Characters in television shows usually become popular because fans fall in love with them and their stories. However, some characters gain popularity because the audience loves to hate them. The unlikability of such TV characters is often predetermined by their creators, which is why they become the popular villains. Yet, there are several other characters who were meant to be neutral at worst but still ended up being disliked by fans, and unfairly so.

Many such characters are either designed as character foils, whose existence and actions are meant to contrast with those of the heroes, or they are simply meant to be neutral. Unfortunately, fans often misinterpret their design or objective and develop an antipathy, unexpectedly turning them into hated characters. These characters often face intense backlash from fans, but if analyzed well, they actually serve as crucial, realistic anchors against their more chaotic counterparts. With that in mind, here’s our ranked selection of some of the most unfairly hated TV characters of all time.

8

Skyler White

‘Breaking Bad’ (2008–2013)

A Guinness World Record-holding crime drama created by Vince Gilligan, Breaking Bad revolves around a terminally ill chemistry teacher who resorts to making and selling crystal meth with his former student to safeguard his family’s future. Bryan Cranston’s Walter White and Aaron Paul’s Jesse Pinkman are undoubtedly the two most-loved antiheroes of 21st-century TV, even if they were designed as character studies of total moral decay. Contrastingly, Walter’s wife, Skyler, played by Anna Gunn, is quite strongly disliked.

Skyler White is designed like any normal, rational, law-abiding woman who fears the worst consequences of her husband’s dangerous actions. Unfortunately, to fans, her character goes against the thrill and excitement of White and Pinkman’s dangerous and unpredictable world. While the writers clearly intended for the audience to sympathize with a wife reasoning with her husband’s moral ambiguity, Skyler never got her fair share of respect or love from fans.

7

Debra Barone

‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ (1996–2005)

Created by Philip Rosenthal, Everybody Loves Raymond is a sitcom that centers on the titular character, a successful sportswriter who navigates his dysfunctional family and work life with his particular brand of humor. The show’s real comedy comes from how Raymond resigns to his meddling, overbearing parents and how his wife, Debra, deals with the chaotic family dynamic. While fans love Ray Romano’s iconic Raymond Barone, despite his lack of boundaries and inability to fight his own battles, Debra gets the exact opposite reaction.

Played by Patricia Heaton, Debra Barone is often unfairly labeled as a nagging wife and woman who is always controlling and loud. In fact, her character is but a victim of a classic sitcom trope where she is designed as the voice of reason so her husband and others can be goofy, childish, or obnoxious to balance the narrative. Her apparent “annoyed wife” persona is often seen as an obstruction to Raymond’s fun nature, especially because Raymond depicts her as such when narrating the story from his perspective.

6

Beth Dutton

‘Yellowstone’ (2018–2024)

Taylor Sheridan and John Linson’s epic neo-Western saga <em>Yellowstone</em> follows the powerful Dutton family and their struggles to maintain the legacy of the titular Montana ranch amid cultural, social, and political clashes. The show focuses on the complicated family dynamic between John Dutton III, the current patriarch, and his children Beth, Lee, Kayce, and Jamie. Of all the main characters, Bethany “Beth” Dutton assumes a very prominent and influential role in the story and is widely considered the show’s star character yet is often hated by fans.

Played by Kelly Reilly, Beth Dutton is a complicated, controversial character with deep-seated personal issues that are often misunderstood. For many, she is a powerful feminist icon while for others she comes across as selfish and abrasive. While her personality is largely a survival mechanism stemming from her childhood trauma, Beth Dutton was intentionally designed to be the aggressive anti-heroine who is hard to like so her characterization while polarizing is ultimately appropriate.