--- description: TIME ranked the onscreen figures that made the biggest impact on the news and our lives, featuring Elsa, Kim Kardashian, King Joffrey and more. title: These are the 15 Most Influential Fictional Characters of 2014 image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltde093bcdab65f2d0/6988d9b9bc6cfc69913e2a3c/time-logo.jpg?branch=production --- * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The 15 Most Influential Fictional Characters of 2014  by [Daniel D'Addario](/author/daniel-daddario/)  ## Daniel D'Addario Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 3, 2014 3:00 PM CUT  by [Daniel D'Addario](/author/daniel-daddario/)  ## Daniel D'Addario Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Dec 3, 2014 3:00 PM CUT Welcome to TIME’s ranking of the onscreen figures that made the biggest impact on the news and our lives this year, for better and sometimes for worse. (See last year’s list [here](http://poy.time.com/2013/12/09/the-11-most-influential-fictional-characters-of-2013/ "undefined").) — ### 15\. Hello Kitty  31 Oct 2014, Los Angeles, California, USA --- Oct. 31, 2014 - Los Angeles, California, U.S - The Hello Kitty Con 2014 at the Geffen Contemporary at MOCA Friday, October 31 2014, in Los Angeles. The first official Hello Kitty fan convention was held to honor the character's 40th birthday. The convention featuring workshops, lectures and panel discussions, a fashion exhibit, tattoo shop and photo opportunities. (Credit Image: © Ringo Chiu/ZUMA Wire) --- Image by © Ringo Chiu/ZUMA Press/Corbis Ringo Chiu—Zuma Press/Corbis What does it mean to be human? It’s a question philosophers have debated for millennia—and the Internet debated this year, thanks to Hello Kitty (who turned 40 this year). According to her official bio, which went viral in August, the iconic toon is not actually a cat; she’s a [human girl who lives with her family in suburban London](http://www.independent.co.uk/news/hello-kitty-is-not-a-cat-after-all-9695996.html "undefined"). That revelation made waves on social media, forcing parent company Sanrio to clarify that Hello Kitty is actually an anthropomorphized animal, like Mickey Mouse. ### 14\. “The Mother,” a.k.a. Tracy McConnell  Ron P. Jaffe—20th Century Fox Television After almost a decade of speculation, _How I Met Your Mother_ fans were thrilled about the debut of said mother (played by Cristin Milioti). But the twist ending—that she had (spoiler alert!) died of an unnamed illness before the story of how Ted met her got told—prompted massive outrage on social media and, then, a spirited debate over what, if anything, show creators owe their fans. ### 13\. Amy Dunne  GONE GIRL, Rosamund Pike, 2014\. ph: Merrick Morton/TM & copyright ©20th Century Fox Film Corp. All rights reserved 20th Century Fox As the titular _Gone Girl_, the movie version of Amy (played by Rosamund Pike) brought to life Gillian Flynn’s complex protagonist and launched an impassioned discussion about why dark female characters are often labeled “crazy” and “evil” while dark male characters get to be “antiheroes.” ### 12\. Mr. Poo In an effort to thwart public defecation—a huge problem in India, where roughly half the population [doesn’t use toilets](http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/20/world/asia/unicef-latest-anti-public-defecation-campaign-in-india/ "undefined")—UNICEF released a surprisingly charming public service video. Its star: Mr. Poo, an anthropomorphized piece of poop that dances around and sings about using toilets. It may sound bizarre, but it seems to be working: more than [1 million people](http://www.poo2loo.com/pledge.php "undefined") have already pledged to, as the ad puts it, “take the poo to the loo.” ### 11\. Rust Cohle  SCENE 1.5 - 1.8 / Exterior Sugarcane Field - Crime Scene (1995) - Cohle sketches his observations with Marty watching. / Photo: Jim Bridges/HBO HBO's "True Detective" Season 1 Director: Cary Fukunaga Matthew McConaughey: Rustin Cohle Woody Harrelson: Martin Hart JIm Bridges—HBO The _True Detective_ lead (played by Matthew McConaughey) delivered some of the Internet’s most-quoted pearls of wisdom this year (see: “Time is a flat circle”) and his references to the work of H.P. Lovecraft and Robert W. Chambers sent obscure books, such as _The King in Yellow_, [rocketing up Amazon’s charts](http://io9.com/true-detective-has-turned-the-king-in-yellow-into-a-bes-1528086031 "undefined"). ### 10\. Thor  Marvel Sure, the big-screen version (played by Chris Hemsworth) has raked in more than $1 billion at the global box office. But this year, it was Marvel’s printed comic that made waves—after it relaunched [with a woman wielding the hammer](http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/heat-vision/marvels-thor-will-be-a-718648 "undefined"). It’s not the first Thor recast; in fact, [a frog](http://marvel.wikia.com/Simon%5FWalterson%5F%28Earth-616%29 "undefined") once held the role. But putting a woman at the center of a comic franchise that’s not explicitly about femininity or sexual wiles sent a powerful message about the need for superhero diversity, amplified by the debut of a [black Captain America](http://marvel.com/news/comics/22895/its%5Ftime%5Ffor%5Fan%5Fall-new%5Fcaptain%5Famerica "undefined"). ### 9\. Annalise Keating  HOW TO GET AWAY WITH MURDER - ABC's "How to Get Away with Murder" stars Viola Davis as Professor Annalise Keating. (ABC/Craig Sjodin) Craig Sjodin—ABC _How to Get Away With Murder_‘s no-nonsense defense attorney and law professor (played by Viola Davis) kickstarted a charged debate about race and television, after a _New York Times_ TV critic likened her—alongside Shonda Rhimes, the show’s executive producer—to [“an angry black woman.”](http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/21/arts/television/viola-davis-plays-shonda-rhimess-latest-tough-heroine.html?%5Fr=0 "undefined") “I’m going to need to put down the internet and go dance this one out,” Rhimes [tweeted in response](https://twitter.com/shondarhimes/status/512972768930177024 "undefined"). “Because ish is getting real.” ### 8\. Hatsune Miku  A man stands behind a figure of computer-generated pop star Hatsune Miku as another man walks past, at the venue of the Annual Meetings of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank Group in Tokyo October 9, 2012\. Global growth in advanced economies is too weak to bring down unemployment and what little momentum exists is coming primarily from central banks, the International Monetary Fund said in its World Economic Outlook, released ahead of its twice-yearly meeting, which will be held in Tokyo later this week. REUTERS/Toru Hanai (JAPAN - Tags: POLITICS BUSINESS) - RTR38XTF Toru Hanai—Reuters The computer-generated Japanese musician, whose “singing” comprises many short samples of actual human voices, not only launched a debate about the nature of artistry and performance (Hatsune Miku [means “first sound of the future”](http://www.vulture.com/2014/11/hatsune-miku-the-future-of-music.html "undefined") in Japanese), but also performed via holograph at Madison Square Garden on Lady Gaga’s tour and [on _The Late Show With David Letterman_](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qA5pIpdQEr0 "undefined")—all without having a body. ### 7\. Katniss Everdeen  Murray Close—Lionsgate The _Hunger Games_ heroine (played by Jennifer Lawrence) has already secured her status as a feminist role model and a box-office powerhouse. But Katniss is more than a movie icon now: Her three-fingered salute, used in _Mockingjay_ as a signal of rebellion against the Capitol, has become a rallying symbol among pro-democracy protesters in [Thailand](http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jun/03/hunger-games-salute-banned-thailand "undefined") and [Hong Kong](http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/1115610-hong-kongs-hunger-games-student-leader-joshua-wong-starts-hunger-strike/ "undefined"). ### 6\. Maura Pfefferman  Amazon Studios The transgender matriarch (played by Jeffrey Tambor) did for Amazon’s streaming service what Frank Underwood did in 2013 for Netflix: Prove that a compelling personal journey can singlehandedly shore up the fortunes of a new network. But Maura’s story, on the show _Transparent_, was meaningful in other ways, too: She is the first transgender person to headline a TV show, capping a landmark year for trans visibility. ### 5\. King Joffrey  HBO The mad boy-king (played by Jack Gleeson) was the defining character on _Game of Thrones_ this season, first for his sadism and then (spoiler!) for his absence. That ongoing drama cemented _Thrones_‘ status as HBO’s most popular show of all time—with some [18.4 million viewers](http://deadline.com/2014/06/game-of-thrones-hbo-most-popular-series-740949/ "undefined") on all platforms each week—and may have helped prompt the network to spin off its HBO Go service for non-cable subscribers. If only the power-mad tot were here to enjoy his reign. ### 4\. Stephen Colbert  NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 8: Host Stephen Colbert appears during the "Been There: Won That: The Returnification of the American-Do Troopscapeon" special of The Colbert Report on September 8, 2010 in New York City. (Photo by Scott Gries/PictureGroup) Comedy Central In March, “Colbert,” the fictional conservative blowhard created by comic and talk-show host Stephen Colbert, sparked a national conversation about prejudice with a [joke about the Washington Redskins’ team name and Asian stereotypes](http://www.usatoday.com/story/life/tv/2014/03/27/stephen-colbert-tweet-angers-asians/6991725/ "undefined"). (It spawned the [#CancelColbert](http://time.com/42174/we-want-to-cancelcolbert/ "undefined") campaign.) But his most impressive achievement, of course, was getting his real-life counterpart hired to replace David Letterman as host of _The Late Show_ on CBS. ### 3\. Star-Lord  Marvel's Guardians Of The Galaxy..Star-Lord/Peter Quill (Chris Pratt)..Ph: Film Frame..?Marvel 2014 Marvel/Disney The self-deprecating space captain (played by Chris Pratt) didn’t just help Marvel’s _Guardians of the Galaxy_ avert an intergalactic disaster. He also saved the summer box-office here on Earth, which had been sluggish until _Guardians_ debuted with a massive $94 million in the U.S. (on its way to a [$771 million global haul](http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=marvel2014a.htm "undefined")), and launched Pratt into superstar status. The _Guardians_ soundtrack—modeled after a “mixtape” of oldies left to Star-Lord (real name: Peter Quill) by his mother—also [reached the top of the _Billboard_ 200](http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/6214496/guardians-of-the-galaxy-soundtrack-no-1-billboard-200 "undefined"). ### 2\. Kim Kardashian  Glu Games Real-life Kim Kardashian owes a good deal to her animated avatar—[more than $200 million](http://www.forbes.com/sites/maseenaziegler/2014/07/16/why-kim-kardashian-hollywood-is-a-200-million-hit-app/ "undefined"), to be exact. That’s how much industry analysts estimate the blockbuster mobile game [Kim Kardashian Hollywood](https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/kim-kardashian-hollywood/id860822992?mt=8 "undefined") convinced users to spend on fake clothes, jewelry and more, all in an effort to climb the A-list and become best friends with a fictional version of Kim herself, who spouts lines like “You’re a natural in front of the camera. You should get a ‘momager.’” ### 1\. Elsa  Disney Hollywood’s reigning ice royal (played by Idina Menzel) first charmed audiences in 2013—leading _Frozen_ to a massive [$1.27 billion worldwide gross](http://boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=frozen2013.htm "undefined")—but this year, she became a bona-fide icon. Elsa’s Oscar-winning anthem about liberation and self-acceptance, “Let It Go,” [dominated the _Billboard_ Hot 100 this spring](http://www.billboard.com/articles/columns/chart-beat/5937548/let-it-go-helps-idina-menzel-make-hot-100-history "undefined"); her debut on ABC’s _Once Upon a Time_ (played by Georgina Haig) led to a [31 percent ratings increase](http://insidetv.ew.com/2014/09/29/family-guy-once-upon-ratings/ "undefined"); and her singing figurine just [outpaced Barbie](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/26/frozen-elsa-overtakes-barbie-most-popular-holiday-toy%5Fn%5F6225430.html "undefined") as the best-selling toy in America. Next up: a [_Frozen_ attraction at Epcot](http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/09/15/frozen-ride-disney-world%5Fn%5F5822350.html "undefined"), where Elsa will greet young fans—and a likely _Frozen_ sequel. _Read next:_ [_Top 10 of Everything 2014_](https://time.com/collection/top-10-everything-of-2014/?xid=time%5Freadnext "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3612615/influential-characters-2014/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3612615/influential-characters-2014/"},"headline":"The 15 Most Influential Fictional Characters of 2014","datePublished":"2014-12-03T15:00:41.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:06:51.700Z","description":"Featuring Elsa, Kim Kardashian, King Joffrey and more","url":"https://time.com/3612615/influential-characters-2014/","keywords":["game of thrones","Frozen","Kim Kardashian","Elsa","guardians of the galaxy"],"thumbnailUrl":"","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Daniel D'Addario","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/daniel-daddario/"}],"articleSection":"Entertainment","image":[],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/entertainment/","name":"Entertainment"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3612615/influential-characters-2014/","name":"The 15 Most Influential Fictional Characters of 2014"}}]}] ```