Welcome to MovieJawn’s Split Decision! Each week, Ryan will pose a question to our staff of knowledgable and passionate film lovers and share the responses. Chime in on Twitter, Facebook, our Instagram, or in the comments below.

This week’s question:

In honor of Cruella, What movie villain deserves their own origin movie?

General Zod. I love Krypton stories, and what did he do that got him locked up in a flat space prison? –Ryan Silberstein, The Red Herring

What movie villain hasn’t had an origin story? We’ve got Bates Motel, We’ve got Hannibal. We even got Ratched. I don’t know that in the era of Sharknado that we need a Baby Jaws. I think the best movie villains are folks who are amoral and seductive, so I might go with Phyllis Dietrichson (Barbara Stanwyck) in Double Indemnity, or Mike (Joe Mantegna) from House of Games. –Gary M. Kramer, Staff Writer

I’ve always wanted more of Francis Buxton, the spoiled man-child in Pee Wee’s Big Adventure’s world of man-children. Mark Holton delivers one of the best comic performances ever, truly, and then disappears for the rest of the film. In a movie where every character disappears, that’s fine. But damn would I love to watch Francis have his own big adventure. Holton never got the huge career he deserved, but he did deliver the single funniest line in any movie when he yelled “Hey, it’s Enrico Pallazzo!” in The Naked Gun. My desire for a Francis movie is equalled by my desire for a movie where Mark Holton gets a leading role.– Alex Rudolph,. Staff Writer

We get a glimpse of Reverend Harry Powell’s (Robert Mitchum) criminal past before he begins terrorizing the Harper kids in The Night of the Hunter, and we get to see his serial killing modus operandi when he marries and eventually murders their mother (Shelley Winters). But if there’s any villain who we need to see more of, it’s him. I don’t even need an origin story! Maybe just a few episodes about the many wealthy widows he murdered up and down the Ohio River…. –Ryan Smillie, Staff Writer

Gruber Bros (Hans & Simon) –Hugo Marmugi, Art Director

Hugo, my dude, bea me to it. The only non-horror villains I would immediately be interested in (off the top of my head) were the Grubers. I would love for them to start off the flick as anti-heroes (thieves and ruffians) and be pushed by outside forces to really embrace the true villainy within them. They should end the film as two charismatic but ultimately unromanticized Bad Guys (who also do not get along any more) and it should definitely have NO inferences about their future crimes.- “Doc” Hunter Bush, Staff Writer

John Doe from Seven. We would be watching an average nobody becoming the angel of death. In an alternate dimension, John Doe: The Movie, is the ultimate 90’s flick. We would have the always amazing David Fincher directing, in addition with Spacey’s spectacular acting chops, and to top it all off, Andrew Kevin Walker’s beautifully horrific storytelling. Even though the comic series came in 08’, I’d want this alternate dimension film to follow both John Doe’s life beforehand, and the events that unfolded in both the comic/film. I really want to revisit the world of Seven, from it’s disturbing story, to the cinematography that makes you feel like the film negatives were drenched in piss. I mean that in a good way.- Miguel Alejandro Marquez, Staff Writer

My absolute guilty pleasure is villain origin story films. Despite the fact that I’m obsessed with the source material and the 2004 film adaptation is garbage, I’d love to see a Phantom of the Opera origin story film - Liz Wiest, Contributor

Jareth the Goblin King. There was a comic, but it ain't a movie. –Melissa Strong, Contributor

Sador in Battle Beyond the Stars. A CG John Saxon getting other people’s body parts grafted onto him as his own fail sounds like a real winner. But that’s only because Melissa already called Jareth, and Bowie is dead.  –Anthony Glassman, Contributor

When I was a kid, we owned a VHS copy of Ghostbusters II that my brother and I played to exhaustion. There was nothing more chilling to me than that painting of Vigo the Carpathian, whose shifty eyes stalked everyone’s movements. He still creeps me out, so if there was an origin story on Vigo, I wouldn’t be able to look away. –Jaime Davis, The Fixer

I’ve seen Disney’s The Little Mermaid upwards of a hundred times. When my daughter was out of daycare during the pandemic, we relied on movies to keep her entertained while we juggled working from home, and The Little Mermaid was an early favorite. I would argue it’s a flawless film.

When you spend so much time watching kids' films you find new ways for them to interest you, so you develop fan theories. I had an idea for an Ursula origin film. The story is about how Ursula is actually Ariel’s mom, but King Triton erased both their memories about it. Ursula could be a sympathetic character. Plus she’s fabulous! –Audrey Callerstrom, Staff Writer

Okay, if we’re going for more Disney villains, which I suppose is the world we live in, then I want (and don’t want in equal measures) a dang Hades story. James Woods sucks, but that character is so fun and funny and Hercules is my favorite Disney film of all time. Give me more, but only if I, or someone I trust, actually gets to write it. It would be fun to revisit the Greek Gods as presented in that film and see how much of the “timeline” of the mythology gets messed about for fun references and jokes. Make it a pure comedy and I’m so totally here for it. –Emily Maesar, Staff Writer

I’m not sure if she counts as a “villain” in a story where almost every character is unlikeable, but I would love to see a movie about Mrs. Danvers from Rebecca. I was disappointed by her character in the 2020 Rebecca film, but I love her character in the 1940 Hitchcock classic. It’s been many years since I read it, but I seem to recall in the source novel by Daphne du Maurier, Danny is given much more of a back story, and I would love to see that on film. How did she come to be at Manderley? What was her relationship with Rebecca *reallyyyyy* like? I have so many questions. Yes, yes, a lesbian-themed period piece, how original - but this is one I would love to see! May I request that Oz Perkins directs? Thank you. I am also available to compose the score, you know where to reach me. –Ashley Jane Davis, Staff Writer