The all-time greatest movie hairdos on screen
We chart the greatest hair moments to have graced the silver screen.
UPI mediaFilm: Atomic Blonde
Character: Lorraine Broughton
Played by: Charlize Theron
Charlize Theron's kickass role in Atomic Blonde was made even better by her equally awesome choppy bob, sleek fringe and seriously major makeup. Nailed it.
Film: The Huntsman: Winter's War
Character: The Ice Queen
Played by: Emily Blunt
While we loved the film, the thing that stood out for us in The Huntsman was the amazing hair and makeup. The Ice Queen's silvery grey plaited locks were the stuff of total movie dreams.
Film: Star Wars
Character: Princess Leia
Played by: Carrie Fisher
We’d be hard-pushed to find a more iconic movie hairstyle than Carrie Fisher’s oversized double bun look. Instantly recognisable, Princess Leia became a poster girl for sci-fi aficionados in the 70s and we bet it’s all to do with that hair and nothing at all to do with that bikini. Nothing, at all.
Film: The Tourist
Character: Elise Clifton-Ward
Played by: Angelina Jolie
If you’ve managed to catch this 2010 romantic thriller-come-crime caper, you’ll remember that it’s also pretty much an ode to how preternaturally gorgeous Angelina Jolie is. Wearing sweeping ball gowns throughout most of the film, Elise’s unbelievable day-to-day glamour is regularly topped off with a pretty jaw-dropping chignon or long, bouncy curls.
Film: Clueless
Character: Cher Horowitz
Played by: Alicia Silverstone
Despite celebrating its 18th anniversary this year (HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?!) Cher’s swishy, long blonde shiny perfect schoolgirl hair – as well as matching tartan skirt and jacket outfits – is still a beauty ideal to this day.
Film: Breakfast at Tiffany’s
Character: Holly Golightly
Played by: Audrey Hepburn
Another of the most iconic dos to have ever graced the silver screen is undoubtedly Audrey Hepburn’s 60s-inspired chignon piled high at the top of the crown, complete with a jewel and her trademark cropped fringe. When we grow up, we want to have hair exactly like this.
Film: Goldmember
Character: Foxxy Cleopatra
Played by: Beyoncé
Remember when Bey had a little stint as Austin Powers’ third love interest-come-sidekick? We definitely do and it’s probably all on account of her spectacularly awesome ombre afro that she donned for the film. Ah-ma-zing.
Film: 10
Character: Jenny Miles
Played by: Bo Derek
Comedy 10 may be known for many things but most famously, it has to be Bo’s cornrows as she strides across the beach, further fanning the flames of passion for Dudley Moore’s character, George. Indeed, though many a pop group in the 90s tried to revive the cornrow, none have been able to top Bo Derek’s shoulder-length braids.
Film: The Mask
Character: Tina Carlyle
Played by: Cameron Diaz
It wasn’t just Cam’s killer curves or mean salsa skills at the Copacabana that snared the affections of goofball-mask-wearing Stanley Ipkiss, that 60s-inspired (via the 90s) shoulder length crop with plenty of volume around the crown worked its magic, too.
Film: Romeo + Juliet
Character: Juliet Capulet
Played by: Claire Danes
This half-up-half-down do with the mini halo braid at the back is still one of our all-time favourite movie hairstyles, not least because this is one of our all-time favourite movies, per se. While we mostly try and recreate this look at every fancy dress party, ever, we’re also secretly hoping that Claire will moonlight this do again in an episode of Homeland. We reckon fellow redhead Brody would love it.
Film: 101 Dalmations
Character: Cruella DeVil
She may have been a crazy old bat with deathly intentions for Pongo and Perdy’s pups but there’s no denying that Cruella makes monochrome hair very much own.
Film: Splash
Character: Madison
Played by: Daryl Hannah
We can remember the first time we ever saw romantic comedy Splash as we’ve never wanted someone’s hair more. Madison’s super-long blonde tresses were true mermaid hair made real and actually, on looking at this still, we’ve totally resolved to not cut our hair again for a while.
Film: Ghost
Character: Molly Jensen
Played by: Demi Moore
Whilst more well-known for a certain pottery scene, Ghost saw Demi Moore's star go stratospheric and her trademark shaggy pixie crop was promptly copied by millions of women.
Film: The Wedding Singer
Character: Julia Sullivan
Played by: Drew Barrymore
Set in the heart of the 80s, Jools’ cutesy bob with perfectly flicked out ends was a welcome bit of hair relief in amongst the giant backcombed bird's nests that most of the other characters in this movie sport. Although Adam Sandler’s mullet also deserves a special mention.
Film: The Lord Of The Rings
Character: Gandalf The White
Played by: Ian McKellan
After Gandalf The Grey falls into a fiery pit and spars with a demon, he is reincarnated as Gandalf The White and also suddenly sports amazing silken white locks.
Film: Fatal Attraction
Character: Alex Forrest
Played by: Glenn Close
Despite being one of the craziest characters to have ever been immortalised on screen, bunny-boiler Alex did have great 80s hair.
Film: Gone With The Wind
Character: Scarlett O’Hara
Played by: Vivien Leigh
Scarlett O’Hara’s 19th century southern belle curls pinned on each side are the stuff that old Hollywood glamour is made of. Since its release in 1939, audiences have been in love with the sweeping glamour of the flick almost as much as Vivien Leigh’s incarnation of head-strong Scarlett.
Film: Shakespeare In Love
Character: Viola De Lesseps
Played by: Gwyneth Paltrow
Gwynnie should have bagged an Oscar for her stunning hairdos in this period flick, as well as the Best Actress gong that she scooped. Her long, wavy locks hanging like spun gold gave us major hair envy when we first watched this at the cinema, and don’t even get us started on those brilliant Elizabethan hair accessories...
Film: Interview With The Vampire
Character: Louis de Pointe du Lac and Lestat de Lioncourt
Played by: Brad Pitt and Tom Cruise
Surely one of the best manpuzel anti-bromances ever to be relayed on the big screen is Brad and Tom’s vampires, Louis and Lestat. Whether dressed up with 18th century regency ponytails or hanging loose with a nod to early 90s grunge, these two vamps almost, almost give one Edward Cullen a run for his super-human hair money.
Film: Skyfall
Character: M
Played by: Judi Dench
We know that M’s hair really is just Judi Dench’s normal hair but it’s such an awesome look and insanely gorgeous colour that it deserves a special mention as one of the best looks on film.
Film: Almost Famous
Character: Penny Lane
Played by: Kate Hudson
How we wanted to channel everything Kate Hudson wore in this film, when it first came out in 2000. The tight corkscrew curls and John Lennon specs were totally the look we went for that summer, albeit, with slightly less aplomb.
Film: Titanic
Character: Rose DeWitt Bukater
Played by: Kate Winslet
Naturally fair-haired, we’ve got to admit, we’ve never loved Kate Winslet more than when she played society redhead Rose. With a head of enviable unruly auburn locks, it’s the type of movie hair that looked so incredible from every angle; we headed straight for the hair dye aisle at our local Boots.
Film: Marie Antoinette
Character: Marie Antoinette
Played by: Kirsten Dunst
A sumptuous movie to look at, Sofia Coppola’s Marie Antoinette also managed to capture the young queen’s incredibly tall hair, too.
Film: Some Like It Hot
Character: Sugar Kane Kowalczyk
Played by: Marilyn Monroe
How could a list of the all-time greatest hairstyles in movies not include a mention of Hollywood dame, Marilyn Monroe? Answer: none. Indeed, the original blonde bombshell’s short curly bob is still copied to this day.
Film: The Fifth Element
Character: Leeloo
Played by: Milla Jovovich
The entire movie contains some pretty notable hairstyles, not to mention facial hair (Gary Oldman’s Mr. Zorg, yes we are looking at you) but none is as instantly recognizable as Milla’s acid orange blunt-cut bob.
Film: Black Swan
Character: Nina Sayers
Played by: Natalie Portman
Okay, we’ll admit that this may not be getting a mention for the hair but more Nat’s stage swan make-up which half beautiful and half utterly frightening, has quickly become the go-to look for Halloween revellers.
Film: Practical Magic
Character: Sally and Gillian Owens
Played by: Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman
When we think of amazing hair in movies, we always think of Sandra and Nic’s hair in Practical Magic. The glamorous 90s witches just looked so cool with their super-long rapunzel hair and once again, for the 10th time penning this feature, we’ve decided to grow our hair out. Again.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Aladdin
Character: Jasmine
Blimey jingles; Jasmine was basically our childhood icon. After making sure that we made our mums buy us more than an acceptable number of turquoise clothes, we also totally copied the double-banded ponytail and don’t get us started on the hunt to find a similar jewelled headpiece.
Film: Sliding Doors
Character: Helen Quilley
Played by: Gwyneth Paltrow
As well as being one of the most popular crops of the decade, Gywnnie’s Sliding Doors ‘do can’t help but make us think of those Gwyneth and Brad Pitt days.
Film: Pretty Woman
Character: Vivian Ward
Played by: Julia Roberts
One of the best romantic comedies ever made also stars one of the best hairstyles of all time, too. Julia Roberts flew the flag for redheads everywhere in 1990 when her massive curly ‘do set a bench mark for naturally beautiful hair. However, we’ll also give an honourary nod to Richard Gere’s silver fox do in the movie as well as Vivian’s peroxide blonde wig that she wears at the beginning, too. In short; great movie, great hair.
Film: Mean Girls
Character: Regina George
Played by: Rachel McAdams
All-American Mean Girl Regina has one good head of perfect blonde hair, even though you’re skirt is probably the ugliest effing skirt she’s ever seen.
Film: The Mummy
Character: Evy Carnahan
Played by: Rachel Weisz
Remember that bit in The Mummy where Evy is dressed for her desert trek by some local ladies and lo and behold her sexy head of raven curls are suddenly blowing in the wind? Sigh. How we wanted that to be our hair. Alas, ours just turns to frizz in the heat.
Film: The Little Princess
Character: Sara Crewe
Played by: Shirley Temple
Say the words “Shirley Temple” and one can’t help but think of former child star Shirley’s angelic little head of corkscrew curls.
Film: There’s Something About Mary
Character: Mary
Played by: Cameron Diaz
Possibly amongst the most memorable hairstyles in movies, ever – albeit for entirely the wrong reasons – Mary’s mistake over Ted’s “hair gel” results in one of the most, erm, solid hairdos on film.
Film: Pulp Fiction
Character: Mia Wallace
Played by: Uma Thurman
Best bob, ever?
Film: Dr. No
Character: Honey Ryder
Played by: Ursula Andress
No-one has before or since looked as good emerging from the sea than Ursula Andress does in Dr. No. All slicked back beachy hair, this is a look that we regularly try and recreate on holiday to no avail.
Film: Wall Street
Character: Gordon Gekko
Played by: Michael Douglas
For anyone questioning why we’ve added Wall Street bad boy Gordon into this feature, please watch the film and take note of the fact that he was an early purveyor of the “wet look” trend. It is proof indeed that that much hair gel can create actual mirror shine.
Film: Clueless
Character: Dionne Davenport
Played by: Stacy Dash
Just remember, Dionne does not wear “polyester hair, unlike some people I know like, Shawana.” Indeed, her braids are awesome.
Film: The Addams Family
Character: Wednesday Addams
Played by: Christina Ricci
Middle-parted plaits and a sulky expression have made Wednesday’s hair and beauty look an instant classic.
Film: Four Weddings And A Funeral
Character: Charles
Played by: Hugh Grant
ERM... Hugh’s foppish Four Weddings hair obviously deserves a mention because it is a beacon of British rom-coms.
Film: 10 Things I Hate About You
Character: Kat Stratford
Played by: Julia Stiles
Who didn’t want teen feminist Kat’s hair circa 1999? All long and glossy, it even looked good after ten rounds of paintballing.
Film: Spiderman
Character: MJ
Played by: Kirsten Dunst
MJ’s russet red locks were exactly like the cartoon original and we’ve also always admired this ‘do for the perfectly coloured-matched eyebrows, too.
Film: The Lord Of The Rings
Character: Arwen
Played by: Liv Tyler
Oh, how we wanted to channel Elf chic at Rivendale after we saw the first Lord Of The Rings in 2001. There’s something a little 70s about Arwen’s Rapunzel brunette locks with their easy wave and centre-parting.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Twilight
Character: Edward Cullen
Played by: Robert Pattinson
Gah. R-Patz's Edward Cullen hair is basically perfect boyfriend hair.
Film: Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Character: Maria Elena
Played by: Penelope Cruz
If anyone knows how to get this hair, please tell us immediately.
Film: Twilight
Character: Victoria
Played by: Rachelle Lefevre
Not since Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman had we seen such phenomenal red curls and then came along evil vamp Victoria. Indeed, director Catherine Hardwicke must have realized that this was movie-worthy hair as the closing credits dedicate a whole minute to Rachelle’s bouncy hair as she swishes them down the stairs.
Film: The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
Character: Lisbeth Salander
Played by: Rooney Mara
Although not a style for everyone, it didn’t half give Lisbeth that tough girl edge.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Grease
Character: Sandy Olsson
Played by: Olivia Newton-John
”Tell me about, stud.” < That line pretty much sums up Sandy’s badass 50s ‘do.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Ariel
Character: The Little Mermaid
Another Disney beauty idol was mermaid Ariel, who despite spending most of her time under the sea, seemed to keep the world’s best cartoon blow-dry in place at all times. What a woman.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Love Story
Character: Jenny Cavalleri
Played by: Ali MacGraw
Aside from balling our eyes out through most of this film, one other we did take away from this movie is Jenny’s a-mazing 70s hair. Simple in its centre-parted sleekness, we’re still referencing this look now.
Rex FeaturesFilm: The Breakfast Club
Character: Claire Standish
Played by: Molly Ringwald
Ringwald was one of the most successful teen stars of the 80s: largely thanks to her butter-wouldn't-melt appeal and gorgeous copper bangs.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Rosemary’s Baby
Character: Rosemary Woodhouse
Played by: Mia Farrow
Mia had her hair cropped off by Vidal Sassoon for the Roman Polanski-directed horror flick and the look was to define her career – as well as Sassoon’s.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Dirty Dancing
Character: Baby
Played by: Jennifer Grey
Jennifer’s curly bob was a cute nod to the 50s – the era in which the film was set – but those backcombed curls were undeniable of the era that the film was made in the 1980s. Much copied, everyone wanted the “Baby” look – and probably their own Johnny Castle to boot, too!
Film: The Great Gatsby
Character: Daisy Buchanan
Played by: Carey Mulligan
The roaring 20s were given a very Noughties twist in Baz Lurhmann’s big-budget adaptation of the hit American novel. However, the movie did stay true to the era, especially with Carey’s side-parted silent movie star bob.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Pirate Of The Caribbean
Character: Captain Jack Sparrow
Played by: Johnny Depp
We’re sure that this entry needs no explanation but one thing we will say is that dreadlocks, bronzer and eyeliner on a man has never looked so good.
PA PhotosFilm: Cleopatra
Character: Cleopatra
Played by: Elizabeth Taylor
One of Hollywood stalwart Liz Taylor's most iconic roles: we love this structured raven bob complete with OTT snake hair accessory.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Bonnie & Clyde
Character: Bonnie Parker
Played by: Faye Dunaway
In 1967, as on-screen bad girl Bonnie Parker, Faye Dunaway ensured her place in hair history with her ultra-chic long bob, perfectly curled-under and set off with a jaunty cream beret.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Amelie
Character: Amelie
Played by: Audrey Tautou
Audrey’s turn as Amelie gave us a renewed love of the super-short 20s bob. The cropped fringe is pretty adorable, too.
Rex FeaturesFilm: Top Gun
Character: Carol Bradshaw
Played by: Meg Ryan
Meg Ryan could pull off this shaggy crop with ease thanks to her girl-next-door sex appeal, but it wasn't a look that was easily (or successfully) replicated.
Rex FeaturesFilm: A View To A Kill
Character: May Day
Played by: Grace Jones
Grace’s severe, short crop is one of the ultimate Bond Girl moments. Talk about a fashion-forward henchwoman...
Rex FeaturesFilm: Alfie
Character: Nikki
Played by: Sienna Miller
Sienna’s “Alfie” hair is modern movie classic. All part of that same summer that Sienna Miller suddenly dictated our every wardrobe choice, we’re still after this hairdo now.
Film: The Notebook
Character: Allie
Played by: Rachel McAdams
Where it all began with our eternal love for Ryan Gosling, The Notebook also features some beautiful 50s 'dos for leading lady Rachel. This style with the victory rolls at the front is probably our favourite. (Just us? Or are we beginning to notice a bit of a trend here... Romantic movies = great leading lady hair. Hmm)
Film: Twilight: Breaking Dawn Part 2
Character: Bella Swan
Played by: Kristen Stewart
After playing second fiddle to R-Patz locks for five films, K-Stew came into her in the last Twilight installment when Bella turned vamp. Enter, swishy brunette waves and fluttering eyelashes.
Film: Brave
Character: Merida
ERM... Cartoon hair has provided some of our most wanted hairstyles from films and medieval warrior Merida’s long and unruly red locks are no doubt going to be the new Ariel for little girls everywhere.
