"Why, Mr. Anderson? Why do you do it? Why get up? Why keep fighting? Do you believe you're fighting for something? For more than your survival? Can you tell me what it is? Do you even know? Is it freedom? Or truth? Perhaps peace? Could it be for love? Illusions, Mr. Anderson. Vagaries of perception. The temporary constructs of a feeble human intellect trying desperately to justify an existence that is without meaning or purpose. And all of them as artificial as the Matrix itself. Although, only a human mind could invent something as insipid as love. You must be able to see it, Mr. Anderson. You must know it by now. You can't win. It's pointless to keep fighting. Why, Mr. Anderson, Why? Why do you persist?"
Featured in: The Matrix trilogy
Portrayed by: Hugo Weaving
*SPOILERS for the Matrix trilogy*
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Even from the beginning, Agent Smith distinguished himself from the otherwise boring Agents in quite interesting ways, from how he was more aggressive than his fellow Agents to how he freely espoused his hatred for humanity, Smith was a bastard right from the very start. It was only after his "death" in The Matrix and rebirth as a rogue agent that he became the series' defining villains and one of my favorite cinematic villains ever. Why did I come to like Smith so much? Even though he was such a dry character, his wit and audacity distinguished him from previous cinematic automatons such as the Terminator. When he DID show emotion, usually anger, it was quite dramatic and very well portrayed by Weaving, who you'd never believe also played a drag queen in a movie in the mid 1990s. A career-defining role, Agent Smith was the perfect foil to Neo, seeking to destroy while Neo sought to protect. His hatred for humanity fixated on Neo by the end of the trilogy, he referred to him as Neo only once at the very end, showing his disrespect for his enemy by referring to him by his Matrix name, "Mr. Anderson", in one of the series' most notable catchphrases. Another thing I liked about Smith was that he was one of those villains who always made you go "oh s***" when he showed up, his menacing presence giving a dramatic and disturbing mood to the scenes he appeared in. Like any good dastardly villain, even children weren't spared his wrath, as seen when he cornered Sati in the Oracle's apartment building. By the end of the series, Smith's power exceeded that of Neo, he was flying and throwing monumental punches and was practically invincible until Neo figured out the one way to kill him. Before that, Smith was an utter badass, a force of nature and the most dangerous thing in the Matrix. He was no one to mess with, another hallmark of the great villains, and his unique personality made him an instant favorite of mine.
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I chose poorly. Black Turtle chose wisely.