Best action movie character?

Great character...but he forgot the most important part...you're supposed to do all that crazy shit AND somehow survive to make a sequel.

 

I got ad to some lesser knowns:

The Highlander (Christopher Lambert) There IS only one! The other Highlander movies sucked and do not exist!
Porter (Mel Gibson's character from Payback)
No love for Blade?!
Opening fight sequence of Blade blew me away! HUGE fan.


In the women's category:
Gena Davis in Long Kiss Goodnight (SLJ was good as well)
Bridget Fonda in Point of No Return

 

Excellent calls on Highlander and Blade...and yes, the Highlander sequels all suck.

 

I honestly can't think of a single great action movie character that Tom Cruise has played, that should rank among the all-time greats. Maverick wasn't bad, but he's not in the top 10 and certainly not in the same class as some of the heavy hitters already mentioned. Ethan Hunt may be in the top 20, but if he gets anywhere close to the top 10 it's toward the bottom. Even Cruise's best roles haven't had the same enduring quality as a Bond, Indy, Han Solo, etc.

BUT, there is one character who hasn't been mentioned yet that absolutely, positively deserves to be on the list.
Who is that guy?
The name ... is Dalton.

 

Nobody's mentioned Mad Max...

 

Among women it's

1. Ellen Ripley
2. Sarah Connor
3. Beatrix Kiddo

 

Great call on Mad Max. That was a damn fine trilogy.

Speaking of Mel movies, Jaguar Paw in Apocalypto was pretty damn good, but I doubt he'll get much love after speaking Mayan through the whole thing.

 

You're telling me Dalton isn't somewhere in the top 15 or 20, at least? I'm not putting him above guys like McClane, Bond, Indy or Kenobi. No way. But he at least deserves a mention, that's why I threw him out there.
Now, if you want to start scraping the bottom of the barrel, I'll put Frank Dux up for debate. I'd throw Chong Li out there, too, but Dux whipped his ass so he gets the nod.

 

Just thought of two more, although they may be borderline depending on your definition of "action movie" ... Rocky Balboa and Apollo Creed.
If, by action movie, you mean a flick that gets the blood pumping, then they deserve a mention. Rocky might even vault into the top 10. But, obviously, the Rocky films were more drama than action if you take out the boxing scenes so they may not belong on this list.

 

1. Indiana Jones
2. John McClane
3. Han Solo
4. Terminator
5. James Bond
6. Martin Riggs
7. John Rambo
8. Ellen Ripley
9. Axel Foley
10. Mad Max