In 2003, the American Film Institute compiled a list of the fifty greatest villains and fifty greatest heroes to grace our cinema screens over the past one hundred years. Here is a list of The Heroes.
Actor with the most heroic portrayals:
Gary Cooper
- Will Kane
- Lou Gehrig
- Alvin York
Male:Female Character Ratio
Male Actors: 44
Female Actresses: 8
Non-Human Characters: 2
Heroes based on real-life people
- Alvin York
- Erin Brockovich
- George S. Patton
- Bob Woodward & Carl Bernstein
- Lou Gehrig
- Spartacus
- Mahatma Gandhi
- Butch Cassidy & Sundance
- Oskar Schindler
- T. E. Lawrence
- Father Edward J. Flanagan
- Frank Serpico
- Karen Silkwood
- Moses
- Jimmy "Popeye" Doyle
Films that appear on both lists:
- Batman
- It's a Wonderful Life
- Schindler's List
- The Silence of the Lambs
Characters that appear on both lists:
- The Terminator
Actors that appear on both lists:
- Arnold Schwarzenegger
- Al Pacino