A Brief History of Nerds Becoming Supervillains

As anyone who has ever read an internet comment section knows, many disenfranchised nerds seem to take on the role of bully as soon as they get a little bit of power. So it goes in superhero movies as well, with many a bespectacled dweeb gaining superpowers and then using them to take on the comic book heroes we know and love. Check out ComingSoon.net’s rundown of A Brief History of Nerds Becoming Supervillains in the gallery below!

Why does Hollywood keep going back to this trope? Do they see it as a reflection of the audience that reads comic books? Is it a way of slyly subverting the notion of the powerless becoming the powerful? Do studio execs just hate nerds? We may never know, but we do know this trope/cliche is not going anywhere. Just recently we saw early photos from Wonder Woman 1984 depicting Kristin Wiig’s Barbara Minerva as a dowdy glasses-wearing geek in a museum prior to becoming the supervillain Cheetah.

This article coincides with the upcoming Insight Editions release of DC: Anatomy of a Metahuman, which gives super comic book nerds the chance to learn what makes their favorite DC superheroes and supervillains tick. Check out an EXCLUSIVE image of Killer Frost from the book above, and click here to pre-order your copy before it hits stores on September 18!

From detailed theories on how Superman’s eyes shoot heat rays to an in-depth exploration of how Aquaman is able to breathe underwater, the book delves into the deepest secrets of these classic characters. Featuring all-new, original illustrations by world-renowned comic artist Ming Doyle, this tome will change the way DC fans look at metahumans forever.

A Brief History of Nerds Becoming Supervillains

Gus Gorman – Superman III (1983)

Despite having 45 years of comic book villains at their disposal, in 1983 producers Ilya Salkind and Pierre Spengler as well as director Richard Lester decided the greatest foe Superman could face off against for his third movie would be comedian Richard Pryor.
Gus Gorman – Superman III (1983)

Despite the stunt casting, Pryor helped originate the trope of the nerd supervillain as Gus Gorman, a talented computer programmer who aids corporate douche (and Lex Luthor stand-in) Ross Webster in attempting to kill superman with synthesized Kryptonite and a death ray, although he eventually sides with Superman.
Dr. Walter Jenning/Dark Overlord – Howard the Duck (1986)

Steve Gerber's acerbic Marvel Comics creation was launched onto the screen in this bastardized bomb from producer George Lucas. The main villain is embodied by Dr. Walter Jenning (Jeffrey Jones), a good-natured scientist who is working on a laser spectroscope that pulls Howard to Earth and could send him back.
Dr. Walter Jenning/Dark Overlord – Howard the Duck (1986)

Unfortunately, the spectroscope pulls in an alien being called the "Dark Overlord of the Universe", which takes over Jenning and begins blasting stuff with lasers. Of course Jenning is later un-possessed and helps Howard destroy the spectroscope.
Selena Kyle/Catwoman – Batman Returns (1992)

Tim Burton's darker vision for Catwoman included introducing Selena Kyle as a clumsy, bespectacled mousy secretary for corporate CEO Max Shreck (Christopher Walken)
Selena Kyle/Catwoman – Batman Returns (1992)

After she's thrown off the top of a building and revived by (magical?) cats she becomes transformed into the bondage-gear clad villainess Catwoman. Hear her roar.
Edward Nygma/The Riddler – Batman Forever (1995)

In this threequel, Jim Carrey plays the obsessive nerd Edward Nygma, a researcher at Wayne Enterprises who idolizes Bruce Wayne.
Edward Nygma/The Riddler – Batman Forever (1995)

Once Wayne rejects Nygma's device that can beam television into a person's brain, the dweeb transforms into the... more flamboyant dweeb villain The Riddler, who teams up with Two-Face (Tommy Lee Jones) to take down The Bat.
Dr. Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy – Batman & Robin (1997)

Like Nygma, Dr. Isley (Uma Thurman) is a nerdy bespectacled scientist (a botanist) working for Wayne enterprises. Through a freak accident gets transformed into a super-powered eco-terrorist with a poisonous kiss and ultra pheromones.
Dr. Pamela Isley/Poison Ivy – Batman & Robin (1997)

This legendarily terrible sequel literally just copy/pasted the Riddler plot from Batman Forever, but this time with a woman and with way more British panto theatre-style camp.
Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus – Spider-Man 2 (2004)

In Sam Raimi's popular sequel, Alfred Molina plays nuclear scientist Otto Octavius, who is developing a fusion power project for Harry Osborne (James Franco).
Otto Octavius/Doctor Octopus – Spider-Man 2 (2004)

After a freak accident, Otto becomes a slave to the sentient arms he used in his experiment, and turns into the diabolical arch-villain Doctor Octopus.
Dr. Hector Hammond – Green Lantern (2011)

Hector is a scientist who, already a bit of an unstable weirdo, is unfortunately exposed to the yellow energy of fear from Parallax.
Dr. Hector Hammond – Green Lantern (2011)

This turns Hector into a giant-headed freak who does the bidding of Parallax, with Peter Sarsgaard giving one of the most screeching, off-kilter performances ever in a mainstream superhero movie.
Aldrich Killian/The Mandarin – Iron Man 3 (2013)

When we first see Killian (Guy Pearce) in a flashback to 1999, he's an uber-nerd with a cane and a limp and a big dumb grin trying to propose his new scientific breakthrough to Tony Stark.
Aldrich Killian/The Mandarin – Iron Man 3 (2013)

The next time we see him he's in tip-top shape, handsome... and using Extremis technology to basically make himself nearly invincible. He's also the puppet master behind the villain The Mandarin, utilizing a puppet figurehead played by Ben Kingsley as a distraction.
Max Dillon/Electro – The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

This already jumbled sequel took a page from the Batman Forever playbook by making Max Dillon (Jamie Foxx) a nerdy nobody employee of Oscorp who idolizes Spider-Man.
Max Dillon/Electro – The Amazing Spider-Man 2 (2014)

After an accident involving electric eels he's transformed into Electro, who resembles less the comic book iteration and more Dr. Manhattan from Watchmen.
June Moone/Enchantress – Suicide Squad (2016)

Dr. June Moone was a dweeby archaeologist whose discovery of an ancient long-lost artifact transforms her into Enchantress at will.
June Moone/Enchantress – Suicide Squad (2016)

Enchantress has magical abilities, including to transport herself and to transform innocent people into her walking turd army... which is exactly what a nerd would do!
Lex Luthor – Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) & Justice League (2017)

The John Byrne-era Superman introduced a Lex Luthor modeled after then-unethical corporate sleazebag Donald Trump. Zack Snyder decided to cast Jesse Eisenberg as a Luthor modeled more on modern geek overlord Mark Zuckerberg, albeit with daddy issues and Aspergers.
Lex Luthor – Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016) & Justice League (2017)

While Luthor does harness Kryptonian energy to create Doomsday, it isn't until the end credits of Justice League that he appears in his bald, suited form that we all know and love. He also seems bent on forming his own Injustice League to counter the superhero "threat".