Colman Domingo Has Stepped into His Villain Era — Here Are His Best Bad-Guy Roles Ranked

Colman Domingo takes his talents to new heights with each role that he plays. He is known to give impressive performances in both television and film. Though Domingo has shown us that he has range — case in point, his role as a civil rights activist Ralph Abernathy in the historical drama Selma — one of his favorite roles to play is that of a villain.

The actor has a love for playing dark people and playing the most complicated version of human beings. He's so good at it that there is even speculation that he will take up the mantle of Kang the Conquer in the Marvel Cinematic Universe following Jonathan Majors' exit.

Amid the rumors, let's explore four of his best bad-guy roles.

The Color Purple tells the story of three women — Celie (played by Fantasia Barinno), Shug (played by Taraji P. Henson), and Sofia (Danielle Brooks) — and their resilience against domestic violence, racism, and other obstacles. These women share an unbreakable bond that is constantly tested by the men in their lives, one of which is Mister, depicted by Domingo.

Domingo’s execution of this role makes it hard to separate the character from the actor as his monstrous ways were so convincing. Though he is easily seen as a villain, Domingo sees the character as misunderstood.

The actor told W Magazine: “Mister in The Color Purple is a broken person, and hurt people hurt other people. I have to try and see the good in Mister. I have to love a character to find out how he operates."

"In my mind, everyone else is the villain, and Mister is the victim. You know, I’m a very optimistic person. I believe there’s room and time for healing," he added.

In Fear of the Walking Dead, two families must work together to survive the undead apocalypse.

Colman plays Victor Strand, a man who is only out for himself instead of helping others. Victor doesn't have a very strong moral compass and is a manipulative liar. His character was eventually killed off — but not before he had a chance to redeem himself.

“I'm really happy the way that Strand has met his ending because I wanted a good redemption story for him. That was a great, interesting journey for him, especially after being such a villainous person in season 7," Colman told Entertainment Weekly.

Zola is based on a Twitter thread that went viral in 2015. The story is of an exotic dancer who accepts an invitation from a fellow dancer to go to Florida on a quest to make some extra money. Little did she know, a trail of crime and deceit would ensue as her co-worker was involved in criminal activity. In the film, Colman plays a smooth-talking pimp.

In Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, Domingo voices a dark cosmic menace: Unicron. In the original, which was released in the 80s, the character was voiced by late actor Orson Welles.