Doctor Who's Big Villain Reveals, Ranked

Doctor Who excels at introducing scary villains at the most dramatic moment. Although the long-running sci-fi series began as a children’s show and is considered family viewing today, it often uses horror elements, especially when introducing villains. Every Doctor Who companion has faced an evil being who makes them shrink back in fear or scream for help, and the Doctor is often initially at a loss as to how to stop these monsters from enacting their dark plans.

The classic series used a serialized format, which meant that stories were four or more parts each and almost every episode ended on a cliffhanger. This formula led to some of Doctor Who’s best episodes, as the villain often threatened the Doctor or a companion shortly before the credits rolled at the end of an installment. Modern Doctor Who doesn’t utilize cliffhangers as often, but still uses some of the same techniques, as villains are often revealed as part of the solution to a season-long mystery.

8

The Master Takes Over Tremas

Classic Doctor Who Season 18, Episode 24

The classic Doctor Who story “The Keeper of Traken” involved the Doctor trying to help maintain peace in the Union of Traken, a planet that was at risk because of its connection to the powerful Source, which allowed it to be technologically advanced. The current Keeper was dying and called upon the Doctor and Adric for help because he sensed evil in Tremas, the man who was meant to succeed him. At the end of the final episode, the Master possessed Tremas’ body, introducing Anthony Ainley as the newest actor to play the renegade Time Lord.

Although classic Doctor Who was known for its laughable special effects, the sequence where the Master possesses the seemingly kindly Tremas is one of the scariest villain reveals. The moment where the Master takes over Tremas’ body is quick, but the lead-up to it makes it horrific. The Master’s appearance as a decaying body, with flesh hanging off his skin, is terrifying, as is his only line, “A new body at last.” Tremas’ futile call for help adds to the horror as the Master steps into his body and Tremas magically becomes younger, his white beard and hair turning black.

7

The Doctor Meets Davros For The First Time

Classic Doctor Who Season 12, Episode 11

Davros, one of the scariest Doctor Who villains, was introduced in 1975’s “Genesis of the Daleks,” which was a thinly-veiled allegory about the horrors of Nazism thirty years after the end of World War II. Soon after landing on Skaro with orders to avert the creation of the Daleks, the Doctor and Harry Sullivan get separated from Sarah Jane Smith and captured by Kaled soldiers who refuse to believe that they are from other planets because the brilliant and allegedly infallible Davros says there is no life on other planets.

The Kaleds reject not only this idea but the idea that those who have genetic mutations from chemical warfare deserve respect, labeling them as animal-like and too impure to live. The reveal is carefully built up, with the main focus being on the Kaled soldier who has captured the Doctor and is making unreasonable demands of his general, along with implied threats if he doesn’t comply. This tension makes the reveal even stronger when it finally comes, along with the irony that Davros himself is everything he claims to hate: a genetically mutated Kaled who is both disfigured and disabled.

The reveal is shot from Sarah Jane’s point of view, adding to the horror as she not only spies Davros from her hiding spot but also an early Dalek prototype. Davros then presses a button on his wheelchair to demonstrate that he has created a machine that can exterminate those seen as undesirable. Davros’ intentions add to the horror of the reveal, as it’s clear the Daleks belief that everyone is inferior and should be exterminated was no accident and goes along with Davros’ belief system.

6

A Kindly Old Man Remembers He Is The Master

Doctor Who Season 3, Episode 11

During “Utopia,” the TARDIS is plunged to the end of the universe, where, among other things, they meet a seemingly kindly professor named Yana. Yana appears to be an ally to the Doctor until Martha discovers that he has an identical Gallifreyan watch, which means he is also a Time Lord. While Martha and Captain Jack think that this is good news because the Doctor is not the only Time Lord to have survived the Time War, the Doctor realizes that Yana could be an evil Time Lord, and he turns out to be correct.

The modern special effects help make this reveal stronger, as does everyone’s realization that Yana’s name stands for “You are not alone,” which was what the Face of Boe said shortly before its death. Although it is not a blatant Doctor Who Easter egg, this regeneration could also be seen as a callback to the Master’s possession of Tremas. In both cases, the name of the character provides a hint as to the Master’s involvement, and both incidents involve a seemingly kindly older man facilitating the Master’s regeneration.

5

The Decaying Master Holds Onto Life

Classic Doctor Who Season 14, Episode 9

Doctor Who revealed a version of the Master who was clinging onto life despite using up all of his regenerations during “The Deadly Assassin.” The character had been retired after actor Roger Delegado was killed in a car accident, but almost a decade later, the producers decided to bring him back. During the Deadly Assassin, the Master was revealed to be between regenerations—in those days, Time Lords were limited to 13 lives each, but the Master refused to give up life after reaching his last one and became a living corpse.

The Master does not appear until the fourth part of “The Deadly Assassin,” though the Doctor realizes he is involved in an attempt to overthrow the Gallifreyan government during an early part when a miniaturized body is found inside a security camera. The Master’s appearance is one of the most horrifying aspects of late 1970s Doctor Who. The series made up for its low special effect budget by using makeup to simulate the appearance of a living corpse who confronts the Doctor as part of his bid to steal a new cycle of regenerations for himself.

4

The Beast Controls The Ood

Doctor Who Season 2, Episode 9

The Beast is the closest thing the Doctor Who universe has to Satan. The Doctor and Rose Tyler first crossed paths with it during “The Impossible Planet,” though it did not physically appear on screen until the following episode, “The Satan Pit.” The Beast was one of the scariest-looking monsters the Doctor had ever encountered, though its appearance was somewhat similar to the corpse master. It also had the ability to telepathically control the normally peaceful Oods.

The Beast’s reveal was made scarier by the fact that the Doctor didn’t know precisely what it wanted with him until he confronted the monster. It caused chaos through psychological manipulation, but by the time the Doctor confronts it, it is purely animalistic, and the Doctor realizes the prison guards want him to destroy the planet and the Beast itself, leaving him with a difficult choice to make. This reveal leads to one of the most intense, and scariest, plots, as the Doctor can either release the Beast or risk Rose’s life to destroy it.

3

The Mara’s Return During Snakedance

Classic Doctor Who Season 20, Episode 5

Doctor Who recently explained the Pantheon of Discord included the Mara, who is the God of Beasts. This explanation makes sense, considering how scary its second appearance during the 1980s was. The Mara was originally an evil spirit that took the form of a snake and could possess people; the Doctor defeated it during “Kinda” by entrapping it in a circle of mirrors, as it was too evil to withstand the sight of itself. However, the monster returned during the following season’s “Snakedance” and possessed Tegan.

During this story, Tegan was able to pilot the TARDIS to a planet that was celebrating the 500th anniversary of the banishment of the Mara, despite not being aware of the planet’s existence. The Doctor soon learns that the Mara has been possessing her since its first banishment and is planning to return during the ceremony to regain power. This reveal includes several scary scenes, including a red-eyed Tegan and a scene in which Tegan looks in a funhouse mirror and sees herself with a snake’s skull for a head.

2

Sutekh Returns

Doctor Who Season 14, Episode 7

Russell T Davies brought Sutekh back on Doctor Who 49 years after his original banishment, demonstrating what better special effects could do for this already-scary monster. The original Sutekh had been so powerful and scary that the Doctor had to manipulate the length of a Time Tunnel to stop him from destroying the universe, but the episode’s frightening elements were overpowered by the low-budget special effects. Sutekh’s return was thus even scarier, as he could now be depicted as blowing deadly dust that turned everything it hit into ashes.

The sequence in which Sutekh finally reveals himself is as heartbreaking as it is scary, with the Doctor believing the mysterious Susan Triad could be his long-lost granddaughter, only to discover that she is an avatar possessed by Sutekh. Sutekh possesses her and new UNIT employee Harriet at the same time so that they can deliver his chilling message in unison before he begins to release his deadly dust and destroy everyone in his path. This sequence is one of the most horrific in Doctor Who history, although it loses some points because of how easily the Doctor re-banished Sutekh.

1

The Weeping Angels’ Introduction

Doctor Who Season 3, Episode 10

The Weeping Angels’ creepy introduction is made even more impressive by the fact that this was a Doctor-lite episode of Doctor Who. The episode centers around Sally Sparrow, a young woman in 2007 who is curious about the Weeping Angels and explores an abandoned Victorian house. The creepy statues are revealed to be predatory monsters when Sally’s friend Kathy disappears after an encounter with one, and her grandson visits Sally to inform her of the life his grandmother led after being sent back to 1920.

During this episode of Doctor Who, the Weeping Angels’ scary appearance and powers are made more horrific by the fact that Sally is dealing with them mostly on her own, guided only by videos the Doctor made and inserted onto DVDs to try to stop the Weeping Angels from hurting her. The Weeping Angels are soon revealed to be able to move and attack people, and blinking allows them to send their victims back into time. One scary sequence involves the Weeping Angels moving into the house to trap Sally and her boyfriend, who manage to escape into the TARDIS just in time.

Doctor Who

The latest season of Doctor Who introduces the Fifteenth Doctor, joined by new companion Ruby Sunday. Their first adventure begins with “The Church on Ruby Road,” where they face powerful new foes and unravel the mystery surrounding Ruby’s origins. The Doctor grapples with the aftermath of a unique regeneration event and battles enemies more formidable than ever before.

Cast

Ncuti Gatwa
, Millie Gibson
, Susan Twist
, Michelle Greenidge
, Angela Wynter
, Jemma Redgrave
, Yasmin Finney
, Anita Dobson

Release Date

December 25, 2023

Seasons

2

Streaming Service(s)

AppleTV+
, Britbox
, Max
, Disney+

Franchise(s)

Doctor Who

Writers

Russell T. Davies
, Dave Gibbons
, Kate Herron
, Steven Moffat

Main Genre

Sci-Fi

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