Everyone Who Has Been Named People’s Sexiest Man Alive Since 1985

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November 11, 2024 at 5:03pm EST

• Mel Gibson

  Image Credit: © Warner Brothers/courtesy Everett Collection

  Mel Gibson was awarded the very first “Sexiest Man Alive” title in 1985. That same year, he starred in Max Max: Beyond Thunderdome. 

• Mark Harmon

  Image Credit: Leonard Hill Films/courtesy Everett Collection

  Mark Harmon was the second “Sexiest Man Alive” in history in 1986. Among his projects at the time were Prince of Bel Air, St. Elsewhere and Deliberate Stranger. 

  After winning the title, Harmon admitted he didn’t totally see it. “All I see is a bunch of fake teeth and football scars,” he told the outlet.

• Harry Hamlin

  Image Credit: Gene Trindl / TV Guide / Courtesy Everett Collection

  With his starring role in L.A. Law, Harry Hamlin soon found himself as one of the most talked about men in Hollywood. In 1987, that was solidified with his very own “Sexiest Man Alive” title. 

  “In those days, I was the third one, and in those days they didn’t tell you,” Hamlin told People about his reaction at the time. “I mean, they just sprang it on you.”

• John F. Kennedy Jr.

  Image Credit: Fairchild Archive/Penske Media via Getty Images.

  One of the few non-actors to be named “Sexiest Man Alive”, John F. Kennedy Jr. earned the title in 1988. 

  Over ten years later, the politician and journalist tragically passed away in a plane crash in 1999. 

• Sean Connery

  Image Credit: ©TriStar Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Best known as the very first James Bond, Sean Connery made history when he was named “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1989 at age 60. “For once, I’m speechless,” the actor told People. “It’ll all be downhill from here!”

• Tom Cruise

  Image Credit: ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Tom Cruise was awarded the coveted title in 1990 when he was 28. Knowing how successful he’s been in the industry since, we’re shocked he was named it only once!

• Patrick Swayze

  Image Credit: ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Starring in the hit movie Ghost with Demi Moore really upped Patrick Swayze’s sex appeal. He won the title in 1991.

  “He has a very sweet, gentle, kind heart, and those southern manners,” Moore told People of her co-star. “But he’s also got a very rugged, animalistic physique.”

• Nick Nolte

  Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection

  The eccentric actor has changed a lot since 1992, but his role in Prince of Tides helped him earn the “Sexiest” title.

• Cindy Crawford & Richard Gere

  Image Credit: Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images

  Instead of the “Sexiest Man Alive” title, People awarded exes Cindy Crawford and Richard Gere the “Sexiest Couple Alive” title in 1993. 

  Crawford and Gere were married from 1991 to 1995. 

• Brad Pitt

  Image Credit: ©New Line Cinema/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Brad Pitt first earned the “Sexiest” title in 1995 after starring in Legends of the Fall and Interview with the Vampire. A movie star in the making!

• Denzel Washington

  Image Credit: ©Buena Vista Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Denzel Washington became the first Black actor to earn the title of “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1996. “I don’t take myself too seriously,” he told People at the time. “I don’t stop in the mirror and go, ‘Hey, Sexy Man.'”

• George Clooney

  Image Credit: ©NBC/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Before George Clooney’s silver fox era even began, the actor was given the “Sexiest Man Alive” title in 1997. At the time, in addition to starring in E.R., Clooney also starred in movies like The Peacemaker, Batman & Robin and From Duck Till Dawn. 

• Harrison Ford

  Image Credit: ©Buena Vista Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Harrison Ford’s career is still going strong after becoming the “Sexiest Man Alive” in 1998. 

  “I never feel sexy,” Ford admitted to People at the time. “I have a distant relationship with the mirror.”

• Richard Gere

  Image Credit: ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection

  After being half of the “Sexiest Couple Alive” title, Richard Gere won the “Sexiest Man Alive” title all by himself in 1999. 

  “He walked like a biker, and that attracted me,” one of Gere’s exes, designer Diane Von Furstenberg, told People at the time. “I knew I was going to get my hands on him. I seduced him.”

• Brad Pitt

  Image Credit: Ron Wolfson/Everett Collection

  Speaking of double winners, Brad Pitt won the title for a second time at the turn of the century in 2000. At the time, he had just gotten married to his first wife, Jennifer Aniston. The two were together until 2005. 

• Pierce Brosnan

  Image Credit: ©Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Also known for playing James Bond, Pierce Brosnan was crowned the “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2001. If you’ve seen his Bond movies, Tomorrow Never Dies, The World Is Not Enough, Die Another Day and Golden Eye, then you know exactly why. 

• Ben Affleck

  Image Credit: Paramount/courtesy Everett Collection

  Oscar-winner Ben Affleck was named “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2002.

  “Chicks gravitate to him,” Affleck’s friend and director Kevin Smith told People at the time. “The word on the street is that he’s the ideal man, chatty, gorgeous, generous and intelligent.”

• Johnny Depp

  Image Credit: Janet Mayer/Everett Collection

  Johnny Depp was “Sexiest Man Alive” twice, his first time around was in 2003.

  At the time, Depp was still in the depths of being Captain Jack Sparrow in the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise. “Life’s pretty good, and why wouldn’t it be? I’m a pirate, after all!” he told the magazine. 

• Jude Law

  Image Credit: ©Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection

  In 2004, British actor Jude Law was given the title “Sexiest Man Alive.”

  “He’s the most beautiful man who ever walked the earth — an absolutely perfect oil painting,” said Law’s I Heart Huckabees co-star Naomi Watts. 

• Matthew McConaughey

  Image Credit: Effie Naddel/Everett Collection

  Oscar-winner Matthew McConaughey became the “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2005.

  “Wait until you see the roles I could take after this,” he joked to People at the time. “You’re going to see my gut hanging over, plus 22 [lbs.] It’ll be a whole new kind of sexy!”

• George Clooney

  Image Credit: Michael Germana/Everett Collection

  George Clooney won his second “Sexiest Man Alive” title in 2006. That same year, he won his first Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Syriana. 

• Matt Damon

  Image Credit: ©Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection

  Matt Damon’s performance in the crime thriller The Departed and the action-packed Bourne franchise helped him earn the title of “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2007. “You’ve given an aging suburban dad the ego boost of a lifetime,” Damon told the magazine at the time. 

  Damon and his wife Luciana Damon are parents to four daughters: Alexia, Isabella, Gia and Stella.

• Hugh Jackman

  Image Credit: ©20thCentFox/Courtesy Everett Collection

  The multi-talented Hugh Jackman was named “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2008 when he was 40. That same year, he starred in one of his most famous roles alongside fellow Aussie Nicole Kidman in Australia. 

• Johnny Depp

  Image Credit: Dee Cercone/Everett Collection

  Johnny Depp continued being one of the most handsome actors in Hollywood throughout the 2000s, landing him with another “Sexiest Man” title in 2009.

• Ryan Reynolds

  Image Credit: Gregorio T. Binuya/Everett Collection

  Ryan Reynolds was crowned “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2010.

  “The most difficult part is going to be organically working this title into a conversation with random strangers,” Reynolds joked to People.

  “The sexiest thing about Canadians is that there’s an inherent ability to be self-deprecating,” he then explained. “That has served me well in my career and personal life.”

• Bradley Cooper

  Image Credit: Kristin Callahan/Everett Collection

  Known for his roles in movies like Silver Linings Playbook and American Hustle, Bradley Cooper was named “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2011. 

  “I think it’s really cool that a guy who doesn’t look like a model can have this [title],” Cooper, who had just starred in The Hangover at the time, told People. “I think I’m a decent-looking guy. Sometimes I can look great, and other times I look horrifying.”

• Channing Tatum

  Image Credit: Emiley Schweich/Everett Collection

  Being Magic Mike helped Channing Tatum earn the title of “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2012.

  “My first thought was, ‘Y’all are messing with me,’” Tatum told People of his reaction. 

  At the time, Tatum was married to his ex, Jenna Dewan. “I told Jenna after we’d been in the bathtub washing our dogs because they’d gotten skunked,” he detailed. “Yeah, she calls me [the Sexiest Man Alive] now.” 

  The two went their separate ways in 2019. 

• Adam Levine

  Image Credit: Nicole Springer/Everett Collection

  Best known for fronting the band Maroon 5 and for being a longtime judge on The Voice, Adam Levine graced the cover of People in 2013.

  “As a musician, you have fantasies that you want to win Grammys, but I didn’t really think that this was on the table,” Levine told People at the time, per CNN. “I was just amazed and stunned and it almost seemed like they were kidding, but they weren’t, so that’s cool.” 

  At the time, he had also just gotten engaged to his wife, Behati Prinsloo. 

• Chris Hemsworth

  Image Credit: Emiley Schweich/Everett Collection

  Playing Thor certainly helped Chris Hemsworth earn 2014’s “Sexiest” title.

  “I think you’ve bought me a couple of weeks of bragging rights around the house,” Hemsworth, who shares three kids with wife Elsa Pataky, told People. “I can just say to her, ‘Now remember, this is what the people think, so I don’t need to do the dishes anymore, I don’t need to change nappies. I’m above that. I’ve made it now.’ ”

• David Beckham

  Image Credit: Anthony Harvey/Getty Images

  David Beckham became the first athlete to grace the cover of People as “Sexiest Man Alive” in 2015. 

  “I never feel that I’m an attractive, sexy person,” Beckham humbly told the magazine at the time. “I mean I like to wear nice clothes and nice suits and look and feel good, but I don’t ever think of myself that way.”

• Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson

  Image Credit: Elizabeth Goodenough/Everett Collection

  Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson was all kinds of ecstatic when he was honored with the “Sexiest Man Alive” title in 2016. 

  “I said, ‘That’s awesome.’ And then what went through my mind was just how cool and exciting it is,” Johnson told People. “And then I thought, ‘Wow, we’ve pretty much reached the pinnacle.’ I’m not quite too sure where we go from here. I’ve done it all, this is it.”

  As fans of Johnson know well, he’s been non-stop ever since. 

• Blake Shelton

  Image Credit: Elizabeth Goodenough/Everett Collection

  In 2017, People gave one of their most controversial “Sexiest Man Alive” titles to date by picking country music star Blake Shelton.

  “I can’t wait to shove this up Adam’s a–,” Shelton joked to People, referring to his friend and fellow The Voice judge Adam Levine. “As proud as I am and honored that you guys asked me, that’s really the only thing I care about.”

• Idris Elba

  Image Credit: Everett Collection / Everett Collection

  As one of Hollywood’s most handsome men, fans were surely excited when Idris Elba was named 2018’s “Sexiest Man Alive.”

  “I was like, ‘Come on, no way. Really?’” Elba told People of his initial reaction. “Looked in the mirror, I checked myself out. I was like, ‘Yeah, you are kind of sexy today.’ But to be honest, it was just a nice feeling. It was a nice surprise — an ego boost for sure.”

• John Legend

  Image Credit: Kristin Callahan/Everett Collection

  John Legend may be an EGOT winner, but he wasn’t exactly expecting the “Sexiest Man Alive” title in 2019. 

  “I was excited, but I was a little scared at the same time because it’s a lot of pressure,” Legend told People. “Everyone’s going to be picking me apart to see if I’m sexy enough to hold this title. I’m [also] following Idris Elba, which is not fair and is not nice to me!”

• Michael B. Jordan

  Image Credit: JA/Everett Collection

  Michael B. Jordan was quite chuffed to be joining the “Sexiest Man Alive” club in 2020. 

  “It’s a cool feeling,” Jordan told People. “You know, everybody always made that joke, like, ‘Mike, this is the one thing you’re probably not going to get.’ But it’s a good club to be a part of.”

• Paul Rudd

  Image Credit: CJ Rivera/Everett Collection

  Paul Rudd surely got the most humble “Sexiest Man Alive” award when he won his title in 2021. 

  “I do have an awareness, enough to know that when people hear that I’d be picked for this, they would say, ‘What?'” Rudd told People. “This is not false humility. There are so many people that should get this before me.”

• Chris Evans

  Image Credit: Priscilla Grant/Everett Collection

  Speaking of Marvel superheroes, Chris Evans won the award a year later in 2022. 

  “My mom will be so happy,” Evans told People of his mom, Lisa. “She’s proud of everything I do but this is something she can really brag about.”

• Patrick Dempsey

  Image Credit: RCF/Everett Collection

  In 2023, Patrick Dempsey, aka Grey’s Anatomy’s iconic McDreamy, won his long-deserved “Sexiest Man Alive” title. 

  “I’m glad it’s happening at this point in my life,” Dempsey told People. “It’s nice to have the recognition, and certainly my ego takes a little bump, but it gives me the platform to use it for something positive.”

  Dempsey then talked about the Dempsey Center, a foundation he created in honor of his late mom to support cancer patients and their loved ones.