History Main / SissyVillain

Since quite a few women actually find effeminate men attractive, this can also lead to EvilIsSexy.

* ''WebAnimation/HazbinHotel'': Downplayed with Angel Dust. While calling him outright evil may be a stretch, he's still a violet gangster and very effeminate in both appearance and demeanor.

* [[SissyVillain/{{Film}} Films -- Live-Action]]

* ''WebVideo/DeathNoteTheAbridgedSeriesKpts4tv'': In which Light Yagami's TransparentCloset is a RunningGag, Mello plays up the EvilBrit {{Gayngster}} angle and is frequently mistaken for Music/LadyGaga, [[FlamingDevil Ryuk]] who pretty much [[MemeticMolester goes after]] AnythingThatMoves and is rather fond of watching ''Series/DancingWithTheStars'', and also [[spoiler: Souichiro]] who [[RonTheDeathEater becomes a villain in this series]] and [[CreepyCrossdresser on occasion cosplays]] as Manga/SailorMoon.

* This seems to be a common theme for ''Website/ThatGuyWithTheGlasses'':

The Sissy Villain is probably the second most common portrayal of CampGay [[AcceptableTargets men]] (besides "one-dimensional joke character") but is not necessarily synonymous with DepravedHomosexual. While Sissy Villains are frequently [[DepravedHomosexual gay]] or [[DepravedBisexual bisexual]], most of them are merely [[AmbiguouslyGay sexually ambiguous]] or seemingly asexual, and some of them are [[CampStraight straight]]. The Sissy Villain isn't intended to creep out the audience just because of the implication that he might like men (although this occasionally factors in), but because he ''acts'' like a real wimp. Either way, he's AlwaysCamp.

%%* The Chief Blue Meanie in ''WesternAnimation/YellowSubmarine''.

** ''WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook1967'': {{Downplayed|Trope}} with Shere Khan. He's a genuinely feared predator of the jungle (he's mentioned as being stronger than the entire wolf pack combined) but his wrath is hidden by an amusingly flamboyant, playful and soft-spoken demeanor. {{Averted|Trope}} in [[WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook2 the sequel]], where he's much more serious.

* Zhong Ye, the eunuch sorcerer BigBad in the young adult novel ''The Silver Phoenix: Beyond The Kingdom of Xia''. However, while he is dandified and creepy, he's portrayed as a depraved ''heterosexual'' - and the heroine is the reincarnation of his lost love.

* King Herod is often portrayed this way in ''Music/JesusChristSuperstar''.

** Gender Inverted in the sequel, where Dolores Umbridge is the epitome of macho. Dumbledore even mistakes her for a man initially.

** Richard Wellington is a mean of wealth, taste and art. He himself is a great [[spoiler:con]] artist. Oh, and [[AlwaysMurder a murderer, of course.]]

** WebVideo/TheCinemaSnob has moments of this, overlapping with WickedCultured as he's a parody of TrueArtIsAngsty critics.

There is a weird bit of irony to this: regardless of what the villain looks or acts like, EvilIsCool, and these villains (assuming they're worth their salt) will wreak just as much havoc as any other archetype. So, overexposure to this trope may lead kids to see this personality as badass in its own way, even leading boys to imitate their behavior and mannerisms.

This trope shows up mainly in Western works and those Japanese works aimed at a male audience; if the villain is presented as [[{{Bishonen}} certain kinds of swishy]], [[MisaimedFandom female fans]] are likely to declare him [[DracoInLeatherPants utterly fabulous]].

[[folder:Live-action Film]]
* Virtuosity(1995) stars Stephen Spinella as Dr. Darrel Lindenmeyer, a programmer who creates and aids the murderous virtual villain SID. Spinella just hams it up as a pompous, cowardly sissy who attacks Denzel Washington's character, then gasps in terror when Washington pushes back. He is obsessed with his creation SID (Russell Crowe), to the point he sacrifices his other creation, a virtual 'compliant female'. He also shows open contempt for that character and any other female character he encounters. It's hard work to appear be the true villain, when the antagonist is an indestructible mass murdering Russell Crowe!

[[folder:Radio]]
* Mr. Gently Benevolent in ''Radio/BleakExpectations'' epitomises and parodies this trope whilst being AmbiguouslyGay.
[[/folder]]

[[folder:Tabletop Games]]
* ''TabletopGame/Warhammer40000'':
** Fulgrim, following his FaceHeelTurn, starts wearing make-up and perfumes and increasingly lurid clothing. Subverted in that he's still a PhysicalGod: the effect is less sissy and more insane.
** A lot of Slaanesh's male servants fall under this trope, even the eight-foot-tall [[SuperSoldier Space Marines]] and [[TheHorde Warriors of Chaos]]. Androgynous, fond of garish colors, silks, and perfumes... and [[AxCrazy utterly lethal]].
[[/folder]]

->''"My, aren't we ''fierce?'' Guards, castrate him."''

* Discussed by WebVideo/TheAmazingAtheist in his review of ''Film/{{Hercules|2014}}'', in which Scotty says that it was obvious that King Eurystheus would turn out to be evil because he had two pet peacocks and acted slightly effeminate. [[spoiler:He was right.]]
* This seems to be a common theme on Website/ThatGuyWithTheGlasses:
** WebVideo/TheNostalgiaCritic. He's weak, assholish, completely and irreparably fucked up and frequently ScreamsLikeALittleGirl, as well as preferring toppy ActionGirl women so much that {{Chickification}} is [[HairTriggerTemper one of his many]] BerserkButton triggers, but his less-than-masculine aspects are just part of who he is. A bit of a subversion since he's really a [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold good guy at heart]] and depending on your perspective is either an AntiHero or AntiVillain.
** WebVideo/AskThatGuyWithTheGlasses, who couples the villainy with being a complete slut. Attempts to come across as WickedCultured but once you see through the façade, you realize he qualifies, especially in episodes 61-62 where he has JerkassWoobie moments.
** WebVideo/BennettTheSage has moments of this even though he tries to hide it with TestosteronePoisoning.

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* [[SissyVillain/{{Film}} Films]]

** Flamingo, who is introduced in ''ComicBook/BatmanGrantMorrison'', is a {{Gayngster}} sent by TheCartel. He loves to wear pink, has quite the flamboyant personality, and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick eats his victim's faces]].

* Loki from Myth/NorseMythology fits this. Several incidents present him as unmanly (particularly when he was impregnated by a horse), and the contrast with the manly hero plays out in his relationship with Thor. However, pre-FaceHeelTurn by Loki, he and Thor are more like SensitiveGuyAndManlyMan[=/=]VitriolicBestBuds.

%% Image and caption selected per Image Pickin' thread: https://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/posts.php?discussion=1368729382063286900

[[quoteright:200:[[WesternAnimation/ThePowerpuffGirls1998 https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/himgangstacakes.png]]]]
[[caption-width-right:200:Evil never looked so fabulous.\\
[-[[http://gangstacakes.deviantart.com/art/HIM-341609223 Image]] by [[http://gangstacakes.deviantart.com gangstacakes]]]]-]

* The galactic emperor from an in-universe FanFiction (read by Comicbook/{{Empowered}}) who forces Major Havoc and Syndablokk to have sex together.

** [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]] is [[DependingOnTheWriter sometimes]] portrayed like this, perhaps most famously in ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns''.

** [[Characters/BatmanTheJoker The Joker]] is [[DependingOnTheWriter sometimes]] portrayed like this, perhaps most famously in ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns''. [[spoiler:One fan theory about Joker's murder of Jason Todd (Robin) is that after he beat Jason bloody with a crowbar, he sexually molested his unconscious form. His leering, ogling expression as he's swinging the crowbar makes this theory uncomfortably plausible.]]

* Franchise/DisneyAnimatedCanon:
** Scar from ''WesternAnimation/{{The Lion King|1994}}'' is easily the most limp-pawed feline ever to grace the big screen. This becomes a ParentalBonus for the Swedish Viewers where Scar is dubbed by the '''Very''' Gay and '''Very''' Out Actor/Singer Richard Wolff. How out is he? He penned a song describing his ComingOutStory titled [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J67JyB3PxVo "Beautiful Boys, Beautiful Men."]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rJODmZtvuI Don't worry, Scar is still awesome.]]
** ''WesternAnimation/RobinHood'''s anthropomorphic depiction of Prince John out-swishes Scar to such a degree, ''WesternAnimation/{{The Lion King|1994}}'' villain looks positively {{Leatherman}} by comparison.

** ''WesternAnimation/{{TheJungleBook1967}}'': Downplayed with Shere Khan. He's a genuinely feared predator of the jungle (he's mentioned as being stronger than the entire wolf pack combined) but his wrath is hidden by an amusingly flamboyant, playful and soft-spoken demeanor. Averted in [[WesternAnimation/TheJungleBook2 the sequel]], where he's much more serious.

** Disney's human villains aren't immune either. Take ''WesternAnimation/{{Pocahontas}}''[='s=] mincing, flouncing, bow-wearing villain Governor Ratcliffe, for one. Most of that façade was forced on him by his assistant, Wiggins, who was extremely effeminate. Ratcliffe had his boisterous and rowdy side on occasion, though it was often just an act as well; when his men stood up to him, he folded.

%%** Captain Hook of ''WesternAnimation/PeterPan''
** King Candy from ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' [[spoiler:up until the moment you find out it was an act to conceal his ''real'' identity, Turbo]]. Lives in a ''[[InsistentTerminology salmon]]''-colored castle, has a lisp, hops around with various effeminate mannerisms. [[spoiler:The castle's actually a plot-point: it's girly because he stole it from a 10-year old princess.]]

** The [[EunuchsAreEvil eunuch]] [[AristocratsAreEvil Lord]] [[EvilChancellor Varys]] ''looks'' like this trope to an absolute T - he wears fancy robes in non-militaristic styles, indulges in fine perfumes of exceedingly good taste, powders and shaves a lot, swishes quite primly and silently, expresses bemused understanding of other peoples' sexual foibles (while pointing out his lack of same with no subtlety whatsoever) and has a habit of {{giggling|Villain}} and [[StepfordSnarker snarking]] at both opportune and inopportune moments. [[spoiler:And then subverts this trope, being a MasterOfDisguise and a MasterActor, playing up the "sissy" aspect because that's what people expect to see - behind the perfume and giggles he's a {{Determinator}} who isn't afraid to [[WhatTheHellHero get all up]] [[HannibalLecture in the hero's grill]]. Possibly the top [[TheChessmaster Chessmaster]] in a series notorious for its GambitPileup. ''Damn.'']]
** The downplayed, but rather similar, Petyr "Littlefinger" Baelish. He goes in for fine clothes of a style that screams "[[CorruptBureaucrat wealthy financier]]" or "majored in [[SleazyPolitician Sleaze]], minored in BadassBookworm" rather than "the swishiest, most fabulous thing around". However, this being the Seven Kingdoms, his relatively subdued attire still comes across as rather weak and effete by contrast to the usual [[BlingOfWar bantam cock posturing]] (with a side of eyebleed) to be found at Court -- and, he knows it. In addition, his start of darkness involves the well-known incident when he got savagely beaten in a duel by a more masculine hero in a love triangle over Catelyn Stark. Attempting to look like a master swordsman would just fail, so he doesn't. However, just as with Varys, it pays to check the packaging a bit more closely, because Petyr is pretty good with knives -- both metaphorical and literal ones.
** From ''Literature/TalesOfDunkAndEgg'' we get... [[SubvertedTrope Daemon Blackfyre II]]. On paper, he's this trope: heads a rebellion that would see Egg and his side of the family dead if it succeeds, has a very TransparentCloset, enjoys dressing up in an overly rich "[[PaperThinDisguise disguise]]" a smidge too much and is about as accomplished martially as your average bag of marshmallows. But... he's not much of a villain (malicious and cruel he isn't; somewhat boorish is the most he manages) and he is ''definitely'' no mastermind. Those would be his "followers" using him. He pays the price for playing the Game, regardless.

The Sissy Villain is probably the second most common portrayal of CampGay [[AcceptableTargets men]] (besides "one-dimensional joke character") but is not necessarily synonymous with DepravedHomosexual. While Sissy Villains are frequently [[DepravedHomosexual gay]] or [[DepravedBisexual bisexual]], most of them are merely [[AmbiguouslyGay sexually ambiguous]] or [[VillainousAromanticAsexual seemingly asexual]], and some of them are [[CampStraight straight]]. The Sissy Villain isn't intended to creep out the audience just because of the implication that he might like men (although this occasionally factors in), but because he ''acts'' like a real wimp. Either way, he's AlwaysCamp.

* ''ComicBook/CaptainKlutz''[='s=] Sissyman is a fairly... blatant.. example.

* ComicBook/TheJoker is [[DependingOnTheWriter sometimes]] portrayed like this, perhaps most famously in ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns''. [[spoiler:One fan theory about Joker's murder of Jason Todd (Robin) is that after he beat Jason bloody with a crowbar, he sexually molested his unconscious form. His leering, ogling expression as he's swinging the crowbar makes this theory uncomfortably plausible.]]
* Hardcore, one of ComicBook/LukeCage's enemies from the nineties, wore a purple outfit, appeared to be wearing red lipstick in some of his appearances, and constantly quoted poetry. One of his weapons was also a hyper-sharpened fingernail.
* The Creator/{{Marvel|Comics}} version of ComicBook/{{Loki}} is a somewhat deconstruction of this. He actually became villainous ''because'' he was too ''sissy'' for Asgardian standards. Being a scrawny human-sized ice giant living in a land that ranks brute force and power above intellect and magic, with [[ComicBook/TheMightyThor a brother]] who is the personification of the former is his FreudianExcuse. Loki's later incarnations have actually come out as bisexual and genderfluid, and have generally become more AntiHero than a villain, underscoring this and supporting the idea that [[InternalizedCategorism internalized homo/biphobia and transphobia]] are also part of Loki's problem.
* How much of it is based on historical behavior and how much is writer embellishment is debatable, but King James I is well on his way to this in ''ComicBook/{{Marvel 1602}}'' and ''definitely'' this in ''1602: New World''.
* Yellow Bastard from ''ComicBook/SinCity'' was a SpoiledBrat with a dose of DirtyCoward.
* Flamingo, who is introduced in ComicBook/GrantMorrisonsBatman, is a {{Gayngster}} sent by the Cartel. He loves to wear pink, has quite the flamboyant personality and [[BreadEggsMilkSquick eats his victim's faces]]
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman''

** [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 Volume 2]]: The rather effeminate kreel Emperor of [[TheEmpire the Sangtee Empire]] turns out to be [[spoiler: a woman who is forced to pass as a man in public due to her society but does not ''want to'' and overrules the laws that require it following her confrontation with Wondy which she seems to use as an excuse]]. The governor of the Empire capitol ship the final confrontation occurs on is also rather campy with his ornate robes, gestures, and preference for walking about in open nightgowns, but is the ''least'' antagonistic of the Empire's nobles, save his giddiness at getting to witness tortures and executions ordered by his Emperor, and is mostly a villain by proxy due to his position.

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->"My, aren't we ''fierce?'' Guards, castrate him."