The Top 10 Worst Movie Dads
This List of the Worst Movie Dads hopefully Reminds You that Your Dad “Wasn’t That Bad.”
Since I’ve done the worst movie moms of all time, it only seemed fair to tackle the worst movie dads as well. It’s probably fair to assume that everyone out there has “daddy issues” to a certain extent. However, I’m hoping that not everyone had to deal with anything like what you’ll find on this list. Terrible film fathers come in all shapes and sizes, which is why I’ve decided to include adoptive and step-fathers on this list as well as biological dads. The only rule is that we have to actually see them being terrible movie dads in the film (no absentee father’s that went out for cigarettes and never came back). The end result is a list that includes serial killers, intergalactic villains, and just all-around jerks in general. Fair warning, there are some spoilers on this list, and it tackles some sensitive subject matter. Then again, what else would you expect from a list of the worst movie dads of all time? If they weren’t absolute scumbags, they wouldn’t have a spot here. So, check out the characters that earned a spot, and then give your dad a call and tell him that he’s not such a bad guy after all.
10. Royal Tenenbaum- The Royal Tenenbaums
Let’s ease on into the list of the worst movie dads with Gene Hackman’s Royal Tenebaum. The man was the father of three gifted children, whom he neglected and constantly betrayed right up until he walked out of their lives. 20 years later, the broke and destitute Royal decides that now would be a great time to reconnect to the family he abandoned whether they like it or not. But how can he get them to forgive him for being a garbage human being? Well, Royal has never been one to tell the truth, and he isn’t going to start now, so he fakes having cancer to manipulate them into putting up with him. Back in their lives, his lack of empathy continues as he goes against their wishes, betrays them again, and is just generally an all-around terrible guy. The only reason he’s so low on the list is that there are way worse movie dads to come.
9. Dad Meiks- Frailty
Frailty might not be one of the best movies on this list, but it definitely features one of the worst movie dads of all time. Dad Meeks (Bill Paxton) is a full-blown crazy person. Not only does he believe that he’s been visited by an angel who wants him to kill sinners, but he thinks that his holy mission would be the perfect father-son activity to share with his two boys. Now, I’m no psychiatrist, but I’m pretty sure getting your kids to help you murder and dispose of bodies is a sure-fire way to really screw them up, especially when you keep telling them that an angel told you to do it. Low and behold, Dad Meiks’ psychopathic tendencies rub off on his boys, and they are forced to deal with his legacy as they stand on opposite sides of the twisted line of good and evil that he created.
8. Jerry Blake AKA Henry Morrison AKA Bill Hodgkins AKA The Stepfather- The Stepfather
Divorce can be hard on kids, especially once mommy and daddy start dating. As difficult as that can be though, mom dating a serial killer can make it a whole lot worse. Jerry Blake (Terry O’Quinn, who you might remember from Lost) seems like a pretty good guy at first glance. He’s a charming real estate agent who seems like a single mom’s knight in shining armor (serial killers always do…) However, he’s actually a murderous psychopath who specializes in destroying “broken” families. Before he kills them though, Jerry likes to toy with them earning their trust and driving everyone around them away until they love him and only him. I guess that just makes the inevitable betrayal all the sweeter for him. Now, I want to point out not all step-fathers are terrible, but Jerry isn’t the only one on this list.
7. Daniel Plainview-There Will Be Blood
Daniel Day-Lewis might just be one of the most talented actors of all time. He’s known for pouring his heart and soul into his work, and in the film There Will Be Blood he played the penultimate bastard, Daniel Plainview. An oilman by trade at the beginning of the 20th century, Plainview was a greedy, ruthless, narcissist who loved money. Realizing that people tend not to trust guys like that, Plainview adopted the son of a worker who was killed on a job for him and passes the young boy off as his son to seem more like a family man. This is all just a facade meant to dupe people out of oil rights, and the reality is that he treats his adopted son as a prop, not even bothering to learn sign language to communicate with him. Plainview went so far to mock his son’s disability and call him a “bastard in a basket,” but I think we all know who the real bastard is.
6. Dwight Hansen- This Boy’s Life
A lot of older white folks look back on the 1950s as a time when things were just “swell.” Well, one of the worst movie dads of all time comes straight outta the good old days in This Boy’s Life. Based on the memoirs of Tobias Wolff (played by Leonardo DiCaprio in the film), the film documents his experiences growing up with his emotionally, verbally, and physically abusive step-father, Dwight (Robert De Niro). What’s truly scary is how Dwight hides this side of himself from Tobias’ mother and tricks her into marrying him to provide a good father figure for Toby. Well, Dwight is none of those things, and his abuse gets worse and worse over the years. So bad that Tobias starts forging documents in order to be accepted to a prep school on the other side of the country. Worst of all, Dwight’s own behavior starts to wear off on Toby. Fortunately, he escapes before he turns into a little Dwight.