Top 10 Mob Movie Characters

Based on a real-life gangster, Frank Lucas went from limo driver to second-in-command, and finally to big dog of the Harlem, New York drug trade. More specifically, he smuggled massive amounts of potent heroin via American war planes returning from the Vietnam War, eliminating the middle-men and eventually forming a monopoly on the trade. As you can imagine, this caught the eye of cops pretty fast; but Lucas managed to stay under their radar with ordinary clothes and a generally conservative style – most of the time, that is.

This movie chronicles the rise of organized crime in America, as well as the struggle to survive a life of poverty – all tied together by one character. Though he starts as a simple street thug, Noodles grows up to be a hotshot in the bootlegging world during Prohibition. Unfortunately, as we all know, that time came to an end, so he and his Jewish gangster pals had to find another way to subsist. But crime doesn’t pay – at least for most people – and Noodles learns that the hard way.

He’s the Sicilian consigliere for a Detroit-area mobster, sent to find the whereabouts of one Clarence Worley, and his employer’s lost drugs. With his slick hair and even slicker duds, he’s a guy who’s used to getting what he wants – and if that takes intense psychological torture, so be it. Fortunately for us, Clifford’s not playing along, so we get one intense verbal showdown. Though he’s not much more than a cameo, this character is unforgettable. And his kiss of death is the stuff of movie legend.

Loosely based on real-life professional sports bettor Frank Rosenthal, Ace Rothstein is a mob associate who’s sent to Vegas to take care of business at one of the mob-owned casinos. And take care of business he does, using his uncanny business sense, eye for detail and his buddy Nicky Santoro to help double the casino’s profits. Ace deals with the ups and downs of the biz and his personal life, as well as the changing face of the Las Vegas scene – but learns that life at the top comes with complications.

A mobster who paints a thin line between cop and criminal, Frank Costello is an Irish-American crook running his game on the streets of South Boston. Raising Colin Sullivan to become the perfect mole, he sends his trainee to the Massachusetts State Police. But, Costello’s also gotta deal with a rat inside his own organization. More concerned with his own well-being than that of his men, Costello can be brutally violent one day, and darkly wacky another – and it’s that unpredictability that makes him such a terrifying villain.

He’s a nasty little gangster with a teeny-weeny anger management problem – meaning he’ll fly off the handle at the slightest provocation. Based on a real-life associate of the Lucchese crime family, Tommy’s got a temper you don’t want to test and the guts of a man much bigger than his small stature. With a somewhat unexpected and undying love for his dear old mother, Tommy shows he also has a softer side – that is, until someone makes the mistake of laughing at him. Then, fuggedaboutit.

Don Vito Corleone’s youngest son and a recently returned WWII veteran, Michael wants nothing to do with the ruthless business that comes with being part of the Corleone family. But, as can only be expected in a family so rooted in organized crime, Michael gets sucked in and becomes a crime boss for the ages, ensuring his family’s safety and supremacy the only way he knows how. And though he eventually tries to go legit, Michael learns the hard way that once you’re in, you’re in for life.

After he grew up worshipping the local Mafia, it was only a matter of time before Henry Hill joined the ranks himself. And despite his part-Irish background, he’s brought into the fold by mobster Jimmy “The Gent” Conway. Along his journey of violence and money-making schemes, Henry learns some vital lessons that lead to survival in the mob world. However, prison time, cocaine addiction and more prison time take their toll, and leave Hill desperate and dealing with the consequences of his choices.

Cuban immigrant Tony Montana quickly takes his place in the Miami crime world, at first under cartel leader Frank Lopez. But Tony’s smart, ambitious, cocky as hell and won’t take no for an answer; so with money on his mind and mountains of cocaine at his disposal, he rises to the top. He’s a living embodiment of the American Dream, or at least he seems to think so, and a vital part of society. He also does not know when to call it quits, which is both his best and his worst attribute.

Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions:
- Mickey Cohen
“Gangster Squad” (2013)
- Brick Top
“Snatch” (2000)
- Marsellus Wallace
“Pulp Fiction” (1994)
- Jabba the Hutt
“Star Wars Episode VI: Return of the Jedi” (1983)

Another immigrant who came to America to make his fortune, and who turned to crime to do it, Vito Corleone builds his to be New York’s strongest and most influential Mafia family. Don Vito transformed from a petty street thug into a powerful mob boss by following a strict set of guidelines, which limit his group’s activities to what he considers victimless crimes. But most important of these rules is: family first. Ruthless when he needs to be, merciful when he wants to be, Vito Corleone is quite simply cinema’s most compelling and memorable mob character.

Do you agree with our list? Which mob movie character is your favorite? For more criminal top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.