Many modern movies that are marketed to kids like Pirates of the Caribbean and Maleficent try to portray the villain in a more positive light. I think an interesting article would talk about the genre of kids' films and how villains have changed over the years. For example, Goonies and Disney's Little Mermaid have clear, evil villains.
Thank you for the help! I ended up clarifying the genre (removing the 80's reference) and focusing it a bit more. – tclaytor6 years ago
Are they "modern villains," or are they villains in "modern kids' movies"? Also might be nice to explore the apparent sanitization of movies targeted towards children over the last several decades. Do any characters ever die (murder, etc.) anymore, or does everyone end up talking about feelings by the end? – LaPlant06 years ago
it's also interesting to explore how villains may change with demographic. For example, it might be easier to present a villain in a child's movie as inherently evil, to better teach morals. Versus, villains for older audiences are presented as morally ambiguous and complicated, which makes them relatable to us. – vmainella6 years ago
Such a cool topic! It might be interesting to see if this shift was due to any real world events that may have influenced society's opinion on how to portray villains. – MaddyKellas6 years ago
I have thought about this so much. I would also like to add the villains in the my little pony movies from the 80s/90s were really dark. The TV film called Rescue from Midnight Castle had a villian named Tirek and Scorpan who are dark and very creepy. Modern adaptations of these two were much less frightening. – ivyskiss6 years ago