List of fictional antiheroes
This list is for characters in fictional works who exemplify the qualities of an anti-hero. Characteristics in protagonists that merit such a label can include, but are not limited to:
- imperfections that separate them from typically "heroic" characters (selfishness, ignorance, bigotry, etc.);
- lack of positive qualities such as "courage, physical prowess, and fortitude," and "generally feel helpless in a world over which they have no control";[1]
- qualities normally belonging to villains (amorality, greed, violent tendencies, etc.) that may be tempered with more human, identifiable traits (confusion, self-hatred, etc.);
- noble motives pursued by bending or breaking the law in the belief that "the ends justify the means."
Each of these examples has been identified by a critic as an anti-hero, although the classification is somewhat subjective. Some of the entries may be disputed by other sources and some may contradict all established definitions of anti-hero.
Literature
- Alex, the narrator of Anthony Burgess' A Clockwork Orange.[2]
- Redmond Barry from William Makepeace Thackeray's The Luck of Barry Lyndon.[3]
- Patrick Bateman from Bret Easton Ellis' American Psycho.[4][5]
- Leopold Bloom from James Joyce's Ulysses.[6]
- Pinkie Brown from Graham Greene's Brighton Rock.[7]
- Holden Caulfield from J.D. Salinger's Catcher in the Rye.[8]
- Conan from the stories by Robert E. Howard, the archetypal "amoral swordsman" of the Sword and Sorcery genre.[9][10]
- Stephen Dedalus from James Joyce's A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man [11]
- Arthur Dent from Douglas Adams' Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series [12]
- Roland Deschain from Stephen King's The Dark Tower series [13]
- Raoul Duke from Hunter S. Thompson's Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas [14]
- Tyler Durden and the Narrator of Chuck Palahniuk's Fight Club [15] [16]
- Randall Flagg from Stephen King's The Stand, Eyes of the Dragon and The Dark Tower.[17]
- Artemis Fowl II from the Artemis Fowl series.[18]
- Gully Foyle from Alfred Bester's The Stars My Destination [19]
- Victor Frankenstein from Mary Shelley's Frankenstein [20]
- Jay Gatsby from F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby [21]
- Gollum from J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings.[22]
- Grendel from John Gardner's novel of the same name.[23]
- Hamlet from William Shakespeare's play of the same name [24]
- Humbert Humbert from Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita [25]
- Iago from William Shakespeare's Othello.[26][27][28]
- Hannibal Lecter from a series of novels by Thomas Harris [29] [30]
- Lestat de Lioncourt from Anne Rice's Vampire Chronicles universe [31]
- Lucifer/Satan from John Milton's Paradise Lost [32] [33] [34]
- Macbeth from William Shakespeare's play of the same name.[35]
- Philip Marlowe from Raymond Chandler's The Big Sleep, Farewell, My Lovely, The High Window, The Lady in the Lake, Playback, The Little Sister, and Poodle Springs [36]
- Mephistopheles from Goethe's Faust and Christopher Marlowe's Doctor Faustus.[37]
- Dexter Morgan from the novels Darkly Dreaming Dexter, Dearly Devoted Dexter, and Dexter in the Dark, later made into a TV series.[38][39]
- Scarlett O'Hara from Gone with the Wind [40]
- Parker from a series of novels by Donald E. Westlake [41] [42]
- Alexander Portnoy from Philip Roth's Portnoy's Complaint [43]
- Raskolnikov from Fyodor Dostoevsky's Crime and Punishment [44]
- Rincewind from Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels [45][46]
- Mark Renton from Irvine Welsh's Trainspotting [47]
- Tom Ripley from Patricia Highsmith's "Ripliad" series [48]
- Rosencrantz and Guildenstern from Tom Stoppard's play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead [49]
- Becky Sharp from Vanity Fair [50]
- Shylock from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice [51]
- Tyrone Slothrop from Thomas Pynchon's Gravity's Rainbow[52]
- Severus Snape from J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter [53]
- Sam Spade from Dashiell Hammett's The Maltese Falcon [54]
- "The Underground Man", narrator of Dostoevsky's Notes from Underground [55]
- Wei Xiaobao from Jinyong's The Deer and the Cauldron [56]
- Yossarian from Joseph Heller's Catch-22 [57][58]
Film
- Danny Archer from Blood Diamond [59]
- Travis Bickle from Taxi Driver [60]
- Brodie Bruce from Mallrats [61]
- Edmond Burke from Edmond [62]
- Lester Burnham from American Beauty [63]
- Harry Callahan from the Dirty Harry series [64]
- Jack Carter from Get Carter [65]
- Chev Chelios from Crank [66]
- Chucky from the Child's Play series [67]
- Michael Corleone from The Godfather trilogy [68]
- John Creasy from Man on Fire [69]
- The Dude from The Big Lebowski [70] [71]
- Gordon Gekko from Wall Street [72]
- Dante Hicks, Randal Graves, and Jay & Silent Bob from Kevin Smith's "View Askewniverse" films [73]
- Napoleon Dynamite from the movie of the same name [74]
- Scottie Ferguson from Alfred Hitchcock's Vertigo[75]
- The Firefly family from House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects; Captain Spaulding, Otis B. Driftwood, Baby, etc.[76][77]
- Jigsaw from the Saw film series.[78][79][80]
- Johnny from Naked [81]
- Davy Jones from Pirates of the Caribbean [82]
- Charles Foster Kane from Citizen Kane [83]
- Beatrix Kiddo from Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill films [84]
- Freddy Krueger from A Nightmare on Elm Street.[85]
- Mickey and Mallory Knox from Natural Born Killers [86][87]
- Leatherface from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.[88][89][90][91]
- Léon from Léon or The Professional [92]
- "The Man with No Name," a stock character in westerns popularized by Clint Eastwood in films such as For a Few Dollars More and The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly [93] [94]
- Nick Naylor from the film Thank You for Smoking [95]
- Tony Montana from Brian De Palma's Scarface[96]
- Snake Plissken from Escape from New York and Escape From L.A. [97] [98]
- Richard B. Riddick from Pitch Black and The Chronicles of Riddick [99]
- Lisa Rowe from Girl, Interrupted[100]
- Max Rockatansky from the Mad Max series [101]
- Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader from the Star Wars films [102]
- Jack Sparrow from Pirates of the Caribbean [103]
- Ben Wade from the 2007 version of 3:10 to Yuma [104]
- Napoleon Wilson from John Carpenter's Assault on Precinct 13 [105][106][107][108]
- Dawn Weiner of Welcome to the Dollhouse [109]
- John Wydell from The Devil's Rejects [110]
- Yojimbo's nameless protagonist.[111]
- Harry Flashman from the Flashman series of books written by George MacDonald Fraser Cite error: A
<ref>tag is missing the closing</ref>(see the help page). - Theodore "T-Bag" Bagwell from Prison Break.[112]
- Edmund Blackadder from BBC's Blackadder series [113]
- David Brent from The Office [114]
- Archie Bunker from All in the Family [115]
- J.R. Chandler from All My Children [116]
- George Costanza from Seinfeld [117]
- Larry David from Curb Your Enthusiasm [118]
- The Doctor from Doctor Who [119]
- Eddie "Fitz" Fitzgerald from Cracker [120]
- James "Sawyer" Ford from Lost[121]
- Tommy Gavin from Rescue Me [122]
- Jack Harkness from Doctor Who and Torchwood[123]
- Gregory House from House [124]
- Alex Krycek from The X-Files [125]
- Ben Linus from Lost [126]
- Vic Mackey from The Shield [127]
- Todd Manning from One Life To Live [128]
- Ally McBeal from the eponymous series [129]
- Jimmy McNulty from The Wire [130]
- Malcolm Reynolds from Firefly and Serenity [131]
- Bender Bending Rodríguez from Futurama [132]
- Julian Sark from Alias [133]
- Michael Scofield from Prison Break.[134]
- Michael Scott from The Office [135]
- Homer Simpson from The Simpsons [136]
- Bart Simpson from The Simpsons [137]
- Zach Slater from All My Children [138]
- Tony Soprano from The Sopranos [139][140]
- Luke Spencer from General Hospital [141]
- Samantha McCall from General Hospital
- Spike from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel [143]
- Al Swearengen from Deadwood [144]
Comic books
- Batman [145]
- Johnny C from Johnny the Homicidal Maniac [146]
- Catwoman [147]
- John Constantine from Hellblazer [148]
- Jesse Custer from the Preacher series [149]
- Deadpool Cite error: A
<ref>tag is missing the closing</ref>(see the help page).[150] - Spider Jerusalem from Transmetropolitan [151]
- Magneto from the X-Men series. [152]
- Marv and Dwight from Frank Miller's Sin City [153]
- Eric O'Grady [154]
- The Punisher [155]
- Rorschach from Watchmen [156]
- The Shadow [157]
- Spawn [158]
- Sub-Mariner [159]
- "V" from V for Vendetta [160]
- Venom [161]
- Wolverine [162]
Video games
- Agent 47 from the Hitman series [163]
- Altaïr from Assassin's Creed [164]
- Jack Carver in Far Cry and Far Cry: Instincts [165]
- Conker the Squirrel from Conker's Bad Fur Day and Conker: Live & Reloaded [166]
- Dante from the Devil May Cry series [167]
- Marcus Fenix from Gears of War [168]
- Carl "CJ" Johnson from Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas [169]
- Kain and Raziel from the Legacy of Kain series [170]
- Kane and Lynch from Kane & Lynch: Dead Men [171]
- Kratos from the God of War series. [172]
- Arthas Menethil from Warcraft III [173]
- Duke Nukem from the Duke Nukem series[174]
- Max Payne from Max Payne and Max Payne 2 [175]
- The Prince from Prince of Persia: Warrior Within [176][177]
- Captain Qwark from the Ratchet & Clank series [178]
- Rayne from Blood Rayne and Blood Rayne 2 [179]
- Shadow the Hedgehog from the Sonic the Hedgehog series [180]
- Solid Snake from the Metal Gear series [181]
- Illidan Stormrage from Warcraft III [182]
- Officer Tanner from Driver, Driver 2 and DRIV3R [183]
- Tommy Vercetti from Grand Theft Auto: Vice City [184]
- Travis Touchdown from No More Heroes [185]
- Wario in the Wario series. [186]
- Roger Wilco from the Space Quest series [187]
References
- ^ Gale - Free Resources - Glossary - Home
- ^ BBC News; De Niro takes anti-hero honours, August 16, 2004.
- ^ The Victorian Web; W. M. Thackeray's "The Luck of Barry Lyndon" (1844).
- ^ The Toronto Star, Peter Howell; Psycho killer is no pop culture anti-hero, April 19, 2000.
- ^ Guardian Unlimited; BRET EASTON ELLIS.
- ^ Guardian Unlimited, Books Quiz; Bloomsday 2001.
- ^ Guardian Unlimited, Michael Billington; Brighton Rock, October 6, 2004.
- ^ Guardian Unlimited, David McAllister; Will Salinger sue?, November 11, 2003.
- ^ The Robert E. Howard United Press Association, David McAllister; selections from One More Barbarian #37.
- ^ Towson University, John L. Flynn; A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF HEROES IN CONTEMPORARY WORKS OF FANTASY LITERATURE.
- ^ The World Authors Series – Sample Profile of JOYCE, JAMES (AUGUSTINE ALOYSIUS)
- ^ Deep in space lurks the Flying Spaghetti Monster
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- ^ Close-Up Film Features
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- ^ Literary Terms and Definitions B
- ^ The Curse Of Frankenstein
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- ^ Jeffrey Overstreet's interview with Andy Serkis
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- ^ City Pages - Laying It on the Lyne
- ^ The Stage / Reviews / Othello
- ^ Othello
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- ^ Memnoch the Devil by Anne Rice (Used, New, Out-of-Print) - Alibris
- ^ Satan as hero in Paradise Lost-Romantic Criticism
- ^ Writers Store: Exploring The Dark Side: The Anti-Hero's Journey by James Bonnet
- ^ Catherine Gander: Hollywood has taken on an epic task as it lines up Milton's masterpiece for the big-screen treatment | News | guardian.co.uk Film
- ^ http://enjoyment.independent.co.uk/books/news/article6603.ece
- ^ Murder, My Sweet - Trailer - Cast - Showtimes - New York Times
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- ^ NONFICTION IN BRIEF - New York Times
- ^ Books by Donald E. Westlake - Biography and Bibliography
- ^ The Hunter by Richard Stark reviewed by Brian Thornton
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- ^ The Talented Mr Ripley | | guardian.co.uk Arts
- ^ The Stage / Reviews / Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
- ^ Vanity Fair Summary and Study Guide - William Makepeace Thackeray
- ^ Metroactive Movies | 'The Merchant of Venice'
- ^ Catch-22
- ^ Review | Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling
- ^ The Maltese Falcon (1941)
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- ^ http://www.douban.com/review/1054412/
- ^ USATODAY.com - Good God?
- ^ Catch-22
- ^ Boise Weekly - Idaho's Only Alternative: Screen: Screen: Antihero
- ^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | De Niro takes anti-hero honours
- ^ Optimus Prime Films | Directors | Kevin Smith
- ^ http://www.cambridgefilmfestival.org.uk/cgi-bin/review-view.cgi?reviewid=506
- ^ Vanessa Thorpe: Profile of Sam Mendes | Features | guardian.co.uk Film
- ^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | De Niro takes anti-hero honours
- ^ Screen villan Carter is ultimate anti-hero - Birmingham Post - HighBeam Research
- ^ Crank Review - Read Variety's Analysis Of The Movie Crank
- ^ Welcome to Silver Bullet Comics! // THE source, nuff said! // Comics, Subscriptions, News, Previews, Reviews, Events, Forums, Manga, CCG, TCG, Cards, Colectibles, Statues, Busts, Graphic Novels
- ^ The Road to Hell:
- ^ http://www.nashvillecitypaper.com/index.cfm?section_id=12&screen=news&news_id=32772
- ^ The Heights - Collector's edition: An anti-hero worth celebrating on DVD
- ^ http://www.michigandaily.com/media/storage/paper851/news/2001/03/21/380119/The-Anatomy.Of.A.Four.Letter.Word-1409570.shtml?norewrite200607181829&sourcedomain=www.michigandaily.com
- ^ Blockbuster Online - Blockbuster Online - New To Dvd
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- ^ Napoleon Dynamite
- ^ The Vertigo of Time
- ^ The Devil's Rejects (2005)
- ^ Movie: The Devil's Rejects
- ^ SAW II | PITOFHORROR.COM | Online Horror Movie Resource
- ^ Saw II
- ^ Buy Saw II on DVD - TLAvideo.com
- ^ The Criterion Collection: Naked by Mike Leigh
- ^ Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End Review | UGO.com
- ^ Channel 4 - History - Film review: Citizen Kane
- ^ Sunset Gun: Film Fatale
- ^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Scary film moments revealed
- ^ The Austin Chronicle: Film Listings
- ^ The frighteners - Times Online
- ^ Fangoria - Fearful Feature
- ^ nighttimes.com
- ^ The DVD Journal | Quick Reviews: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
- ^ Darla Hood bloody loves TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE: THE BEGINNING @ Fantastic Fest!!! - Ain't It Cool News: The best in movie, TV, DVD, and comic book news
- ^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | De Niro takes anti-hero honours
- ^ Home > Publications >
- ^ Trilobite: part three | First chapters | guardian.co.uk Books
- ^ BookBlog: Thank you for smoking
- ^ FilmFour Channels: Channel 4 Film
- ^ Kurt Russell's "Escape From Earth" (August 7th 2006)
- ^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | De Niro takes anti-hero honours
- ^ http://www.premiere.com/article.asp?section_id=2&article_id=1618
- ^ Girl, Interrupted
- ^ BBC NEWS | Entertainment | De Niro takes anti-hero honours
- ^ The Secrets of Star Wars' Success: The Force Is With All of Us | TV & Movies | Reader's Digest
- ^ Comment - Pirates Dead Man's Chest: Depp's Iconic Role
- ^ Western remake ‘3:10 to Yuma’ benefits from compelling performances by Crowe, Bale - The Daily Cardinal
- ^ Assault on Precinct 13 DVD review
- ^ Horrordvds.com - Reviews - DVD Reviews A-M - Assault on Precinct 13: Special Edition
- ^ Assault on Precinct Thirteen DVD Review
- ^ Assault on Precinct 13 (1976) « The Reviews Room
- ^ village voice > film > Right to Strife by Laura Sinagra
- ^ Atrocities Cinema.com...DVD Review...The Devil's Rejects - Two Disc Unrated Director's Cut
- ^ Kurosawa
- ^ 'Prison Break': More interesting on the outside? | PopWatch Blog | EW.com
- ^ BBC - Britain's Best Sitcom - The Case for Blackadder
- ^ http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2006/06/29/nblair29.xml
- ^ Missing From Action — Weldon Hardenbrook with Terry Somerville — Chapter Two
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- ^ Seinfeld
- ^ Larry David made our list of America's Top 10 comedians | Curb Your Enthusiasm | Pop Culture Commentary | News | Entertainment Weekly
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- ^ How one last crack inspired more - TV & Radio - Entertainment - theage.com.au
- ^ Has Lost Lost its Way?
- ^ They steal, they cheat, they lie, and we wouldn't want it any other way - the timeless appeal of the anti-hero
- ^ Jack of all trades - TV & Radio - Entertainment - smh.com.au
- ^ Network meddling by Fox execs starts the deathwatch for 'House'
- ^ Secret Agent Man | The X-Files | Television News | TV | Entertainment Weekly
- ^ Bad-boy antihero roles get voters' attention
- ^ They steal, they cheat, they lie, and we wouldn't want it any other way - the timeless appeal of the anti-hero
- ^ Tulsa World: Interview: It's good to be bad
- ^ Salon Entertainment | American squirm: Ally McBeal, all-American anti-hero
- ^ They steal, they cheat, they lie, and we wouldn't want it any other way - the timeless appeal of the anti-hero
- ^ SERENITY Preview
- ^ http://www.slweekly.com/editorial/2002/tube_2002-11-07.cfm
- ^ Julian Sark (The Best TV anti Hero)
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- ^ French and German remakes of the BBC's Office. - By Liesl Schillinger - Slate Magazine
- ^ SALON Columns: Ill Humor
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- ^ They steal, they cheat, they lie, and we wouldn't want it any other way - the timeless appeal of the anti-hero
- ^ SOAPnet.com - Inside the Soaps with Mimi Torchin
- ^ Who's Who in Port Charles | Samantha McCall | General Hospital @ soapcentral.com
- ^ Why Spike ruined "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" - Page 2 - Salon.com
- ^ They steal, they cheat, they lie, and we wouldn't want it any other way - the timeless appeal of the anti-hero
- ^ Batman Begins | Reviews | guardian.co.uk Film
- ^ JOHNNY THE HOMICIDAL MANIAC: The Director's Cut review
- ^ UGO.com Girlfriends - Catwoman - Salute to Heroines
- ^ Reviews by Maurice Broaddus: February 2005
- ^ Just a Pilgrim - PopMatters Comic Book Review
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- ^ The Alien Online
- ^ TotallyJewish.com | Entertainment | Features And Reviews
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- ^ Newsarama.Com: Wwla - Robert Kirkman Talks Ant-Man
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- ^ Crime ain't what it used to be. (crime fiction) - National Review - HighBeam Research
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- ^ Sub-Mariner Strikes Back - Marvel.com News
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- ^ IGN: Devil May Cry Review
- ^ Gears of War (X360) Review at GamingExcellence
- ^ New Grand Theft Auto will rob you of your life
- ^ IGN: Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver
- ^ IGN: Kane & Lynch: Dead Men Preview
- ^ GameSpy: God of War II Preview
- ^ Exploring the World of Warcraft - Features at GameSpot
- ^ GamingWorld X - Duke Nukem Arrives on Zodiac
- ^ 3D Realms News: Max Payne: The Next Great Anti-Hero
- ^ Prince of Persia: Warrior Within - GameCritics.com
- ^ Game Over Online Magazine - Prince of Persia: Warrior Within
- ^ GameSpy: Ratchet & Clank: Up Your Arsenal Review
- ^ Go inside BloodRayne’s dark world with Majesco’s David Elmekies - PC News
- ^ IGN: Shadow the Hedgehog Preview
- ^ Metal Gear Solid: The Unofficial Site » Hideo Kojima at the movies: Escape From New York
- ^ Exploring the World of Warcraft - Features at GameSpot
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- ^ The Body Behind Vice City's Tommy Vercetti - ESCMag Feature
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- ^ http://www.nintendo.com/gamemini?gameid=m-Game-0000-1272
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