1 Daniel Radcliffe as Harry Potter in the Harry Potter series. This character leapt out of JK Rowling's popular fantasy novels to become the younger generation's ultimate big-screen hero. The bespectacled Radcliffe became an overnight sensation and the young kids literally grew with Harry Potter during the last six installments that hit the screens. It wouldn't be wrong to say that Radcliffe's influence as Potter is such that it has become a fantasy for young boys to study at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and fly on a broom stick above the quidditch pitch.
2 Johnny Depp as Captain Jack Sparrow in Pirates of Caribbean series. It is extremely rare to find a witty and eccentric side character from a blockbuster flick that's nominated for an Academy Award but such has been Depp's impactful portrayal: it not only wowed the critics but also turned him into a global poster boy. We can't wait for Depp's quirky act in the garb of kohl-eyed Jack Sparrow, influenced by rock star Keith Richards, to return for the fourth round of this fun-filled adventure series which is due in summer 2011.
3 Heath Ledger as The Joker in The Dark Knight. No character has created as much frenzy as Ledger's villainous maniac act in the follow-up to the rebooted Batman series, and Ledger's untimely death added to the hysteria surrounding this immortal character. Ledger spent sleepless nights locking himself in a hotel room to recreate Joker's psychopathic behaviour but unfortunately he wasn't alive to see the impact of his performance. Thankfully he deservingly won a posthumous Best Supporting Actor Academy Award.
4 Tobin Bell as Jigsaw Killer in Saw series. Never in his wildest dreams would Bell have thought that pretending to be dead by lying on the floor for most part of Saw would suddenly catapult him to becoming one of the most iconic onscreen serial killers. Bell, as the cold-blooded killer who plays gruesome life-threatening games with his victims, has become a must-see event for horror fans, six years in a row. And the Saw fever doesn't seem to be nearing an end.
5 Russell Crowe as Maximus Decimus Meridius in Gladiator. Crowe towered onscreen as the 2nd century vengeance- seeking Roman General who is forced to become a popular gladiator. Crowe's muscular physique complemented his Oscar winning performance that literally influenced other Hollywood stars to take on historical characters, which many critics dubbed as "The Gladiator Effect". It's sad that Maximus dies in the climax; we would have liked to see Ridley Scott teaming up with Crowe again for another round of gladiator glory.
6 Uma Thurman as The Bride in Kill Bill series. The Bride aka Beatrix Kiddo with code name Black Mamba was immortalised by Thurman in her yellow jumpsuit with black stripes, avenging a group of ruthless, martial arts-trained killers led by Bill. Quentin Tarantino's stylishly choreographed action sequences involving The Bride and the Crazy 88 will live forever in audience's mind for its graphic ‘bloody' moments. The Bride may go down as one of the greatest femme fatale characters on screen ever.
7 Matt Damon as Jason Bourne in The Bourne series. For a long time we believed that James Bond was the best onscreen spy. That was until Damon redefined the role of a fast-thinking spy with Jason Bourne, based on Robert Ludlum's character, which made its first appearance in The Bourne Identity. Damon's no-nonsense amnesiac character was a welcome change to the action hero image that eventually forced James Bond to be rebooted along similar lines.
8 Daniel Day Lewis as Bill The Butcher in Gangs of New York. After a five-year hiatus, Lewis returned in Martin Scorsese's classic as the cold-blooded 19th century Anglo-Saxon Protestant fighting off the Irish Catholic immigrants. Lewis' dedication in taking an apprentice course as a butcher, along with living his character off-screen, paid off - he won most of the critics' awards. Watch out for the scenes when he feels fatherly love for Leonardo DiCaprio's character or when he gets ferociously violent with DiCaprio for betraying his trust. The Butcher is simply marvellously menacing.
9 Angelina Jolie as Lara Croft in the Lara Croft series. Jolie could attribute her international superstar status to her portrayal of the adventurous Lara Croft, which many critics believe she was born to play. Jolie's physical appearance in tight-fitting costume and her butt-kicking action scenes turned her into the ultimate fantasy girl. The films' plots didn't have enough substance but Jolie's portrayal has made Lara Croft one the most successful adaptations of a video game character for the big screen.
10 Robert Downey Jr. as Iron Man in Iron Man. Downey made Iron Man a delightful super hero with an attitude while adding tremendous sex appeal to the flirtatious alter ego of Tony Stark. It made us wonder why this character had taken so long to make it to the big screen, when we'd been overfed with Batman, Superman and Spiderman flicks. Downey definitely gave superhero flicks a new dimension with his fresh energetic performance that made Iron Man the unlikely superhero who became an international icon and started a successful franchise.
The five movie mobs we'll never forget....
1The Lord of The Ring series characters (Frodo and The Fellowship of the Ring)
2 The Shrek series characters (Shrek, Donkey and Fiona)
3 The Ocean's series characters (Danny, Rusty and the gang)
4 The X-Men series characters (Professor Xavier, Wolverine and the team of mutants)
5 The Twilight series lead characters (Bella, Edward & Jacob)- Robert Pattinson the vampire, Taylor Lautner the werewolf and Kristen Stewart as Bella.
