There are some anime protagonists who are memorable not because they’re heroic or likable, but because of how disturbingly cold, manipulative, or violent they are. This list features ten anime where the main character is clearly a psychopath.
These are not your typical main characters, though; they’re extreme, unpredictable, and intensely fascinating in a way that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Here’s a closer look at the characters who really define psychological terror in anime.
Table of Contents
10. Yumeko Jabami: Kakegurui
- IMDb Rating: 7.1/10
- MyAnimeList Rating: 7.22/10
- Episodes: 24 (12 episodes in Season 1 and 12 episodes in Season 2)
- Where to Watch: Netflix
- Status: Concluded
Yumeko Jabami is not your average high school protagonist, she’s a pure gambling addict who lives for risky behavior and chaos. The bigger the risk, the better, even if it costs her everything. What makes her so unsettling is that she’s so unpredictable. She’s not interested in the money or the power, she’s in it for the thrill of the unknown.
She reads people like a book, tears them emotionally, and smiles while she does it. Yumeko’s fearlessness, obsession with mind games, and utter disregard for consequences make her have all the makings of a psychopath.
9. Nana Hiiragi: Talentless Nana
- IMDb Rating: 6.9/10
- MyAnimeList Rating: 7.17/10
- Episodes: 13
- Where to Watch: Not Available on streaming platforms.
- Status: Concluded (no second season announced)
On the surface, Nana Hiiragi is the bubbly, outgoing transfer student. But that act doesn’t last long. Her true assignment? Killing students with special abilities, one by one. She manipulates, lies, and kills without hesitation, all the while smiling and being friendly.
Nana’s a killer, yes, but she’s also a mastermind who gains the trust of her victims before she kills them. She believes she’s doing something noble, but her cold, calculating actions say otherwise. The way she fakes emotions and becomes a professional killer is the textbook definition of a manipulative psychopath.
8. Keyaru: Redo of Healer
- IMDb Rating: 6.4/10
- MyAnimeList Rating: 6.32/10
- Episodes: 12
- Where to Watch: HIDIVE, Amazon Prime Video
- Status: Concluded (no second season announced)
Keyaru is not a protagonist you can cheer for, he’s a sadistic avenger who won’t think twice about inflicting pain on his abusers. Betrayed and tortured, he rewinds time and begins on a brutal path of revenge.
Torture, mind games, and emotional devastation are his tools of choice. There is no depth to which he won’t sink. His twisted past speaks for itself on why he is so warped, but that does not excuse the horrors he inflicts. He doesn’t lose his humanity; he throws it away.
7. Yuuichi Katagiri – Tomodachi Game
- IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
- MyAnimeList Rating: 7.71/10
- Episodes: 12
- Where to Watch: Crunchyroll, Amazon Prime Video, Disney+
- Status: Concluded (no second season announced)
Yuuichi Katagiri conceals his real self behind his calm, serene smile, but within, he’s as far from being normal. Pulled into the Tomodachi Game, he soon shows how dangerous he can be. He manipulates everyone around him, including friends, foes, no matter, using icy precision. Betrayal and mind games don’t faze him; he’s a master of them.
What’s so chilling about Yuuichi is how easily he dismantles people emotionally, as if he’s playing a game of chess with their minds. His serene rationality, detachment, and cold-blooded decisions are the foundation for a protagonist who’s far more psychopathic than he initially seems.
6. Tanya Degurechaff – Saga of Tanya the Evil
- IMDb Rating: 7.6/10
- MyAnimeList Rating: 7.96/10
- Episodes: 12
- Where to Watch: Crunchyroll, Amazon Prime Video
- Status: Ongoing (Season 2 announced; release expected in 2026)
Tanya may appear to be a little girl, but she’s actually a psychopathic man reborn as a child, and now, a soldier with an appetite for dominance. She’s all logic, ambition, and a personal crusade against God. In battle, Tanya is cold, calculating, and completely merciless. Her foes are mere pawns, and her own soldiers? Tools to get the win.
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What makes her so frightening is how much she loves war. Her calm, near-cheerful attitude in the midst of carnage is just part of her psychopathic streak. Tanya doesn’t fight for justice, she fights because she thrives on power and destruction.
5. Isaac Foster (Zack) – Angels of Death
IMDb Rating: 6.5/10
MyAnimeList Rating: 6.96/10
Episodes: 16 (12 main episodes + 4 OVA)
Where to Watch: Crunchyroll, Amazon Prime Video
Status: Concluded
Zack is a bandaged serial killer wielding a scythe, and his violence cannot be overlooked. But beneath all the destruction is something far worse, a twisted sense of morality. His bond with Rachel Gardner, while strangely possessive, does not make him any less dangerous.
Zack does not kill randomly; he kills on his own twisted set of morals. He does not feel remorse, does not feel empathy, and exists to wreak havoc. He’s impulsive and brutal, but there’s a strange consistency to his insanity. Zack is the very height of that crazy, chaotic energy of a psychopath you simply can’t look away from.
4. Hiro Shishigami – Inuyashiki: Last Hero
IMDb Rating: 7.7/10
MyAnimeList Rating: 7.63/10
Episodes: 11
Where to Watch: Crunchyroll, Amazon Prime Video
Status: Concluded
While Ichirou himself is a kind-hearted protagonist, the actual psychopath of this story is Hiro Shishigami. After he gains his incredible robot powers, Hiro uses them not to save the world, but to murder individuals for entertainment. Families, strangers, whoever crosses his path, he murders them all with a calm face and without even a hint of guilt.
His lack of empathy is chilling, and what’s worse is how casually he goes about committing his mass slaughter. He doesn’t murder with hatred or rage, he murders because he just doesn’t care. Hiro is a chilling, realistic representation of what a young, emotionless psychopath would be like with too much power.
3. Lelouch Lamperouge – Code Geass
IMDb Rating: 8.7/10
MyAnimeList Rating: 8.70/10
Episodes: 50 (25 in each season)
Where to Watch: Crunchyroll, Netflix, Amazon Prime Video
Status: Concluded
Lelouch is a genius with a charming personality, but beneath it lies a mind capable of dreadful manipulations. His goal might be to change the world, but his methods are far from noble. He manipulates people like pawns on a board, kills without a thought, and lies with ease.
Lelouch is not a textbook psychopath, but he possesses many of the traits like, emotional detachment, lack of remorse, and a calculating nature. His second personality, Zero, allows him to separate morality from action, making decisions most would never even consider. He’s the kind of character who gets you questioning if the end ever does justify the means.
2. Johan Liebert – Monster
IMDb Rating: 8.7/10
MyAnimeList Rating: 8.89/10
Episodes: 74
Where to Watch: Netflix (all episodes available)
Status: Concluded
While Kenzo Tenma is the main character on paper, the story won’t move an inch without Johan Liebert’s involvement. They are like two sides of a coin. Johan Liebert is not simply a psychopath, he’s the most terrifying one anime has ever produced. His sweet voice and perfect looks only serve to get people to lower their guard and then completely destroy them, without even having to raise a hand.
Johan does not kill out of rage or retaliation, he does so simply because he can. Even his presence drives others mad. Johan is like a virus that corrupts the world around him. Johan’s cold, emotionless demeanor hides his complete lack of a moral compass. He is the kind of villain who never needs to scream; having him in a room is enough to freeze your blood.
1. Light Yagami – Death Note
IMDb Rating: 8.9/10
MyAnimeList Rating: 8.62/10
Episodes: 37
Where to Watch: Netflix, Hulu, Crunchyroll, Peacock
Status: Concluded
Light Yagami begins as a genius student who loves justice, but everything changes after the Death Note finds its way into his hands. His fall into psychopathy is slow but inevitable. He starts by murdering criminals but becomes more and more obsessed with a desire for power and control.
Light manipulates everyone around him, murders without remorse, and thinks he’s a god. His genius and charm mask just how far he’s fallen. The more he uses the Death Note, the less human he becomes. Light is not only a morally gray anti-hero, he’s a full-fledged psychopath who thinks he’s a hero of this world.
Psychopathic main characters are an entirely different level of intensity in anime. Seeing them warp reality, manipulate people, or do heinous things without remorse pulls at something deep within us. Sometimes, the most engaging stories are those of people who’ve long since crossed that line.
