Since ancient times, we have been regaled with tales of fictional thieves. Greek mythology tells the story of Hermes, one of the twelve Olympian gods, who was known as the patron of thieves. According to myth, he stole Apollo’s cattle the day he was born, a sign of his mischievous nature. Tales such as this have long fascinated us. Some stories are based on characters that have been around for centuries, like Aladdin (originating from Middle Eastern folklore). Others are legends believed to be based on real-life stories, like Robin Hood, although there is no definitive proof of his existence. We listed these iconic fictional thieves alphabetically with a quick summary of each.
This post was updated on October 8, 2025 to clarify the myth of Hermes, the story of Aladdin’s origins, the author/creator of Flambeau, and the actors who have played Moriarty.
Frank Abagnale, Jr.
Abagnale, Jr. is the main character in Catch Me If You Can, a movie partially based on a true story. He posed as a pilot, doctor, and lawyer. However, the real-life Abagnale, Jr. made several claims that were proven false.
Aladdin
In the Disney movie of the same name, Aladdin is impoverished and lives on the streets, doing what he can to get by (including stealing). The sorcerer Jafar wants a magic lamp hidden deep in the caves, so he convinces Aladdin to retrieve the magic lamp from the Cave of Wonders. Aladdin does so, unaware that Jafar intends to use it for evil.
The Artful Dodger
The Artful Dodger, also known as Jack Dawkins, originated from Charles Dickens’s Oliver Twist. The orphan was given a place to live in exchange for learning thievery by the greedy Fagin. Fagin pushed Jack to pull off one more crime, though Jack was torn between his work helping others and the crimes he committed for so many years.
Danny Atlas
Atlas is a character in Now You See Me played by Jesse Eisenberg, and he’s part of a magic troupe called The Four Horsemen. The quartet forms after receiving tarot cards and magic show instructions from a mysterious benefactor.
The resulting magic shows pull off amazing bank heists with a twist. They redistribute stollen money from corrupt corporations, one of which wronged insurance victims, to the audience members. FBI and Interpol agents are hot on their heels, but Atlas ensures they’re always two steps ahead.
Neal Caffrey
Matt Bomer plays Caffrey on the show White Collar. Caffrey has more than two dozen aliases and a knack for forgery. During his arrest, he points out some counterfeits to the arresting FBI agent. Instead of going to prison, he begins working with the FBI to identify white-collar criminals.
Catwoman (Selina Kyle)
Kyle’s a popular movie, comic, and TV thief turned Batman ally. Her background varies a bit between the comics, movies, and TV shows. However, she’s an extremely likable, cunning thief. Several actors made Catwoman memorable, including Julie Newmar, Lee Meriwether, Eartha Kitt, Michelle Pfeiffer, and Anne Hathaway.
Dom Cobb
Leonardo DiCaprio plays Cobb in the movie Inception. He’s a thief with a unique talent. He enters people’s dreams to steal their ideas. He’s offered a role in implanting ideas into people during their dreams. As he’s promised in return he’ll be cleared of his wife’s alleged murder and reunite with his children, he agrees.
Thomas Crown
The Thomas Crown Affair stars Steve McQueen as Thomas Crown in the original and Pierce Brosnan in the remake. Crown is a billionaire with a penchant for stealing priceless works of art. He’s involved in a cat-and-mouse chase with an insurance investigator, played by Faye Dunaway and Renee Russo. She’s always hot on his heels as she chases him around the world trying to end his thefts.
Hercule Flambeau
TV’s Father Brown is an endearing British cozy mystery show starring Mark Williams. It’s based on the book series by G. K. Chesterton. Flambeau appears in the 10th episode of the first season and returns frequently after that.
Each time he shows up, Flambeau steals a priceless religious artifact, and Father Brown is determined to stop him. Over time, Brown forms a friendship with Flambeau, the latter transitioning from thief to detective, although thievery is what he does best.
Henry Gondorff
Paul Newman played Gondorff in the movie The Sting. Gondorff is an alcoholic con artist. When a crime boss orders the murders of Johnny Hooker’s partners, Hooker seeks out Gondorff to help him swindle the crime boss to seek retribution. The Sting won seven Oscars and Robert Redford was nominated for his performance as Hooker.
Hans Gruber
He’s ruthless, yet Alan Rickman’s portrayal of Gruber is one of the best, which puts him on my list of the greatest fictional thieves. He’s the movie thief John McClane (Bruce Willis) goes up against in the theft of $640 million from Nakatomi Plaza in Die Hard.
Max Guevara
Many viewers think the network canceled Dark Angel way too soon. It starred Jessica Alba as Max, a genetically created Manticore soldier. She escapes the compound and lives in a post-apocalyptic world. At night, she steals things to have the money she needs to keep herself and other Manticore escapees safe.
Earl Hickey
In My Name is Earl, Hickey (Jason Lee) is a small-town thief who wins $100,000 on a scratch card. After celebrating the win, he loses the ticket when he’s hit by a car. Believing his misfortune to be karma, he seeks to right all of his life’s wrongs. This prior thief spends each episode reversing the crimes he committed.
Robin Hood
He and his men stole from the rich to give to the poor. Understandably, he has no tolerance for the Sheriff of Nottingham’s tax collections on townspeople. Many actors have portrayed Robin Hood over the years. Douglas Fairbanks portrayed him in a 1922 silent film. Errol Flynn, Sean Connery, Kevin Costner, Cary Elwes, Russell Crowe, and Taron Egerton have also portrayed this popular movie thief.
Doug Judy, aka The Pontiac Bandit
The Pontiac Bandit is Detective Jake Peralta’s nemesis. He gets his name from his crimes, which include, accordingly, stealing Pontiacs. Played by Craig Robinson, many fans grew to enjoy his character. While he’s a thief, he also proves to be one of the most cunning the team from Brooklyn Nine-Nine encounter. As it goes, they continue catching him, but he keeps escaping.
Omar Little
Michael K. Williams plays Omar Little on The Wire. This thief steals from notorious drug dealers, so it’s hard for fans to dislike him. The character had a few redeeming qualities, like his goal to never hurt an innocent person in his crimes.
Mac MacDougal
Sean Connery portrayed MacDougal in Entrapment, opposite Catherine Zeta-Jones. As a notorious art thief, MacDougal is approached by Zeta-Jones to help her pull off a heist of a priceless Chinese mask. The problem is she’s an investigator hoping to entrap him in the crime. MacDougal is an enjoyable thief to watch as he’s always a step ahead.
Neil McCauley
Robert DeNiro portrayed McCauley in the movie Heat. McCauley is a thief on a job stealing bonds from an armored vehicle. One of the crew kills a guard, forcing the others to kill additional guards, which angers McCauley. He makes it his mission to kill the thief who didn’t follow instructions, as retaliation for exposure risk. It’s based on a true story.
Professor Moriarty
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle created Moriarty as a rival to Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson. Moriarty uses shrewd insights and intelligence to advise others on how to pull off the perfect crime. In exchange, he receives a share of the profits. In TV and movies, several actors have portrayed him, including Vincent D’Onofrio, Jared Harris, Andrew Scott, and Eric Porter.
Sonny Wortzik
The Dog Day Afternoon character Wortzik is based on John Wojtowicz. Wojtowicz was a bank robber attempting to rob a Chase Manhattan Bank branch in Brooklyn. His stated motive was to pay for his partner’s gender-affirming surgery.
Al Pacino received an Oscar nomination for his portrayal of Wortzik. (To explore more of true crime’s notable thieves, read 25 of the Biggest Bank Heists in History.)
The image featured at the top of this post is ©Courtesy of Universal Pictures.