This year has been pretty good for TV lovers with fan-favourites such as Game of Thrones making a comeback and new obsessions like Empire filling our Twitter timelines. There was also the eagerly-awaited, record-breaking, erotic romance novel, 50 Shades of Grey, which had its film adaptation released this year.
Time came up with a list of the 16 most influential fictional characters this year and we’re showing you the top 11.
- Christian Grey
Jamie Dornan plays the sexy dominant, Christian Grey, in E.L. James’ popular 50 Shades of Grey. The movie reportedly led to a spike in bondage toys during Valentine’s Day.
- Catastrophe
Taylor Swift’s character in her Bad Blood video (which currently has over 660 million views) was a popular one. The pop singer had her celebrity friends join in on the fun – squad goals indeed.
- Mark Watney
The critically acclaimed blockbuster, The Martian, in which Mark Watney – played by Matt Damon – is an astronaut stranded on Mars reportedly made Sh1.1 billion in its first two weeks at number one.
- Alexander Hamilton
This happened to be Broadway’s biggest hit in years attracting people like President Obama to watch it.
- Sadness
Inside Out was a popular kids animation with the star Sadness drawing many people in with her pitiful yet cute persona. A great movie that allowed kids to navigate through their emotions!
- Jon Snow
No surprise that Game of Throne’s popular heartthrob made it to the list – especially after his apparent tragic death in season 5.
- Imperator Furiosa
Charlize Theron plays the protagonist in the box office hit Mad Max: Fury Road. She decides to free the leader’s concubine in a thrilling 2 hour film.
- Atticus Finch
Go Set a Watchman by Harper Lee is a sequel To Kill a Mockingbird’s featuring the protagonist Atticus Finch.
- Hillary Clinton
Whereas most presidential candidates would be opposed to their characters appearing on SNL, Hillary Clinton embraced it. In a tweet she sent out, she wrote: “A vote for Hillary is a vote for four more years of Kate McKinnon’s impression.”
- The Minions
These fictional cartoon characters have been a big hit leading Universal to license the brand to over 800 companies. The characters come from the popular film, Despicable Me.
- Cookie Lyon
Few characters have had the impact that Cookie from the popular TV drama, Empire. Her dramatic one-liners led to countless of memes and got Taraji P. Henson, who plays Cookie, on various magazine covers.
Click here to see the full list.