(not including mutant, alien or sci-fi/fantasy beings)
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Detective in Movies, Sorted by Earliest Year |
 C. Auguste Dupin → No screen presence An upper class gentleman appearing in stories by such as The Murders in the Rue Morgue (Created by Edgar Allan Poe). •Novels: 1841,1842, 1844. |
 Sherlock Holmes-1 → Portrayed in the 1983 movie by Ian Richardson A renowned detective in four novels, 56 short stories, and many movies including The Hound of the Baskervilles (Created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle). •Novels: 1887‑1915 •Short stories: 1891‑1927 •Movies: many •TV series: many. |
 Arsène Lupin → Portrayed by Georges Descrières Gentleman thief and master of disguise in books, stage, comics, numerous movies, and several TV series including the French show Arsène Lupin (Created by Mauraice Leblanc ). •Books: 1907‑2012 •Movies: 1908‑2011 •TV series: 1971‑2007. |
 Joseph Rouletabille → Portrayed in the 1949 French movie by Serge Reggiani A journalist in several movies and a novel series starting with The Mystery of th Yellow Room (Created by Gaston Leroux). •Novels: 1907‑1923 •Movies: 1913‑2005 •TV series: 1965‑1966. |
 Boston Blackie → Portrayed by Chester Morris A reformed jewel thief in movies such as Meet Boston Blackie (Written by Jack Boyle). •Movie: 1918‑1949. |
 Bulldog Drummond → Portrayed by Ronald Coleman A gentleman adventurer in novels, short stories, and several movies including Calling Bulldog Drummond (Created by H. C. McNeile). •Novels: 1920‑1969 •Short stories: 1937 •Movies: 1922‑1969. |
 Hercule Poirot → Portrayed in the British TV series by David Suchet A dignified and meticulous Belgian detective in novels, short stories, movies and TV including Agatha Christie's Poirot (Created by Agatha Christie). •Novels: 1926‑1975 •Movies: 1931‑1986 •TV series: 1989‑2013. |
 Philo Vance → Portrayed in the 1933 movie by William Powell An aristocrat of unusual culture and brilliance in novels and movies including The Kennel Murde Case (Created by S. S. Van Dine). •Novels:1926‑1939 •Movies: 1929‑1947. |
 Sarah Keate → Portrayed by Ann Sheridan and others A nurse in novels and movies such as The Patient in Room 18 (Created by Mignon Eberhart). •Novels: 1929‑1932 •Movies: 1935‑1938. |
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 Simon Templar (known as The Saint) → Portrayed by Roger Moore in the TV series A British amateur detective portrayed in books, radio, movies and TV by various actors over many years; for example, in the TV series The Saint (Originally created by Leslie Charteris). •Books: 1928‑1963 •Movies: 1938‑1943 •Radio: 1944‑1951 •Comics: 1948‑1961. |
 Ellery Queen → Portrayed in the 1975 TV series by Jim Hutton A mystery writer and editor of a magazine in novels, movies, and several TV series including The Adventures of Ellery Queen (Ghost writers as Ellery Queen). •Novels: 1929‑71 •TV series:1950‑1956, 1975‑1976 •Movies: 1940‑1942. |
 Nancy Drew → Portrayed by various actors over the years including Sophia Lillis in the 2019 film as seen in image. A young high school graduate in many books, a TV series and several movies including the 2019 movie Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase (Many writers under the ghost name Carolyn Keene ). •Novels: 1930‑2003 •TV series: 1997, 1995, 2019 •Movies: 1938‑1939, 2002. |
 Miss Marple → Portrayed in movies by Margaret Rutherford An old spinster is of independent means in a novels series, movies and TV series including 4.50 from Paddington (Created by Agatha Christie). •Novels: 1930‑1976 •Movies: 1961‑1964 •TV series: 1984‑1992, 2004‑2013. |
 Sam Spade → Portrayed in the 1941 movie by Humphrey Bogart A hard and shifty P.I. in a novel, short stories, and movies, including The Maltese Falcon (Created by Dashiell Hammett). •Novel: 1930 •Short stories: 1932 •Movies: 1931‑1978. |
 Hildegarde Withers → Portrayed by Edna May Oliver and later others. Spinster school teacher and amateur detective who collaborates, and frequently butts heads, with Inspector Oscar Piper in a series of novels and movies such as Murder on the Blackboard (Created by Stuart Palmer). •Novels: 1932‑1969 •Movies: 1932‑1972. |
 Paul Drake → Portrayed by William Hopper The private detective working for Parry Mason Perry Mason (Created by Erle Stanley Gardner). •Novels: 1933‑1973 •Movies: 1934‑1940 •TV series: 1985‑1995, 2020. |
 Nick and Nora Charles → Movie portrayal of Nick by William Powell An alcoholic former private detective and a wealthy heiress in the novel and several movie adaptations such as The Thin Man (Created by Dashiell Hammett). •Novel: 1934 •Movies: 1934‑1947 •TV series: 1957‑1959. |
 Nero Wolfe → Portrayed in the 2001 TV series by Maury Chaykin An armchair detective in novels, short stories, movies, radio, and several TV series including A Nero Wolfe Mystery (Created by Rex Stout). •Novels: 1934‑1985 •Movies: 1936, 1937 •TV series: 1981, 2001‑2003. |
 Jack Casey → Portrayed by Richard Carlye A photographer who helps the police solve crimes in books, movies, radio, and the TV series Casey, Crime Photographer (Created by George Harmon Coxe). •Books: 1942‑1964 •Movies: 1936, 1938 •TV series: 1951‑1952. |
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 Lemmy Caution → Portrayed by Eddie Constantine Witty, crafty womanizing private detective in the book series and French movies such as La môme vert de gris (Created by Peter Cheyney). •Books: 1936‑1945 •Movies: 1953‑1991. |
 Duncan Maclain → Portrayed by Edward Arnold.
A blind detective with a seeing-eye dog in the novel series of the detective and movies such as Eyes in the Night (Created by Baynard Kendrick). •Books: 1937‑1961 •Movies: 1942, 1945. |
 Sexton Blake → Portrayed by Laurence Stanley Payne A bargain basement Sherlock Holmes solving mysteries of all manner. Sexton Blake (Written by Harry Blyth (using the pseudonym Hal Meredeth)). •Comic strips: 1939‑1979 •Silent movies: 1909‑1928 •Movies: 1935‑1945 •TV series 1967‑1971. |
 Nick Carter → Portrayed by Walter Pidgeon In the movie Nick Carter, Master Detective, based on the long-running radio series of the same name. Nick Carter, Master Detective (Movie script written by Bertram Millhauser). •Movie: 1939 •Radio series: 1943‑1945. |
 Philip Marlowe → Portrayed in the 1978 movie by Robert Mitchum A wisecracking, hard-drinking, tough P.I. in novels, TV series, and movies including The Big Sleep (Created by Raymond Chandler). •Novels: 1939‑1989 •Movies: 1942‑1978 •TV series: 1959‑1960, 1983‑1986. |
 Michael Shayne → Portrayed in the movies by Lloyd Noland Detective in old style, gathering suspects in one place and naming the murderer, in a series of books, TV series, and several movies such as Michael Shayne, Private Detective (Created by Brett Halliday). •Books: 1939‑1958 •Movies: 1940‑1946 •TV series: 1960‑1961. |
 Gay Falcon (and many aliases) → Portrayed by George Sanders, then his brother Tom Conway A suave English gentleman detective solving mysteries in various venues, such as The Gay Falcon (Created by Michael Arlen). •Movies: 1941‑1949 •TV: 1954‑1955. |
 Dick Barton → Portrayed by Tony Vogel An ex-Commando who solved all sorts of crimes in the radio series, movies and the TV series Dick Barton: Special Agent (Produced by Raymond Raikes and others). •Radio series: 1946‑1951 •Movies: 1948, 1949, 1950 •TV series: 1979. |
 Mike Hammer → Portrayed on TV by Stacy Keach A P.I. who doesn't shy away from violence in the series of novels, movies, and several TV series such as Mike Hammer, ;Private Eye (Created by Mickey Spillaine). •Novels: 1947‑2014 •Movies: 1952‑2003 •TV series: 1958‑1960, 1984‑1998. |
 Lew Archer (renamed to Harper in movies) → Portrayed by Paul Newman An often world-weary P.I. working in Southern California in books, a TV series and movies such as Harper (Book written by Ross MacDonald). •Books: 1949‑1976 •TV series: 1975 •Movies: 1966, 1974, 1975. |
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 Feluda (aka Prodosh Chandra Mitra) → Portrayed in 1974 movie by Soumitra Chatterjee An Indian detective of Bengali origin in novels and movies such as Sonar Kella (Created by Satyajit Ray). •Novels: 1966‑1997 •Movies: 1974‑2014. |
 John Shaft → Portrayed by Richard Roundtree A black P.I. in the style of James Bond in three movies beginning with Shaft (Screenplay by Ernest Tidyman). •Movies: 1971, 1972, 1973. |
 Spenser → Portrayed by in the TV series Robert Urich A smart-mouthed tough P.I. in novels, movies and the TV series Spenser: For Hire (Created by Robert B. Parker). •Novels: 1973‑2014 •TV series: 1985‑1988 •Movies: 1999, 2000, 2001. |
 Matt Helm (not like the book or movie versions) → Portrayed by Anthony Franciosa Retired spy, now a private detective in the TV series Matt Helm (Developed by Sam Rolfe). •TV series: 1975‑1976. |
 Matthew Scudder → Portrayed in the movie by Liam Neeson An alcoholic ex-cop in the several novels including A Walk Among the Tombstones (Created by Lawrence Block). •Novels: 1976‑2019 •Movie: 2014. |
 William of Baskerville (Italian name is Guglielmo da Baskerville) → Portrayed in the miniseries by John Turturro and Sean Connery in the movie. An enlightened friar in 1337 investigates a series of mysterious deaths at an abbey in The Name of the Rose (The miniseries created by Giacomo Battiato and based on the novel by Umberto Eco). •Novel: 1980 •Movie: 1986 •TV miniseries: 2019. |
 V. I. Warshawski → Portrayed in the movie by Kathleen Turner A lean and athletic female P.I. appearing novels, short stories, and the movie V.I. Warshawski (Created by Sara Paretsky). •Novels: 1982‑2013 •Movie: 1991. |
 Dave Robicheaux → Portrayed by Tommy Lee Jones Former New Orleans officer and recovering alcoholic in the book series and two movies including The Electric Mist (Created by James Lee Burke). •Books: 1987‑2013 •Movies: 1996, 2009. |
 Easy (Ezikeil) Rawlins → Portayed by Denzel Washington A World War II veteran. Based on the novel. Devil in a Blue Dress (Created by Walter Mosley). •Novel: 1990 •Movie: 1995. |
 Byomkesh Bakshi → Portrayed by Rajit Kapur An Indian-Bengali fictional detective and refers to himself as a truth-seeker or Satyanweshi in the TV series Byomkesh Bakshi (Created by Basu Chatterjee). •TV series: 1993‑1997 •Movie: 2015. |
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 Alex Cross → Portrayed by Morgan Freeman Even tempered psychologist and former FBI agent in several books and movies such as Along Came a Spider (Created by James Patterson). •Books: 1993‑2014 •Movies: 1997, 2001. |
 Jesse Stone → Portrayed by Tom Selleck Former baseball shortstop and homicide detective in the book series and several movies, such as Benefit of the Doubt (Created by Robert B. Parker). •Books: 1997‑2015 •Movies: 2005‑2012. |
 Elona Holmes → Portrayed by Millie "Bobby" Brown The sister of Sherlock Holmes in the book series The Enola Holmes Mysteries and the movie Enola Holmes (Created by Nancy Springer). •Book series: 2006‑2010 •Movie: 2020. |
 Sherlock Holmes-2 → Portrayed in the 2009 movie by Robert Downey Jr. A renowned detective in a series of novels and adaptations on stage and radio, in TV series, and movies, including Sherlock Holmes (Directed by Guy Ritchie). •Movie: 2009. |
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First earliest date on each page | |
| 1 | 1841 (The Murders in the Rue Morgue) |
| 2 | 1928 (The Saint) |
| 3 | 1936 (La môme vert de gris) |
| 4 | 1966 (Sonar Kella) |
| 5 | 1993 (Along Came a Spider) |
Detective in Movies Sorted by Earliest Year | ||
| # | Year | Title |
| 1. | 1841 | (The Murders in the Rue Morgue) |
| 2. | 1887 | (The Hound of the Baskervilles) |
| 3. | 1907 | (Arsène Lupin) |
| 4. | 1907 | (The Mystery of th Yellow Room) |
| 5. | 1918 | (Meet Boston Blackie) |
| 6. | 1920 | (Calling Bulldog Drummond) |
| 7. | 1926 | (Agatha Christie's Poirot) |
| 8. | 1926 | (The Kennel Murde Case) |
| 9. | 1928 | (The Patient in Room 18) |
| 10. | 1928 | (The Saint) |
| 11. | 1929 | (The Adventures of Ellery Queen) |
| 12. | 1930 | (Nancy Drew and the Hidden Staircase) |
| 13. | 1930 | (4.50 from Paddington) |
| 14. | 1930 | (The Maltese Falcon) |
| 15. | 1932 | (Murder on the Blackboard) |
| 16. | 1933 | (Perry Mason) |
| 17. | 1934 | (The Thin Man) |
| 18. | 1934 | (A Nero Wolfe Mystery) |
| 19. | 1936 | (Casey, Crime Photographer) |
| 20. | 1936 | (La môme vert de gris) |
| 21. | 1937 | (Eyes in the Night) |
| 22. | 1939 | (Sexton Blake) |
| 23. | 1939 | (Nick Carter, Master Detective) |
| 24. | 1939 | (The Big Sleep) |
| 25. | 1939 | (Michael Shayne, Private Detective) |
| 26. | 1941 | (The Gay Falcon) |
| 27. | 1946 | (Dick Barton: Special Agent) |
| 28. | 1947 | (Mike Hammer, ;Private Eye) |
| 29. | 1949 | (Harper) |
| 30. | 1966 | (Sonar Kella) |
| 31. | 1971 | (Shaft) |
| 32. | 1973 | (Spenser: For Hire) |
| 33. | 1975 | (Matt Helm) |
| 34. | 1976 | (A Walk Among the Tombstones) |
| 35. | 1980 | (The Name of the Rose) |
| 36. | 1982 | (V.I. Warshawski) |
| 37. | 1987 | (The Electric Mist) |
| 38. | 1990 | (Devil in a Blue Dress) |
| 39. | 1993 | (Byomkesh Bakshi) |
| 40. | 1993 | (Along Came a Spider) |
| 41. | 1997 | (Benefit of the Doubt) |
| 42. | 2006 | (Enola Holmes) |
| 43. | 2009 | (Sherlock Holmes ) |
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