People Are Sharing Fictional Characters That Fans "Idolize," But Only Because They're "Missing The Point"

Recently, in a viral thread, redditor u/WhereDemonsDwell asked a very interesting question: "Which fictional characters are idolized by people who missed the entire point of their story?"

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And as I'm sure you can imagine, pop culture lovin' redditors were quick to answer with some excellent examples of this phenomenon, so we rounded up just a few of the best responses for your reading pleasure:

1.Walter White, Breaking Bad

"You're not supposed to root for the murderous, ruthless, self-centered, egomaniac drug lord by the end of the series, but people do."

—u/NDStars

"What's amazing about the show is that he is sympathetic early on, and they very slowly turn up the heat. Even if cooking meth is a pretty horrible thing to do, you can get where he's coming from. And I can't say 100% I wouldn't do the same in his situation, but — as the questionable actions pile up — most people should stop supporting him at some point."

"Letting Jane die was the line for me, there was zero excuse for that. The other thing I've noticed about the show is that lots of the 'bad' characters are likeable while the 'good' characters are kind of hateable on a personal level, not based on their actions. Like Jesse and Saul are funny and likeable, but Hank and Skyler are annoying and hateable. I think this is to unconsciously guide you towards sticking with Walt as long as possible."

—u/randomnickname99

2.Tom, 500 Days of Summer

"I really liked the character and could see my younger self in him, but he's living in his fantasies more than understanding his reality."

—u/CrackerGuy

"I saw this in my early 20s and identified with Tom as being a victim of Summer’s heartbreak, mostly because I was in my early 20s and romantically immature to the point where I reflected on my own dating experiences and the pain I felt whenever I was rejected. Now, all grown up in my mid-30s, I can clearly see the actual dynamic where Summer was pretty openly noncommittal all along, and Tom just kept projecting his own hopes onto their casual relationship. I can see how it hurt him deeply, but he chose to keep pursuing someone who never verbally told him she wanted to spend her life with him."

—u/tobybells

3.JD, Heathers

"If you're on a date with a man and they say they really admire JD from Heathers — run."

—u/Rownever

"There was a trend on TikTok recently that was using audio from one of the off-Broadway performances of 'Meant to Be Yours' (which JD sings) and it got super concerning. It was the 'Veronica open the door please' lyric, and people were actively talking about how they'd open the door for him, how he was hot, swooning over his voice, etc. It took a lot of stitches and standalone videos from people who knew about the musical and movie to convince all these teenagers and kids that he wasn't a good dude. Literally all the people making the initial videos didn't know the backstory, or even what was going on in the song. The way people idolize him even after knowing context is scary!"

—u/Trumpet6789

4.Tony Soprano, The Sopranos

"I don’t get how people could look up to him when the whole show is about how he hates his life."

—u/ClarkTwain

"The perfect example of having it all, but never being happy. There’s not enough money, power, prestige, pussy or gabba-ghoul to satiate him, and he’s tormented by his mother and family. Excellent show from beginning to end."

—u/Duel_Option

5.Rory Gilmore, Gilmore Girls

"'I’m such a Rory.' Really? A doe-eyed narcissist? Okay."

—u/korthlm

"Don't even start on the revival...I loved this show, but Rory is just the worst."

—u/Cloud_Fox88

6.Holden Caulfield, The Catcher in the Rye

"He wasn’t being refreshingly rebellious, he was crying out for help. He was probably mentally ill, and definitely emotionally scarred by his brother’s death and the unhealthy way his parents handled that tragedy."

—u/GoingOn2Perfection

"I think the brilliance of that book is that, depending on your stage of life, you can take something very different each time. Young me: 'Yeah! Holden is right! People are phonies!' College me: 'Holden is kind of an asshole...' Middle-aged me: 'Holden is a mentally ill kid crying out for help and no one is listening.'"

—u/SlapHappyDude

7.Romeo and Juliet, Romeo and Juliet

"I saw a performance of this several years back where they depicted Romeo as a very dramatic and angsty emo kid, and, the first time we saw Juliet, she’d just woke up and had a doll with her. Throughout the whole thing the focus was that they were just dumb kids. So much better than the adaptations that try to make it some epic romance."

—u/wigglybacon

"The quote I always remember whenever I see Romeo & Juliet mentioned is: 'You want a romance like in Romeo & Juliet? You want a three day romance between a 13-year-old and a 17-year-old that ends in six deaths?'"

—u/Tighron

8.Tony Montana, Scarface

"It's like everybody only watches the first half of the movie. No one seems to remember the part where, after he made it, he throws it all away on cocaine-fueled paranoia and gets himself and everybody he cares about killed."

—u/GielM

"I kid you not, I went to school in a rough neighborhood where we had these 'gentlemen classes' for teenage boys where we learned about positive masculinity. It sounds cringe, but it was actually pretty cool. Anyway, we were discussing the 'pros and cons of being in a gang' and one classmate stood up and said he looks up to Scarface, as he's a positive gang role model. Some other kid shouted out, 'Yeah, but Scarface literally loses everyone he loves and gets shot to death.' And that quickly shut him up."

—u/KingSetoshin

9.Rick, Rick and Morty

"He was the first character that came to mind."

—u/prfarb

"I teach high school computer science. My first year was the year Rick and Morty came out. Every one of my students was convinced that they were Rick. The Rick gang was insufferable."

—u/mofukkinbreadcrumbz

10.The Phantom (Erik), The Phantom of the Opera

"Rejection does not give a person a free pass to manipulate someone into loving them. Don't get me wrong; I don't hate him — in fact, I sympathize with him because no one likes rejection and abuse, of course. Boy, is the musical character a hero compared to his portrayal in the book, though, and the character is actually far darker than any adaptation may be able to portray accurately! (Not to knock on Lord Andrew Lloyd Weber; I'm just stating that the Phantom is far darker than I think anyone would be able to capture completely.)"

—u/ENFJPLinguaphile

"Yes. In addition to manipulation and kidnapping, dude is a legit murderer."

—u/BrutalHonestyBuffalo

11.The Joker

"All those cringe posts on Facebook that are just pictures of him saying things like, 'I got your back in the darkest times.' My dude, he doesn't have anyone's back — he's the Joker."

—u/Unknown_Captain

"Also, the Joker and Harley Quinn. They're still idolized as an example of crazy passionate love despite it being clearly established as an abusive relationship. It’s a shame the movies had to cut out most of the really bad Joker abuse because then maybe the point will be driven home."

—u/TwoHeadedBoyTwo

12.Amy Dunne, Gone Girl

"I've heard people say, 'Nick deserved what he got because he cheated!' Not to mention the Cool Girl monologue, which would be incel-y enough if it wasn't coming from a deranged narcissist who views all women as beneath her for the crime of existing — but it, somehow, gets touted as a relatable quote."

—u/izukaneki

"Yeah, Gone Girl is kind of like Joker: a good film that 95% of people are well-adjusted enough to leave at that, but 5% related a bit too much to the villain protagonist."

—u/wtf_are_selinux

13.The cult, Midsommar

"Without a doubt. A cult that kills, tortures, and even drugs and rapes men for their own objectives, they are absolutely awful. But people still think the ending was happy and a 'Yass queen!' moment when our broken protagonist falls in the hands of the cult."

—u/Lutz567

"Agreed, the number of people who view that ending as a girl power moment is concerning."

—u/woogychuck

14.Cersei Lannister, Game of Thrones

"No, she's not a 'bad bitch,' she's a sociopathic medieval soccer mom."

—u/TestedNutsack

"I think she’s a fantastic character because I hate her so very, very much!"

—u/PhoenixorFlame

15.Deadpool, Deadpool

"A lot of dudes worship Ryan Reynolds’ Deadpool for all the wrong reasons. Like, they only like him so much because they think he’s a traditional 'super manly-man' who kills people in funny ways. While Deadpool does kill people in funny ways, he is not an example of toxic masculinity — my dude is a pansexual hard-core feminist, wears a Hello Kitty mini backpack, and low-key regularly got pegged by his wife."

—u/12dancingbiches

16.Love Quinn, You

"I can’t believe how many people worship her character. I have to tell myself that the people praising her actually KNOW she’s an insane, psychopathic, manipulative murderer, and their admiration for her is actually rooted in how well-developed her character is, and how refreshing it was to see a female villain on the show instead of just another innocent victim. I have to tell myself that to sleep at night...because there’s no way people actually admire her, as in who her character was. There’s no way they can justify her actions or want to be anything like her...right?!"

—u/DirtStreet3135

17.Christian Grey, Fifty Shades of Grey

"Why is he seen as a wonderful, sexy man of your dreams? He's a narcissistic misogynistic dickhead. He targeted a young naive girl and groomed her for his own enjoyment."

—u/MadWifeUK

"I can't remember the comedian that said it, but there was a joke like: 'Fifty Shades is only romantic because he's rich, if he lived in a trailer it would be an episode of Criminal Minds.' And it's the truth!"

—u/BlackWidow21968

18.Light Yagami, Death Note

"So many people forget that Death Note basically shredded whatever redeeming qualities he had for the sole purpose of spreading the message that power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. The only thing that anyone really seems to talk about regarding his character is that he’s awesome, handsome, and polite — and even the former was a facade."

—u/More___Yogurt

"The show is a great example of storytelling through the eyes of the villain. By having Light be the protagonist, we watch his journey into destruction. It also gives us a better perspective on L's actions. Light is evil, but L is not all that good. He tortures Misa for over 50 days."

—u/TheAres1999

19.And finally: Bonnie and Clyde, Bonnie and Clyde

"Not fictional characters, but Bonnie and Clyde. It's cool if you want to have an adventure with your ride or die...just don't kill 13 people while doing it."

—u/sosaidtheliar

"Yeah I blame the film from the '60s. In real life, they were nightmarish. I remember reading that Clyde fatally shot one of his closest friends at point blank range over a dispute about six dollars (granted, that was more money during the Depression, but still)."

—u/MGD109

All right, you've read their picks, but now it's your turn! Who are some characters who you believe fans idolize, even though they really, really shouldn't? What do you think draws people to them? Share your thoughts in the comments below!

Some responses were edited for length and/or clarity. H/T: Reddit.