Screenwriting : Screenwriting Tip – Give the Antagonist a Character Arc too by Maurice Vaughan

My planned crime drama Ron Biohazard has everyone fully developed, full backstories and everyone has an arc. I find it much more interesting and captivating when the characters feel like real people for both good and bad.

A movie where everyone has fully developed, full backstories and everyone has an arc sounds interesting, Wyman Brent! I make bios for my characters. I put a character's personality, strengths, flaws, fears, backstory, story goal(s), life goal(s), habits, daily routine, hobbies, and character arc in a bio.

I try to give everyone an arc, unless they’re supposed to be flat and/or static.

Thumps up for the antagonist. What can be more interesting than studying their psychological development? In real live everyone is their own protagonist, but aren't even close to being a "hero". Instead, they often are their own worst enemy :-)

Yes, and in this storyline, the antagonist's goal is the opposite of the protagonist's goal.

I love my antagonist more they add soo much depth to the story ☺️

Yes, I agree with you. Every character in a film should go through an arc.

But there are two theories.

One says that a person's character is unchangeable and is given at birth.

The other theory says that character can change.

So, when a hero goes through a character arc, they change their personality.

And if we follow the first theory, that would be impossible.

But maybe the trait is already there — hidden — and only under the pressure of external factors, problems, and conflicts does it come to the surface.

Запитати в ChatGPT

I see this as there is often much more to the antagonists plan than initially known. For example, in "Die Hard," Hans Gruber is first just a thief, albeit a very cunning one, but by the end his plan is basically a retirement fund, since he is a worn out intel agent fleeing a failing system.

Arthur Charpentier " the antagonist's goal is the opposite of the protagonist's goal." Like in "Heat" (1995), perhaps?

Aleksandr Rozhnov, I can only speak personally. My personal life, my character, has changed so much over the years that my real life story sounds like a work of fiction. And the entire direction of someone`s life, and goals, can change in a split second. I know from personal experience.

Great advice! I'd also suggest seeing how this can extend to side characters as well. This will make your world feel like it is populated with people that all have their own wants and needs which are all affected by their journeys.

@Michael Dzurak, Obviously, the robber wants to rob, and the police officer doesn't want the robber to commit crimes. Their goals are opposite.

@Arthur Charpentier they are opposite but the it's all in the details. In "Heat" this dynamic builds to a very personal confrontation which contrasts with the strictly professional methods the protagonist and antagonist had at the start.

You're right, Arthur Charpentier. If the antagonist's goal is to take over the world, the protagonist's goal should be to stop them.

I like some of my antagonists more than my protagonists, Namhla Mnyamana. "they add soo much depth to the story." That's great! I think every character should do that.

That's great, Banafsheh Esmailzadeh. All my protagonists and characters have positive arcs, but I've been thinking about trying negative arcs and static arcs.

Great points, Marco Pieper! I'll have to keep "Instead, they often are their own worst enemy" in mind when I develop antagonists. Thanks.

Your comment reminds me of how important it is to withhold info from other characters and the audience until the right time, Michael Dzurak.

Thanks, Ewan Dunbar. And great advice too!

"But maybe the trait is already there — hidden — and only under the pressure of external factors, problems, and conflicts does it come to the surface." It's like that a lot of times in movies, Aleksandr Rozhnov. The pressure of external factors, problems, etc. bring the trait to the surface. One of the characters in a script I'm outlining goes through that.

"One says that a person's character is unchangeable and is given at birth. The other theory says that character can change." That could be a movie.

The antagonist wants one thing, and the protagonist wants to stop them.

But the most important part of any film is to show the inner motivation of the protagonist.

For example, in the movie Armageddon, the antagonist is an asteroid — it “wants” to destroy Earth.

The protagonist is Bruce Willis’s character. But he doesn’t just want to save the world —

he wants to save his daughter.

That personal reason is what makes the story powerful.

Запитати в ChatGPT

@Aleksandr Rozhnov, In a scenario, it is not the entire character that needs to change, but rather a single trait that hinders the achievement of the goal. This is what distinguishes the hero from the antagonist, who is unable to change their character traits in order to defeat the hero.

Yes! But must be done subtly, or it’s disruptive.

e.g., instead of antagonist embracing protagonist, perhaps she looks thoughtful & stops throwing rocks.

What you're describing is called subtext — when something is said, but something else is truly meant underneath.

If a script contains subtext, it's a sign of a more or less professional screenwriter

Great point about showing the inner motivation of the protagonist, Aleksandr Rozhnov! And other characters.

You're right, Sean T. Clark. Subtly. I watched a movie last night where a character gave a short speech about the script's theme, and it pulled me out the story. It's theme rather than character arc, but I think subtly is important for both. And I think the speech was in the wrong place.

Arthur Charpentier

If the antagonist changes, that often opens the door for sequels, prequels, and so on.

I'm almost done with my action script and I want to show part of it here. How can I do that?

Congratulations on getting close to finishing your script, Hussein Alhamdani!

You can post a page from your script in the Your Stage Lounge, then post more pages in the comments of that post. www.stage32.com/lounge/promotion

You can also post part of your script on your profile. Producers search profiles on here for projects. Click the gear symbol in the top right-hand corner and select “Edit profile” in the drop-down menu. Scroll down to “Loglines” and click “Add/edit loglines” to the right of “Loglines.” You can also post the pages on your profile this way: www.stage32.com/loglines (near the top where it says “Add a Logline”)