Who's the baddy? Disney vs Lucasfilm

Who's scarier? Maleficent (Sleeping Beauty) vs Darth Vader (Star Wars)

Heroes are all alike; villains are all villainous in their own way. From Simba to Skywalker, Harry Potter to Frodo Baggins, good guys tend to be earnest outsiders with a destiny and daddy issues. But the way to sort a great fantasy from its lesser rivals is by identifying an excellent baddy. Following the news that Disney has acquired Lucasfilm for $4bn, it seems appropriate to ask which studio has produced the finer villains.

There's everything to play for between David Bowie as Jareth, the Goblin King in Labyrinth and The Lion King's Scar – who just beats Shere Khan to the title of Disney's scariest feline villain. Or what about Darth Vader, the ultra-baddie of Star Wars (even if – spoiler alert – he turns out to be a goodie in the end), going to head with Maleficent, a baddy so scary she's getting her own film starring Angelina Jolie? Captain Hook might not be that scary, given that he's outwitted by children, but then Jabba the Hutt can't move. Our verdict?

Lucasfilm loses out on fear and charisma. But that might be because Disney has had longer to work on the baddest guys and gals.