pet alligators. She's one of those people who mistreat her equipment, like her car, and then wonder why it isn't working. She puts on a sweet, flimsy mask around Penny to get her to do things, but whenever Penny resists, the mask comes off.
The last straw comes when Medusa reneges on her companions. Penny and the rescue team escape. Her assistant abandons her and her alligators try to eat her. The movie ends with her clinging to a pipe, all her bluster gone.
9 Professor Ratigan Cannot Escape His Nature
The Great Mouse Detective
Professor Ratigan is the perfect image of the gentleman criminal. He's suave and smooth, elegant and eloquent. He has refined tastes in wine and art. However, he has two sore points that can send him into a rage. One is his nemesis, Basil of Baker Street, getting one over him. The other is calling him a rat. Either one typically ends in him feeding a henchman to his beloved cat.
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During the climax, Ratigan gets so angry that he loses all control and viciously pursues and attacks Basil. Right there at the end, he becomes that which he tried so hard not to be: a savage animal.
8 Prince John Is A Spoiled Child
Robin Hood
Prince John's childish tantrums are one of the highlights of the movie. He's almost constantly angry throughout the whole movie and abuses his lackeys over the slightest annoyance. His worst outbursts, however, happen whenever Robin Hood gets the better of him. He'll yell and scream, viciously beat his loyal servant, and suck his thumb while calling for mommy.
In his final defeat, John temporarily loses his mind and begins chasing Sir Hiss around the castle with a club, sucking his thumb the whole time. These tantrums make it difficult sometimes to take him seriously. He's frequently mocked and made fun of for it, even by his own allies. He's almost pitiful, but it doesn't stop audiences from joining in the fun.
7 The Wicked Stepsisters's Anger Is Their Mother's Weapon
Cinderella
Lady Tremaine and her daughters are an interesting inversion of the usual villain dichotomy. Instead of the main villain having a bad temper, it's the lesser villains who are bad-tempered. Lady Tremaine might snap at Cinderella once or twice, but for the most part, she's the most level-headed of the trio.
Lady Tremain's daughters, on the other hand, have neither patience nor self-control. When they're not fighting each other, they’re taking their frustrations out on Cinderella. Lady Tremaine encourages and even incites the abuse to keep Cinderella in line. Anastasia might get a redemption arc, but until then, she and Drusilla are quite a pair of ill-tempered young women.
6 The Queen Of Hearts Kills More Henchmen Than Any Villain
Alice In Wonderland
Out of all the classic Disney villains, the Queen of Hearts is the only villain who doesn't give her lackeys a second chance. Every time one of them makes her look bad or doesn't do what they're supposed to, it's off with their heads. This is a far cry from her book counterpart, who's mainly a bag of hot air who doesn't actually get anyone killed.
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The Queen of Hearts is also the only villain who doesn't suffer a brutal death or humiliating defeat. Instead, Alice escapes by waking from her dream. The Queen of Hearts doesn't get as much screen time as Alice, but she leaves a lasting impression on the viewers.
5 Gaston Is An Unassuming Villain
Beauty & Beast
Gaston's character was designed to be the worst kind of macho man and that includes constant anger and aggression. His temper isn't explosive or spectacular, but it isn't played for laughs often either. Gaston seems like a mere rude buffoon in the beginning, but in his second appearance, it becomes clear that his anger is a dangerous thing.
He'll lose his temper when he gets angry. He'll vent, growl, and smack his sidekick around. Once his temper has cooled, though, that's when things get bad for the heroes. Gaston doesn't kill his sidekicks, but he is a bad enemy to have. Thankfully, so is the Beast.
4 Captain Hook Is Scary Yet Funny When He's Angry
Peter Pan (1953)
Captain Hook has no qualms about murdering his men over small annoyances. His very first appearance in 1953's Peter Pan has him kill a man in cold blood just for singing too loud. Most of his outbursts, however, are reserved for his browbeaten assistant, Smee. While he values Smee enough to keep him around, poor Smee typically gets the worst of his anger.
Hook is capable of patience and restraint when the situation calls for it, but if it doesn't, he'll throw tantrums just as much as any other villain. For instance, he almost lost control while talking with Tinker Bell, but quickly calmed himself and remained courteous to her. On the other hand, he yelled at Tiger Lily when she stubbornly refused to cooperate with him.
3 Scar Bares His True Self In The End
The Lion King
At first, Scar doesn't seem to have much of a temper. While cruel to his henchmen, he seems to have more patience than most villains do. He even brings the hyenas dinner despite their failure to dispatch Simba. However, it quickly becomes plain that he's only being patient to earn their loyalty.
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Once Scar gets what he wants, he becomes nastier to them. His temper gets worse as the Pride Lands turn into a barren wasteland, and he starts cracking under the pressure. His worst show of anger was when he struck Simba's mother for daring to compare him to Mufasa. Finally, the hyenas get tired of his corruption and eat him.
2 Cruella De Ville Gets Road Rage
101 Dalmatians
They don't call Cruella de Ville the most outrageous Disney villain for nothing. On top of being a vicious puppy killer and a total diva, she also has one of the most volatile tempers of any Disney villain. She has an outburst over a dry pen and slams a door so hard, the glass shatters. Her temper is best demonstrated, however, by her terrible driving.
As she pursues the puppies, Cruella all but loses her mind. She wrecks her poor car and nearly kills herself, her henchmen, and an innocent truck driver just to get the puppies. When the chase ends in complete defeat, Cruella is so angry that she bursts into tears, too helpless and burnt out to do anything else.
1 Hades Literally Explodes With Rage
Hercules
While many Disney villains are famous for their tempers, Hades' temper is arguably the most famous. He loses it several times in the movie, and whenever he does, he literally explodes into flame. In one scene, he incinerates an entire forest. Strangely enough, he doesn’t kill anyone during these rages.
This is likely because his assistants, Pain and Panic, are immortal and all but immune to most forms of bodily harm, though they are certainly capable of feeling pain. As for Meg, Hades is surprisingly more careful around her, only shooting fire in her direction one time in the whole movie. Nonetheless, Hades' anger makes for a funny, and sometimes frightening, spectacle.
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