A very little kid asked me if I was a bad guy when I was in costume for a show. I told him I pretend to be a bad guy so he can practice being brave.
It would be powerful if we saw our fiction's villains with clear eyes. Why have we made them appear now, looking like this? What should we be learning from them? In an old story, the demons that visit a hermit won't leave until he learns what each of them has to teach.
What's the use of playing a villain or writing a "bad guy" merely to be admired for their cleverness or strength? That's not a helpful role to play - it misses the point. There's so much fascination with villains - and the dramatic personalities cast in those roles - that sometimes we get caught up in admiring them and lose perspective.
At the same time, it would be wise to consider how we frame the damaging belief in absolute evil. Around the world, more violence is committed by those who think it's their only choice, those who believe they are facing a foe that can't be redeemed, reasoned with, or related to - those who cast complex human beings in black and white, inhuman terms.
Somewhere in between I think we tell stories to reflect and play out the challenges we're struggling with. Those stories resonate when it's a deep, universal challenge. It's a very action-oriented mindset to frame our conflicts as fights, and picture facing our struggles as heroes. I don't see many stories that allow for triumph or transformation without fighting - in my culture at least. But it's powerful when I do.
When I'm playing through my part for an audience, behind every villain is a "friend" who happens to take on the role of a challenge at this moment. Maybe every demon is a teacher.
Update: 6/16/2016
In the wake of real-life violence like the Orlando shootings, there's difficulty and tenderness discussing fictional villains. There's no literal friendly actor behind the mask, to help be reassuring and find the good in things. It can feel overwhelming, and in a way, as if our practice has been dishonest when we feel unprepared. Real-life hurt is the test of all our teaching, I guess.
I think another reason we play, write, watch, and discuss villains is because we crave understanding. We want to explain and grasp where bad guys come from, whether it's relatable human flaws or the existence of evil. I just wanted to add this, as right now, we're in a media cycle of doing this with another mass murderer. We want to feel like we know why. And it is only my personal feeling. But I feel like the best - the most hopeful thing - is to see "villains" not as evil, but as human, even if the lessons inherent in that story are hard.