Few fantasy heroes in the current culture are as immediately recognizable as Harry Potter. The Boy Who Lived was at the center of one of the largest and most popular fantasy franchises that dominated both books and film for well over a decade, and it continues to be massively popular. Warner Bros. has invested a staggering amount of money into a new series adaptation of the novels, banking on fans having enough nostalgia for the character to make it worth the time, money, and effort. Whether or not that upcoming series is able to escape the shadow of the immensely successful films remains to be seen, but regardless, Harry Potter will remain an immensely beloved hero — that doesn’t mean he’s the most likable, though.
As portrayed by the very likable Daniel Radcliffe in eight films, the character received a fair amount of depth, portrayed with the emotional volatility of an adolescent going through growing pains but imbued with emotional maturity beyond his years. He could also be a whinging, self-centered muppet who was often given a gargantuan amount of leeway by some of the Hogwarts staff because of his traumatic past. You know who else suffered tragically at the hands of Voldemort yet continually got the crap end of the broom without ever acting like a stubborn jerk? Neville Longbottom. And just like Neville, other fantasy heroes are deserving of more praise than Harry bloody Potter, and these are ten of them.
Wesley (Cary Elwes) – ‘The Princess Bride’ (1987)
Image via 20th Century Studios
Rob Reiner‘s fantasy comedy classic The Princess Bride is filled with likable and memorable characters. Every role is impeccably cast, and every actor gets a moment to shine. When a supporting cast is this colorful, it’s often that the blander hero gets left in the dust, but that’s certainly not the case for Carey Elwes‘ charming rogue Wesley. Quick-witted and even quicker with a sword, Westley is the kind of dashing and devoted hero that fantasy stories are filled with, further elevated by Elwes’ brilliant comedic timing and ability to balance self-awareness with genuine emotion. It’s the same magic that makes The Princess Bride such a timeless classic, and who wouldn’t rather have Wesley come to save them over Harry Potter?
Beginning as a humble farm boy hopelessly in love with the fair maiden Buttercup (Robin Wright), Wesley goes missing and returns years later to find her unfortunately betrothed to Chris Sarandon‘s comically loathsome Prince Humperdinck. He fights with his wits and his brains to save Buttercup, all with a smirk and charm reminiscent of the classic screen heroes played by Errol Flynn and Douglas Fairbanks. Elwes is perfectly cast as Wesley, and while he’d amp up the comedic absurdity to parodic levels for his role in Mel Brooks‘ Robin Hood: Men in Tights, he’s never been more likable.
Inigo Montoya (Mandy Patinkin) – ‘The Princess Bride’ (1987)
You can’t bring up The Princess Bride without talking about its true hero, Inigo Montoya. As a revenge-driven swordsman who goes from criminal to drunken wretch to reinvigorated hero, Montoya is never anything less than compelling, and is made immensely likable by Mandy Patinkin’s iconic performance. He is at the center of some of The Princess Bride’s most memorable scenes, whether it’s his charming first swordfight with Wesley, the comedy gold of haggling with Miracle Max, or his emotionally climactic duel with the six-fingered man who killed his father.
When introduced as one third of the criminal trio that includes Wallace Shawn‘s temperamental and loquacious Vizzini and Andre the Giant‘s gentle giant Fezzik, Montoya seems to be just another roguish swashbuckler. It’s when he reveals his backstory to Westley that we understand the full depth of his pain, which Patinkin plays with absolute sincerity. The character’s famous repeated line is delivered with conviction every time, and the actor brings a different flavor to it every time. He’s ferociously funny, unexpectedly moving, and undeniably likable. In a movie where every character is a classic, Inigo Montoya reigns supreme.
Willow (Warwick Davis) – ‘Willow’ (1988)
Developed by producer George Lucas and directed by steady hand Ron Howard, the ’80s fantasy cult film Willow may not have left a cultural footprint remotely close to the size of the Harry Potter franchise, but it’s beloved by its fans and features a terrific lead performance by the tremendously likable Warwick Davis. The actor originally got his start playing the fan favorite Ewok Wicket in Return of the Jedi and has appeared in all kinds of sci-fi and fantasy franchises, including Harry Potter. The actor is awesome and underutilized, and Willow is one of his best characters.
Willow is a Bilbo Baggins-esque figure from a town of little people referred to as Nelwyn, who has adventure thrust upon him when he discovers a baby prophesied to bring down an evil sorceress. She sends her legions to kill the child, so Willow reluctantly leads an expedition to return the child to safety. In his quest, Willow is joined by the roguish anti-hero Madmartigan (Val Kilmer), and a lesser actor would have been blown off the screen by the movie star. Yet Davis imbues Willow with a decency that makes him infectiously likable. While not a success at the box office, Willow has more than enough magic to take on the star of the Wizarding World.
The Fellowship Has Spoken
Your Place in Middle-earth
The scores below reveal your true character. Your highest number is your match. Even a tie tells a story —the Fellowship was never made of simple people.
Frodo
Samwise
Aragorn
Gandalf
Legolas
Gimli
Sauron
Gollum
You carry something heavy —and you carry it alone,
even when you don’t have to.
You were not born for greatness,
and that is precisely why greatness chose you.
Your courage is not
the roaring,
sword-swinging kind;
it is quiet,
stubborn,
and terrifying
in its refusal
to quit.
The Ring weighs on you more than anyone can see,
and still you walk toward
the fire.
That is not weakness.
That is
the rarest kind
of strength there is.
You are,
without question,
the best of them.
Not
the most powerful,
not
the most celebrated —
but
the most essential.
Your loyalty
is not
a trait;
it is
a force
of nature.
You would carry
the person you love up
the slopes
of Mount Doom if it came to that,
and we both know you’d do it without being asked.
The world needs more people like you,
and
the world is lucky it has even one.
You were born to lead,
and you have spent years running from it.
The crown is yours by right,
but you know better than anyone that right means nothing without
the will and worthiness to back it up.
You are tempered by loss,
shaped by long roads,
and defined by a code of honour you hold to even when no one is watching.
When you finally step forward,
the world shifts.
Because it was always waiting for you.
You have seen more than you let on,
and you say less than you know —
which is exactly as it should be.
You are a catalyst:
you do not fight battles yourself,
you ignite people who can.
Your wisdom comes not from books but from an age of watching what happens when it is ignored.
You arrive precisely when you mean to,
and your presence alone changes what is possible.
A wizard is never late.
Graceful,
perceptive,
and almost preternaturally calm under pressure —
you see things others miss and act before others react.
You do not need to make a scene to be remarkable;
your presence speaks for itself.
You are loyal to those you choose to stand beside,
and that choice is not made lightly.
You have lived long enough to know that
the most beautiful things in this world are also
the most fragile,
and that is why you fight to protect them.
You are loud,
proud,
and absolutely formidable —
and beneath all of that is one of the most fiercely loyal hearts in Middle-earth.
You don’t do anything by half measures.
Your friendships are forged like iron,
your grudges run as deep as mines,
and your courage in battle is the kind that makes legends.
You came into this fellowship suspicious of everyone and ended it willing to die for an elf.
That is not a small thing.
That is everything.
You think in centuries and act in absolutes.
Order,
dominion,
control —
not because you are cruel by nature,
but because you have decided that
the world left to itself always falls apart,
and you are the only one with vision and will to hold it together.
You were not always this way.
Something was lost or taken or betrayed,
and the version of you standing now answers that wound.
The tragedy is that you’re not entirely wrong —
just entirely too far gone to course-correct.
You are a study in contradiction —
pitiable and dangerous,
cunning and broken,
capable of both cruelty and something resembling love.
You are defined by loss:
of innocence,
of self,
of what gave your existence meaning.
Two voices war inside you constantly,
and tragedy lies within how often one wins over another at just wrong moments.
You are both warning — yes —
but also mirror:
we are all little Gollum given right ring and enough time.
Edward (Johnny Depp) – ‘Edward Scissorhands’ (1990)
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