15 actors who have mastered playing both heroes and villains perfectly

Modified Jan 01, 2025 11:32 ET

Christian Bale (Image via Warner Bros, Lionsgate Films)

3) Denzel Washington

Denzel Washington (Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for WarnerMedia)

Denzel Washington knows how to own a scene, whether he’s the hero or the bad guy. In Man on Fire, he played Creasy, a broken man who finds purpose in protecting a young girl. Washington made him tough but vulnerable, and you believed every decision he made. Then there’s Training Day, where he flipped the script and played Alonzo Harris, a crooked cop who’s charming one minute and terrifying the next. Washington didn’t just make Alonzo bad—he made him magnetic. He’s the kind of villain you can’t stop watching, even when you know he’s about to do something awful.

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Edited by Debanjana

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15 actors who have mastered playing both heroes and villains perfectly

3) Denzel Washington

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