An anti-hero isn't a villain. A villain wants to destroy the world or ruin the hero’s life. An anti-hero is a protagonist who lacks traditional heroic qualities—like idealism, courage, or morality. They might do the right thing, but they do it for the wrong reasons, or they do it while being incredibly grumpy and making a huge mess.

Think about Shrek. He doesn't want to save the princess because it's the noble thing to do; he does it because he wants people to leave his swamp alone. He’s selfish, he’s gross, and he’s rude. And that’s exactly why kids love him.

Kids live in a world of rules. "Don't touch that," "Say thank you," "Sit still." They are constantly being told to be the "good kid." Anti-heroes provide a safe, fictional outlet for the parts of themselves that don't want to follow the rules.

Perfect heroes are hard to live up to. But a character like Ralph from Wreck-It Ralph is literally built to destroy things. He feels stuck in a role he didn't choose. For a kid who just got in trouble for breaking a lamp or losing their temper, Ralph is way more relatable than a shining knight.

Characters like Inside Out’s Anger or the grumpy Grinch allow kids to explore emotions like resentment, jealousy, and rage. When they see an anti-hero struggle with these feelings and eventually find a way to be "good-adjacent," it teaches them that having bad feelings doesn't make them a bad person.

Digital culture—especially on YouTube and TikTok—has leaned hard into the "weird." Characters like the ones in Skibidi Toilet are chaotic and nonsensical. To us, it looks like brain rot. To them, it’s a form of rebellion against the polished, "perfect" content of the past.

Learn more about why Skibidi Toilet is so popular with Gen Alpha

Gru is the ultimate "gateway" anti-hero. He starts as a villain but is "tamed" by the need to care for others. It’s a great way to show kids that people can change and that even "bad guys" have a heart.

This series by Aaron Blabey is brilliant. It features a Wolf, a Snake, a Piranha, and a Shark who are tired of being the monsters in everyone’s stories and decide to become "The Good Guys Club."

This movie is criminally underrated. It subverts the entire superhero genre. What happens when the villain actually wins? He gets bored. It’s a deep dive into identity and the idea that we choose who we want to be, regardless of the "role" society gives us.

Percy isn't a traditional anti-hero, but he’s a "troubled kid" with ADHD and dyslexia who gets kicked out of every school. He’s snarky, he’s angry at his dad (Poseidon), and he’s not always "polite" to authority.

In this game, you are a goose. Your only goal is to be a jerk to villagers. You steal their glasses, hide their rakes, and honk at them. It sounds terrible, but it’s an incredible stress reliever for kids.

The God of Mischief is the quintessential anti-hero. He’s narcissistic, he’s betrayed everyone he loves, and yet, we’re rooting for him. The show explores themes of free will and whether a "villain" can ever truly be redeemed.

Let’s be real: your middle schooler wants to see this because of the "edgy" humor and the red suit. But Deadpool is a hard R for a reason. If you have a teen, it’s a conversation about the difference between "funny violence" and real-world consequences.

Ask our chatbot for movies like Deadpool that are actually age-appropriate

When kids root for the anti-hero, they aren't necessarily endorsing the character’s bad behavior. However, there are a few things to keep an eye on:

In some media—especially certain Roblox games or YouTube influencers—being an "anti-hero" is just a cover for being a bully. If a character is cruel without any growth or consequence, that’s where the "anti-hero" label fails and it just becomes toxic content.

Just because a character is a "superhero" doesn't mean the movie is for kids. We’re seeing a massive trend of "Adult Animation" and "R-rated Superheroes." Always check the rating. If your kid is desperate for that vibe, try Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, which has plenty of edge and complex characters without the R-rated baggage.

In games like Minecraft or Roblox, kids sometimes play as the "villain" by destroying other people's builds (called "griefing"). This is a digital-age version of the anti-hero. It’s important to distinguish between "playing a role" and actually hurting a friend's feelings in real life.

Read our guide on how to handle griefing in Minecraft

You don't need to lecture your kids about morality every time they watch Megamind. Instead, use these characters as a low-stakes way to talk about the "gray areas" of life.

The rise of the anti-hero in our kids' media is actually a sign of narrative maturity. Our kids are bored with one-dimensional characters. They want stories that reflect the messiness of the real world—where good people sometimes do bad things, and where even the "villain" might just need a hug (or a nap).

Rooting for the bad guy isn't a red flag. It’s often just a kid trying to figure out how to be a "good guy" in a world that isn't always black and white.