29 Best Villain Podcasts to Listen to (2026)

There's a reason the History Channel has produced hundreds of documentaries about Hitler but only a few about Dwight D. Eisenhower. Bad guys (and gals) are eternally fascinating. Behind the Bastards dives in past the Cliffs Notes of the worst humans in history and exposes the bizarre realities of their lives. Listeners will learn about the young adult novels that helped Hitler form his monstrous ideology, the founder of Blackwater's insane quest to build his own Air Force, the bizarre lives of the sons and daughters of dictators and Saddam Hussein's side career as a trashy romance novelist. more

The shady, controversial and sometimes downright villainous characters of NZ history. Join William Ray as he explores history through the lens of Kiwi dirtbags in NZ's most awarded podcast. more

Comedians Craig Fay and Rebecca Reeds view Movies and TV from the villain's perspective and dare to ask if they were really all that bad. Podcast Produced by Andrew Ivimey for The From Superheroes Network. more

It's good, bad, ugly - and very very funny. Changing the way we see heroes and villains in history.

History consists of heroes and villains (and, I suppose everything in between)... but it's usually the villains who are the most interesting: Their flaws, their quirks, the voids in their hearts that force them to do the unthinkable. These are the characters that fascinate us, that pull us in, that compel us to watch and don't let us look away. And these are the characters that Scoundrel: History's Forgotten Villains is all about.Scoundrel, is a new bi-weekly anthology podcast from Kast Media and the award winning creators of Myths & Legends, that tells the stories of the rapscallions through time who were just a little more adept at hiding their evil from historians than others. By joining them on their treacherous journeys, we not only learn about what makes them tick, but more importantly, the times that created them.Sidney Gottlieb, George Remus, Thomas Blood, James McClintock. They've all done horrible things...on varying scales. If there's anything we can salvage from their misdeeds and incalculable human suffering, it's the opportunity to use them to elucidate the times they've lived… so that we can better understand ourselves. more

A podcast about evil and complicated queers in history. Why do we remember our heroes better than our villains? Hosted by Huw Lemmey and Ben Miller. Learn more: www.badgayspod.com more

Evil Men is a podcast hosted by three comedians - Chris Locke, James Hartnett, and Michael Balazo. Each episode, they select a single evil man, bad person, or fictional character and discuss what made them so damn evil - all while joking their heads off. You'll hear some super interesting nuggets of information about dubious historical or cultural figures, provided by three guys who don't actually know what the hell they're talking about. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information. more

Kristen, M.J., and Chris investigate pop culture's most memorable villains, antiheroes, and misunderstood monsters to find out how they make being bad look so good. New episodes every other Thursday. more

Just three good guys talking about bad guys. In each weekly episode, co-hosts Matt and Tyler and producer Chris approach a different movie and ask if the film's villain is really the bad guy or if the hero is actually the problem. What logic jumps are made to miss the red flags that should tip off the identity of the film's true baddie? more

A fictional villain podcast! Listen in any order. Hosts Joe and Tiana attempt to empathize with the most notorious fictional villains like Cruella de Vil, Draco Malfoy, Norman Bates, Harley Quinn, and more. With discussion, some literary art, and a bit of humor, they attempt to find the humanity behind these characters. Because if we can learn to connect with, relate to, and understand characters that were designed to be hated, then we might just have a chance at understanding our villainous selves as well as the villains we face in our everyday lives. more

A mashup of true-crime and history, in this podcast comedians discuss the worst people throughout history. Hosted by Cat Alvarado, and featuring the hottest up and coming comedians. Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/villainsofhistory/support more

Saving the world doesn't necessarily mean you go home happy. How's the mental health of your favorite superhero? A comic aficionado and a board-certified psychiatrist look at the various neuroses of your favorite heroes and villains and provide options for treatment. more

For those who like a little old-time with their true crime, join host Allison Dickson of Ding Dong Darkness Time as she explores the villains of decades and centuries past.  more

There have been some truly evil people throughout history. We take a look at some of them and decide for ourselves how evil they really are… welcome! more

Join Shaggy and Jose as they watch their favorite movies and rate the villains in them. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll judge the hell out of our choices, but more importantly you'll have fun. more

Just like history isn't all black and white, neither are the people who lived it. So who are the ones living in the grey? Welcome to Ambivalent Offenders— where we dig into the lives of people who've been called a lot of things: villains, scoundrels, monsters, misfits , or just plain morally messy . But were they really as bad as history says… or have they gotten an unfair rap? In each episode, we unpack the stories, facts, and cultural myths surrounding some of the most questionable (and sometimes misunderstood) figures from the past — all in a tone that's more friend-at-brunch (according to one listener review) than lecture hall. No dusty textbooks, no moral grandstanding. Just conversational storytelling, questionable behavior, and a little historical tea. Ultimately, we're here to do what humans do best: judge the hell out of some pretty interesting people. more

A podcast that explores the horrible humans in history that haunt the pages of our history books. We talk about well known historical villains and also dive deep into history to find those lesser known stories. Some of these stories of murder and deceit will seem so far fetched that you won't believe they are real! Come along as we explore all the Horrible Humans in History and the horrible things they have done. more

Two armed and dangerous women do battle with the forces of cinema villainy. A movie podcast hosted by two female film aficionados who love nothing better than getting under the skin of famous movie villains to discuss whether or not these 'baddies' are just plain evil... or should we cut them some slack? Could the villains  actually be the victims? If so, what is the true root of evil in the thrillers, horrors and action movies we all know and love? more

What history's 'Bad Guys' believed and why

Welome to History's Biggest Villians, where I talk about the most evil people the world has ever seen.

What makes someone evil?HISTORY'S DEVILS is a weekly deep-dive podcast that investigates the world's most infamous historical figures. Each episode explores the life, actions, and legacy of a terrible person from history, sorting through myths to examine the facts behind their reputation and to judge just how wicked they truly were.Hosted by Professor James Crossland, HISTORY'S DEVILS covers dictators, tyrants, war criminals, cult leaders, revolutionaries, con-artists, conspiracy theorists and just plain terrible people, combining deep research with compelling storytelling to reveal the darker side of human history.A show for fans of dark history, historical biographies and in-depth explorations of  people who changed the world for better - or for worse.All the devils are here. And we are ready to tell their stories. more

Villain Mindset is a deep dive into the darkest characters in anime and film — not to recap their stories, but to uncover the real philosophy hiding underneath their logic. Each episode takes one iconic villain archetype and maps their worldview onto history's greatest thinkers: Schopenhauer's pessimism, Nietzsche's will to power, Aristotle's virtue ethics, Machiavelli's political pragmatism, and Kant's moral law. No dialogue clips, no recycled audio — just original cinematic storytelling and real philosophical analysis. Because the uncomfortable truth is, their logic isn't as far from ours as we'd like to believe. New episodes weekly. Follow now so you don't miss the season. Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/the-villain-mindset--7156987/support . more

Why does Gatsby need Daisy to be something she can never actually be? Why does Victor Frankenstein abandon the very creature he desperately wanted to create? And why can't Hamlet simply act? The Unconscious Library explores great literature through contemporary psychodynamic psychology, examining the desires, defenses, attachments, conflicts, and repetitions that characters themselves often cannot recognize. You don't need to have read the book: each episode uses a classic work of literature to investigate a psychological problem that remains just as recognizable today as when the story was written. more

Forensic Psychology meets fiction. Dark Character Profiler analyzes villains, anti-heroes, and morally complex characters as if they were real individuals undergoing psychological evaluation. Each episode builds a detailed psychological case file using DSM-5-TR criteria, behavioral analysis, trauma and developmental history, personality structure, forensic assessment techniques, and narrative psychology. Side Quest Minisodes explore the psychological concepts behind the show—interrogation dynamics, redemption arcs, research methods, cognitive vulnerability, and much more. more

Welcome to Heel Havoc—where villains finally get their day in court. Every week, we put the greatest bad guys from movies, TV, comics, and professional wrestling on trial, digging into their motives, psychology, and biggest moments to answer one question: Were they really the villain? From Doctor Doom and Magneto to President Snow, Darth Vader, and wrestling's most legendary heels, no character is off limits. So if you love pop culture, spirited debates, and seeing the story from the other side... welcome to Heel Havoc. Because sometimes... it's good to be bad. more

Join us as we journey through the history of supervillainy! Supervillain Spotlight discusses comic book villains from throughout history, with fun facts, historical information, and story summaries. The typical show focuses on specific rogues galleries from different points in time. more

Heel Club is where wrestling's villains get the spotlight they deserve. Hosted by The Voice — loud, unfiltered, and unapologetic — this show dives into the greatest heel turns, the wildest betrayals, the best (and worst) storylines, and the chaos that makes wrestling fun in the first place.Every episode brings sharp takes, classic moments, cult-level loyalty, and the kind of truth that makes babyface fans uncomfortable. From iconic betrayals to modern heat, merch talk to deep cuts from wrestling history — if it stirs the pot, it's in the Club.Welcome to Heel Club. Join the Club. Turn Heel. And if you don't like it… good. He's doing his job. more

Dark Heroes are everywhere in contemporary popular culture and they have a long and rebellious literary history unknown to many. Unleashed academics, tutors, and ornamental hermits Alice and Rowan do a deep dive into the development of various dark heroic archetypes on a semi-weekly basis. Everything from the Gothic villain, the Byronic Hero, and the femme fatale, to the sex appeal of Satan—we've got you covered.Contact us at: ****@gmail.comFollow us on insta: @ofthedevilsparty more

The origin stories of just the bad guys in comics and movies!