Although Stephen King has some truly amazing villains, there are none quite like Randall Flagg
. Stephen King’s books have defined the genre of horror literature. Many love his apt title of the King of Horror, and Randall Flagg is a great example of why the author is an expert at creating horrifying characters. Despite Randall Flagg’s foolish death in King’s fictional universe, the villain’s arc across several titles is one of the most unsettling.
Randall Flagg’s appearances in King’s books are plentiful, from his initial debut in 1978’s The Stand to his strange demise in The Dark Tower series. I believe several of these moments cement Flagg as King’s best villain, although I don’t doubt that the King of Horror will bring him back at some point to outdo himself in terms of Flagg’s crazed actions.
5
Killing The Majority Of The Population
The Stand (1978)
While Flagg killing off most of the population in The Stand is an obvious example of why he’s such a solid villain, it’s also impossible to analyze his antagonism without discussing it. Flagg’s story in The Stand was a truly groundbreaking way for King to introduce such a villain. The image of the dark and twisted man forming life through the power of his visions is undoubtedly chilling, but one of the reasons Randall Flagg is Stephen King’s biggest villain is that he’ll go to any lengths for destruction.
Related
5 Things From Stephen King’s Original Book That 2025’s The Stand Anthology Should Expand On
The End of the World As We Know It is an anthology for The Stand that can expand on certain elements from Stephen King’s original book.
Flagg will do anything to make sure no other remnants of civilization remain, other than his. It’s bad enough that the influenza kills 99.4% of the original population anyway, but Flagg’s determination to manipulate and eliminate the few survivors who aren’t under his dictatorship is shocking. The battle against Mother Abigail proves Flagg is erratic, but it also cements him as a violent figure.
4
Flagg Has No Life Lines
The Stand (1978)
It’s not a massive moment, but when it’s acknowledged that Randall Flagg has no lifelines on his hands when he shows them off, I can’t help but shudder. There’s a narrative throughout Flagg’s arc that goes back and forth on whether the villain is human, demon, or a bit of both that one can never really make a definitive decision on, and this moment highlights it amazingly.
All humans have lifelines on their hands, and while this brief scene doesn’t confirm or deny anything, it doesn’t make it any less creepy. Flagg isn’t the only Stephen King villain who doesn’t have lifelines, though. This feature is also missing from Leland Gaunt in Needful Things, another antagonist who appears human, but is actually far from it. A small detail like this makes Flagg even more unsettling, and the vagueness of it all makes it scarier.
3
Forcing The Maid To Kill Queen Sasha
The Eyes Of The Dragon (1984)
Flagg is an evil wizard in Stephen King’s fantasy book, The Eyes of the Dragon, who causes a ridiculous amount of chaos. He is manipulative and sneaky in his first chronological appearance in King’s universe, and following his failed attempt to kill Queen Sasha while she’s pregnant, he forces the monarch’s maid to murder her after Thomas’ birth. This version of Flagg paints him as more calculating than straight-out violent, which adds layers to the character.
Related
10 Excellent Stephen King Stories That Surprisingly Haven’t Been Adapted Yet
Many of Stephen King’s brilliant novels and short stories have been made into movies and TV shows, but some surprisingly are yet to get an adaptation.
I always appreciate that King doesn’t make Flagg strictly aggressive. There’s something about his in-depth plots that makes him even more eerie, and the complexities of his thought processes are even better. Flagg making the maid kill Sasha proves that nobody is safe from his manipulation and others shouldn’t just fear him directly, but they should be paranoid of anyone in case he’s twisted them.
2
Infiltrating Roland’s Life So Much That He Takes His Gunslinger Trial
The Dark Tower IV: Wizard And Glass (1997)
Flagg’s actions in the earlier chapters of Wizard and Glass, the fourth installment of The Dark Tower books by Stephen King, are some of his most cunning. Using the name Marten Broadcloak, Flagg inserts himself into the Gilead court as a magician and infiltrates the Deschain family. The wizard not only manipulates patriarch Steven Deschain as his chief advisor, but Flagg also has an affair with Steven’s wife, Gabrielle. He purposely exposes this fact to their son Roland, which results in the story’s protagonist taking his gunslinger trial early.
Related
Mike Flanagan’s Dark Tower: Confirmation & Everything We Know About The Stephen King Adaptation
Horror maven Mike Flanagan is tackling Stephen King’s epic fantasy horror series The Dark Tower, and there are plenty of exciting updates.
While I am never one to turn down a violent moment from Flagg, this is another example of why his intelligence is such an important quality of his character. Flagg has Roland’s parents under his thumb, and although the last stage of his plan isn’t successful, his attempts to mess with the protagonist’s mind enough to be sent far away are incredibly strategic.
1
Brutally Murdering A Guard For A Mistake With A Smile
The Stand (1978)
When we think of Randall Flagg, we always think of his creepy smile in The Stand. This is one of the most horrifying moments in any of King’s works, and even though it’s in the written world, one can vividly see Flagg’s grin as he kills Bobby Terry. The guard fails to kill Judge Farris without inflicting any head wounds, and the villain sees everything through his crow spy, one of Randall Flagg’s many powers.
What makes this even more haunting is that Terry immediately realizes his fault and tries to bolt. Flagg arrives so abruptly and sprints after the guard, but he then takes his sweet time killing Terry, and the change in speed is something that always stands out to me. The Stand is a great dystopian book, but Stephen King’s depiction of this moment highlights just how messed up this world really is, especially with Randall Flagg in it.
Randall Flagg
- Alias
-
The Dark Man, The Walkin’ Dude
- RELATIONSHIPS
-
Mother Abagail (adversary), Lloyd Henreid (follower), Nadine Cross (ally)
- Alliance
-
Forces of Evil