villain of the piece, the

Idioms  

1. The person to blame for what is bad or wrong, as in I'm afraid the caterer is the villain of the piece—the food wasn't ready for hours. The piece in this term alludes to a play in which the villain is the character whose evildoing is important to the plot. [Mid-1800s]

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Example Sentences

Sununu, whose son Chris currently serves as governor and whose son Michael is one of the state’s more vocal climate change skeptics, emerges as the villain of the piece, the man who almost single-handedly thwarted the first major international effort to limit carbon dioxide emissions.

From Washington Times

But George Bailey’s heroism stemmed from his resistance to the real villain of the piece—the money-grubbing Mr Potter.

From Economist

This fact leads straight to the guiltiest villain of the piece, the American consumer of illegal drugs, without whom there would be no $250 billion drug traffic, the general writes in Military Times, reprising what he had earlier told Congress.

From Washington Times

The villain of the piece, the lowlife Jigger Craigin, is a brutal thug, but in the jovial person of Tally Sessions, he comes off as more of a genial lug, so it’s easier to understand why Billy considers him good company.

From New York Times

Indeed, the hashtag #goleiraeualinda, or "beautiful American goalie" was the No1 topic on Twitter in Brazil at the time and, although Journo did note that Daiane Menezes Rodrigues, who scored an own goal and missed a penalty, may be the villain of the piece, the fans had already adopted a new hero.

From The Guardian