Specifically in America, willing to work for a large sum of money and if they do, is having The Big Evil Mastermind hire one sound realistic, or does it sound a little too.. well, storyish?
Hitmen? Oh yeah, they exist. They probably won't be assassinating high profile targets, however; the type of assassins for those jobs most likely work for the government and aren't available for hire.
I know that in some circles, murder for hire definitely exists. I actually met one. To call him an assassin might be a bit of a stretch. His employers were underworld types, biker gangs, drug dealers. I presume Mafia-type organizations also have their own stable of guys willing to murder for money. And of course we have the CIA, who routinely do political killings. But I think what you're talking about is more like some sort of anti-James-Bond type, some sort of high-class, super exclusive guy working independently. I have no idea if that sort of assassin exists but I expect it's mostly a Hollywood creation.
If there's something someone wants done, there'll be someone else out there who does it. But of course it's not like a Hitman game, or other similar games and movies. This is of course still a business for some, and it will be treated as such: they will study someone for weeks or possibly months, learning where they'll be and at what time, if that particular contract requires him to do so. There's no cool black suits most of the time, unless it also called for that situation; assassins (hitmen) would likely want to blend into the background as much as they could. As for where they can be found, you just have to know the right people and the right places to go. For example, there is a place known as "the dark side of the internet", which is basically a place which no average person knows about, and even spy organisations such as MI5 and MI6 don't know some of the sites on there. There are things called spiders (software which searches for certain 'taboo' words, and there's some software which negates them, which makes them hover over your site as if it wasn't even there. This would of course be an excellent place for assassins and suchlike to present themselves and advertise their services. Yes, they still exist.
When the Feds busted and took down the website 'Silk Road' people were paying off hits with Bitcoins.
The disgruntled housewives that keep paying undercover cops to "bump off" their husbands seems to think so.
I watched a documentary where a professional killer was interviewed in the Philippines. He killed all sorts of people including politicians. So I would guess they exist everywhere.
Well, just now I'm watching a tv story of a guy who was paid to kill someone's wife and make it look like suicide. He took 10.000$. But it didn't look like a suicide Really, why ask if something is "realistic" when you have a "Big Evil Mastermind" in the game? He is as unrealistic as possible
Yes, they exist. I wouldn't recommend venturing into the deep web, ever, but those who have done so have found plenty of hitman sites. Any assassin worth their salt (i.e. intelligent) would go into the secret services or just not find out they're good at being an assassin in the first place, so most are as skilled and subtle as a soup-plate to the face, but they're still out there.
What Arthur said. And I agree that the Big Evil Mastermind already sounds unrealistic, so if that's the story's tone, having some high-end super assassin wouldn't deviate from that particular style. Assassins do exist but they're usually not quite like their Hollywoodian counterparts.
Also: an assassin would probably be doing assassinations - so you's expect him/her to be on the CIA payroll
Yup Scum like this bastard who had his own mother killed (and then flashes the insurance money on youtube!) unfortunately still "need" people killed
The plot problems with coming up with a plausible hit men for hire would be basic security and trust. Would a total stranger who does this sort of work trust you? How would you contact this stranger? How do you know he isn't an undercover policeman like we see in the news all the time? How would he know you weren't a cop? How would you find such a person in the first place, because they don't advertise in the yellow pages or facebook? To my way of thinking, a professional hit man wouldn't work for just anybody, because you can't trust just anybody. I'd think the mafia type hit men started out simply as hired goons working for the mob. Then a special problem needed to be solved and they probably volunteered to "fix" the problem, with an intelligent, well thought out plan, that impressed their bosses and they were given a chance. If they were successful, they would be used to solve other problems and gradually work their way up into the mafia organization, earning the respect and trust of his peers and bosses, and gradually work their way up to be a professional hit man. I'd think that if British MI6 needed an assassin, they would have an agent review psychological profiles of former Royal Marines, Snipers, Commandos and SAS guys until they found someone who "fit the profile" then have one of those "meetings that never happened", where there would be "things that were never officially discussed", and "No official offers of employment, compensation or contracts were ever mentioned". Some sort of cover would be created, the new man would be transported, equipped, briefed and someone problematic to MI6 would have an "accident" or be "murdered in an apparent mugging" or be in "what police are calling a drug deal gone bad". Payment would always be in cash with no paper or electronic trail to be traced. As far as some random civilian, without the resources of a crime syndicate or a government at their disposal, it would very difficult to find an actual professional hit man. You might be able to hire some common criminal/gang member type do a sloppy drive by on somebody, but they would have a much higher chance of being identified and caught than a professional. If caught by the authorities, most of the reality cop shows on TV imply that they are highly likely to "roll over" on who ever hired them to get a lesser sentence, which makes them dangerous to use. There would always be a chance that someone in your story "knows" someone who either does that sort of work for the mob (and the mob might take exception to his doing such work solo) or maybe someone retired who used to do such work. ...or maybe "Uncle Robby" has a little secret.
guys, by "Big Evil Mastermind" I was kinda being sarcastic. I just meant the main antagonist. on everything else, I think I've decided against the assassin/hitman idea. I just don't like it much.
Yes, they do exist. The U.S. has gotten rid of quite a few leaders of countries who wouldn't "play ball" with them this way. (Not always by shooting, though. Often it looks like an "accident," such as a plane crash.)
If you mean the sort of guy that flies around the world wining and dining supermodels in between needlessly elaborate murders, then no that is a creation of Hollywood. Most hitmen (and calling a hitman an assassin is just an attempt to make it sound more than it is) are low level thugs actually trying to cement their position in a criminal organization. You kill that guy for the bosses to show you are on their team, ie not an undercover cop or just looking for a rep. Why pay millions for a hit when some expendable kid(s) will do it for pennies or even free? Maybe they fail. So what. There are twenty more wannabes willing to take their place. That is real life. Also consider the psychology of it. Anyone willing to actually make a career out of murder (as opposed to being willing to kill if necessary during a crime) is not gonna be all suave or have connections worldwide. They will be the creepy guy the bosses call in when you piss them off. Governments have access to special forces people that exist off the books (yes, it happens) and would not need to hire out. And since those men wanted to serve their country, they are not asking for ten million upfront. Also consider the dangers of being a hitman. What is the first rule of assassinations? Kill the assassins. One less loose string and no chance of them trying to blackmail you later. This is why most crime syndicates use their own muscle. A made man is already on the payroll and is part of the "brotherhood" such criminals pretend makes them better than common hoods. Sorry but a realistic murder for hire assassin is going to be some thug getting paid to bump off cheating husbands and nonsense like that. A large scale syndicate or government agency has greater resources. Why send one overpaid assassin when we can call in the cheaper spec ops teams to take out those "terrorist cells"? The mob will call in a few of the made men that don't get to say no to an order. Or they call in the psycho even the other mobsters think is a freak.
Assassins exist but they'll stay so far under the radar that none of us will ever know who they are, who they work for, names, etc. The US Government uses black ops people for that. One of my friends is a Vietnam vet who did Black Ops and wet work. While he isn't the one who ended up carrying it out-he was sent to but the higher ups decided not to do it that day-he did get assigned to potentially kill the South Vietnamese President. So, the government does use them but they work for the Company and only have nominal military rank. As for the private for hire ones, my friend will tell you they do exist-just not as depicted in the movies. Furthermore, the most effective ones are women; no one expects a lady to be a killer, which gives them more ability to avoid security and get closer to the target.
I think what we learned on the world stage over the past decade or so is that whatever we can think of, no matter how ridiculous and conspiratorial it sounds, no matter how outlandish, excessive and Hollywood-like it may be, it probably exists somewhere. There are people who easily spend 30,000 on a cocktail dress, they'll wear just once, I'm willing to bet they have no trouble finding a private assassin of any description. Make your assassin whatever you want him/her to be and don't get bogged down in what is 'realistic' because our society is very stratified, and what might seem ridiculously outlandish or overelaborate or unrealistic to me or you, might be an everyday reality to someone else. If you believe in your story so will the reader.
If you wanna get all technical about it, there have not been any real assassin's since 1275 when they were wiped out by the invading Mongols. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassins
