Demon Slayer: 20 Most Evil Characters In The Anime (2024)

The two main star characters of Demon Slayer are the titular faction itself and their eternal enemies, the demons. It's more than a classic case of good versus evil and sometimes borders on modernity versus tradition as it's set during the start of the industrial age. Regardless, the Demon Slayer Corps always have their hands full with all the roaming demons around.

The anime has revealed almost every member of the Upper Rank Demon Moons, with some particular Demon Slayer villain names sending chills down a viewer's spine. There's no denying the fact that these heinous figures are so outright evil and remorseless that it's easy to see how much of a menace they are to humanity's progressing civilization. These evil Demon Slayer characters are sure to make Tanjiro and Nezuko's lives a living hell as they strive to end the threat of these creatures of the night once and for all.

Updated on August 2, 2024, by Ritwik Mitra: Demon Slayer's Hashira Training arc set the stage for one of the biggest battles in the final series that will set the stage for the battle between Muzan and the Upper Rank Demon Moons against the Demon Slayer Corps. Fans can't wait to see some of the biggest Demon Slayer villain names get their comeuppance as they face off against a retinue of talented demon slayers who must awaken their mark by any means necessary to fight on equal ground against these foes. Given the brutal nature of this world, it's only a given that some characters in Demon Slayer are bound to be as evil as they come, performing horrifying acts that will turn them into easily hateable characters that deserve everything that is coming at them.

20 Sanemi Shinazugawa

Most Evil Act: Almost Beheading Nezuko In Front Of Her Distraught Brother

• First appearance: Season 1, Episode 22
• Rank: The Wind Hashira

Sanemi may not be a Demon Slayer villain name, but this doesn't mean that the Wind Hashira doesn't have his moments that make fans want to punch his lights out. It's clear from the very introduction of this character that he isn't out to make any friends, and the heartless way in which he tortures Nezuko showcases his sad*stic side, turning him into Tanjiro's foe in no time.

On top of this, it's revealed that Sanemi is Genya's brother but actively shirks him whenever he gets the chance. It's a heartless act that goes against the bond that siblings should share. While there's more context surrounding the events that led to their relationship being strained, that doesn't take away from the evil manner in which Sanemi treats his brother, along with every fledgling demon slayer who crosses his path.

19 Kaigaku

Most Evil Act: Becoming A Demon And Causing His Master To Commit Seppuku

• First appearance: Season 1, Episode 17
• Rank: Upper Rank Six

Not a lot has been seen of Kaigaku barring a flashback with Zenitsu during his studies under Jigoro, so fans will be surprised to see this Demon Slayer villain name replace Daki and Gyutaro as the Upper Rank Six. After encountering Kokushibo and being on the verge of death, he surrenders and asks to be turned into a demon to survive at any cost. This news perturbs Jigoro, who is so ashamed that one of his former pupils became a demon that he commits seppuku.

After learning of this information, all Kaigaku does is laugh and berate his former sensei, showing just how self-centered he is. Watching his fight against Zenitsu is going to be an epic encounter for the ages that will prove once and for all who deserves to pass down the art of Thunder Breathing to other users.

18 Hantengu

Most Evil Act: Commiting Numerous Murders And Never Taking Responsibility For Them

• First appearance: Season 3, Episode 1
• Rank: Upper Rank Four

It's only a given that the members of the Twelve Demon Moons are bound to be quite evil in their own right, and Hantengu is no exception to this golden rule. Fans saw how evil this character is in the Swordsmith Village arc, with his power being truly astounding in every way.

Before he was a demon, Hantengu was a thief and killer who always tried to deflect any blame from himself by convincing people that he was twisted in the head. While this was the truth, this in no way excused the fact that Hantengu is a psychotic killer who reveled in the act of destroying lives and eating humans to become as strong as possible.

17 Kokushibo

Most Evil Act: Forsaking His Sick Twin Brother And Staying Angry At Him For No Justifiable Reason

• First appearance: Season 3, Episode 1
• Rank: Upper Rank One

Kokushibo is one of the most unique demons in the show, being the demon who holds the highest rank in the Upper Demon Moons. He's a force to be reckoned with, and fans can't wait to see this demon in his glory when the anime finally gets around to the arc that covers his battle. The fact that he's the brother of the man who invented Sun Breathing makes him a great personality who is bound to expand the lore and history of the show in new and exciting ways.

However, there's no denying that Kokushibo is a horrible entity that feeds off the misery of human beings. His jealousy of Yoriichi led him down a dark path where his insecurities got the better of him. This led to him trading his humanity to become a demon who would use his power for evil, even though he still couldn't hold a candle to his brother's ability after taking all these measures.

16 Gyokko

Most Evil Act: Murdering Innocent Children And Stuffing Their Bodies In Jars

• First appearance: Season 3, Episode 1
• Rank: Upper Rank 5

There's something especially evil about a demon who revels in the act of eating children, and Gyokko has shown these disturbing tendencies from an early age. After his parents drowned at sea, Gyokko found their corpses and developed an unhealthy obsession with these cadavers, leading to him killing a child and stuffing his body in a jar for his morbid amusem*nt.

While the villagers who ostracized him are also to blame for his downfall, Gyokko certainly didn't do himself any favors by preferring the meat of children after he was turned into a demon by Muzan. The manner in which he stuffed his victims into pots to turn them into his grotesque definition of art is evil and makes him one of the most heinous characters in Demon Slayer by a country mile.

15 Obanai Iguro

Most Evil Act: Pinning Tanjiro, Forcing Him To Watch On Helplessly As His Sister Is On The Verge Of Being Executed

• First appearance: Season 1, Episode 22
• Rank: The Serpent Hashira

Obanai is a Demon Slayer, not a demon. However, those who have read the manga will know that he might as well be a demon due to his personality and general attitude toward the Demon Slayer Corps. He's highly critical of the other Hashira or officials and even forced a heavily injured comrade to stay in the Corps just because.

Moreover, Obanai regards the lower-ranked Demon Slayers as useless, expendable fodder and will likely not hesitate to use them as bait or sacrifice to achieve a victory. One of the few reasons he remains in the corps is that he's one of the most powerful Hashira and is a one-man army himself. It's also worth noting that Obanai's family is an evil clan that worships snake demons.

14 Doma

Most Evil Act: Devouring His Followers, Believing That The Act Would Help Them Reach Paradise

• First appearance: Season 2, Episode 18
• Rank: Upper Rank Two

Doma is a chilling Upper Rank demon who looks quite menacing indeed. His Demon Slayer villain name strikes fear in the hearts of fans, even though his brainwashed followers relish the act of being eaten by this twisted demon. He is unapologetically malicious to a fault.

He's seen feasting on the corpses of slain courtesans like they are simple snacks. It's also worth noting that even his other Upper Rank comrades dislike him. Akaza, for example, finds Doma's indiscriminate killing of humans distasteful since the former prefers to kill and eat combatants.

13 Gyutaro

Most Evil Act: Terrorizing The Inhabitants Of The Entertainment District

• First appearance: Season 2, Episode 14
• Rank: Upper Rank Six

Gyutaro was a part of Muzan's Twelve Kizuki and was the joint-holder of the Upper Rank Six position along with his sister, even though the Demon King believed that Gyutaro had more potential than this. The tragic part about Gyutaro's evil ways is that he was forced to become like this because of his brutal upbringing.

Gyutaro doesn't care about anyone else but his sister and would happily harm or torture anyone else. While he isn't exactly the evilest out of all the high-ranking demons, his disregard for mortal life paired with his skills makes him highly dangerous, even as a corpse.

12 Daki

Most Evil Act: Terrorizing The Inhabitants Of The Entertainment District

• First appearance: Season 2, Episode 8
• Rank: Upper Rank Six

One can even consider Daki as the more evil between her and Gyutaro since she didn't have as many excuses as her brother. She was raised to be selfish and to only care for herself like a spoiled brat. As a result, she notably caused more trouble for humans than Gyutaro did.

Daki ran the Entertainment District with fear, killing any courtesan or civilian out of her whim or due to a mere tantrum. She even treats her brother badly and doesn't mind calling him ugly or disowning him despite being too dependent on him.

11 Swamp Demon

Most Evil Act: Kidnapping And Devouring Women

• First appearance: Season 1, Episode 6
• Rank: None

There was bound to be a demon who used his power to traumatize victims and become a menace to society because humans couldn't stop him anymore. The Swamp Demon is one such individual, and he's one of the most wicked demons in the series since he prefers his victims to be girls or young women.

To that end, he's like the local Jack the Ripper in this Meiji-era Japan, except more disgusting since he also chooses younger targets, specifically 16-year-olds and below. While other demons had some tragic backstories that sort of justified their crimes, the Swamp Demon is despicable to the core.

10 Yahaba

Most Evil Act: sad*stically Killing Humans And Trying To Commit These Murders In A Clean Manner

• First appearance: Season 1, Episode 8
• Rank: None

Yahaba isn't unlike Gyutaro since he also has a female partner in crime who isn't unlike Daki. Among the two aspiring demons, though, Yahaba is more level-headed and more mature. He prefers to execute his victims more cleanly and always plans out their demise.

That's what makes Yahaba more sinister. While his partner, Susamaru, goes by instinct and impulse, Yahaba plans out how to cause the most harm to his enemies. He also has quite an ego as, even in death, he despises Tanjiro for "humiliating" him.

9 Susamaru

Most Evil Act: Playfully Killing People With No Remorse

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 8
• Rank: None

Some viewers might have forgotten about Susamaru already, as she had a brief stint before perishing to Tanjiro's group. However, she's popularly known as the Temari Demon who used balls to kill her victims and even toy with them as if killing them was a game.

That makes Susamaru one of the more detestable demons in Demon Slayer. Killing is a sport for her, and torturing her victims is merely a game she plays. It's a good thing Tanjiro cut her tenure short, as she would have made for one of the most maniacal high-ranking demons if she made it to the Twelve Kizuki.

8 Rui

Most Evil Act: Forcing Innocent People To Become Demons And Serve As His Twisted Family

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 15
• Rank: Lower Rank Five

Speaking of the Twelve Kizuki, Rui is one of the featured members of Muzan's elite corps, and she's quite a troubled demon herself. Rui grew up aspiring for nothing but a family of her own where she would be loved and cared for. Sadly, demons took advantage of this and turned her into an evil creature with a twisted version of a demonic family.

Rui is thus one of the most powerful members of the spider demon family and constantly abuses her younger siblings. One can understand why Rui does this as she has no experience with a loving family; however, this doesn't justify her toxicity and evil tantrums.

7 Father Spider Demon

Most Evil Act: Abusing His "Wife" And Brutally Killing People

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 16
• Rank: None

While it might seem like the Father Spider Demon is the most powerful among the Spider Demon family, that character is Rui. Father Spider Demon is, nonetheless, the most imposing among them thanks to his size and malformed appearance.

His powers are thus more physical, to the point that he tends to abuse the other Spider Demon family members, such as his wife or Rui's siblings. At times, he also just abruptly slashes and hurts his family members out of anger or disappointment.

6 Kyogai

Most Evil Act: Consuming Humans To The Point Where He Reached His Limit

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 11
• Rank: Former Lower Rank Six

Kyogai is almost as pathetic as he is evil. He was one of the Twelve Kizuki, Lower Rank Six to be precise, but he was kicked out of the elite corps after failing to maintain his power. He simply grew too complacent and lazy after killing so many humans just to attain his rank.

All those deaths for nothing, simply because Kyogai wanted to be left alone to play his drum in his dank lair. It's not only selfishly evil but also insulting to all his victims who had to endure being drummed to death by this silly monster.

5 Hand Demon

Most Evil Act: Killing Numerous Aspiring Demon Slayers On Mount Fujikasane

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 4
• Rank: None

The Hand Demon is one of the most grotesque and otherworldly out of all the demons in Demon Slayer. His appearance is barely humanoid as a result of all the victims he killed and/or devoured. That alone makes him an imposing immoral figure in the show.

To make matters worse, the Hand Demon only preys on the weaker Demon Slayers, specifically the trainees who are mostly fresh out of their teenage years. This predatory behavior probably doesn't earn him too much respect among his peers. The fact that he got killed by a trainee also doesn't help this evil and cowardly demon's case.

4 Nakime

Most Evil Act: Murdering People To Make Her Musical Performances Better

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 26
• Rank: Upper Rank Four

Nakime doesn't exactly talk nor do much in the course of Demon Slayer's run. Her appearance is also too brief to calculate the extent of the damage she can do to any Demon Slayer's psyche. Still, based on her rank and powers alone, she's a real force to be reckoned with.

It seems Muzan handpicked Nakime to round up the weakest links in the Lower Rank demons so that he can torture and kill them much easier. Nakime's power of creating an infinite castle to trap and confuse her prey, like a spider toying with a webbed insect, is one of the most terrifying abilities in the Twelve Kizuki. The fact that she also stood by and watched as Muzan's Lower Rank demons were tormented is also pretty chilling.

3 Akaza

Most Evil Act: Forgetting His Human Life And Ingesting Numerous Men To Become Stronger

• First Appearance: Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba – The Movie: Mugen Train
• Rank: Upper Rank Three

While on the topic of Upper Rank demons, Akaza got a debut in the Mugen Train movie and made a pretty strong impression. Needless to say, he entered the stage with quite a bang and even managed to kill one of the Hashira, Kyojuro Rengoku.

When compared to the Lower Rank demons or even the rankless demons, he seemed rather fair. It's just that Akaza cares for little other than getting stronger and is a sad*st who loves to see his enemies get hurt.

2 Enmu

Most Evil Act: Preying On People's Insecurities In Their Dreams Before Killing Them

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 26
• Rank: Lower Rank One

Enmu was one of the fortunate Lower Rank demons who survived Muzan's disappointment in the first season, and he went on to become a literal horror train with a Freddy Krueger twist. As with all Lower Rank or weaker demons, Enmu preyed only on the weak.

Enmu lured desperate or dying individuals and turned them into his servants with the promise of letting them live out their best lives in their dreams. He's essentially offering them an equivalent to narcotics and further deteriorating their morals and psyche.

1 Muzan Kibutsuji

Most Evil Act: Sparking A Dark Age For Humanity And Causing Havoc By Creating A Horde Of Powerful Demons

• First Appearance: Season 1, Episode 6
• Rank: Demon King

No one expected the Demon King to look like Michael Jackson in his "Smooth Criminal" music video, but that only made Muzan even more enigmatic. He's no doubt evil, despite the mysterious motives and methods, though. He has no qualms about ruining mortal lives just because he can.

It does seem that Muzan's ultimate goal is always dominion over the world of mortals or to turn everyone into a demon. He's not just cruel to humans but also to his demon minions, as he constantly tortures, belittles, and makes them compete with one another. That goes to show what someone can do if they're allowed to do anything they want.

Demon Slayer

Action

Adventure

Release Date

April 6, 2019

Studio

ufotable

Creator

Koyoharu Gotoge