They may lack all the typical traits of Hollywood heroes, but cinema's antiheroes often make up the most captivating characters. Sometimes their flaws or villainous backstory may be hard to look past, making their redemption all the more admirable but also causing them to fall just shy of true adoration in the process.
Others are more misunderstood, and their shortcomings are justified, so when they ultimately prove a good guy in the end, the movie-going public can embrace them with open arms. The rogues of the reel are as popular as ever, and the use of the antihero continues to prove itself as one of cinema's most engaging techniques.
10 Casablanca's Rick Blaine Is The Classic Antihero
The cynical gin joint owner played by the incomparable Humphrey Bogart remains one of history's great movie characters. With Rick Blaine not just standing up against the nazis, but putting his own feelings aside to ensure the safety of the woman he loves as well, there's plenty of reasons to adore the star of Casablanca.
It's a love story with few equals, and as much as Mr. Blaine acts as though he cares little for others, his actions are anything but selfish.
9 The Glorious Benefit Of Borat Is His Likability
Sacha Baron Cohen's Kazakh creation was an absolute cultural phenomenon upon his big-screen debut, and Borat was a smash hit of the most hilarious and eye-opening variety. The mockumentary film was smothered in controversy from the get-go, and Mr. Sagdiyev's "very nice" and "my wife" catchphrases became familiar sounds almost anywhere.
The character's ignorance and naivety make him a fascinating watch, but the real genius is in the man behind the mustache and his ability to expose those traits in the unsuspecting victims of Borat's zany antics.
8 Deadpool Is Dear To So Many Movie & Comic Book Fans
The Merc with a Mouth is one of Marvel's most popular characters. His wondrous wit, deadly combat skills, and habit of saving the day make him almost impossible to hate, yet the character is neurotic, clingy, and often outrageously offensive in the eyes of his fellow superheroes.
The charm that Ryan Reynolds brings to the character is undeniable, and whether Deadpool is decapitating bad guys or spitting out hilarious one-liners, he remains one of cinema's most beloved antiheroes.
7 The Man With No Name Started A Trend That Few Ever Managed To Match
Hollywood's Wild West simply wouldn't be the same without the heroic contributions of screen legend Clint Eastwood, and even those who have never seen a spaghetti western are likely all too familiar with squinting outlaw in the brown cowboy hat.
Antihero in the English dictionary may as well be accompanied by a picture of Eastwood's legendary gunslinger. A man of few words, The Man with No Name set the gold standard when it comes to antiheroes, even inspiring the ever-popular space bounty hunter Boba Fett, and Star Wars is no stranger to antiheroes.
6 There's Plenty To Love About The Swashbuckling Scallywag Captain Jack Sparrow
As far as character traits go, being a drunk is rarely an admirable or desirable one, but Johnny Depp's career performance as Captain Jack Sparrow argues otherwise. Oscar-nominated and adored by fans, his role as the rugged pirate has steered Disney's theme park ride-inspired franchise to incredible success.
Depp's charisma is off the charts throughout the five movies in the Pirates of the Caribbean series so far, and like the great cinematic rogues, he's laid back, selfish, careless, and yet so wholesomely heroic when his companions need him most.
5 Loved In His Laziness, The Dude Abides To The Antihero Rules
He's the unemployed, undisputed king of the slackers, and the Coen Brothers' Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski can lay claim to being one of the few fictional movie characters to inspire an entire religion, with Dudeism allegedly housing over two-hundred thousand members worldwide today.
Jeff Bridges' iconic performance as the Californian bowler is arguably the most recognizable of the actor's illustrious career, and for good reason. The Big Lebowski is a wonderfully peculiar, must-see movie and may well be Joel and Ethan Coen's real masterpiece.
4 It's Best Not To Question Jules Winnfield's Status As A Fan Favorite
The hitman with a change of heart, Jules Winnfield isn't just a show-stealer of a character, he somehow manages to act as a moral compass in a movie filled with detestable bad guys. Quentin Tarantino's movies aren't all that famous for purely heroic figures, and Pulp Fiction fits his magnificent mold perfectly.
Samuel L. Jackson has an effortless likability in the majority of his performances, yet as Jules, he offers up a sizable amount of wisdom for a killer for hire, and his paraphrasing of a bible passage may well be one of the coolest and most quotable monologues ever put to film.
3 John Wick Is A Hero To More Than Just Man's Best Friend
Only the cold-hearted could not feel sorry for John Wick after watching the death of his beloved pet dog, and it's this death that allows the audience to look past the character's shady past as an assassin.
The fact that the character is played by internet darling Keanu Reeves almost certainly helps because he's an actor fans love to see succeed, especially when that success is mowing down countless enemies in an exceptionally well-lit nightclub. John Wick may enjoy piercing hearts with bullets, but he's stolen the hearts of many movie-goers around the world.
2 Antiheroes Don't Get Much Cooler Than Snake Plissken
The star of John Carpenter's classic sci-fi Escape From New York is simply a bad man that does good things. He may initially have little choice in the matter, but by the film's end, Kurt Russell's character firmly puts the "hero" in antihero.
A hugely popular figure in pop culture, Snake Plissken's influence is seen in all sorts of media today, with a particular mention going to the Metal Gear Solid video game series, and there's a strong argument to be made that nobody has ever looked quite as cool with an eye patch.
1 There's Not An Antihero More Beloved In Entire The Galaxy Than Han Solo
The irresistibly charming and unrelentingly cocky nerf herder would love for audiences to believe he just doesn't care, yet one viewing of any of George Lucas' original Star Wars movies will prove otherwise. Han Solo's actions always speak louder than his words, and in desperate times, his actions are overwhelmingly heroic.
Han Solo is arguably cinema's best-loved antihero, and as iconic as many of Harrison Ford's other roles are, especially the one in which he sports a fedora, the millennium falcon pilot may just top the list of his greatest movie personas.
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