Friend or foe: These 7 movie characters kind of backstabbed their friends

Friends are some of the closest people in a person’s life. And a good friend in a movie is someone who can light up the screen with their loyalty and memorable character. However, many movies have employed the plot of a dear friend backstabbing the protagonist and turning into a villain. This plot point makes for an interesting twist in the movie and forces viewers to think about the importance of loyalty. Here are 7 movie characters who betrayed their friends in a movie.

Obadiah Stane, Alec Trevelyan, and other movie characters who betrayed their friends

1. Lando Calrissian - Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back

Still from the movie (Image via Star Wars)

One of the most iconic friendship betrayals in movie history happened at the hands of Lando Calrissian in Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back. Directed by Irvin Kershner, this epic space opera is a sequel to the original Star Wars and is set three years after the events of the film. The movie revolves around the battle between the evil Galactic Empire and the Rebel Alliance, led by Luke Skywalker and Princess Leia. The movie is one of the most influential movies in the franchise as it has a ton of popular scenes, dialogues, and a famous plot twist. The movie also sees Luke Skywalker tread on the path of mastering the Force and confronting Darth Vader. However, the movie is also famous for featuring one of the most memorable betrayals in friendship. When Han Solo and his group need assistance, he contacts his trusted friend, Lando, to keep his group safe on his planet from the wrath of the Empire and Darth Vader. Lando, played by Billy Dee Williams, appears on the scene as a charming and confident friend who assures Han Solo that he is safe. However, viewers don’t know that Lando is working under pressure at the hands of Darth Vader, and he therefore ultimately betrays his friend Han Solo. Lando’s betrayal is iconic in pop culture history as it led to Han being captured and frozen in carbonite. Even though Lando is ashamed of his actions and tries to help the remaining group as best as he can, he is still a friend who turned into a foe.

2. Alec Trevelyan – Golden Eye

Still from the movie (Image via Amazon Prime Video)

Even the most famous spy is not spared from the ultimate betrayal by a best friend. James Bond, a character created by author Ian Fleming, has several blockbuster movies to his name. Even though the character of James Bond is naturally reserved and unsociable, he does have a few close friends. In the 1995 movie, Golden Eye, which was directed by Martin Campbell and featured Pierce Brosnan in the titular role of the international and charming spy, the movie introduces the character of Alec Trevelyan, played by Sean Bean, who is a 006 officer and Bond’s close friend. The movie starts with a flashback to 1986, where Bond and Trevelyan infiltrate a Soviet chemical weapons facility, but Trevelyan is seemingly caught and killed. While Bond spends the next nine years in remorse, his best friend, Trevelyan, has spent his time creating a crime syndicate. Not only does Trevelyan therefore betray his friend by faking his death and shifting to the evil side, but he also becomes the spy’s prime enemy when Trevelyan decides to use a satellite weapon against London and cause a global financial collapse. This makes Trevelyan one of the most popular Bond villains because the 006 spy was a close friend and had worked with Bond on several missions.

3. Billy - Scream

Directed by Wes Craven and starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and others, Scream is a famous slasher movie is based in the fictional town of Woodsboro, California. The movie revolves around a high school student, Sidney Prescott (Campbell), who, along with her friends, becomes the target of a masked serial killer, known as Ghostface. The movie was a critical and commercial hit and was noted for its meta references to other horror movies and its tropes. The movie spawned an entire franchise and is a cult classic. However, the movie also contains an important example of how friends betray and turn into enemies. Sidney suffers the wrath of her small town after her mother’s controversial activities cause Sidney to be the object of bullying. However, she finds comfort in her boyfriend, Billy. Played by Skeet Ulrich, Billy Loomis plays the doting friend and boyfriend of Sidney, who loves her and proves to be a loyal boyfriend. However, in one of the most shocking twists in the movie, it is revealed that the person behind the masked serial killer is Billy and his friend. Billy was furious at Sidney’s mother for causing an affair with his father, which led to Billy’s mother abandoning him. The shocking reveal is the ultimate back-stabbing by Billy, and he is therefore one of those characters in a movie who turns out to be a disloyal and dangerous friend and partner.

4. Fredo – The Godfather: Part II

Another famous instance of a friend back-stabbing happens in The Godfather: Part II. Directed by Francis Ford Coppola, this epic crime movie is based on the novel by Mario Puzo. The movie was a critical and commercial hit and is recognized by many as one of the most influential sequels in history. The movie presents two timelines. One of them focuses on Michael Corleone (Pacino), who takes up the mantel of being the new don of his family and looks after his family after an attempt on his life. On the other hand, the movie also revolves around a young Vito Corleone (De Niro), who starts from his humble background in Sicily to become the founding member of his family’s enterprise in New York City. Much of the movie, however, is dedicated to Michael trying to find out and punish the family member who supported Michael’s botched assassination attempt. Eventually, Michael learns that his brother, Fredo Corleone, is the informant. While Michael gets Fredo killed on a fishing boat, the scene where Michael kisses his brother and tells him that he knows of the betrayal is extremely chilling. The movie is a famous instance where a friend and a brother turn out to be a backstabber.

5. Obadiah Stane – Iron Man

Directed by Jon Favreau and starring Robert Downey Jr., Jeff Bridges, and others, Iron Man is a superhero movie based on the character from Marvel comics. The popular movie is the first film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) and focuses on Tony Stark (Downey Jr.), who is a wealthy and womanizing industrialist and engineer. However, when Stark is held captive by a terrorist group and escapes from them, he decides to create a mechanized suit of armor and becomes the famous superhero, Iron Man. The movie showcases how Tony Stark inherits the Stark Industries from his late father, Howard Stark. He also confides and looks up to his mentor, father-figure, and friend, Obadiah Stane, played by Jeff Bridges, who is Howard’s best friend and now Tony’s second-in-command. When Tony decides to stop his company’s manufacturing of weapons, Obadiah is taken aback. The movie slowly showcases how Obadiah is jealous of Tony taking over the company, and he betrays and backstabs Tony by trafficking arms to an evil organization called the Ten Rings and hiring them to stage a coup, so that Tony is killed and replaced by Stane as the new CEO. The final fight between Tony and Obadiah is loaded with action and emotions, as Tony always looked up to Obadiah as his friend and mentor. However, the movie once more gives an example of how close friends and family members can also backstab for their selfish interests.

6. Rose – Get Out

Still from the movie (Image via Universal Pictures)

Another entry on this list is where a dating partner decided to backstab and leave their “love” to die. Directed by Jordan Peele and starring Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, and others, Get Out is a psychological horror movie that received widespread acclaim. The movie starts with a simple premise, whereby a white girlfriend, Rose (Williams), decides to bring her black boyfriend, Chris (Kaluuya), to meet her parents. However, things quickly get eerie as Chris notes that Rose’s parents behave weirdly around him, and they have all-white friends and black servants. As Chris decides to leave their home, he tries to get Rose along, but the big reveal happens. Rose is in cahoots with her parents, who transplant the brains of their wealthy friends into other people’s bodies and leave the hosts’ consciousness trapped in a sunken place. Chris, therefore, finds himself tied and bound to a chair, where he sees the history of Rose’s family, who have been following a cult for years. The movie was noted for its themes on racism in the modern world, and the character of Rose is another example of a friend and a girlfriend, backstabbing their partner. Williams delivers a stellar performance as the actress can keep her character’s deception under wraps until the last moment.

7. Tom Ripley – The Talented Mr. Ripley

Directed by Anthony Minghella and based on the novel by Patricia Highsmith, The Talented Mr. Ripley is a psychological thriller that features Matt Damon, Jude Law, and others. The movie is about Tom Ripley (Damon), a con artist. When the son of shipbuilding magnate, Herbert Greenleaf, who is known as Dickie (Law), settles in Italy and refuses to come home, Herbert enlists the help of Tom Ripley. Herbert thinks that Tom is a classmate of Dickie and gets paid handsomely to get Dickie home. However, Tom is a con artist and takes this opportunity as his way of living the life he always wanted. He even fools Dickie and becomes his closest friend. The movie has beautiful cinematography as Tom begins to live lavishly in Europe through Dickie and portrays himself to be a humble and well-meaning friend. However, Tom ultimately betrays Dickie and even kills him. Even though Tom never had the intentions of becoming Dickie’s friend, he does get obsessed with him and even Dickie believes Tom to be his long-lost classmate. Therefore, for Dickie, he dies thinking that Tom is his friend, who ultimately betrays him.