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(#24) Bill Cosby
- 81
When slumlord Max Devlin (Elliott Gould) is run over by a bus and killed, he descends into Hell and finds it looks a lot more like an office building than a fiery pit of damnation. Max is approached by Bill Cosby's Barney Satin (Satan), who appears as a regular human businessman. After explaining that Max has been condemned to Hell, Satin offers Max a chance to live again - and keep his soul - if he can convince three other people to sell their souls to the Devil.
Cosby's Satin pops up throughout the movie wearing various guises, but always as a human, and only to Max; no one else can see or hear him. However, when Max, who has managed to attain the three required soul contracts, threatens to tear up and accept his fate, the Devil transports Max to Hell and Cosby appears in classic Devil fashion, with red skin, horns and pitchfork. Max tears up the contract anyway and returns to Earth, alive again and free of his debt to the Devil.
The film was largely panned by critics, although some noted Cosby's performance is a bright spot in a bleak film.
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(#21) Joseph Mawle
- 44
Jamie (Jim Sturgess) is gripped with insecurity due to the large heart-shaped birthmark on the left side of his face. Things go from bad to worse for the young shutterbug when his mother is murdered by demons masquerading as street thugs. Summoned to an abandoned apartment, Jamie encounters the Devil in the form of a human gang leader named Papa B (Joseph Mawle). Mawle's Papa B has the modern look of the Devil – long dark hair, dark beard – but his shirtless chest and arms are covered in scars.
Papa B speaks calmly to Jamie about the inherent chaos of nature and offers a Faustian deal: the removal of his birthmark in exchange for random acts of chaos. Jamie realizes that Papa B is the Devil and attempts to kill him by shooting him, but Papa B cannot be killed. Jamie accepts the pact and Papa B seemingly removes his birthmark by burning him alive. Later, Papa B reveals his true monstrous form, but vanishes, leaving Jamie with his birthmark once again.
Heartless received polarizing reviews upon its release, and many noted that it may only be a standout for those who love genre films.
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(#1) Peter Stormare
- 62
In many movie appearances, the Devil is depicted in the midst of one of his many plots to corrupt humanity and rule the Earth. In Constantine, Peter Stormare's creepy casually Lucifer only wants one thing: exorcist John Constantine's (Keanu Reeves) immortal soul.
Resurrected after a suicide attempt in his teens, John believes he can "buy" his way into heaven if he uses his abilities to wage war against the demons that attempt to influence humanity before the cancer in his lungs kills him a second time.
In order to stop an even worse fate from befalling the Earth, John commits suicide a second time to warn Lucifer about those conspiring against him. To reward John, Lucifer grants him one favor. Rather than use the favor to save himself, he uses it selflessly, which grants him admission into heaven. Furious, Lucifer heals John and cures him of cancer so that he will live long enough to earn his place in Hell once again, proving the adage "the Devil is patient."
Critics were quick to damn the film, while others, like Peter Travers of Rolling Stone, said it still managed to "scare up some devilish fun."
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(#12) Peter Fonda
- 79
There's no honor among thieves and even less among demons, according to the plot of Ghost Rider. Mephistopheles (Peter Fonda) is content making bargains for souls, as he does with a young stunt rider named Johnny Blaze (Nicolas Cage). When his son Blackheart and a trio of fallen angels invade Earth in search of The Contract of San Venganza, a list of 1,000 corrupt souls that they wish to use to take the throne of Hell, the Devil grants Blaze the powers of the Ghost Rider and commands him to destroy his son in exchange for his soul back.
Fonda's Devil appears in human form as a wealthy, icy cool manipulator and tempter who enjoys the suffering of humans. Though he initially made an enemy of Blaze/Ghost Rider by killing his father a day after curing him of cancer, Mephistopheles honors his agreement at the end of the movie, returning Blaze's soul for defeating Blackheart.
Although Mephistopheles is not considered the Devil in Faustian terms, the lesser demon has morphed into the Big Bad himself, according to scholar Jeffrey Burton Russell's Mephistopheles: The Devil in the Modern World.
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(#23) Jennifer Love Hewitt
- 40
In this modern-day remake of The Devil and Daniel Webster, Jennifer Love Hewitt plays the Devil as a sexy stranger in red offering Faustian deals. In this update, Jabez Stone (Alex Baldwin) is a failed writer rather than a broke farmer, but the deal is essentially the same: great success in his field in exchange for his immortal soul.
This time, Jabez's success alienates him from his friends and he sours on the deal and begs the Devil for his soul back. Once again, the Devil is willing to gamble for Jabez's soul against famed orator Daniel Webster (Anthony Hopkins) in court.
Hewitt's version of the devil was a bit too soft. Critics slammed the film and pointed out that Hewitt's performance was not as menacing as it needed to be.
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(#2) Mark Pellegrino
- 53
The long-running TV series Supernatural changed the established origin of the Devil in several ways, including having Lucifer initially battle alongside Heaven's archangels against the Darkness, an evil older than God. Rather than destroy the evil, God locked it away with a mark that he gave to Lucifer, and it was the Darkness that corrupted Lucifer and caused him to argue with God and be cast out of Heaven.
The version of the character Mark Pellegrino portrays appears in Season 5 of the series, when Lucifer inhabits a depressed widower named Nick. Pellegrino's Devil claims he is the victim of God's capricious nature and not evil incarnate as he is portrayed. His essence proves to be too powerful for Nick's human body, however, and it degrades and he eventually dies. Six seasons later, demons reconstitute and reinforce Nick's body to use as a permanent vessel for Lucifer.
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About This Tool
Speaking of demons, this is the most deeply rooted image of evil in Western culture. Satan is the Fallen Angels described in the Bible who rebelled against God Jehovah. He was once responsible for placing temptations in the world. Later, he was regarded as the source of evil and darkness. Satan’s origins vary in different religious writings, it also becomes one of the famous subjects in movies, novels, and TV programs.
TV dramas about the Bible and actors who play Satan always have a hot discussion. The random tool lists 24 outstanding actors who played Satan, their stills are also available here.
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