As far as anime villains go, Jujutsu Kaisen's are some of the best and most compelling, striking terror into viewers' hearts thanks to Gege Akutami's thoughtful writing and standout character designs. Each of the story's many villains is unique with their own distinct personality and goals, so no two villains can possibly be compared to each other.

However, some Jujutsu Kaisen villains are arguably more frightening and effective at horrifying viewers than others, and two in particular take the cake for the series' most petrifying characters. Mahito and Sukuna are Jujutsu Kaisen's best, most distinctive villains, and the mangaka Gege Akutami spoke in an interview about why these villains work so well and what about them stands out from the other evil figures in the series.

Mahito and Sukuna Were Described as “Evil Incarnate” by Gege Akutami

Other Villains Work Towards Specific Ambitions, While Mahito and Sukuna Just Delight in the Act of Being Evil

Concerning Mahito and Sukuna, Akutami described these villains as simply "evil incarnate," in an interview posted on Reddit that originally appeared on Le Figaro. Whereas the series' other despicable characters have evil elements woven into their personalities, Mahito and Sukuna are all evil, with no other distinguishable traits or ambitions. Their entire purpose in the story of Jujutsu Kaisen is to cause the most harm and pain possible to others, making them two tangible representations of evil that contrast starkly with the series' other villains, who are motivated by pursuing certain goals, not being evil just because they feel like it.

A lot of villains in Jujutsu Kaisen, like Kenjaku and Jogo, for example, have concrete aims they are striving towards, and even if these aspirations are immoral, viewers can still understand what they are working towards. Jogo ultimately hopes to rid the world of non-sorcerers and place Cursed Spirits in a position of power. Although his ideas are still evil, and he killed numerous innocent people, Jogo does not necessarily take delight in the act of causing pain itself, it is just a means to an end for him as he pursues his overarching goal of creating what he believes will be a better society for Cursed Spirits.

These Two Villains Only Exist to Torment Others, They Have No Other Aims

For Other Villains, Hurting Others Is a Necessary Evil, While For Mahito and Sukuna, Causing Pain is the Goal

Kenjaku's plan is different and more elaborate, as he wishes to use Tengen's immense levels of cursed energy to transform humanity entirely into an evolved state of being. Although his scheme was not the same as Jogo's, Kenjaku also wished to improve society and felt killing and exploiting others was the only way to do it. One final Jujutsu Kaisen villain who follows this pattern is Geto Suguru, who did not initially start out as a villain. Geto was a very accomplished jujutsu sorcerer at the start of his character arc, but became lured in by evil in his desperation to fix issues in jujutsu society.

Geto became a cult leader and killed people on his quest to eliminate non-sorcerers from society, because he posited that if no non-sorcerers existed, no Cursed Spirits could come into existence and cause tragedy either. In the case of all these villains: Jogo, Kenjaku, and Geto, even though their actions are difficult to stomach, it is easier to comprehend the goals they are striving towards, even if they are going about them in villainous ways. These characters disregard causing pain and ending lives as a necessary evil, which is where they differ from Mahito and Sukuna, for whom causing pain is the goal itself.

Sukuna and Mahito Share This Personality Trait, Taking Delight in Chaos and Hurt

Nothing Brings Mahito and Sukuna More Joy Than Killing, So They Both Personify Evil

Both Mahito and Sukuna have no deeper meaning or motivation; they genuinely find satisfaction in hurting others, making them irredeemable and terrifying. In their own twisted way, characters like Kenjaku, Jogo, and Geto believe that they are making the world better, at least for Cursed Spirits. Every choice they make is meant to bring them closer to their personal view of a perfect society, and although they do not necessarily care who they harm in the process, killing and hurting people is not where they derive their inspiration to push forward with their plans.

Contrarily, Mahito and Sukuna have no regard for the feelings of others, even their fellow Cursed Spirits. These characters are quite simple at their core; they just want to watch the world burn and gleefully delight in causing chaos. Mahito once bluntly stated, "I kill people without a second thought," whereas Sukuna was ecstatic to take over Yuji Itadori's body, immediately envisioning all the people he would kill and exclaiming, "It'll be a massacre!" Both of these characters are so evil that nothing excites them more than killing others, meaning they truly fulfill the very definition of a villain.

Mahito and Sukuna’s Embodiment of Evil Makes Them Jujutsu Kaisen’s Most Memorable Villains

Few Anime Villains Are as Despicable as Mahito and Sukuna, Making Them Difficult to Forget

Both Mahito and Sukuna are unforgettable because they completely lack any humanity, and that is jarring to witness. Whereas other Sukuna taking control of Megumi's body and killing his own sister, Tsumiki, while he was piloting his body, with Megumi powerless to stop the unspeakable act.

Since these two villains are so heartless, they constantly keep fans on their toes. Their actions are always extremely unpredictable, since they would go to any lengths to be as evil as possible. Very few anime villains are quite as wicked as they are, because most are more multifaceted and complex, willing to draw the line somewhere. It is a rarity to find villains like Mahito and Sukuna, who are, as Gege Akutami intended, "evil incarnate," but these villains shake up Jujutsu Kaisen's story by giving its heroes a nearly impossible obstacle to overcome, forcing them to fight the personification of evil itself.

Source: Reddit