Anime villains are known for their twisted motives, cruel actions, and oftentimes, heartbreaking backstories. FromDemon Slayer’sUpper Rank Three demon, Akaza, toFruits' Basket’sAkito Sohma, these evildoers were not born villainous and turned to this harmful path to deal with struggles and losses in their own lives. Anime in particular boasts some of the best fictional villains, withbackstories that almost make fans feel a bit sorry for these characters' pain, in spite of their misdeeds.
My Hero Academiais no different, and the entire plot of the series hinges on the battle between good vs. evil, making villains a crucial component. The divide between heroes and villains inMy Hero Academia’ssociety is distinct, but many evil characters only lashed out in this way because they felt they had no other choice. Sadly, many characters, like Tomura Shigaraki and Toga Himiko, for example, were ridiculed for their uncontrollable Quirks and looked down upon by the world, causing them to feel isolated and resentful. Not every villain has a tragic backstory though, andthe series' worst villain proves this fact.

The League of Villains Is Filled With Characters Who Society Turned Its Back on and Mistreated
Tomura Shigaraki is considered one of the most horrific villains inMy Hero Academia,enacting pain on everyone who crosses his path. However,Shigaraki’s upbringing andpasthelp explain his anger towards humanity. When he was a young child, his Decay Quirk became terrifyingly uncontrollable and killed his entire family, leaving him all alone. Shigaraki waited in vain for the heroes to come save him, but no one ever did, until All For One encountered the young boy and began manipulating him for his own selfish schemes. Since Shigaraki was neglected and left behind by heroes, this shows why he despises them.
10 Best My Hero Academia Villains, Ranked
My Hero Academia’s villains are some of the most complex and well-written in anime, with tragic backstories and terrifying Quirks.
Toga Himiko and Shuichi Iguchi, better known as Spinner, suffered similar adversity from society. Toga also struggled to keep her Transform Quirk and thirst for blood under wraps, making her own family view her with disdain. Once she finally found the League of Villains, she fully unleashed her Quirk for evil purposes, seeing thesefellow villains as the only people who would ever understandher. Shuichi was similarly bullied and poked fun at for his reptile appearance, and he also felt he would never fit in anywhere but alongside evildoers and other societal rejects, so he joined the League of Villains too.

All for One Is Evil Purely Out of Self-Interest and Evilness
All for One Was Evil From Birth, Stealing His Own Twin Brother, Yoichi’s, Strength For Himself
While villains like Shigaraki, Toga, and Spinner have devastating backstories filled with abuse, pain, and neglect that led them to pursue villainy in retaliation against a society that turned its back on them while they were at their most vulnerable, not every character shared this experience. The series' most evil villain,All For One, lived a very different life than the fellow League of Villains' members.All For One’s evilness did not develop over time as a result of his circumstances, he was born with evil intent. All For One is a villain purely because he takes pleasure in it.
All For One is completely different from these other evildoers because hedoesn’t have a depressing backstoryor reason for his evil deeds. He is justmalicious by nature and takes twisted pleasure in stealing Quirksand harming others. Interestingly, All For One was a villain from his very first moments, going back as far as the womb. His twin, Yoichi, was the first to suffer his mistreatment, as All For One intentionally weakened his brother tomake himself stronger. This kicked off a disturbing pattern in All For One’s behavior, as he began to go through life taking from others.

His Unique and Twisted Motivation Differentiates Him From the Typical Anime Villain
The Other League of Villains’ Members Are More Complex and Sympathetic Than All for One, Who Is Evil Incarnate
All For One’s Quirk, named All For One, after the villain himself, isan inherently evil and parasitic Quirk.He uses the ability to take others' Quirks from them and throughout the series, he greedily hoards these unique skills for himself tobecome more powerfulwhile leaving others weak. All For One’s childhood was not particularly distressing, and he did not have one big catastrophic incident that shifted his perspective, like Shigaraki did. He was simply doomed to be a villain from the start, making him arguably more petrifying than the average villain with more complex, understandable motivations.
My Hero Academia: All For One’s Greatest Feat Is Now His Big Weakness
Why hasn’t All for One’s power waned after passing his quirk on, like All Might’s did? The answer may turn out to be the secret to his final defeat.
All For One not only ruined so many people’s lives by taking their Quirks away,he killed his own brother, nearly ended All Might’s life, struck terror into society, and took advantage of Tomura Shigaraki,the series' other greatest villain, while he was vulnerable and alone. All For One has zero pity or sympathy for anyone and would never think twice about ending a life if it benefited him. Shigaraki, Toga, and the other League of Villains members have more substantial, albeit misguided, reasons for their actions because of the suffering they have faced as a direct result of their Quirks.

Evil Acts Bring All for One a Warped Sense of Joy, Showing He Is Past Redemption
Few Anime Characters Are Inherently Evil From Birth Like All for One, Setting Him Apart as Uniquely Twisted
All For One is not onlyMy Hero Academia’smost unique villain, but distinct from other anime villains because he is truly evil incarnate.He was born with villainy in his blood,his mind cannot be changed, and he is virtually unstoppable. Armed with the most undefeatable Quirk and a self-obsessed mindset, it is clear to see why society cowers in fear at the mention of his name. The villain is not sympathetic like other anime villains with sad backstories. Hurting others and controlling the world makesAll For Onegleeful, making him the most twistedMy Hero Academiacharacter of all.
My Hero Academia
Cast
Anime series My Hero Academia follows Izuku Midoriya, a boy born without superpowers in a world where most have them. Despite his lack of abilities, he enrolls in a prestigious hero academy, striving to learn the true essence of heroism and fulfill his dream of becoming a hero.

