15 People Who Inspired the Famous Characters We Love Today

While some famous characters were derived completely from their creators’ figment of the imagination, a lot of beloved characters were actually inspired by real people they knew. Lucy who suffers amnesia in 50 First Dates, for example, is based on Michelle Philpots who suffers the same fate and has a husband that reminds her every day that she is married.
Miss Piggy, The Muppet Show

James Bond

Jean Valjean, Les Misérables
Lucious Lyon, Empire

Tony Stark, Iron Man

Cora Crawley, Countess of Grantham in Downton Abbey

Holly Golightly, Breakfast at Tiffany’s

Hannibal Lecter, The Silence of the Lambs

Olivia Pope, Scandal

Ebenezer Scrooge, A Christmas Carol

Victor Navorski, The Terminal

Princess Aurora, Sleeping Beauty

Rocky Balboa, Rocky

Temperance “Bones” Brennan, Bones

Popeye

Bonus: Sheldon Cooper, The Big Bang Theory