Technology
Creation of script characters: heroes and villains

Creation of script characters: heroes and villains

In order for your script to have some kind of emotional resonance and therefore be exciting to the audience, you need to know how to write characters. You need to have an antagonist who challenges the entire mission of the protagonist. Not only do they need to be in contrast to each other; they need to be mirrors opposite each other. Take Loki from the Thor movies – he’s not nearly as intimidating, physically, as his brother, but he’s much, much smarter. As a result, Thor knows that he is in danger if he takes his eyes off Loki for too long. In turn, we, as an audience, love him for that.

Your Villain Should Be Everything Your Hero Isn’t: How To Write Characters

In short, if you know how to write characters, you will understand that your villain must be the Yang of the Yin of your hero. If the hero is a policeman, the villain must be a criminal. If your hero is super powerful, your villain better have a few tricks up his sleeve. Otherwise it’s not going to be a good fight and no one wants to pay to see a hastily resolved story. Your villain must be able to challenge the very essence of the hero’s being at every available opportunity while also providing a sense of structure. Think of how many times the Joker has had the opportunity to kill Batman over the years and yet he never dares to do so. Why? Because I would have nothing to do all day. Any lesser opponent just wouldn’t be a challenge for him. Without Batman, there is no Joker. They are two sides of the same coin, and if you remove one of them, the other should also disappear. This is essential to understand how characters are written.

Let’s take a moment to define antagonist and expand your understanding of how to write characters. It does not mean “monster” or “evil”; it simply means “opponent”. Your villain doesn’t have to be the most menacing creature to ever appear on the big screen. At the end of the day, they just need to provide a visible contrast to the protagonist. Worry more about making them diametrically opposed than about the intimidation factor of your antagonist, and you will find yourself with a much stronger character when all is said and done.

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