In an adaptation of a work, it's common to make the iconic Arch-Enemy of the source material into the adaptation's Big Bad. Due to Rule of Drama, this character will be tied into the hero's origin story, whether they were in the original work or not. A common variation is that the villain is the one who killed a loved one in their Death by Origin Story, making the villain a Composite Character with the Token Motivational Nemesis. Often revealed at the end, leading the hero to decide that It's Personal.
The reasons for this are similar to those behind Superhero Movie Villains Die. Since the movie isn't necessarily an ongoing series, writers have a limited time to make the villain have as much impact as possible. It's a simple way of adding drama and a personal connection between the villain and the hero. Often Inverted such that a villain that wasn't a Create Your Own Villain in the original is made one in an adaptation.
This goes double for instances of Token Motivational Nemesis. Who is more interesting as the one who killed the hero's beloved teacher, love interest, or parents, some nameless thug or the iconic Big Bad?
This is the inverse of Create Your Own Villain, where the hero is involved in the origin story of the villain. Also compare to Related in the Adaptation, when an adaptation makes two previously unrelated characters family, and Meta Origin, where an origin story is given a specific underpinning that ties the characters' seemingly random power to a concrete phenomenon (and thus can connect them when they wouldn't have been in the source material).
Adaptation Origin Connection has been suggested to play 5 roles. Click below to see other actors suggested for each role, and vote for who you think would play the role best.
