In his play “Richard III”, William Shakespeare builds one of the cruelest characters of the history of literature and playwriting: Richard, firstly Duke of Gloucester and afterwards King of England. He is a complex character, an ambitious man capable of doing anything to achieve his goals. However, Richard is a captivating character and gets the sympathy of the audience (or the reader) , despite his dreadful actions against anyone that gets on his way to the crown. It is important to shed light on this character and his features, considering the fashion in which Shakespeare depicts him. Is he a villain, a hero or an anti-hero? How is it possible that he can justify his actions to the audience or the reader and can also convince other characters