The Top 10 Worst Dirty Cops From Movies

5. Detective Joe Cooper- Killer Joe

The reason why Detective Joe Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) is appearing among these other dirty cops is pretty clear from the title of the film. Joe Cooper is literally a psychopath with a badge. If you’ve got enough scratch, you can hire this Texas trailer park assassin to kill for you, and he’ll make sure the police never find the bodies. That’s because he’s probably the guy who is going to get assigned to investigate the crime. Killer Joe not only reveals the character to be an anti-social, abusive, professional killer but also the kind of guy who is really into girls younger than him (it’s not the first time McConaughey played a creep like that). When he’s hired to kill a woman so her kin can inherit the insurance money, he takes a teenage girl as his “retainer” until the check clears. That should clue you into exactly why “Killer” Joe earned a spot in the top 5 on this list of dirty cops from movies.

4. Officer Pete Davis- Unlawful Entry

Officer Pete Davis (Ray Liotta) is a pretty good example of why police need access to serious mental health counseling and evaluations on a regular basis. I totally get that the job is stressful, but it’s better to get pulled from duty before you become a total psycho. Officer Davis becomes obsessed with the victims of a break-in and decides to give their case some “special attention.” That means instead of arresting the suspect, Davis brutalizes him and leaves the robber a bloody pulp. With that case closed, he continues giving the couple special attention, especially the wife. Not wanting anyone to “come between them,” Davis destroys her husband’s reputation and sets him up to take the fall for a bogus drug bust. The husband actually gets off lucky compared to some of the others that get in Davis way. Of all the dirty cops on this list, Davis is one of the most frightening because he is essentially a monster with a badge. 

3. Officer Dennis Peck- Internal Affairs

Who watches the watchmen? Internal Affairs, that’s who. That’s probably why dirty cops hate the Internal Affairs Division (IAD). so much. They come along asking a bunch of pesky questions like, “You sure that the suspect had a gun when you shot them?” and “How can you afford alimony to 3 ex-wives and child support for 8 kids on a uniform officer’s salary?”. Officer Peck (Richard Gere) is tormented by these kinds of questions when all he wants to do is protect and serve… And make a few bucks on the side doing odd jobs, like contract killing. Peck is the kind of cop who always keeps a “throwaway” gun on him to plant on his victims in order to claim self-defense. To those around him, he’s a model cop that upholds everything. Behind that smile though, he’s a manipulative sociopath that gets off on the power he wields because of his badge.

2. Detective Sergeant Alonzo Harris- Training Day

You know, I’ve kind of noticed a disturbing trend among the dirty cops we’ve seen so far on this list. Luckily, it’s going to an end thanks to one of the most iconic dirty cops in movie history, Alonzo Harris (Denzel Washington). It should come as no surprise that there’s a lot of money to be made through the sale and distribution of narcotics. It should also come as no surprise that seeing that kind of money up for grabs can be pretty tempting. Well, Detective Harris has his corrupt fingers in many nefarious pies making him a crime lord with a badge. Harris keeps his empire intact by weeding out competition and stealing their supply to make his own. Washington actually won an Academy Award for his performance as Harris, making this character the first name to earn a spot on this list.

1. Detective Colin Sullivan- The Departed

Almost all of the other dirty cops on this list stumbled down a path of darkness until it was all they knew. Detective Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) was groomed to be a corrupt police officer. From a young age, crime boss Frank Costello took an interest in young Colin and looked after him. The effort paid for itself when Sullivan decided to become a Massachusetts State Police Officer. He rose quickly through the ranks thanks to his hard work, dedication, and occasional tips from Costello that helped Sullivan take out the old man’s competition with some impressive arrests. In return, Sullivan became Costello’s guardian angel. Cluing Costello in on all the investigations looking into his affairs allowed the crime boss to stay one step ahead and eliminate potential threats. When Costello’s days became numbered, Sullivan cleaned house, disposing of anything and anyone that could tie him to the criminal. Sullivan knew exactly what he was doing the moment he put on the badge, making him one of the dirtiest cops in movie history.  

Honorable Mention: Officer Matthew Cordel- The Maniac Cop Series 

Can you guess why I might be giving an honorable mention to a character affectionately nicknamed “Maniac Cop”? Well, it might have to do with him being a police officer known for his use of brutality returning from beyond the grave for revenge on those who wronged him. To be fair, Maniac Cop is a series of terrible horror films featuring one of the biggest heads ever to come out of Hollywood, Robert Z’Dar. He’s basically a supernatural slasher with a badge, which gives him a right to stand proud among the rest of these dirty cops.

Shout-Out: John Edward “Teddy” Gammell- Memento 

Was Teddy a corrupt cop? Yeah, he definitely was. However, it’s hard to argue that his heart was in the wrong place. When Leonard loses his ability to make short term memories after his wife is raped and killed by “John G,” Detective Gammell does everything he can to help track the scum bag down. I don’t want to ruin the movie for you, since it’s one of the best films of the new millennium, but things get out of hand for Teddy and he ends up digging his own grave by the end (technically the beginning, but you need to see the film to know what I mean). Because of that, I’m giving him a shout out among these dirty cops, because with a bit of soap he could have cleaned up.

Those are my picks for the worst dirty cops from movies of all time. Making this list, I realized that there are tons of dirty cops out there and even some of the “good guys” are technically dirty if you look real hard at them. Still, if I missed one of your favorite villainous cinematic police officers, let me know in the comments. As always, I’ll be updating this list as new dirty cops make it to the big screen. So, be sure to check back from time to time in order to see how the rankings might change.