With The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom slated to release in just a few months, more and more speculation has been swirling about its plot. Subtle hints have been revealed in the trailers released for the game so far, but there's still much that is unknown about the Breath of the Wild sequel. One of the largest topics of discussion has been who the game's main villain will be, and it's likely it may be someone other than Ganon.
There have been multiple Zelda games where Ganon isn't the main villain, so it wouldn't be out of the question for Tears of the Kingdom. Players spent a lot of time fighting forms of Ganon in Breath of the Wild, and featuring him again as the main antagonist in the sequel runs the risk of feeling repetitive for fans. Based on the lore of the game and what's been revealed so far about Tear of the Kingdom, this is the most likely villain that isn't Ganon.
Who Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom's Most Likely Villain Is
The most likely non-Ganon villain for Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom has to be Demise. Demise has only been actively featured in one other game in the series, Skyward Sword, but his presence can be felt throughout the franchise, particularly because of the curse he places on Link. The in-game world even hints at BOTW 2's main villain being Demise, as his existence is clearly known, evidenced by an area called Breach of Demise. The Ganondorf who's in the trailers also acts differently than he typically does, perhaps due to Demise's influence.
While Demise is in a way a form of Ganon, it can be reasonably assumed he can function separately as his own entity. The presence of Malice could further support this - although the existence of Malice does not have a concretely explained source, many fans have theorized its increasing presence has something to do with Demise's return. The demon Demise has been touted as the source of all monsters, which is highly similar to Malice's ability to release cursed creatures.
It's possible that BOTW 2 could have multiple villains outside of Ganon, including Demise, but perhaps others as well. At this point in time, Nintendo has been keeping most details about Tears of the Kingdom close to the chest, which is ultimately better for fan's overall experience - if it were known before the game's release who the main villain would be, a lot of suspense and surprise would be diminished when the title releases. Fans will have to wait and see until Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom releases in May to learn if the true villain is Demise, Ganon, or someone else entirely.
Source: Nintendo of America/YouTube