Ian Hawke (Alvin and the Chipmunks Live-Action films 2007-2011)

"'Dave, we go way back.' 'We both come a long way since college.' 'You, not so much.' 'I wanted to like that song, but you heard it.' 'Not that good.' 'If I wasn't your friend, I'd say, 'Dave, you go right back out of this office and you keep writing music. You'll get there someday.'' 'But I am your friend, so I'm going to tell you that there is no sense in writing songs that no one is ever, ever, going to sing.' - Ian Hawke to Dave Seville"

Ian Hawke is one of the main antagonists of the Alvin and the Chipmunks film franchise. He is one of the characters to only appear in the live-action films, appearing in 3 of the 4 movies, being the main antagonist in the 1st film and Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel, and then being the central antagonist-turned-tetartagonist in Alvin and the Chipmunks: Chipwrecked.

He was Dave's roommate in college, used to work for Jett Records, and was the former enemy of Dave, the Chipmunks, and the Chipettes, but he later reformed and became their friend.

Why He Never Loses

 * 1) He's one of the most likable and enjoyable characters that only appear in the lackluster live-action film series.
 * 2) David Cross does a good job portraying him in all 3 films, with the 1st film being his most hilarious, the 3rd film being his 2nd funniest which is decent yet fun, and the 2nd film being his least funny but still fun and entertaining to watch overall.
 * 3) He contributes to some of the most memorable and funniest moments in the film series.
 * 4) Depending on your view, the scene from the 2nd film where Ian pretends to be the Chipettes is so stupid some may find it funny, as a scene that's "so bad it's good" in a way.
 * 5) Because of being a very comedic villain in the franchise, he is one of the most likable and lovable characters in the films.
 * 6) He is a good example of how a businessman can go too far with how they are treating their stars, this is better shown when he exhausts the Chipmunks so he can use their popularity for money and fame, and when he uses the Chipettes to rise back to the top of fame and glory, not caring for either groups' health and safety.
 * 7) He is an over-the-top and humorous jerk you love to hate as a villain since he has a fallible and redeemable side to his actions.
 * 8) He is an extremely entertaining villain in the first 2 films thanks to his actor's performance, giving him an expressive and blunt way of speaking, and his actor gave him a ton of personality to work with. Showing he can be clever, cheeky, sarcastic, and sneaky as a character and as the villain.
 * 9) Speaking of WHNL#7, he gets his comeuppance for all of his villainous and jerkish actions after Dave saves the Chipmunks in the 1st film, and after Alvin saves the Chipettes in the 2nd film, where his career is ruined and his popularity goes down significantly.
 * 10) Character development: In the 3rd film, un-ironically, he actually went through a bit of character development, going from being the generic greedy music director from the last two films into to just an indeed equally likable minor but anti-heroic character.
 * 11) * In mostly off-screen between the last film and this film, where he redeemed himself and becomes friends with the Chipmunks, the Chipettes, and Dave, which is shown when he talks Zoe down for trying to kill Dave. He also moves on to a new career as a screenwriter by selling a screenplay about Zoe's story to Hollywood, earning him his wealth back and making Zoe famous, and became on good terms with Dave and his family. Despite it not being much, he still got more character development than the seven main characters in the whole live-action tetralogy adaption.
 * 12) Because of the previous reason above, his redemption arc in the 3rd film was surprisingly well-executed and natural. And unlike some other villain redemptions in media (including Zoe, the actual main villain of this film), it's not shoved down the audience's throats or rushed by being forced to take place at the last minute without any proper character development actually happening.
 * 13) Many hilarious, brilliant, and quotable one-liners, these include:
 * 14) * "Your song sucks Dave. Your song, it's awful, I hate it."
 * 15) * "Hey!! Back off man! This is Dave Seville."
 * 16) * "Okay fine, fine let's move on to Plan B, Ummm ok: who likes barbecue? Because I know this awesome little barbecue restaurant in the valley that makes the best-roasted chipmunk. Hmmmm, rreal tasty!"
 * 17) * "You guys better study your French, 'cause we're going to Paris tonight!"
 * 18) * "That voice. I can't get it out of my head!"
 * 19) * "What part of "singing female chipmunks" don't people understand? Girls, you're going to school."
 * 20) * "You're in my house now! Although, technically, it's not a house. It's a ship. The point is, I'll be watching you... like a hawk!"
 * 21) * "Seriously? Are we still talking about that? New subject: I saved Dave's life!"

Bad Qualities

 * 1) He is involved in some unfunny moments from the film, like the scene in the climax of the 2nd film where he gets hit right in the crotch by....a toy motorcycle. While it's normally good to see him get his comeuppance for his villainous ways, this moment just went way too far (though to be fair, it was by accident after Eleanor throws her uncomfortable shoes off and they ended up hitting the toy motorcycle, changing its course to Ian). Oh, and there was also the scene in the 3rd film where he was commenting on how he saw Snoop Dogg light a joint with two carrot sticks, which isn't as funny as it should be.
 * 2) He isn't quite as funny in the 2nd film since David Cross' performance slacked a bit. But he is still fun and entertaining to watch overall, and he does improve in the 3rd film as mentioned above.
 * 3) He had a cringeworthy moment in the 2nd film where he dresses up like Brittney having Jeanette and Eleanor puppets and performing terribly on the Staples Center stage.
 * 4) Being the villain in the 2nd film as well, it's not surprising that he has a moment of being cruel in a humorous fashion, which was when he threatened to barbecue the Chipettes at a Korean restaurant.

Videos
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Trivia

 * Ian is believed to be the live-action film and human version of "Uncle" Harry from the original 80s cartoon. However, one major difference between them is that "Uncle" Harry never reforms, while Ian redeemed himself and is now on good terms with Dave and his family.
 * Ian does not appear in the fourth film The Road Chip, he is replaced by Agent James Suggs. While Ian does not appear in the film, it could be implied that Dave achieved his career as a record producer through Ian's guidance and connections in honor of their redeemed friendship restored during the events of the previous film.

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