10 Most Powerful Ghostbusters Movie Villains & Ghosts, Ranked

Summary

• Slimer is a pesky ghost haunting New York City, and his capture proves the Ghostbusters’ equipment’s functionality.
• Walter Peck, a determined human, tries to disband the Ghostbusters through sabotage.
• Ivo Shandor, a cult leader, built a gateway to bring forth the ancient god Gozer in NYC.

The Ghostbusters movies have introduced a wide variety of villains and ghosts over the years, but only one can be the best. The first Ghostbusters movie was released in 1984, and since then, the film has inspired sequels, remakes, and reboots, as well as video games and animated TV shows. Upon the film’s release, it became an iconic and classic hit from the 80s thanks to the talented and hilarious cast, and the movie continued to be well known and celebrated decades later.

Initially, the Ghostbusters team only officially consisted of four guys, but as more movies were released, the team expanded. This certainly helped as more and more ghosts kept appearing around New York City and beyond. However, it isn’t just ghosts that cause trouble, and the Ghostbusters frequently have to battle against a variety of villains that range from the mundane, to the godly.

10 Slimer

Slimer may not look like much, but he does frequently cause disruptions and distress for the Ghostbusters over multiple generations. Initially, the original team of Venkman, Stantz, Zeddemore, and Spengler, were called out to deal with Slimer in the Sedgewick Hotel. He had frequently haunted the hotel for decades, and was well known to the staff, but with a powerful evil entity approaching, Slimer was triggered to become much more active.

Typically, Slimer’s encounters were non-violent, and consisted of him raiding food and leaving nasty piles of sticky green ectoplasm. He was also the first ghost that the team ever captured, and proved that their equipment was functional. He also continued to haunt later versions of the team when he showed up in the attic of the firehouse, causing Trevor Spengler to try and hunt and capture Slimer solo.

9 Walter Peck

Walter Peck was a secondary antagonist in the 1984 Ghostbusters movie, who felt that the team should be reined in, and could potentially be causing harm to the environment with their experimental equipment. Working as an inspector for the Environmental Protection Agency, or EPA, Peck took his work very seriously, and was able to secure warrants and other documents to stop the Ghostbusters from continuing to work.

Almost 40 years later, in Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Peck appears once again to try and dismantle and discontinue the Ghostbusters, having eventually lost out in their last encounter. While Peck is human, his determination, and ability to climb the ladder within government make him a foe that should not be ignored. As the Mayor of New York, Peck was able to stop young Phoebe Spengler from working with her family, and hoped to destroy their home and business altogether.

8 Ivo Shandor

Ivo Shandor was a 20th century businessman and the leader of a cult that worshiped the ancient god, Gozer. In the 1984 movie, Shandor is referenced as being the man responsible for building a skyrise in New York that would serve as a gateway for Gozer. He dedicated his life and wealth to expanding the followers of Gozer, and attempting to put the world firmly under its control.

In Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Phoebe, Trevor, Podcast and Lucky actually find the tomb of Ivo Shandor, and as Gozer approaches, his dead body begins to stir. Shandor’s dedication to his master was powerful enough that he broke free from his tomb when they arrived, and approached Gozer to declare his loyalty, and request a ruling seat by their side. However, as rich and powerful as Shandor was, he was not prepared to face Gozer, who immediately disposed of him for good.

7 Janosz Poha

Technically, Janosz Poha was not inherently a villain, but he did spend most of Ghostbusters II under the control of the evil Vigo. Poha was an instrument in Vigo’s hands, enacting his will and kidnapping the child Oscar to serve as a vessel for Vigo to inhabit. Poha did selfishly try to achieve his own ends, such as trapping Oscar’s mother Dana in a relationship with him, so they could raise the evil tyrant together in her child’s body.

Endowed with special powers by the evil spirit Vigo, Poha was capable of doing extraordinary things on his master’s errand. He was also armed with a great deal of knowledge about history as he worked as the head of the restoration department in the Manhattan Museum of Art. Due to his feeble appearance and the seeming lack of confidence, Poha did not appear all that threatening, but that certainly added to how dangerous a rival he was for the Ghostbusters.

6 Stay Puft Marshmallow Man

The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man might have looked friendly and cuddly, but the 100ft monster was hell-bent on destroying New York from the moment it was created. The gigantic villain was a manifestation of Gozer sent to destroy their beloved New York and help take over the world. When the Ghostbusters confronted Gozer directly, the ancient god gave them a fighting chance by allowing them to choose the form of their destroyer.

Pete Venkman was responsible for thinking of the logo from a beloved snack that he felt could never hurt them, and honestly, it was a good thought. However, even a marshmallow can be destructive when it’s 100ft tall and actively trying to cause chaos. The Ghostbusters initially tried to blast the Marshmallow Man with their proton packs and succeeded in partially burning him, but it became clear that they needed to destroy the thing that had created it, and the team turned their weapons on the Temple of Gozer instead.

5 Vinz Clortho

Vinz Clortho was one of the two Terror Dogs loyal to Gozer. The Terror Dogs are a type of hellhound that have the ability to possess people and control their bodies, as well as transform and shape-shift to a limited extent. Vinz is the creature who possessed Louis Tully in Ghostbusters, and Gary Grooberson in Ghostbusters: Afterlife. Vinz was also a demigod who had a significant following of its own in 6000 BC.

Of the two Terror Dogs that served Gozer, Vinz appears to be slightly less intelligent, and weaker than its companion, Zuul. Vinz is also known as the Keymaster, and they act as an envoy who prepares the path for Gozer to return. Thanks to their powers, and their incredible strength, Vinz is a formidable threat that is incredibly challenging for any of the Ghostbusters to fight back against.

4 Vigo

Vigo, or Vigo the Carpathian, which is one of his many nicknames, and one of the least intimidating, is a tyrant and sorcerer who lived during the 16th century. Vigo was a cruel and terrible leader during his long life, ruling his lands and people with fear and hatred. He killed hundreds of his own subjects, and practiced dark and despicable acts throughout his life. Eventually, Vigo was killed by his own subjects in a long, drawn-out execution.

However, thanks to his practicing of the dark arts, Vigo was able to attach his spirit to a portrait of himself to be activated at a much later date. In Ghostbusters II, Vigo did just that when he was activated by the build up of Psychomagnotheric ectoplasm flowing under New York, which lent him power enough to influence employees at the Manhattan Museum of Art. Despite not being a literal god or demigod, Vigo proved his powers and strength as a practitioner of magic who was so skilled that he extended his life and almost rose to power centuries after his death.

3 Zuul

Zuul is the other demigod and Terror Dog who serves Gozer. In 6000 BC, Zuul was also viewed and worshiped as a demigod by multiple ancient civilizations, and their status as the Gatekeeper for Gozer was well established. When both Zuul and Vinz Clortho are both active, they can work together to bring Gozer to Earth, and provide them with access to the world of the living.

Zuul possessed Dana in Ghostbusters, and when they returned in Ghostbusters: Afterlife, Zuul possessed the bodies of both Lucky Domingo and Callie Spengler at different times. Zuul appears to be the more intelligent of the Terror Dogs, and is able to understand and use the bodies of those it possesses to try and lure and fool others into doing its bidding. Zuul also retains memories about the weapons that have been used against it, like a taser, and is able to avoid them accordingly.

2 Garraka

In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, Garraka is the primary villain who wreaks havoc on New York and exudes power over other ghosts. Garraka is an ancient god with the power to bring about an Ice Age. Through their psychic abilities, Garraka is also able to influence and manipulate other ghosts to do their bidding, but the way that this is done is not revealed. In ancient times, Garraka was stopped by a group of Fire Warriors who had the ability to control fire, and used it to trap and contain Garraka in a prison, not entirely unlike the traps used by the Ghostbusters.

Despite being trapped inside a small prison, Garraka is still able to exert influence over other ghosts unless locked inside a special noise dampening room that prevents their psychic messages from getting out. However, in Frozen Empire, Garraka does manage to break free and restore the horns that magnify their power. The ancient god then freezes vast areas of New York City, but they are unprepared for the fully equipped Ghostbusters team, and the sole Fire Warrior who manages to trap the evil deity once again.

1 Gozer

Without doubt, the biggest and most terrifying threat to appear in the Ghostbusters universe so far, is also the one that featured in the first movie, Gozer. Gozer may have been worshipped by ancient civilizations as a god and Ivo Shandor as a potential means of creating a new world, but Gozer’s primary directive is to destroy. The creature travels from world to world, taking a different form in each, and then unleashing complete and utter destruction on the civilizations they encounter.

Gozer sends their harbingers, Zuul and Vinz Clortho, to prepare their path and get a foothold on their next target, and if it weren’t for the meddling Ghostbusters, that target would have been Earth. On multiple occasions, and in multiple generations, Gozer has come to Earth, ready to take over the planet and end all life therein. But each time, the Ghostbusters have always managed to thwart their evil plan and send them packing.