Examples:
- Mr. Potter — It’s a Wonderful Life
- Johnny Lawrence — The Karate Kid
- Biff Tannen — Back to the Future
- The Socs — The Outsiders
- Scut Farkus — A Christmas Story
- Ace Merrill — Stand by Me
- Nurse Ratched — One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
- Fletcher — Whiplash
The Bully is straightforward opposition to the protagonist, often for little to no reason beyond the psychological explanations as to why bullies do what they do, whether it be due to stance in society (The Socs), lack of quality ethics or morals (Ace Merrill), or just outright meanness (Biff Tannen). Given what each of those films tell us — or don’t tell us — about The Bully, it’s simply a character that all audiences can identify with, thus it’s a character that is best saved for dramas and comedies, as you’ll see with the above examples. Action, thrillers, suspense, and other sub-genres like crime thrillers require a bit more in their villains. With The Bully, less is required. They’re just mean to be mean with little to no explanation needed.
