The 25 Greatest Jewish Characters in Movies

Our chosen people of Hollywood's silver screen chosen people.

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Complex Original

Image via Complex Original

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In a lawsuit against John Travolta, it's alleged that the actor once screamed at a masseuse, "Hollywood is controlled by homosexual Jewish men who expect favors in return for sexual activity.” Crazy, yes, but it does tap into a well-worn cultural trope: Jews run Hollywood. You'd think, though, that if that were the case, there'd be tons of incredible Jewish movie characters. Not entirely the case. There are just as many terrible ones as there are good ones, and they're all usually remembered in equal measure.

Yet, the Jewish movie characters that we can recall and love are distinctly memorable, either for having a very explicit Jewish identity, or, in some cases, a very sly and implied one (just as, if not more important than the former). Their greatness comes directly from Judaism and the values that come with it. In other cases, they're just incredible characters who happen to be Jewish.

So let's forget about the politics of characters playing up Jewish cliches, or political correctness as soap-boxers will no doubt try to force on moviegoers' tastes. Complex's Jewish movie character discernment team might have a Jew leading it, but we'll be damned (or rather, guilted) if that's going to stop us from being lost in the desert of shitty Jewish movie characters for 40 years, let alone thinking Charlton Heston's Moses wasn't really that great.

You want chosen people? We've got chosen people right here. Complex is pleased to introduce: The 25 Greatest Jewish Characters in Movies. L'chayim.

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25. Charlton Heston as Moses in The Ten Commandments (1956)

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24. Mel Brooks as Rabbi Tuckman in Robin Hood: Men in Tights (1993)

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23. Jim Caviezel as Jesus in The Passion of the Christ (2004)

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22. Jerry Stiller as Maury Ballstein in Zoolander 2001

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21. Brendan Fraser as David Greene in School Ties (1992)

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20. Robert DeNiro as Sam "Ace" Rothstein in Casino (1995)

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19. Sean Gullette as Maximillian Cohen in Pi (1998)

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18. Tom Cruise as Les Grossman in Tropic Thunder (2008)

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17. Ryan Gosling as Danny Balint in The Believer (2001)

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16. Jeff Goldblum as David Levenson in Independence Day (1996)

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15. Ian McKellen as Magneto in X-Men (2000)

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14. Vincent Cassel as Vinz in La Haine (1995)

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13. Robert DeNiro as David "Noodles" Aronson in Once Upon a Time in America (1984)

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12. Jennifer Grey as Frances "Baby" Houseman in Dirty Dancing (1987)

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11. Dennis Farina as Abraham "Cousin Avi" Denovitz in Snatch (2000)

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10. Billy Crystal as Miracle Max in The Princess Bride (1987)

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9. Eugene Levy as Jim's Dad (a.k.a. Noah Levenstein) in American Pie (1999)

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8. Albert Brooks as Bernie Rose in Drive (2011)

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7. Michael Stuhlbarg as Larry Gopnik in A Serious Man (2009)

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6. Eli Roth as Sgt. Donny "The Bear Jew" Donowitz in Inglourious Basterds (2008)

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5. Alicia Silverstone as Cher Horowitz in Clueless (1995)

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4. Roberto Benigni as Guido Orefice in Life is Beautiful (1997)

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3. John Goodman as Walter Sobchak in The Big Lebowski (1998)

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2. Woody Allen as Fielding Mellish in Bananas (1971)

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1. Joe Mantegna, Adrien Brody, and Ben Foster as the Kurtzmans in Liberty Heights (1999)

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