In the Potter verse, you’ll find that there are a plethora of characters with very different personalities, goals and backgrounds that are sure to interest you. Maybe it’s the actions they take when facing a certain situation. Maybe it’s the way they interact with other characters and the world around them. But if there’s one thing that makes the books/movies most interesting, it’s the antagonists.
In this list, you’ll find out about the top 15 hated characters and if you’re a Harry Potter fan, I hope we don’t bump heads. I compiled this list according to how they were delaying the story line from progressing, how they disadvantaged the main characters or how nasty/unpleasant their actions and/or personality was. Of course there are evil characters but they are not on the list for that sole reason.
15. Gilderoy Lockhart
Gilderoy Lockhart is the son to a witch mother and muggle father, he is the only child out of the three children in the family who possess magical ability. He is popular for being awarded the Order of Merlin, third class, is an honorary Member of the Dark Force Defence League, is the five–time winner of Witch Weekly’s Most-Charming-smile, and has published autobiographical books.
If you aren’t a Potter head, I know what you may be thinking after reading that “If he’s such a great guy, why is he on the list?” but if you’re a Potter head or at least read the second book or watched the second movie, you’ll already know why he’s here.
He’s hated by the fans because:
- He’s a narcissist – He had an exaggerated opinion of how unique he was and how good his abilities were (even though he was quite the opposite) and was often preoccupied with fantasies of great success.
- Obnoxious – he was annoying. He did not know how to take no for an answer and was constantly talking down to everyone, and disregarding how others felt simply because he was good at memory charms.
- A fraud – the only reason why Lockhart got to where he was, was because he took credit for work that belonged to other people and used memory charms on them so that they could not call him out.
14. Colin Creevey
Colin Creevey was a muggle-born wizard, son of Mr. Creevey and Mrs. Creevey, and older brother of Dennis. He was sorted into Gryffindor.
He was most well known for being one of Harry’s biggest fans, so much so that he started to become irritating. Of course his intentions were pure and didn’t mean to make Harry feel uncomfortable. Another thing: Harry potter could’ve handled this situation without being so rude.
Why he was disliked:
- He didn’t know how to take a hint – He memorized Harry’s timetable and always found a way to interact with Harry. Although he was earnest and intended no harm. He could’ve stopped for a minute to think “Why does Harry Potter seem so sluggish when I approach him?” and it was painful to see that Colin didn’t see that Harry was irritated.
- He became a talkative shadow – Colin followed Harry virtually everywhere and always had his camera flashing at him, always asking for autographs, and always asking questions he already knew the answers to.
- He became difficult to get rid of – the first few times when Colin interacted with Harry was okay, but he started to cross the line when he became a talkative shadow. It was a shame that Harry didn’t know how to deal with this situation considering that he felt alone for most of his life and all of a sudden he had someone lurking around every corner looking for him, repetitively talking to him and photographing him. Although, on paper, it sounds sweet and kind, it bothered Harry.
13. Lavender Brown
Lavender Brown was the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Brown. She was a pure-blood witch and was sorted into Gryffindor.
Lavender Brown was most known for being the silly sentimental girl who was obsessed with Ron Weasley. She also had an aptitude for Divination despite the subject being “wooly” and the Professor was something of a fraud.
Why she was disliked:
- She was annoying – Lavender Brown was one of the most annoying characters. She would always refer to Ron (boyfriend at the time) as “Won-Won” and she was the typical whiny and immature teenage girlfriend.
- She made Hermione upset – as a fan of the books or movies, if you loved Hermione, then it’s likely that if something annoyed her, it would annoy you. In the fourth year at Hogwarts, Hermione got annoyed with Lavender for doubting Harry’s account of Voldemort’s return after the Triwizard Tournament. When Lavender said Harry was Lying, Hermione told her to keep her Big Fat Mouth Shut.
- She basically bewitched Ron – Lavender Brown used a love Potion to make Ron Weasley obsessed with her. I don’t know about you, but to me that seems extreme; basically forcing someone to intensify their feelings for you by giving a magical substance.
12. Percy Weasley
Percy Weasley was a pure-blood wizard, the third child of Arthur and Molly Weasley. He was the younger brother of Bill and Charlie and the older brother of Ron, Ginny, George, and the late Fred Weasley. He was sorted into Gryffindor.
Percy Weasley is most known for being the disciplined prefect and having issues with his family. Even though he sounds like a well-mannered person and sounds like he has a fixed head, that is exactly what caused him to be disliked by many Harry Potter fans.
Why he was disliked:
- He was strict – He took the rules very seriously and looked down on his family because they were not as strict as him. His brother, Ron, said “Percy wouldn’t know a joke if it danced naked in front of him wearing Dobby’s tea cosy”
- Disrespectful to his family – Percy was always snottier and standoffish than the rest of his family. At one point he was being blatantly disrespectful to his father by calling him an idiot right to his face while the whole family watched. Considering that his family financially struggled a lot and still provided Percy with most of the things he needed, never treated him badly, while also taking care of 6 other kids, it’s really unfair of him to then go off and call his father an idiot.
- He made questionable decisions – when Percy got promoted to Junior Assistant to the Minister of magic, it caused a real rift between the Weasleys. Percy was proud and believed he had achieved the recognition himself, but Arthur (his dad) was convinced that he was given the position so that the Ministry could spy on the Weasleys, considering that the Minister of magic was being very questionable at the time.
11. Cho Chang
Cho Chang was a pure-blood witch and was sorted into Ravenclaw. She was a seeker for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team and a popular student.
Cho Chang is most known for being Harry’s first crush, first kiss, and first girlfriend in the Harry Potter books and films. After reading that, you’re probably thinking “that sounds great, why would she be disliked?” personally I don’t think she’s a bad person at all, but many people just have some sort of grudge against her.
Why she was disliked:
- The time she defended Marietta Edgecombe – Cho “betrayed” Dumbledore’s Army (the DA) even though Merietta is the one who betrayed the DA, which made Marietta regret what she did. Harry got mad when Cho said that Marietta is a lovely person and that she just made a mistake. This is understandable because Merietta did it to save her mom from losing her job. But regardless Harry did not agree with her actions.
- She didn’t really like Hermione – Cho assumed that Harry had feelings for Hermione and wasn’t willing to get into a relationship with him if that was the case.
- She was not over Cedric – People seem to hate Cho for the simple reason that she was not ready to be in a relationship. But it was a valid reason considering that her boyfriend recently died at the time.
10. Dudley Dursley
Dudley Dursley was the muggle son of Vernon and Petunia Dursley and cousin of Harry Potter. He was a terrible character because his parents spoiled him throughout his childhood.
Dudley is known for being one of the most stupid and inconsiderate characters in the franchise. I think it’s safe to say that he is hated by EVERYONE.
Why he is disliked:
- A bully to Harry – ever since harry was a child, Dudley has always been treating harry like dog shit (apologies for bad language, but this seems like the only way to properly describe his actions).
- Taunted Harry about his isolation – Harry had no friends before going to Hogwarts and during this time he was often isolated both physically and socially. He was often stuck in the closet under the stairs and had no one to talk to or play with. While all this was happening, Dudley saw it as the perfect opportunity to make fun of Harry for it.
- Brought his school bullies home to Harry – as if being bullied at school wasn’t enough, at one point Dudley decides to bring his gang back home. Imagine if your school bullies followed you around school and just when you think you’re safe at home, they show up just to torment you even more.
9. Petunia & Vernon Dursley
Petunia Was a muggle, the eldest daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Evans, and the older sister of the muggle-born witch Lily (Harry’s mom). During childhood, she broke off contact with her sister and refused to have any contact with the wizarding world.
Vernon Dursley was a muggle, husband of Petunia Evans, father of Dudley, and uncle of Harry Potter by marriage.
Both of these characters are known for being Harry’s only family, but they treated Harry Potter so wrongly.
Why they are disliked:
- They neglected and abused Harry - Harry Potter was in an environment where he was not loved at all. Petunia and Vernon constantly talked to Harry like he was some kind of animal that needed to be verbally abused. They lied about who he really was and always gave extreme punishments to him for little reasons.
- They raised a spoiled brat - Vernon and Petunia are responsible for creating an atrocious beast of a child. They are the parents of Dudley, so they often spoiled the thing with a lot of food, gifts, toys and much more. Even when his behavior was completely out of line, they would reward him. They basically encouraged him to be a bully and treat other people badly.
- Lied about the life and death of Harry’s parents - since Vernon and Petunia had a great hate for anything magical, they lied about Harry’s parents a lot. Harry Potter’s parents died from Voldemort casting the killing curse at them, but Vernon and Petunia told Harry that they died in a car crash and that he had gotten the lightning shaped scar on his forehead from the crash. They also said nasty things about his parents. Like when Aunt Marge called Harry’s mother a bitch and Vernon and Petunia laughed along.
8. Draco Malfoy
Draco Lucius Malfoy was a pure-blood wizard and the only son of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. He was the son of a death eater. He was sorted into Slytherin.
Draco is mostly known for being one of Harry’s antagonists along with his two goons, Crab and Goyle. There are a lot of us who dislike him but there are also a lot of people who adore him.
Why he is disliked:
- He was also a bully to harry - Draco has been nasty towards Harry ever since he told Draco that he didn’t want to be friends with him. Harry said this because he saw how he treated other students on the train the first time he went to Hogwarts. Draco insulted Ron Weasley’s family right to his face by saying that they were poor and had more children than they could afford. He was a major bully and enjoyed to belittle other people for his entertainment. Who would want to be friends with someone like that?
- He had negative views on both muggle borns and Hagrid – Draco was very open about how he thought that Muggles and anything that isn’t pure-blood is inferior to those who are pure-blood even though some of the greatest witches and wizards are muggle borns. He even tried to get Hagrid fired and kill Buckbeak.
- Almost got Multiple people killed in his sixth year – Voldemort put Draco in a difficult position at the time where he needed to kill for Voldemort. However in the chasing of a challenging task he also got many innocent people killed and leaving some of them almost dead. Maybe he didn’t want to hurt these people, but he wasn’t exactly concerned about what he was doing.
7. Lucius Malfoy
Lucius Malfoy was a Death Eater, head of a wealthy pure-blood wizarding family, father of Draco Malfoy and husband of Narcissa Malfoy. Lucius was a school governor of Hogwarts before being sacked, and had very close connections at the ministry of magic.
Lucius Malfoy is most known for his mischievous acts and having a hatred for Harry Potter, like his son.
Why he was disliked:
- He opened the chamber of secrets – this was never explicitly said, but it’s hard to ignore all of the things that point to him. His house elf constantly trying to stop Harry from going to school because something was going to happen. Giving Ginny Weasley Tom Riddles’ diary. Breaking Harry’s arm. His name was written all over the situation. Also considering that Lucius did not even know about Harry being at Hogwarts in the first year. Draco could’ve told his father about Harry being there and then he showed up in the second year.
- He taught Draco to hate non-pure-bloods – because Draco grew up with his father being a death eater, he was taught to believe that pure-bloods are superior. And should he have not been a death eater, Draco would’ve been a much nicer person.
- He was a death eater – this meant that he followed Voldemort and his ideologies and even though he was a bad guy, he was bad at being bad. He never really accomplished anything, all he did was annoy people and delay peoples plans.
6. Cornelius Fudge
Cornelius Fudge began his career at the ministry at some point before or during the First Wizarding war. By 1981 he was serving as Junior Minister in the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes.
Cornelius Fudge was most known for being a bad authority figure and was very hard-headed.
Why he was disliked:
- He chose to ignore the signs – Cornelius Fudge refused to admit that Voldemort was back and he did not want to be the person who would have to bear this news.
- He is remembered for being the weakest and most hated Minister for Magic – As Dumbledore had previously warned him, he was immortalized as the man who had stepped aside and almost let Voldemort destroy what the wizarding community had tried so hard to rebuild.
- He tried to take Hagrid away – this made many Harry Potter fans hate him. In 1993 after four attacks on muggle-born witches and wizards, Fudge arrived to remove Rubeus Hagrid to Azkaban prison, not as punishment, but as precaution, even though he was innocent.
5. Peter Pettigrew
Peter Pettigrew began attending Hogwarts in 1971 and was sorted into Gryffindor. He soon became friends with James Potter, Remus Lupin, and Sirius Black, fellow Gryffindors he idolized for their talent and popularity.
Peter Pettigrew is most known for being the man who could transform into a rat and being a backstabber.
Why he was disliked:
- He was a backstabber –After Voldemort’s fall, he faked his death and framed Sirius for betraying James and Lily, as well as for his own murder and those of the twelve muggles he killed during his escape. Peter spent twelve years living in his Animagus form as the Weasley family’s pet rat, Scabbers.
- He was a coward –as said before, he killed dozens of people and creatures, he destroyed lives and murdered to escape being held accountable.
- He helped Voldemort return - when Harry was delivered to Voldemort, Pettigrew murdered Cedric Diggory, who was transported along with Harry, and used some of Harry’s blood in the ritual to restore Voldemort.
4. Albus Dumbledore
He was the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor, later the Transfiguration Professor, and later the Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He also served as Supreme Mugwump of the International Confederation of Wizards and the Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot.
Dumbledore is most known for being the Headmaster of Hogwarts and also being somewhat of a good parental figure to Harry Potter. But when we look beneath the surface of his achievements, you find that he isn’t one of the nicest people you thought you knew.
Why he is disliked:
- He left Harry to suffer at the Dursleys - Despite Professor McGonagall telling him about how terrible the Dursleys were, he left him there anyway. Yes it was because that was one of the only places where Voldemort won’t find him, but the possibility of Harry becoming a terrible person due to abuse was there. There could’ve been a Voldemort 2.0 if Harry began to perceive all muggles as like the Dursleys. But he also had a good reason for it; so that Harry wouldn’t turn into a spoiled brat.
- He knew he would face many struggles- Dumbledore was aware that Harry was going to face many struggles, but rarely helped. I understand that not helping him was the best way for Harry to build his own character, but Harry almost died on many occasions and Dumbledore was willing to let it happen.
- He was manipulative- He knew of Snape’s undying love for Harry’s mother. He used his grief over her death to get Snape to protect Harry, even though Snape wasn’t a fan of Harry. When Dumbledore knew he was going to die, he again Manipulated Snape, this time into agreeing to kill him, so Voldemort would completely trust him.
3. Rita Skeeter
Rita Skeeter was born into a half-blood or pure-blood family circa and presumably purchased her wand at the age of eleven in 1962, the same year she began her magical education. She then became a journalist who specialized in writing poison-pen stories. (These stories tended to be based on false information and misreported interviews)
She is most known for her poison pen stories and being such a liar.
Why she is disliked:
- She destroys lives with her Quill – Skeeter and her lies have been very influential and no one was immune to her poison. If she decided to right about someone, their world was about to be flipped upside-down. She could destroy relationships, get people fired and more.
- Her methods of getting information are highly unethical- Skeeter has always been exaggerating information that is rarely true. Sometimes she would turn into a beetle to spy on people and listen to their private conversations.
- She wrote false autobiographies- Skeeter has written autobiographies about Harry and Professor Snape which were almost completely false, and before that, she wrote one about Albus Dumbledore after he died, which painted him in an extremely bad light even though what she wrote was true.
2. Voldemort
Lord Voldemort, Tom Marvolo Riddle, was the son of Merope Gaunt (a descendent of Salazar Slytherin) and Tom Riddle, a handsome, wealthy muggle from Little Hangleton whom Merope ensnared with a love potion. When her husband found out she was a witch, he abandoned her while she was pregnant.
EVERYONE should know him for the villain that he is, we all know our big guy with no nose.
Why he is disliked:
- He killed a lot of people – Voldemort has taken the lives of many for little to no reason, it was either that they delayed his plans or because he couldn’t control his anger. He is soulless and did not regret ending other people’s lives. He even ended the lives of his family just because he found out that his paternal family were muggles.
- Intended to create a pure-blood supremacist future- This is really ironic because he himself was a half-blood, that’s like saying you want to be in a world where only people with blue eyes have power, but you have brown eyes. But any ways, his plan was (in a way) racist, hear me out. He wanted a world where there is only one kind of People born into specific groups that are allowed to have power. Of course it’s not racist in the sense of actual ethnicity. There should be a word for it… Blood-ists?
- He was the cause of it all- Voldemort is the reason for all the suffering that the wizarding world went through. He is the reason why there are countless deaths. He supports the idea that only one kind of people should rule. He is the Problem.
1. Dolores Umbridge
Dolores Jane Umbridge was born to a wizard father and a muggle mother, and eventually had a younger brother who was a squib (person with no magical talent). Under the influence of her father, Dolores grew up despising her brother and her mother for possessing poor magical abilities.
Dolores Umbridge is most known for her TERRIBLE personality and attitude and is disliked by EVERYONE.
Why she is hated:
- She is prejudicial and discriminates- She dislikes “half-breeds” and muggle-borns even though she is a half-blood herself, like Voldemort. She claimed that muggle-borns do not have any magic of their own and instead stole it from another wizard/witch and she was ruthless against Hagrid.
- She wanted to take over Hogwarts- during her time at Hogwarts as a professor in Defence Against The Dark Arts, she didn’t teach anything about actual defense. She also visited other classes and repeatedly disrupted the classes many times and put out a lot of petty rules. When Professor McGonagall told her that her methods are medieval, she defended her self by saying that her methods are methods of the ministry and should not be questioned.
- She gave cruel punishments to students- I wouldn’t be surprised if someone told me that she’s a demon from the bowels of Hell and tortures people. She tends to get VERY creative when it comes to punishments, for example, she made harry write “I must not tell lies”. Not on a piece of paper, but engraved on his skin painfully, just because he was trying to tell people that Voldemort came back.
