Ten Best Shapeshifters in Fiction – Listverse
Shapeshifting is one of the coolest powers/abilities ever invented. Writers of comics, novels, TV and movies have come up with creative ways for one person to look exactly like another. From mutant powers to aliens, there has been a veritable cornucopia of changelings, duplicators, and polymorphism in the destruction of fiction.
These creatures appear as people you know: your boss, girlfriend or brother. They can manipulate us with the greatest of ease. Some can appear as inanimate objects to spy on and expose our darkest secrets. Shape-changers are not to be underestimated and can be anywhere, anyone or anything. They could be right under your nose, and you would never know it. In hopes of introducing audiences to these devious creatures, here is a list of fiction’s ten best shapeshifters.
Related: Top 10 cartoon characters who went wrong in the movies
10 Beastboy: DC Comics
Beast Boy has been a constant in Teen Titan’s runs for decades. Beast Boy is the backbone of DC’s second largest team in comics, cartoons and live-action TV. Also known as Changeling in the 1980s, he originally appeared in Doom Patrol #99 in 1965. Over the years, his origins have changed slightly more than once.
That said, he invariably gains the ability to transform into any animal he sees. However, he has green skin, hair, fur, scales, feathers and other animal parts. It is always green and so easy to stand out from the crowd. Although Beast Boy has had emotional issues with his uniqueness, he is generally quite content with who and what he is at any given time. In recent years he has been able to transform into extinct animals (dinosaurs), mythical creatures (phoenix, dragon) and even animals from different planets. When he changes, it only lasts a few seconds. It doesn’t matter how big or small; there is no being he cannot imitate.[1]
9 Clayface: DC Comics
Clayface is the alias used by several Gotham City villains, starting with Basil Karlo in 1940. Nearly all of them possess the ability to shapeshift. The most popular version of the character was the Matthew Hagen version, which appeared in Batman: The Animated Series and reigned during The Golden Age of Comics. Hagen was an actor with sociopathic ambition who stumbled upon a substance that turned the molecular structure of his body into a clay-like material.
However, all the Clayfaces were confronted by the vigilante, Batman. Often appearing as someone Batman was just talking to, he would trick the Dark Knight into dangerous situations to gain the upper hand and further his diabolical and often corny plot. His clay-like body allows him to change his shape and size, as well as mimic the appearance and voices of other people. He can also recover from virtually any injury and absorb other materials to improve his body’s strength and durability. Clayface’s shape-shifting powers are not limited to his physical appearance; he can also change his internal organs and chemical composition to resist toxins and diseases.[2]
8 T-1000: Terminator 2: Judgment Day
The terminator series is one of the most successful and beloved science fiction film series of all time. Fans had to wait seven years for the first sequel, but when it hit theaters it was hugely and explosively popular. In Terminator 2, the T-1000 is made of liquid metal. The T-800 (Arnold Schwarzenegger) explains that the T-1000 is a more advanced Terminator, composed entirely of a ‘mimetic polyalloy’, making it capable of rapid shape changes, near-perfect mimicry, and damage repair.
There is a popular meme based on the T-1000’s ability to appear and sound like everyone it encounters, but which shows the machine’s inability to know what its victims know. In addition to transforming into other people, the robot’s ability to switch between solid and liquid form allowed it to pass almost any obstacle, including metal bars, making for some iconic and scary scenes. The T-1000 was one of the scariest shapeshifters ever![3]
7 Count Dracula: Bram Stroker’s Novel and Other Stories
Everyone’s favorite vampire can transform into a variety of forms other than humanoids. Dracula can change shape at will and can grow and become small, with his signature forms in the novel being those of a bat, a wolf, a large dog, and a mist or mist. It can travel within its rays as elemental dust when the moonlight shines. He can pass through small cracks or crevices while retaining his human form or in the form of a vapor, described by Van Helsing as the ability to slip through a hair’s breadth of a grave door or coffin.
“Count Dracula is not just an undead vampire looking for fresh blood. His character is remarkably complex, partly due to his shape-shifting abilities. It is difficult to calculate the number of animals in which Dracula moves. Yet his abilities seem endless and ingeniously elusive.[4]
6 Skrulls: Marvel Comics
The Skrulls are an alien race directly related to Captain Marvel’s storyline in the Marvel Universe. The Skrulls are a technologically advanced race of reptilian humanoids native to the destroyed planet Skrullos. They are notable for their ability to shapeshift, allowing them to replicate other life forms and seamlessly infiltrate planets without suspicion.
The Skrulls have made their way onto the big and small screens in recent years. In Captain Marvel, they appear as the sworn enemies of the Kree. This similar alien race had brainwashed Carol Danvers and eventually led her to become the famous superhero. More recently, in Secret WarsTalos (a Skrull) is a key figure who has worked closely with Nick Fury for decades. The miniseries also marked Emilia Clarke’s foray into the MCU as Talos’ daughter, G’iah, a talented shape-shifting Skrull agent.[5]
5 Professor McGonagall: Harry Potter Series
The Harry Potter book and film series were enormously successful. Full of magic, from spells to creatures, there was no end to the fantastic. More than a few characters would transition from one form to another. This magical universe offers several ways to achieve this. Minerva McGonagall is a master of transfiguration. Her ability to transform from human to animal is so advanced that she can do it as casually as putting on a coat.
Although shapeshifting is quite common in the Wizarding World, Professor McGonagall is known as an Animagus, a witch or wizard who can transform into an animal at any time. She prefers cats, but can transform into many different animals if necessary. She used her skills during the first Wizarding War to greatly aid the Ministry of Magic’s resistance by spying on Death Eaters and providing the Aurors with crucial information about their activities. McGonagall became Deputy Headmistress and Headmistress of Hogwarts at the same time.[6]
4 The Evil Queen: Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs
From one of the most famous stories of all time, based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, comes the Evil Queen, who has appeared in films, TV shows and literature for over 200 years. While shapeshifting is not her favorite activity, she has been known to do it. Whether she casts a spell or concocts a potion to do so depends on the specific version of the story; either way, she uses the power to perfection.
In the classic story, she appears to Snow White as an older woman who offers the young woman an apple. Of course, the apple is poisoned and Snow White falls into a deep coma. In There was oncethe character uses the ability via glamor and transfiguration spells, depending on the episode and situation.
She has appeared as different and entirely new characters, such as the old woman. The Evil Queen is widely regarded as one of the most iconic and menacing villains in film history and was once named the 10th greatest movie villain of all time by the American Film Institute.[7]
3 Odo: Star Trek
Constable Odo out Star Trek: Deep Space Nine was a member of an alien race known as the Founders. The Founders are natural shapeshifters or ‘changelings’. Ironically, most Founders are better shapeshifters than Odo, but his natural detective instincts and shapeshifting abilities make him formidable. He often keeps his enemy Quark, a known criminal, at bay by appearing as a piece of furniture and the like during illegal meetings and transactions.
Odo grew up among the ‘solids’ and did not discover his people or where he came from until middle age. When it is discovered that the Founders are pursuing violent expansion of their empire, Odo is forced to take sides, siding with the Federation, Starfleet, and Bajor. He’s become a better shapeshifter over the years, but the one thing he’s never mastered is the human face. Odo helped defeat the Founders’ Dominion, but eventually returned to his people to teach them about the “solids” in hopes of preventing another war.[8]
2 Mysticism: Marvel Comics
Mystique first appeared in Ms. Marvel #16 (April 1978). She is a member of a subspecies of humanity known as mutants who was born with superhuman abilities. She is a shapeshifter who can mimic the appearance and voice of any person with pinpoint precision. Rebecca Romijn and Jennifer Lawrence have portrayed her on screen.
She often works closely with the leader of the Brotherhood of Evil Mutants, Magneto. Whoever Mystique works for and whatever the position, more often than not Mystique works to further the Mutant agenda, through the proper channels or otherwise. She learned to use her shapeshifting power at a very young age, as there is no evidence known to the public or government that Raven Darkholme ever looked different from a normal human. Mystique claims to be Nightcrawler’s mother.[9]
1 Plastic Man: DC Comics
Plastic Man is easily the most underrated character in the entire DC Universe. He can be anything or anyone at any time and is completely unkillable. It can shrink to a few inches tall or become a titan the size of a skyscraper. He can contort his body in ways impossible for ordinary humans, such as lying completely flat to slip under a door, using his fingers to pick conventional locks, compressing himself into a ball to ricochet off things, and blow up his body. He can also use it to disguise himself by changing the shape of his face and body.
Due to his liquid state, Plastic Man can open holes in his body and turn himself into objects with mobile parts. He is invulnerable, immune to telepathic attacks and immortal. He is a prankster and likes to disguise himself as household items and scare his colleagues when inanimate objects come to life.[10]