Movie Characters That Start With A: Iconic Names

There have been some massive films over the years, so let’s look at some of the iconic names starting with ‘A’, how many do you know and are any missing? Read on and find out!

1. Ace Ventura (Ace Ventura: Pet Detective)

At least making the top 10 of the loudest pants in cinema history, Ace Ventura is a private detective operating in Miami, Florida in the United States of America.

Specializing in finding lost or missing animals, he has a certain way with creatures, often loving them much more than any human. This is particularly the case as Ace Ventura’s unconventional methods are seen as too wacky for anyone to undertake.

However, his instincts as a detective are undeniable when he solves the case by recovering the mascot of the Miami Dolphins and finding beloved quarterback Dan Marino.

2. Fleet Admiral Ackbar (Star Wars: Return of the Jedi)

With one of the most iconic lines in Star Wars history despite having very little screen time, Admiral Ackbar was one of the first non-humans depicted as being in a leadership position. 

He commanded the Rebel Alliance as they performed a multipronged attack against the second iteration of the Death Star, which while seeing them suffer huge losses, did allow the mission to ultimately succeed.

A Mon Calamari, he has several fish-like features and has dark brown skin, webbed hands, a bulbous head, and large fish-like eyes. Showing the ability to take decisive action as well as listen to advice, he is a vital key in the Rebel Alliance’s victories.

3. Dr Alan Grant (Jurassic Park)

The primary protagonist of the first film, he is a dinosaur expert taken by John Hammond to the original dinosaur attraction of Jurassic Park to get his opinion on it, albeit encouraged by Hammond funding his digs for a further few years.

Upon arrival, he sees what the park is about: real, live dinosaurs brought back from the dead. Unfortunately, a series of safety failures brought about by a rogue employee see several dinosaurs escape, and Grant is tasked with trying to escape with the others.

Losing several of their party to various attacks, Grant must work closely with the grandchildren of Hammond despite the generation gap and his own dislike of children.

4. Professor Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore (Harry Potter)

The Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, he is generally supportive of the Muggles and is widely held as one of the best wizards of his generation, if not all time.

Importantly, it is Dumbledore’s realization of the danger of Lord Voldemort that led him to become the centerpiece of resistance against evil through the Order of the Phoenix. 

After several battles, Dumbledore comes to realize that Voldemort will be an ongoing problem, and sensing Harry Potter’s skills and destiny, fed certain information to Potter on how to defeat Voldemort such as the Horcruxes.

His realization that he has been cursed by Voldemort’s ring when he tried to use the Resurrection Stone in order to meet his family one last time saw him broker a deal with Snape to have him kill him when the time was right, instead of Malfoy.

5. Alex DeLarge (A Clockwork Orange)

A sociopath who has no qualms about committing bodily crimes including rape, serious assault and robbery, Alex knows that what he does is wrong but doesn’t seem to care.

Often drinking milk laced with drugs as a precursor to his particular brand story of ‘ultraviolence’, he hangs out with a gang who helps him with his schemes.

His aloof attitude makes the others resent him, and they knock him out after he murders a woman, seeing him get arrested. After going through a behavioral modification program that makes him feel sick when he even thinks of violence, he is released from prison.

While he is victimized further by his old friends on the outside, he eventually is brought back into service by the government who reverse the treatment and turn him loose against the enemies of the government instead.

6. Amy Dunne (Gone Girl)

After finding out her husband, Nick, has been cheating on her, she concocts a complex revenge plan to try and frame him for murder.

While her plan does sucessfully see her husband the prime suspect in her apparent murder, Amy’s second life doesn’t quite work as planned as she is betrayed and robbed, before being essentially blackmailed into staying with an ex-lover, Desi.

Not being one to shy away from forcing people into horrific situations, she once again uses a murder plot to reunite with her husband, this time actually killing Desi and framing him for the original kidnapping, while also revealing she is pregnant and wants to stay with Nick.

7. Amélie Poulain (Amélie)

Following a shy waitress who lives an introverted life, she decides to change the lives of those around her partly for her own amusement and partly because she thinks making others happy will make the whole world go up in happiness, one person at a time.

After encouraging her father to follow his dreams, get revenge on a petty greengrocer, and getting to the bottom of a mystery of a man who collects photos, she eventually finds happiness herself.

Through helping others, she in the end finds true love, making herself happiest of all.

8. Anakin Skywalker (Star Wars)

Father of Luke Skywalker and extremely proficient in the use of the Force, he was a powerful Jedi Knight who fulfilled the prophecy of the Chosen One. Ultimately getting deceived by Sith Lord Darth Sidious, he became Darth Vader and started to hunt down all the Jedi.

Born without a father, it is thought he was the result of high midi-chlorians. He eventually entered the Jedi Order but went against their rules, having a secret wife, Senator Padmé Amidala of Naboo. 

Being told she was to die in childbirth and only the dark side could save her, he betrayed everyone he knew and was eventually turned into the armored cyborg Darth Vader after being defeated by Obi Wan Kenobi.

He thereafter is the servant of Emperor Palpatine, exterminating all the Jedi he can find. Eventually he betrays Palpatine in order to save his own son, and dies soon after. The elder Skywalker is irretrievably evil and makes terrible decisions throughout most of his life.

9. Anton Chigurh (No Country for Old Men)

A hitman who stops at nothing to complete a job, he is known for carrying around a tank of pressurized gas from which he shoots bolts into people, killing them.

Using a coin to determine the fate of innocent civilians, he kills for fun while carrying out his real missions. Being ‘principled’, he doesn’t like being slighted and is tasked with recovering money from a massive drug deal. 

When a civilian Llewelyn Moss comes across the money case, Chigurh starts to pursue him instead. Chigurh seems superhuman and has a strange appearance, with his backstory never really explained, making him all the creepier.

Making a promise to get revenge on the civilian for not returning the money when asked, he kills his wife, Moss and eventually escapes with the reclaimed money, after killing another bounty hunter.

10. Arthur Curry (Aquaman)

The son of a human and the queen of Atlantis, Arthur can communicate with sea creatures. He also possesses many qualities to survive easily underwater, such as being a master swimmer and can spend his life constantly deep in water.

After finding out his mother was killed for having a half-human baby, Arthur swears Atlantis and its leadership as enemies, and eventually is convinced to stop Orm Marius uniting the four Kingdoms and becoming Ocean Master.

After several pitched battles, Arthur is reunited with Atlanna, who was sacrificed for Arthur’s illegitimate birth 20 years ago, but had survived and escaped. After obtaining the Trident of Atlan, Aquaman is made King.

11. Aragorn (Lord of the Rings)

The heir to the ancient king of Isildur and part of the fellowship of the ring, Aragorn was raised in Rivendell and not told of his lineage, for fear he would be killed for it due to the prophecy that he would reunite Men against Sauron.

Eventually being part of the party to destroy the One Ring, his tracking skills, tactical prowess as well as being a leader of Men lead him to many famous victories and ultimately ensure that the ring can be destroyed, thus completing what Isildur could not.

His astute senses and instincts cause him to recognize the One Ring and protect the Hobbit that carries out, while also eschewing the ring himself; something that seemingly no other Man has been able to do until that point.

12. Ash Williams (The Evil Dead)

After stumbling upon the Book of the Dead and unwittingly awakening the Kandarian Demon, he watches everyone get possessed and die. Ash is not the typical hero of a horror film, and instead his human foibles often get in the way of ultimate victory.

After eventually being freed from the spirit by the coming of the dawn, he is forced to cut off his possessed hand with a chainsaw, replacing the stump with the chainsaw.

After banishing the spirit, the woman who opens the time vortex is killed and Ash finds himself in medieval Europe as he gets sucked through it too. 

Getting distracted once again as he is taught the critical phrase to grab the book which would help put an end to everything, he accidentally unleashes an army of the dead including an evil clone of himself.

After victory (again), he is given a potion to drink which will put him to sleep until his own time comes around again, but drinks too much and wakes in post-apocalyptic England because he didn’t pay attention while drinking it.

13. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird)

A lawyer who is trying to do the right thing, Atticus Finch is a widower who lives with his two children, Jem and Scout. Generally working for the town’s people, he is paid in produce rather than taking a high salary.

Appointed to take on the case of Tom Robinson, he defends the clearly innocent Robinson robustly with the prosecution being one based solely on shame and mob anger, although ultimately Robinson is found guilty and is killed during transit.

Atticus shows his children how to stand up against prejudice, and see the real beauty in things. Their kindness towards their neighbor, Boo Radley, eventually is what saved Scout’s own life when someone linked to the Robinson case tries to get revenge on Atticus.

14. Axel Foley (Beverly Hills Cop)

A plainclothes detective who gets drawn into large conspiracies and solves them by using his amazing cop instincts, he tends to bend the rules to get what needs to be done, which doesn’t make his superiors too happy.

His unconventional methods, while effective, often see him work out the issue too early, and he has to spend much of his time trying to convince others that he is right.

The central plot lines in all of the Beverly Hills Cop movies always revolve around going to Beverly Hills as someone Alex Foley knows has been shot, and his investigations start from here.

15. King Arthur (King Arthur)

A half-British Roman commander, Artorius Castus, known as ‘Arthur’ is returning home after a mission when he is tasked to rescue an important Roman family from north of Hadrian’s Wall.

Arthur leads his men to complete the task, coming across corruption and evil that they put a stop to. After rescuing slaves and these held under oppression, Arthur and his men face off against the pursuing Saxons, eventually defeating them to see Arthur become King.

16. Sturmbannführer Arnold Ernst Toht (Raiders of the Lost Ark)

A ruthless Nazi Gestapo officer, he is tasked with finding the Ark of Covenant. While not believing in the supernatural, Hitler’s desire to harness the power of the Ark ended up being Toht’s downfall.

Often clad in all black and wearing a full suit no matter the climate, he also wore glasses to give himself a very sinister look.

A highly trained purveyor of torture, he seemed to take pleasure in the acts although his schemes start backfiring on him, first when he gets burned by the Staff of Ra headpiece and later when the opening of the Ark results in his own face getting melted off.

17. Austin Powers (Austin Powers)

A British secret agent, he is a massive womanizer and International Man of Mystery, using a cover as a photographer to carry out his spying duties.

After Dr Evil shoots himself into space and cryogenically freezes himself to take over the world in the future, Austin Powers follows suit and is brought back into service in the 90s when Dr Evil reappears again.

Unfortunately, the world has moved on so Austin Powers makes quite a few faux paux and missteps, but Dr Evil is in the same boat. Austin Powers has to deal with a time traveling Dr Evil and has an instantly incapacity ability to judo chop people.

Austin’s main power is his mojo, which Dr Evil tries to destroy in the hope that it will remove Austin Powers from the occasion, but it seems that Austin Powers can regenerate it over time, especially if he falls in love.