When you watch a movie that is named after a character, such as Forrest Gump or Aladdin, you can typically expect the story to be about that person but that is not always the case. Sometimes the film’s title is synonymous with a person who is important to the true protagonist’s arc, either as a loved one, an enemy, or even just a memory. The following are some of the greatest cinematic classics that go against the tradition of making the title character the main character.
My Neighbor Totoro (1988)
One of the best Studio Ghibli movies, My Neighbor Totoro, follows the adventures Satsuki and Mei (voiced by Dakota and Elle Fanning in Disney's 2005 English dub) in an enchanted forest. Along the way, they meet the titular, whimsical, furry spirit that they call Totoro (after its own species), who would also become Studio Ghibli's mascot.
Abigail (2024)
Filmmaking collective Radio Silence's modern update of the 1936 vampire movie, Dracula's Daughter, is called Abigail, which takes its name from Alisha Weir's young ballerina who turns out to be not so young and not so friendly. However, the story is told mainly from the perspective of Melissa Barrera's "Joey" and the other professional thieves who are shocked and devastated to learn they were hired to kidnap an immortal bloodsucker.
The Terminator (1984)
Arnold Schwarzenegger was, understandably, the face of the marketing and got top billing for the classic sci-fi movie, The Terminator, since he played the eponymous cyborg, which also made him the action icon he is known as today. However, writer and director James Cameron's breakout hit is really about the woman he is programmed to murder, Sarah Conner (Linda Hamilton), who is destined to be the mother of humanity's savior in a world ravaged by machines.
Chasing Amy (1997)
Anyone who watches the acclaimed Kevin Smith movie Chasing Amy for the first time is probably surprised to learn that Joey Lauren Adams' character (and unlikely love interest for Ben Affleck's Holden due) is named Alyssa. Amy is not even a character in the story but an ex-girlfriend the normally quiet Silent Bob (Smith) recalls in conversation to demonstrate the film's theme of unattainable romance.
Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
One of the best romantic-comedy movies of its time, Forgetting Sarah Marshall, is the story of Peter Bretter (writer Jason Segel), who takes a Hawaiian vacation in hopes of getting over his recent break-up with the titular actor, played by Kristen Bell. Unfortunately, Peter discovers that Sarah is at the same resort and even in the suite right next to his and has brought along her new beau, rock star Aldous Snow (Russell Brand).
Kill Bill (2003-2004)
Uma Thurman's The Bride has such a raging vendetta for her former boss (and justifiably so) that writer and director Quentin Tarantino named his two-part revenge movie saga after him. We do not even get to officially meet David Carradine's Bill until Kill Bill Vol. 2. and see him earn his deserved comeuppance until after our deadly protagonist has rid the world of her four other most hated enemies.
The Wizard Of Oz (1939)
Oscar "Oz" Diggs (James Franco) is the title character of Oz the Great and Powerful, Sam Raimi's 2013 prequel to the 1939 film adaptation of L. Frank Baum's novel, The Wizard of Oz. Of course, that seminal classic is all about Dorothy (Judy Garland) and her quest to find said "wizard" so she can return home (which there is no place like) after a wicked tornado whisks her and her dog, Toto, into the mystical land.
The Big Lebowski (1998)
The name of the Coen Brothers' cult favorite comedy about a case of mistaken identity gone out of control, The Big Lebowski, is a play on the title of the classic film noir movie that inspired it, The Big Sleep. It is also the nickname that Jeff Bridges' aging hippie protagonist, The Dude, gives to a Los Angeles millionaire who also bears his legal name, Jeffrey Lebowski (played by David Huddleston).
Coco (2017)
One of the best Pixar movies (and also one of the animation studio's biggest tearjerkers), Coco, is a winning fantasy about young music lover, Miguel (Anthony Gonzalez), and his adventure through the afterlife on Dia de los Muertos. We never actually learn just how important his great-grandmother, Mamá Coco (Ana Ofelia Murguía), is to the story until near the end.
Beetlejuice (1988)
Tim Burton and co. must have realized Michael Keaton's mischievous bio-exorcist (whose name is really spelled "Betelgeuse") was going to be the most memorable character in the beloved horror-comedy movie (despite only 17 minutes of screentime). Otherwise Beetlejuice — which is really about the recently deceased Adam (Alec Baldwin) and Barbara Maitland (Geena Davis), and their bid to scare a new family out of their house — could have been named House Guests or even Scared Sheetless.
The Great Gatsby (2013)
Talk to any connoisseur of fine literature and they might tell you that Jay Gatsby is the central character of F. Scott Fitzgerald's tragic rags-to-riches story, The Great Gatsby, which Baz Luhrmann adapted into a hit in 2013. However, the entire story is told from the point of view of the narrator, Nick Carraway (played by Tobey Maguire in the Luhrmann version), which makes him a better fit to be called the protagonist.
Saving Private Ryan (1998)
Tom Hanks leads Saving Private Ryan as Capt. Miller, whose crew is tasked with finding the sole surviving son of the Ryan family (played by Matt Damon) behind enemy lines. The opening flash-forward of Steven Spielberg's masterful war movie even tricks you into believing the elderly World War II veteran is Hanks' character since we witness the harrowing action through his eyes.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
The acclaimed fourth installment of George Miller's Mad Max movies gives the titular post-apocalyptic drifter (now played by Tom Hardy) a co-pilot in the form of Charlize Theron's Furiosa. Even the biggest fans of Mad Max: Fury Road would agree that the instant classic action movie really belongs to the one-armed warrior woman who deservingly earned her own prequel spin-off called Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga.
Tron (1982)
The visually groundbreaking Disney favorite, Tron, is named after a sentient digital security program that appears in the digital world with a resemblance to its creator, Alan Bradley (Bruce Boxleitner). Of course, the hero of the story is Alan's co-worker, Kevin Flynn (Jeff Bridges), who is forcibly sent to the digital world where his video game skills certainly come in handy.
Willy Wonka And The Chocolate Factory (1971)
Gene Wilder's performance as the titular chocolatier in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory is so wonderfully whimsical and iconic that it is easy to forget poor, young Charlie Bucket (Peter Ostrum, a child star who walked away from Hollywood soon after) is the true protagonist. In fact, Roald Dahl's novel is called Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which Tim Burton honored with the title of his 2005 adaptation.
Rebecca (1940)
Played by Joan Fontaine, the central character of director Alfred Hitchcock's Best Picture Oscar winner Rebecca remains unnamed throughout the story. The psychological thriller's title character is the former wife of our protagonist's new husband, 'Maxim' de Winter (Laurence Olivier), who has died but her memory continues to haunt his lavish estate.
The Exorcist (1973)
I would not be surprised if many audiences did not know what an exorcist was before seeing William Friedkin's horror movie masterpiece about a secular actor (played by Ellen Burstyn) who turns to religion for an answer to her young daughter, Regan's (Linda Blair) concerning behavior. Thus, they might not have not realized that Max von Sydow's Father Merrin (who only appears at the beginning and near the end to cure Regan's demonic possession, with help from Jason Miller as Father Karras) was the title character of The Exorcist.
Weekend At Bernie's (1989)
It is not unusual for a movie's title character to be dead most of the time (see Casper) but murdered businessman Bernie Lomax (Terry Kiser) is not the protagonist of Weekend at Bernie's or its 1993 sequel. The screwball comedy follows Bernie's employees, Larry Wilson (Andrew McCarthy) and Richard Parker (Jonathan Silverman), who try to conceal the fact that their boss is dead while spending a few days at his beach house in the Hamptons.
The Invisible Man (2020)
On the ReelBlend podcast, Leigh Whannell recalled when Blumhouse asked how he would reimagine the classic Universal Monster Movie, The Invisible Man, and said he would tell it from the point of view of the transparent fiend's victim. This led him to craft the story of Cecelia Kass (Elisabeth Moss), who suspects that her abusive, supposedly dead, tech innovator husband is alive and has figured out a way to be close to her without being seen.
Laura (1944)
In the 1940s mystery drama Laura, Det. Lt. Mark McPherson (Dana Andrews) finds himself falling in love with the titular femme fatale, played by Gene Tierney. The only problem is that the object of his affection is the woman whose murder he is investigating.
Heathers (1988)
There are three characters named "Heather" who make up the antagonistic clique in the classic high school movie, Heathers. However, the central focus of the dark comedy is Winona Ryder's Veronica Sawyer, who teams up with the rebellious J.D. (Christian Slater) to punish the popular ladies for the errors of their ways.
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
The title of director Jim Sharman's cult favorite musical horror comedy movie, based on Richard O'Brien's stage show, comes from Peter Hinwood's Rocky Horror, the hunky creation of Dr. Frank-N-Furter (Tim Curry). However, even the scientist is not the protagonist of The Rocky Horror Picture Show — a position shared by lovebirds Brad (Barry Bostwick) and Janet (Susan Sarandon), who take refuge at Frank-N-Furter's spooky mansion on a dark and stormy night.
Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
The title character of one of Stanley Kubrick's best movies, Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, is really just one supporting member of a vast ensemble that also includes George C. Scott as Gen. 'Buck' Turgidson and James Earl Jones in his motion picture debut as Lt. Lothar Zogg. In fact, the German nuclear war expert is one of three characters portrayed by comedy legend Peter Sellers in this uproarious Cold War-era satire.
Who Framed Roger Rabbit (1988)
The story of Robert Zemeckis' Who Framed Roger Rabbit is centered around Charles Fleischer's animated hare struggling to clear his name in a murder case. Yet, the true hero of the groundbreaking classic is the guy helping prove his innocence, Bob Hoskins' Eddie Valiant, who was once the go-to private eye for helping "toons" in need before his brother's murder.
Rachel Getting Married (2008)
Director Jonathan Demme's Rachel Getting Married stars Rosemarie DeWitt as Rachel Buchman, who is about to tie the knot with her music producer fiancé, Sidney (Tunde Adebimpe). However, the dramedy is really about Rachel's sister, Kym (Anne Hathaway), and how her decade-long struggle with addiction affects her relationship with her family, especially during the weekend of the ceremony.
The Bride Of Frankenstein (1935)
First, let's get one thing straight for anyone who might still be confused: "Frankenstein" is not the name of Boris Karloff's Creature, but the man who created it, played by Colin Clive. Thus, The Bride of Frankenstein is a bit of a misnomer as the scientist is not the one seeking to wed the titular reanimated female (Elsa Lanchester) who, not to mention, does not even have much screentime in the sequel to the 1931 Mary Shelley novel adaptation.
Waiting For Guffman (1996)
Co-writer and director Christopher Guest also leads the mockumentary favorite Waiting for Guffman as Missourian Corky St. Clair, who dreams of hitting it big in the world of musical theatre. Mort Guffman is the name of a renowned Broadway producer who is supposedly going to show up to see Corky's original musical, Red, White and Blaine, which puts the entire production into a tailspin.
Dr. No (1962)
Is it not a bit ironic that the first major James Bond movie is named after the bad guy, played by Joseph Wiseman? Anyhow, it still did not make any difference because Sir Sean Connery immediately proved to be such a natural in his debut as MI6 agent 007 that there was no question he was the star of Dr. No.
Kangaroo Jack (2003)
In Kangaroo Jack, the main characters, Charlie (Jerry O'Connell) and Louis (Anthony Anderson), accidentally lose $50,000 after leaving it in a jacket they place on a kangaroo before it hops away. However, the Australian animal is not actually named "Jack," but he apparently resembles a man Charlie and Louis once knew named Jackie Legs, which is where the not-so-family-friendly adventure gets its title.
The Ballad Of Buster Scruggs (2018)
Joel and Ethan Coen's The Ballad of Buster Scruggs, one of the best Western movies on Netflix, is an anthology-style collection of bizarre tales set in the Old West. Tim Blake Nelson plays the titular singing cowboy, who is actually the star of just one of the film's six segments.
Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
Before Avengers: Infinity War, no comic book movie had ever employed so many superheroes into one story before. Even then, this epic story is not really about any of those costumed vigilantes, but the guy they are trying to stop: Thanos (Josh Brolin).
Searching For Bobby Fischer (1993)
There are several movies about Chess champion Bobby Fischer that you could watch, such as 2014's Pawn Sacrifice. However, Searching for Bobby Fischer, which stars Max Pomeranc as a young, but brilliant chess player, is not one of them.
