Atheist Characters | A List of Atheist and Agnostic Film and TV Characters

With atheism and agnosticism on the rise (and showing no signs of slowing down!) it seemed appropriate to celebrate the growing movement by once again compiling a list of the worlds most famous atheists -- this time of the fictional variety!

(for famous atheist and skeptical actors, writers, musicians, and other artists, click here)

While the appearance of atheistic and agnostic characters in film and television have been rare we have, believe it or not, had them on our TV sets and movie screens for decades (yes, decades!); all the way back to All in the Family's Meat Head, to nearly every fidgety character portrayed in a Woody Allen film. And now, with such rational thinkers as House, Bones, various characters on Family Guy, Glee, and the many film characters who've come along, the numbers are only rising!

At first glance this may not seem like a very important issue, but one must remember that atheists are a minority just like any other. A minority that has been repeatedly shunned, put down, and had their voices go practically unheard for years. Having openly atheist and agnostic characters appear in popular films and television series' is just one small (yet important) step in helping atheists in general be heard and acknowledged as the people they are; very similar to the way in which homosexuals began to come out and become accepted after characters such as Ellen began to bring awareness to those in the gay minority (if you're old enough, you'll remember just how powerful that impact was).

In the past (and occasionally in the present, although those numbers are dwindling down), most non-believers have been shown in a very negative light when presented to us on the big and small screens. They were either villainous misanthropes who are angry with the world, or they have been condescendingly shown as "lost souls" who only lost their faith not due to logic, but because they felt angry with the "god" that they supposedly didn't believe in. These types of stereotypical plot lines usually end with the atheist either being converted (cured) to Christianity (or some other belief) or being killed. Luckily for us, today these kinds of stereotypes are showing significant signs of slowing down.

So here's what's going to follow: I'll list in alphabetical order (by character names) each atheist/agnostic character. I'll include a photo, a brief reference to their skepticism, and occasionally a video link (when available) of them expressing their feelings about religion, atheism, and/or life in general.

It should be noted that the characters mentioned in this list aren't all the atheist and agnostic characters out there; but they are recognizable ones whose names will be both familiar and surprising. If anyone has any suggestions for the list, leave them in the guestbook at the end of the page; I will then fact check them and add them accordingly if they appear to be legit.