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Bleach's character designer says pop culture's greatest villain isn't from anime, but Disney

Speaking to a jam-packed room at the Anime NYC screening of Terminator: Zero, animator Masashi Kudō revealed himself to be a Disney villains stan

Features by Grant DeArmitt, Staff Writer

Published on Sat Aug 31 2024

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Yhwach, Aizen Sosuke, Gin Ichimaru - these are just a few of the many fascinating and loathable villains of the Bleach anime. But according to one of the series' top animators, none of them ranks as the best villain of all time. No, according to Masashi Kudō, that honor goes to one of Disney's most dastardly dignitaries: Maleficent herself.

Some context: Kudō made his pronouncement on the Main Stage at Anime NYC, where he was promoting Netflix's upcoming Terminator: Zero anime. At one point in the panel, moderator Khleo Thomas asked both Kudō and showrunner Mattson Tomlin (who's currenrtly writing The Batman: Part II) about their animated inspirations.

"Sleeping Beauty," related Kudō via a Japanese translator, "Maleficent is the best villain ever introduced."

Making this villains take especially interesting is that Disney owns the streaming rights to the Bleach series (you can watch it on Disney+ now). That technically doesn't mean Bleach baddies fall under the Disney villains umbrella, but the fact that the streamer was willing to put the hyper-violent anime on their platform means they believe it'll attract subscribers. Who knows? Maybe this will even lead the House of Mouse into creating anime based on their own IP.

We know of at least one animator who'd like a crack at Maleficent.

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Grant DeArmitt: Grant DeArmitt (he/him) likes horror, comics, and the unholy union of the two. As Popverse's Staff Writer, he criss-crosses the pop culture landscape bringing you the news and opinions about the big things (and the next big things). In the past, and despite their better judgment, he has written for Nightmare on Film Street and Newsarama. He lives in Brooklyn with his partner, Kingsley, and corgi, Legs.