The Most Horrible Fictional Teachers in Hollywood History

For a significant portion of our lives, from the time we begin our educational journeys in preschool, teachers are a part of our world. They can have a huge impact on us, both positive and negative, and often shape our development. With their encouragement, many of us excel beyond what we may have thought possible, frequently pushing us in unexpected directions.

Many of us look back fondly on our formative years at that one teacher, or perhaps many teachers, who made our primary years all through higher education all the more special. However, not all teachers have such a positive impact. For every outstanding educator, there is another who is soul-crushing. The one we remember for the dread and dismay they made us feel every time we entered the classroom.

Movies and TV shows often depict the horrors of teachers gone bad, and fictional stories about the educational world can be eye-opening. Society places a significant import on education making academia a top priority for numerous individuals around the globe, but what they often don't discuss are the bad apples, those in charge of the classroom that have a negative impact.

While some fictional teachers can be overly exaggerated, there might be just a bit of truth in some of their behaviors. Some of the most notable movies and TV shows occur in school settings with entire character lineups filled with educators and students. Other projects merely feature a scene or two placed inside a classroom.

We omitted the handful of atrocious educators, like Miss Trunchbull, the dean from the 1996 film, "Matilda," and Principal Richard Vernon, the main antagonist with a stark determination to treat students poorly while they served their detention sentences in "The Breakfast Club". For real-world coverage on teachers in the workforce, click here to discover 33 states that let teachers carry guns.

To compile this list of the most horrible fictional teachers in Hollywood history, 24/7 Tempo consulted several entertainment sources. These include IMDb, Rotten Tomatoes, ScreenRant, Movie Web, and Collider. (Educators aren't the only ones who occasionally portray bad behavior. Dressage Olympian Charlotte Dujardin pulled out of the 2024 Paris Olympic Games due to past behavior.)

• Portrayed by: Cameron Diaz

Cameron Diaz did an incredible job bringing the role of Elizabeth to life, a character whose offenses ranged from G-rated to X-rated throughout the film. On the more innocent end, she didn't care enough to learn any of her students' names. Her willingness to smoke marijuana in the school parking lot was also problematic.

But the worst thing she did was embezzle money from a major fundraiser held by the school. Instead of helping allocate cash toward her students' success, Elizabeth was too eager to pocket the funds.

• Portrayed by: Ian Harding

This hit TV show focused on a group of teenagers being stalked and harassed by an anonymous freak. One of the girls being stalked was Aria Montgomery, who had an inappropriate relationship with Ezra Fitz throughout the early seasons of "Pretty Little Liars." Once Fitz learned he was her English teacher, he stayed in the relationship.

He tried to justify their romance by leaning on the fact that they started hooking up before she disclosed her underage status, but he should have cut things off immediately upon seeing her seated in his classroom for the first time.

• Portrayed by: Leann Hunley

The affair between Tamara Jacobs and Pacey Witter wasn't taken nearly as seriously as it should've been. The affair got a pass from characters on the show because Pacey is the one who incessantly pursued Tamara. Regardless of his persistence, as the adult in the situation, she should have continued to reject him.

Instead, she eventually gave in. Tamara and Pacey had a 20-year age gap between them, which was already a huge red flag in and of itself. Their affair came crumbling down when other students uncovered the secret. Tamara was fired from her teaching job, which prompted her to move out of town.

• Portrayed by: Laura Breckenridge

"Gossip Girl" had an incredible cast lineup, including Penn Badgley, who played the role of Dan Humphrey, a teen caught in an inappropriate love affair with female teacher Rachel Carr. There was nothing romantic going on between Rachel and Dan at first, they merely had a connection over their shared love for English literature.

Eventually, they covertly started hooking up with each other, with their most inappropriate liaison occurring on campus in the costume closet during his school play.

• Portrayed by: Jack Black

When "School of Rock" hit theaters in 2003, it was highly revered as a lovable comedy-drama, featuring character Dewey Finn. After getting kicked out of his band, Finn desperately scrambles to find a new source of income, agreeing to fill in as a substitute teacher at a private elementary school even though he has no formal teaching experience.

He has musical talent though, which propels him to go out of his way to teach students how to play rock n' roll music together. The students he's faced with come from sheltered households, which makes their exposure to wild music they aren't accustomed to a bit over-the-top, and his use of explicit language in front of the kids is frowned upon.

• Portrayed by: Dwayne Hill

Carr is the gym teacher in charge of instructing the Sex Ed lesson who uses fear-mongering tactics to scare students into abstinence. Instead of giving them concrete, real-world advice about their sexual health, he tells the students if they have sex, they will catch chlamydia and die. In addition to his awful advice, he also got caught having an affair with a student named Trang Pak.

• Portrayed by: Imelda Staunton

Appearing in the franchise's later films, Dolores loved to dangle her power over the students at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Her favorite student to bully happened to be Harry. One of the cruelest things she did was force him to write, "I must not tell lies" verbatim on a sheet of paper that automatically carved into the skin on his arm. Causing physical harm to students was something she found pleasure in.

• Portrayed by: Mary Jo Catlett

Mrs. Puff is the driving teacher who is always so exasperated and overwhelmed. Instead of being patient with her boating school students, she often loses her cool and raises her voice. Her worst offenses include stealing SpongeBob's boat, threatening to physically kick SpongeBob, joining the "I Hate SpongeBob Club," and trying to murder SpongeBob. Many fans of the show understand Mrs. Puff's frustration dealing with a student like SpongeBob – but others are convinced that she's way too extreme.

• Portrayed by: Matthew Morrison

During the first few seasons of "Glee," Will proves himself to be a thoughtful teacher who relates to his students. By the time Season 4 rolled around, his attitude changed. His mistreatment of students like Unique and Marley also made him much less likable.

• Portrayed by: Sabrina Brier

She aggressively reminded everyone that her name was pronounced Jessca and not Jessica.

This character, who aggressively reminded everyone that her name was pronounced Jess-ca and not Jessica, was someone the students loved having in charge, but it was clear that her methods were completely unorthodox and inappropriate. Instead of having students do specific homework assignments, Jessca let the kids choose whatever homework assignments they felt like doing. She was also super dismissive of Janine in every conversation they shared.

• Portrayed by: Bryan Cranston

Walter White was a high school chemistry teacher before he went off the rails, a teacher who was passionate about teaching chemistry to high school kids. Eventually, his passions shifted as he was diagnosed with Stage III lung cancer and was concerned his family wouldn't have enough money to live after he was gone.

He reconnected with one of his former students, Jesse Pinkman, to mass produce and sell methamphetamine. Even though Walter had multiple opportunities to tap out of the drug game, he continued digging a deeper hole with each passing episode.

• Portrayed by: Alyson Reed

Miss Darbus was an extremely annoying teacher from the High School Musical franchise. Generally speaking, high school students love connecting with their friends using their phones. Miss Darbus had an obsession with collecting phones from teenagers as a way of taunting her power as an authority figure.

She came across as super judgmental when students would perform on stage for auditions. Since Miss Darbus was the type of woman who likely wished she made it big on Broadway, she spent much of her time hyper-focused on high school stage performances. Her desire to be extra critical of youngsters made her unlikable.

• Portrayed by: Sarah Habel

Inappropriate classroom relationships are a common trope in movies and TV shows. That's exactly what happened on "Riverdale" between Archie Andrews and Geraldine Grundy. During the summer season, Geraldine went out of her way to strike up a steamy romance with Archie. When the school year starts in the fall, they choose to keep things going.

Much to Geraldine's dismay, the parents of some of the students uncovered details about the affair and she was forced to resign from her position at Riverdale High School and relocate somewhere new.

• Portrayed by: Carlos Alazraqui

This animated show focused on a young kid named Timmy Turner living life with two fairy godparents. His fairies were willing to grant all of his wishes, no matter how big or small. One of Timmy's greatest struggles in life revolved around interactions with his teacher, Denzel Crocker. Denzel was one of the show's main antagonists since his main goal in life was to expose Timmy for having fairy oddparents. His obsession was out of control.

• Portrayed by: Viola Davis

The fictional character Annalise Keating got caught in a whirlwind of illegal activities, burning drama, and murder. Her life of crime was intertwined with young adults who looked up to her as a legal icon. Her students shared her interest in pursuing career paths as lawyers, but they ended up in situations where they had to lie their way out of trouble, often to avoid jail time.

• Portrayed by: Blake Lee

At first, Martin was a lovable teacher who got along well with his students. He consistently showcased how much he cared about kids by intervening when he noticed bullying taking place. He acted as a listening ear to youngsters facing emotional turmoil.

Things took a nasty turn for Martin when he gave into temptation by hooking up with one of his female students. After that, he kept her locked in his basement to protect himself from getting caught. The cringe-worthy arc ended with his death.

• Played by: Eric Lange

Erwin Sikowitz was the eccentric acting teacher at Hollywood Arts High School. On the surface, his teaching style was considered incredibly bizarre. On a deeper level, he was a terrible teacher who probably shouldn't have been placed in charge of students. He would call female students "ganks," without batting an eye. The inappropriate word was often directed towards the character Jade West.

• Played by: Don Creech

When "Ned's Declassified School Survival Guide" first premiered on Nickelodeon in 2004, kids adored the concept. The one character viewers weren't super obsessed with was science teacher Mr. Sweeney, the critical antagonist who loved enforcing the strictest possible rules on students. He wanted the whole world to acknowledge that he was in charge. On the topic of teachers, click here to find the states where it's best and worst to work as an educator.