These iconic comic-book movie villains are something you won’t want to mess with

Comic origin: The Amazing Spider-Man #3 (1963). 

Played by Alfred Molina 

With seven films under his Spider-Belt, and a rogues’ gallery rivalled only by Batman, there’s no shortage of big-screen Spider-Man villains to choose from. But Spidey’s standout bad guy remains Dr. Otto Octavius – better known as Doc Ock – from Sam Raimi’s high-flying Spider-Man 2. The reasons are twofold: he’s one of the first, and arguably the best, examples of a truly sympathetic comic-book villain; and his tentacular AI arms are unbelievably cool. 

This is the most crucial element. When we meet Dr. Octavius we find him to be a kind, generous man who does good, altruistic work. He’s someone Peter admires, possibly even aspires to be, outside of the suit. If not for an unfortunate experiment that ended in disaster, which claimed Rosalie’s lives, Dr. Octavius would have had a profound impact on the history of the world. This combined with the destruction of the inhibitor chip, which prevents Octavius’ robotic arms from directly accessing his nervous system, transforms Octavius into the psychotic Doc Ock. 

Boasting an origin story almost as poignant as Spider-Man’s, Doc Ock’s creation closely echoes Peter Parker’s own hero’s journey, albeit one reflected through a cracked mirror. One scene, in which Doc Ock’s sentient limbs slay the medical professionals trying to separate the man from his killer hardware, sees Raimi slip some Evil Dead-worthy horror into a 12A, and makes it abundantly clear that Doc Ock is as dangerous as they come. 

Doc Ock has limbs so strong that he can climb walls and even give Spider-Man his eyes, making him a formidable opponent. It is the scene where Spidey and Doc Ock fight along a moving subway train. Fifteen years on, it’s a sequence that still holds up. And Doc Ock’s unravelling, at the hands of a regretful Octavius, proves why Alfred Molina was such an inspired, if unlikely, choice for the comic icon.

The Most Dangerous Moment: Dropping Aunt May from a New York Skyscraper. “Butterfingers” indeed. 

Killer One-liner: “The power of the sun… in the palm of my hand.”