| NOTE: This page only concerns the version of Sebastian Shaw within the X-Men movie franchise, as various other incarnations of the character were not voted Pure Evil. Therefore, only the movie franchise's info and crimes should be listed here. |
| “ | Excellent, Erik! We can bring your gift around with anger. Anger and pain. You and me...we'll have a lot of fun together. | „ |
| ~ Dr. Schmidt to Erik, after killing his mother and his lab is wrecked. |
Sebastian Shaw, also known as Klaus Schmidt, is one of the two overarching antagonists (alongside Apocalypse) of the X-Men film series, serving as the main antagonist of the 2011 superhero movie X-Men: First Class and its tie-in comic book The High Hand.
He is a mutant scientist who can absorb and redirect kinetic energy. Shaw worked for the Nazis during World War II, and in the following years after the war, founds the Hellfire Club to assist him in his plans to provoke World War III between the USA and Russia in order to destroy the military superpower countries and because he actually enjoys those days when the world is at war.
He was portrayed by Kevin Bacon, who also played Sean Nokes in Sleepers, Sebastian Caine in Hollow Man, Bobby Hayes in R.I.P.D. and Owen Whistler in They/Them.
What Makes Him Pure Evil?[]
- During the Holocaust, he shot and killed Edie Lehnsherr before performing torturous experiments on her son Erik Lehnsherr. As an adult, Erik was convinced that Shaw was right all along in that mutants and humans can never co-exist, making him directly responsible for turning Erik into becoming the tyrannical and xenophobic mutant supremacist Magneto.
- He was also uncaring when Erik used his powers to kill two of his guards in a fit of rage, instead smiling and laughing upon witnessing his potential.
- He kills Col. Bob Hendry after his usefulness expires.
- He leads a massacre of an entire facility full of military soldiers and CIA agents after they repeatedly refuse to turn over the mutants, even redirecting an explosion at them and watching gleefully as they all burn up agonizingly.
- Even when a single guard surrenders and cooperates with his will, he strikes him down just to prove how nasty and vile he is.
- He kills Darwin after he stands up to him and attempts to punch him in the head in a last-resort attempt to prevent Angel Salvadore from joining him.
- His ultimate goal is to provoke nuclear war between the United States and the Soviet Union by goading them into placing nuclear warheads in Turkey and Cuba in order to destroy all humans so that mutants can destroy the world in their place as part of his false flag attack, ultimately resulting in World War III. He also remarks how he actually misses those days when the whole world was in an all-out war.
- He gaslights and manipulates Erik into joining his genocidal crusade against mankind and even feigns regret for executing his mother, being fully ready to beat Erik to death on the spot otherwise.
- Despite seemingly loving his girlfriend Emma Frost, he has no problem abandoning her to the CIA after she gets defeated by Charles and Erik, never bothering to break her out despite being beyond capable of doing so, which Erik is ironically the one to do.
- In his defense, it's completely mutual since Emma doesn't even react to Erik supplanting Shaw and asks after Charles' whereabouts instead of Shaw's because she doesn't sincerely love him either.
- His demise at Erik's hands is played for satisfaction as Erik directly states that he deserved it for murdering his mother, along with the innocent humans and mutants alike.
- While he has indicated he has standards multiple times (especially when he tells Emma mutants should have each other's backs and when he tells Erik his mother shouldn't've had to die), they are always out of sheer pragmatism, rather than moral conscience. Given that these standards are very hypocritical, he has no redeeming qualities at all.
- Despite the heinous standard of the series, he easily passes it for trying to destroy the world with less resources than Apocalypse and Cassandra Nova.
Trivia[]
- Sebastian Shaw was the first X-Men film series villain to be Pure Evil.
- Coincidentally, Kevin Bacon played another Pure Evil by the name of Sebastian 11 years ago, being Sebastian Caine.
External Links[]
- Sebastian Shaw on the Villains Wiki
- Sebastian Shaw on the X-Men Movies Wiki
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 Movies Pure Evils
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Films See Also | ||
