Badasses like Annie Wilkes in “Misery,” Nurse Ratched in “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” and Alex Forrest in “Fatal Attraction” have been a staple in Hollywood movies, winning Oscars and Oscar nominations for the actresses who played these characters — Kathy Bates, Louise Fletcher and Glenn Close, respectively — but TV has its own impressive gallery of dangerous women. Get a load of these troublemakers — and then get out of their way.
Claire Underwood, “House of Cards”
The twisted blonde played with gelid understatement by Robin Wright is a real sicko. In Season 1, in his hospital bed, she molested a dying man, who once worked for her husband, future Vice President Francis Underwood (Kevin Spacey). In the Season 2 opener, Claire cut off the health insurance of a pregnant woman and told her, “I am willing to let your baby wither and die inside of you.”
Vice President Sally Langston
God-fearing, fire-breathing conservative — some might say fundamentalist — Sally Langston (Kate Burton) sees the world in black-and-white terms. When she was presented with photographic proof that her husband had engaged in homosexual acts, one didn’t know what offended her most — that he had cheated on her or that he committed the sin of sodomy. She killed him.
Livia Soprano, “The Sopranos”
The late Nancy Marchand gave a performance that will go down in TV history as mafia matriarch Livia Soprano, who taunted her children well into middle age (“Poor you!” was an oft-heard remark). Her finest moment came at the end of the first season when her son Tony (James Gandolfini) figured out that it was she who put out a hit on him. Rushing to her bedside at the hospital, Tony ripped the oxygen mask off her face and hurled accusations at her. Livia’s Mona Lisa smile spoke vicious volumes.
Elizabeth Jennings, “The Americans”
“Elizabeth” is a deadly KGB spy pretending to be a suburban wife and mother played by Keri Russell. When she’s not packing lunches for kids and dropping them off at the multiplex, Elizabeth is stealing American weapons information for the Russians and killing people, when necessary. When she needs to make a point, she will sock you in the jaw — as she did last season with Claudia (Margo Martindale).
Patty Hewes, “Damages”
No one plays a meanie with quite the right amount of finesse as Glenn Close, who won two consecutive Emmy awards for her role as the diabolical attorney who put out a hit on her own hire (Rose Byrne).
Snoop, “The Wire”
Snoop was an enforcer for Marlo Stanfield’s gang on the legendary HBO series about the drug life in Baltimore. Snoop (Felicia Pearson) murdered a number of competitors who threatened Marlow’s dominance of the streets, disposing of the corpses in the city’s many abandoned buildings. Snoop meets her end in the third season at the hands of fellow thug Michael Lee (Tristan Wilds), who she herself had recruited. Her last words? “How my hair look, Mike?”
Melisandre, “Game of Thrones”
In a cast of thousands, Melisandre (Carice van Houten) stands out for her sense of purpose. She gave birth to a black spirit that killed Renly Baratheon (Gethin Anthony).
Nina Myers, “24”
One of the worst betrayals in Jack Bauer’s (Kiefer Sutherland) life came in the first season, when the identity of the mole within CTU was revealed — Bauer’s partner and one-time lover Nina Myers (Sarah Clarke). Working as a mole for Balkan warlord Victor Drazen, Nina is working to assassinate the president while giving Jack the runaround. Unfortunately, he stops her too late to save his wife Teri (Leslie Hope), whom Nina murders in cold blood.
Irina Derevko, “Alias”
Irina Derevko was the Soviet spy who turned out to the mother of Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) on this ABC series. Things really got bad in the show’s fifth season, when Irina actually hired a hitman to kill her own daughter.
Livia Drusilla, “I, Claudius”
The most wicked of them all, Livia (Siân Phillips) is the only real person on this list. A real-life Roman empress who plotted against her husband, Emperor Augustus (Brian Blessed), to elevate her son Tiberius (George Baker) to the throne. Her machinations did take their toll, though. After one grueling murder, Livia complained, “It took me all night to poison those figs.”