The Star Wars franchise has done a phenomenal job at crafting incredible, layered villains who not only epically oppose the protagonists of the franchise but who stand on their own two feet as intriguing characters whom fans get invested in. So many of these immense antagonists are remembered for pieces of iconic dialogue that are engrained in the fan's minds.
Whether it be due to the delivery, the meaning, the coldness behind, or the circumstances of the quote, so many bits of dialogue from villains send shivers down the audience's spines.
"Thank You."
This is definitely not the first line that will pop into fan's minds when it comes to villain quotes and is not even the most well-remembered from Kylo Ren. However, in terms of chilling quotes, these two words are two of the best.
What makes this common phrase so brilliant is the fact that Adam Driver's delivery of it as if he has finally caught his breath when killing Han is perfect, and the fact that he has literally just driven a lightsaber through his own father, who he is looking in the eye. He is thanking his father for being there to die, for helping keep him on the dark path.
"Let Me Go! Let Me Die! You Are All Going To Burn! We're All Going To Die; You Don't Know What You're Doing!"
Throughout his time in the animated shows specifically, Maul has some absolutely terrific quotes ranging from expertly crafted speeches to moments of sheer hatred and anger. This one, though, is much different from his usual.
After being stopped from falling to the surface of Mandalore to his death by Ahsoka and captured by Bo-Katan and the clones, Maul begs for death. His fear of Sidious, of what is to come, is unleashed at this moment, with brilliance from Sam Witwer.
"Good Soldiers Follow Orders."
The newest villain in Star Wars is Crosshair, a member of Clone Force 99 who succumbed to the effects of Order 66 and his inhibitor chip, and he brought back a familiar quote for fans of The Clone Wars.
"Good soldiers follow orders," is pretty much the telltale sign of a clone adhering to their chip. The most chilling example of it came after Crosshair mercilessly killed the hired soldier on their mission to Onderon, stating he knew what had to be done and did it.
"All I Am Surrounded By Is Fear, And Dead Men."
The movies and TV shows are not all there is to Star Wars; since the first movie of the saga came out, the franchise has expanded to comics, books, and games, providing more fantastic detail and phenomenal stories.
They all seem to have terrific character moments, such as this from Vader in the comics. He finds himself opposing a huge amount of rebel soldiers who warn him he is surrounded, with his cold, excellent reply being "All I am surrounded by is fear, and dead men," after which he proceeds to wipe out rebel after rebel.
“I Will Start My Operations Here And Pull The Rebels Apart, Piece By Piece. They Will Be The Architects Of Their Own Destruction.”
One character born in the extended universe of Star Wars was Grand Admiral Thrawn, a Legends legend who has transferred over to canon with genius and ease, with the Chiss' story in the franchise far from over.
His introduction to canon came in Rebels' third season, and in his very first scene, he displays his ruthlessness when talking about his recent promotion to Grand Admiral and his victory at Batonn - where civilian casualties were high. He finishes his first scene talking about how he plans to deal with the Lothal rebels, and the "They will be the architects of their own destruction," line alone is not only delivered flawlessly but is just a brilliant quote for Thrawn.
"Execute Order 66."
Order 66 is one of the most emotional events in all of Star Wars. No matter how many times fans see it, and no matter how many different perspectives audiences experience it from, it still hurts.
There is an aura around the event when it happens, especially in Revenge of the Sith and The Clone Wars, and there is no doubt when Sidious gives the order, specifically to Rex and Cody, "Execute Order 66," gives the viewer goosebumps.
"Some Things Are Far More Frightening Than Death."
The Grand Inquisitor, Rebels' first season's villain, is perhaps one of the most underrated Star Wars villains, giving audiences some great moments in his one and only season, as well as an incredible final few minutes.
The entire duel between Kanan and Ezra and the Grand Inquisitor is exhilarating, a highlight of the first season. In an unexpected finale for the character, he does not get killed by Kanan; he is beaten in battle and decides to fall to his death. The delivery from Jason Isaacs, combined with the line itself and the meaning behind it, especially the foreshadowing of Vader, is all amazing.
"KENOBI!"
Sticking with Rebels and going back to Maul, he reemerged in Star Wars animation at the end of the second season and became a standout aspect of the show, having a bunch of great lines.
However, in terms of chilling quotes, there are not really any on the level of this scream of his arch-rival's name. Beaten down, traipsing through the desert hunting for Obi-Wan, surviving on hate, vengeance, and anger, he falls to his knees, and Sam Witwer incredibly delivers an iconic moment.
"There Is No Mercy."
Maul has been involved in so many goosebump-inducing scenes throughout Star Wars, from killing Satine to his final duel with Obi-Wan, with one of the very best being his duel with Sidious in "The Lawless."
There is a certain energy around the entire duel just by the fact Sidious is so powerful and dominating. But when he kills Savage and tortures Maul, the terror-filled nature of the scene becomes incredibly high, with Maul begging for mercy, and Sidious so coldly, calmly telling him that, "There is no mercy."
"Then You Will Die."
Darth Vader has many incredible, memorable quotes throughout the original trilogy and other extended content, but his Rebels appearances were always special, and there are none better than "Twilight of the Apprentice." There are a good few chilling quotes from Vader in the short span of time he spends on Malachor. First, threatening Ezra, saying, "Then you will die braver than most," and then taunting him with "Perhaps I was wrong."
But, of course, the true highlights come in the emotional climax with Ahsoka. Every line exchanged with the two is gold. But the two that truly stand out as chilling and really pull at the heartstrings of Clone Wars fans and bring on the tears, are when Anakin's eye is visible through the broken Vader helmet. "Ahsoka," shocks and overwhelms his former padawan and audiences, but even more heartbreaking was the moment of realization not even Ahsoka could pull him back, his reply to Ahsoka saying she will not leave him when he utters, "Then you will die."