What Is “Antagonism” in a Story?

If you know anything about storytelling, you know conflict is essential. By understanding how antagonists are used in screenwriting, we can better handle story conflict in our own scripts. In this article, we’ll cover all the different kinds of antagonistic forces writers can choose from, how they work, and how to decide which is best for your story.

A Quick Definition of Antagonism

What does “antagonist” mean? It usually means the story’s protagonist (the central force) runs into trouble. Screenwriters have many different ways to use various obstacles to oppose their protagonists.

We’ll look at more examples of antagonists in films like Kill Bill and The Birds to see how writers work with them, but first, let’s define the term “antagonist” itself.

What Is an Antagonist?

An antagonist is the force in a story that opposes the protagonist. It can be human, natural, or supernatural. “Antagonist” comes from the Greek word agonizesthai, which literally means “to struggle against.” Every protagonist needs some kind of opposing force. But that doesn’t mean the force has to be another character. A hero’s main obstacle might be the environment, an animal like a killer shark, an idea, or their own flaws.

Common traits of an antagonist:

• Preys on the protagonist
• Often malicious
• Blocks the protagonist’s progress

Writers also call antagonists “opponents” or “hostile forces.” In his breakdown of Sideways, Edson makes an important point: the opponent doesn’t have to be a villain (at least not in the typical way); it can be anything that opposes the protagonist. In Sideways, the main antagonist is a character who only appears in two scenes, but her impact on the protagonist is everywhere.

The relationship between protagonist and antagonist is central to storytelling. It isn’t just “you can’t have one without the other.” It’s not a one‑size‑fits‑all situation either. It’s more like: “Who or what is the perfect, most challenging obstacle for my hero?”

Let’s explore that relationship more closely.

What Are Protagonist and Antagonist?

The protagonist and antagonist are in a symbiotic relationship. A good way to explore antagonists is to look at their opposite: the protagonist.

Let’s use the following example to get familiar with protagonists, their types, and their traits.

This is how conflict arises and is resolved between a protagonist and an antagonist:

Protagonist: Character A wants thing X.
Antagonist: Character B wants thing Z.

Things X and Z are in opposition.

Let’s plug in those variables using The Lion King.

Protagonist: Simba wants justice for his murdered father.
Antagonist: Scar wants absolute power over the Pride Lands.

Notice how those two goals directly clash? That’s because the struggle between protagonist and antagonist is the most common form of character conflict. The moments when these characters and their desires collide are called the climax.

Examples of Antagonists in Film

Film may attract bad guys—villains, psychopaths, and bullies—more than any other medium. In many movies, the antagonist is more interesting and/or more memorable than the hero. To quickly survey some of the best bad guys, here’s a list of notable antagonists in movies:

• The Joker in The Dark Knight
• Darth Vader in The Empire Strikes Back
• Saruman in The Lord of the Rings
• Voldemort in Harry Potter
• Hannibal Lecter in The Silence of the Lambs
• Scar in The Lion King
• Hans Gruber in Die Hard
• Captain Hook in Peter Pan
• Hans Landa in Inglourious Basterds
• Agent Smith in The Matrix

All of these antagonists are essentially evil—but importantly: not every antagonist is a villain. We’ll get to non‑evil antagonists in a moment, but first, let’s break down the “bad guys.”

What Types of Antagonists Are There?

Just as there are many types of protagonists, writers can choose from several types of antagonists. When planning any narrative (novel, play, video game, screenplay, etc.), it’s important to understand what your options are, how they work, and which one best suits your particular story.

Here is a rough grouping of the main antagonist types:

• The villain
• The anti‑villain
• The false antagonist
• The hidden antagonist
• Inanimate antagonistic forces
• The internal antagonist
• The heroic antagonist

Of course, there’s some overlap between these types. But each also offers a distinct style of opposition. Like pairing wine with food, writers should have a solid grasp of each one’s qualities. Let’s start with the most common: the villain.

Antagonist vs. Villain

People often assume every antagonist is a villain. While many are, there are other kinds of antagonists as well. Villains are simply the most common and most memorable.

Most villains are fundamentally evil. They represent a worldview that stands in stark contrast to the protagonist’s. Villains will go to great lengths to obstruct the protagonist’s progress.

A classic example is the Joker in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight. Everything about his character is meant to instill a sense of evil in us. He and Batman are like two sides of the same coin.

The Joker is committed to creating chaos in Gotham. His entire existence is meant to be juxtaposed with the story’s protagonist, Batman.

Another similar example is Saruman in The Lord of the Rings, who stands in the way of the Fellowship’s quest to destroy the One Ring.

Although we know Sauron is evil from the beginning, we’re not initially sure what role Saruman will play. But when his evil plans are revealed, we see that he’s the Fellowship’s most immediate character‑based obstacle.

The Heroic Antagonist

Heroic antagonists are almost always used to oppose an antihero. What is an antihero? We can define an antihero as “a narrative protagonist who is self‑interested… often feels rejected by society and heads down a path of self‑destruction that leads to isolation or death.”

Frank Abagnale in Catch Me If You Can is a good example of an antihero, but he’s also someone we sympathize with on an emotional level. We’re drawn to his intelligence and empathize with the pain he experienced in his childhood.

Abagnale’s main opponent is Carl Hanratty. As Carl tries to catch the con artist Abagnale, we as the audience largely align with Carl’s moral perspective.

Carl is portrayed as sensitive and well‑intentioned, which helps us connect with him even though we don’t actually want him to catch Frank.

The two characters oppose each other in a cat‑and‑mouse game. Carl is willing to believe that Frank can be virtuous. In later scenes, the conflict between these two characters reaches a peak.

In Catch Me If You Can, we get a clear example of how protagonist and antagonist can oppose each other: Frank is the antiheroic protagonist, and Carl is the heroic antagonist.

When Nature Fights Back

Usually, characters face internal conflict (within themselves) or external conflict (with the world or other characters). Both are strong options, and internal and external conflict together can energize your story.

Though less common, some stories use environmental forces as the antagonist. This kind of antagonism is rooted in the classic “man vs. nature” conflict.

Think of disaster films and how filmmakers find ways to turn nature against us. Earthquakes, tornadoes, floods, tsunamis—these are all great forces to pit your protagonist against. Such films remind us that although we may sit at the top of the food chain, we can’t actually control the natural world around us.

A powerful example of “man vs. nature”—or more precisely “woman vs. nature”—in film is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s best movies: The Birds.

In this Hitchcock classic, Melanie Daniels and the people of Bodega Bay are inexplicably attacked by crazed birds. The “birds” represent nature as a hostile force, while Melanie is the protagonist of the story.

The conflict is so effective because it’s largely inexplicable. That mystery gives the conflict a supernatural flavor and prompts audiences to speculate on its subtext.

The Anti‑Villain

We’ve already mentioned the antihero: a protagonist who doesn’t do heroic things. As we noted, the natural counterpart to an antihero is a heroic antagonist. So what is an anti‑villain?

Have you ever watched a villain’s big monologue about their goals and motives and thought, “Wait, this person kind of has a point”? If so, you’ve been watching an anti‑villain.

An anti‑villain is a character who does bad things for understandable, even justifiable reasons. Take Roy Batty in Blade Runner. For all intents and purposes, Batty is the film’s antagonist, wreaking havoc on Earth while trying to track down Tyrell.

But when we hear why Batty does what he does, it makes sense. His lifespan has been cut short by design, and he wants more time from his creator. The pain he feels is understandable.

The False Antagonist

The false antagonist poses this question: “What if your bad guy isn’t actually bad at all, and has been on the hero’s side the whole time?”

Maybe that’s still a bit vague. A false antagonist is a character who presents as the villain for part of a film or series but is ultimately revealed to be on the protagonist’s side. Typically, this type of antagonist is created by withholding information from both the protagonist and the audience. Think of Severus Snape in Harry Potter. For most of the series, both Harry and the audience believe Snape is a villain, perhaps even a potential Death Eater.

But everything is turned upside down when we learn that Snape has actually been protecting Harry ever since his mother died.

Snape isn’t the only false antagonist in the Harry Potter series. Sirius Black serves the same function in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. At first, Sirius is presented as an evil villain who played a crucial role in Harry’s parents’ deaths.

Gary Oldman’s performance heightens this false impression: broken teeth, a crazed gaze. He looks every inch the classic villain.

But as the story unfolds, it turns out Black is one of Harry’s closest allies and proves to be a crucial friend and mentor for the rest of the series.

Harry Potter shows how useful a false antagonist can be. Such characters keep audiences on their toes while subtly teaching us not to judge by appearances.

The Hidden Antagonist

The hidden antagonist is the opposite of the false antagonist. Here, a character we initially believe to be benevolent ends up being the villain.

A classic example is Coraline, where the protagonist discovers an “other mother” and “other father.” At first, the Other Mother and Father seem to have everything Coraline’s real parents lack: they’re attentive, fun, and caring.

But as the film progresses, we learn that Coraline’s new parents are not what they claim to be and actually have sinister motives.

CoCo also features a great hidden antagonist. At the beginning, Miguel is obsessed with the late, famous musician Ernesto de la Cruz.

When Miguel believes he’s discovered that Ernesto is his great‑great‑grandfather, he is understandably thrilled, and when he visits Ernesto in the Land of the Dead, everything seems to be going well.

But Miguel soon learns that Ernesto actually murdered his real great‑great‑grandfather and, crucially, is a fraud. That leads to this heartbreaking moment:

As Coco illustrates, hidden antagonists create powerful dramatic moments full of shock, betrayal, and deep emotional pain. These are feelings you might want to avoid in real life, but they make for compelling cinema.

The Internal Antagonist

In a sense, we all have an internal antagonist. The internal antagonist embodies the old saying: “There are two wolves inside you, and you must feed the right one.” This is where the protagonist feeds the wrong one—making self‑destructive choices that lead to their own downfall.

This is a recurring theme in many of Darren Aronofsky’s films. In Black Swan, Nina appears to be fighting the newcomer Lily, but in reality, it’s her own obsessive nature that pushes her to the edge.

The Whale also has a protagonist who is his own worst enemy. Charlie is eating himself to death; despite the pleas of the people who care about him, he won’t (or can’t) stop.

Aronofsky’s films are often considered difficult or heavy, and his use of internal antagonists is a big reason why. Watching a character self‑destruct can be painful and frustrating. Facing an external enemy, even if the protagonist loses, can feel like a noble, engaging struggle.

An internal enemy is often harder, more subtle, and unfortunately, more realistic.

What Is a Secondary Antagonist?

In most stories, there’s only one protagonist. Antagonists, however, can be numerous. Some films have a main antagonist and then several secondary antagonists.

One of Quentin Tarantino’s best films, Kill Bill, has a primary antagonist (Bill) and several secondary antagonists (the Deadly Viper Assassination Squad).

A helpful way to think about secondary antagonists is as “mini‑bosses” you encounter in a video game before you reach the final boss.

In Kill Bill, the Bride must face these mini‑bosses before she can finally get to the final boss.