Big Bad is a term originally used for the television series Buffy the Vampire Slayer to describe its major antagonists but has since been used by some critics and fans for multiple other shows, including Supernatural.
The title is divided into the main villains and the secondary villains. The Big Bad is the main villain(s) of the season, orchestrating events behind the scenes, while the secondary villain(s) often (but not always) serve the Big Bad, appearing more regularly and antagonizing the heroes. In some cases, there are several antagonists that also work against each other, other than just antagonizing the Winchesters. Some Big Bads are introduced early on into the season and act as the Big Bad throughout the major arc, while some are later revealed to simply be secondary villains, and are then replaced by the season's true Big Bad or some other character also playing an antagonist role.
Season villains
Season 1
Season 2
- Main Villain: Azazel
- Secondary Villains: The Special Children, Gordon Walker and Dean's Crossroad Demon
Season 3
- Main Villain: Lilith
- Secondary Villain: Bela Talbot and Gordon Walker
Season 4
Season 5
- Main Villain: Lucifer
- Secondary Villains: Zachariah, Michael and Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
Season 6
- Main Villains: Raphael, Crowley and Castiel
- Secondary Villains: Eve, Soulless Sam and Samuel Campbell
Season 7
- Main Villain: Dick Roman
- Secondary Villains: Edgar and Lucifer (Hallucination)
Season 8
Season 9
- Main Villains: Metatron and Abaddon
- Secondary Villains: Gadreel and Bartholomew
Season 10
- Main Villains: The Mark of Cain and Rowena
- Secondary Villains: Demon Dean, Styne Family and Metatron
Season 11
- Main Villain: The Darkness
- Secondary Villain: Lucifer
Season 12
- Main Villain: British Men of Letters, Doctor Hess, Lucifer
- Secondary Villains: Arthur Ketch, Dagon
Season 13
- Main Villain:
- Secondary Villains: