The 20 best Hollywood spies of all time

Although casting the Austro-Hungarian-American actor Peter Lorre to play the mysterious Japanese spy/detective Mr. Moto would never fly nowadays, the borderline offensive character was a hit for eight films from 1937 to 1939, as well as a ninth in 1965 starring Henry Silva.

The real-life Chuck Barris was best known as the host of “The Gong Show,” “The Dating Game,” and “The Newlywed Game,” but according to his autobiography, “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind” (and the film adaptation of the same name starring Sam Rockwell and George Clooney), he was also a CIA assassin and spy in the 1960s and 1970s with 33 kills to his name. Although this story is fascinating, the most entertaining part is that it has never been confirmed and is likely a complete fabrication.

For an action star, it’s a bit odd that Arnold Schwarzenegger never got more spy roles. Then again, it’s already tricky for the bodybuilder to blend into everyday situations, let alone high-stakes undercover operations where his life (and a whole lot more) is on the line. It was the Governator’s old pal James Cameron that gave him his only spy role, which occurred in the 1994 action-comedy “True Lies.” In the film, Schwarzenegger’s Harry Tasker is tasked with stopping the detonation of numerous nuclear warheads held by terrorists in various U.S. cities, while also attempting to convince his wife, family, and friends that he’s just an ordinary computer salesman.

Although 2017’s “Atomic Blonde” only received slightly favorable reviews for the most part, fans and critics alike fell for the protagonist, MI6 field agent Lorraine Broughton. Of course, part of this was due to the top-level acting and breathtaking beauty of A-list actress Charlize Theron, but for the most part, it was her remarkably skilled action sequences.

Almost all of the spies in this list are “good guys,” with Elizabeth & Philip Jennings as the glaring exceptions. Not only is one of them not a guy at all, but they are both Soviet spies with the KGB who live in America during the early 1980s portion of the Cold War. Interestingly, the show’s premise was actually conceived by former CIA agent Joe Weisberg, who was fascinated by stories he heard from other agents who served abroad as spies and still raised families.

After five seasons and 65 episodes, FX’s “The Americans” has managed to avoid assassination, and will go out on its own terms with the end of the upcoming sixth season in 2018.

MacGyver can solve basically any problem with just a Swiss army knife, a roll of duct tape, and maybe some rubber bands and paper clips - which he did for 139 episodes and two TV movies while being played by Richard Dean Anderson. As if this doesn’t make MacGyver unique enough already, the Phoenix Foundation’s top secret agent also rarely uses guns or violence, and is often shown doing charity work with children, protecting animals and the environment, and even refusing to eat meat!

From 2001 to 2006, Jennifer Garner played Sydney Bristow, a CIA spy and the protagonist of the ABC action show “Alias.” Created by J.J. Abrams, the show centers on Bristow’s attempts to carry out dangerous and deadly missions while acting as a double-agent and keeping the nature of her work secret from friends and family. “Alias” has appeared in many best-of lists over the last decade, and at its peak, drew more than 10 million viewers per episode.

Like a stereotypical Brit, Harry Hart is proper and polite - not to mention stylish - but he’s also more than capable of dispatching villains both simple and super. One of the main characters in “Kingsman,” based on the comic series of the same name, unfortunately appeared to meet his demise in 2014’s “Kingsman: The Secret Service,” but as the trailers for the 2017 sequel show, he’s actually alive and well – albeit with the addition of an eyepatch.

British spy novelist Len Deighton’s Harry Palmer character has been brought to life on film six times from 1965 to 1996. In five of those movies, Palmer was played by acting legend Michael Caine. The most notable instance was the very first installment, 1965’s “The Ipcress File,” which was named No. 59 on the British Film Institute’s 100 best British films of the 20th century.

Also known as Number One on “The Man from U.N.C.L.E.,” Napoleon Solo is a charming and skilled spy that was something like a laid back 007. He was played by Robert Vaughn throughout the show’s four seasons and 105 episodes on NBC from 1964 to 1968. Although Solo is the show’s main protagonist, he actually wasn’t the most popular character…

... Surprisingly, the blonde-headed Russian spy Illya Kuryakin was actually the slightly more popular character on NBC’s The Man from U.N.C.L.E,” which was somewhat controversial when the show aired in the ‘60s. Kuryakin was originally only a peripheral figure on the show, but David McCallum’s portrayal of the enigmatic spy ended up propelling him to co-star status as he worked alongside Solo as a two-man team. In fact, during the series’ original run, McCallum not only received far more fan mail than Vaughn, he also got more than any other actor in the history of MGM Studios.

John Steed is the spy best known for his three-piece suits, bowler hats, and umbrellas, and for being the only permanent part of “The Avengers.” No, not the Marvel superhero franchise, but the British TV show that starred Patrick Macnee as Steed and featured a succession of smart, skilled, and stylish female assistants over its six seasons. This included Cathy Gale, Emma Peel, and Tara King, not to mention his partners on the two additional seasons of “The New Avengers.” Although Steed also appeared in a series of novels, comics, and radio shows, younger fans probably know him best for Ralph Fiennes's portrayal of the character in the 1998 film “The Avengers,” which also starred Uma Thurman as Peel.

Adam Reed is the mastermind behind Sterling Archer, the egotistical, misogynistic, immature, pun-cracking, somehow charming character that also happens to be the world’s deadliest secret agent. Voiced by H. Jon Benjamin, Archer recently wrapped its eighth season on FX. Although Reed has said “Archer” only has two more years left, that still gives the character plenty of times to look for double entendres, obsess over Kenny Loggins, and have guns fired way too close to his ear.

After previously appearing as spy John Drake in the British series “Danger Man” (a.k.a “Secret Agent” in the U.S.), Patrick McGoohan took a similar and possibly related role in the 17-episode series “The Prisoner” in 1967. Although this gig as the mysterious Number Six was substantially shorter, the show’s spy, sci-fi, and psychological themes made for a more engrossing and entertaining plot and has since influenced numerous shows and films. It has also been referenced in countless forms of entertainment - including a 1982 song by Iron Maiden and numerous spoofs by “The Simpsons.”

John le Carré first introduced intelligence officer George Smiley in the author’s debut novel, 1961’s “Call for the Dead.” He first appeared on film in a small role in 1965’s “The Spy Who Came in From the Cold” (with Rupert Davies) and later “The Deadly Affair” in 1966 (with James Mason, although the character was renamed Charles Dobbs). He was also played by Alec Guinness in the 1979 mini-series “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,” and later in 1982’s “Smiley’s People.” Most recently, Smiley could be seen in 2011’s “Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy,” which starred Gary Oldman in an Oscar-nominated portrayal of the character.

Yeah, baby! Mike Myers first introduced this shagadelic spy in 1997’s “Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery,” and reprised the role for two hilarious sequels in 1999 and 2002. In addition to writing, producing, and starring in the lead role, Myers also appeared in three additional supporting roles alongside a parade of other familiar faces.

Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt is a master of disguise who is skilled at driving cars, hanging onto the outside of planes mid-flight, and rappelling down from the ceiling. You know, the usual spy stuff. The difference is that unlike most other spies, Hunt has had to do it in five different films since 1996 - six if you count the installment slated for release in July 2018.

While most people in the ‘60s were busy praising the secret agent genre, Don Adams was parodying it as the bumbling counter-intelligence agent Maxwell Smart, a.k.a. Agent 86. In addition to “Get Smart,” the five-season series created by Mel Brooks, Smart also appeared in a 1980 feature film, a 1989 made-for-TV movie, a brief 1995 revival series, and a 2008 blockbuster reboot starring Steve Carell. Maxwell coined the catchphrases “Missed it by that much,” “Sorry, about that, Chief,” “The ol’ (such-and-such) trick,” and “I asked you not to tell me that,” among others.

Author Robert Ludlum died in 2001, which means he sadly never got to see the enormous success of the film franchise based on his trio of Jason Bourne novels. The fearsome yet forgetful assassin anti-hero was portrayed by Matt Damon in four incredibly popular films, although the series actually includes five installments if you count the Jeremy Renner spinoff from 2012.

Whether he’s played by Sean Connery, Roger Moore, Daniel Craig, Pierce Brosnan, Timothy Dalton, or George Lazenby that one time, James Bond isn’t just one of the best spies and secret agents of all time – he’s a unanimous No. 1, especially considering that the Bond franchise has grossed more than $7 billion since the first film was released back in 1962.

Even if they don’t happen to be fans, people around the world still know how the Ian Fleming character introduces himself, how he takes his martinis, and the three-digit code name used to identify the British Secret Service’s deadliest weapon.