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Lists about the indigenous people and cultures native to modern day Canada and the United States. 

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Looking for the best Native American characters in film and TV history? When it comes to fair representation in pop culture, Native Americans are pretty scarce. However, of the small percentage of these characters in entertainment, most are known for leaving a lasting impression.

Not simply limited to historic roles in films like Dances With Wolves, this list&nbsp;features superheroes, detectives, crime fighters, and more. In fact, most of these characters feature&nbsp;leading&nbsp;roles - which is a far cry from the olden days where most Native American actors were only reserved for Westerns. Every&nbsp;character on this list brings something special to the table, whether they&rsquo;re in animated form, historical garb, or superhero attire. Do you have a favorite character?

Vote up the best Native American characters on this list or add your own favorites who aren&#39;t listed but deserve to be acknowledged.

The 25+ Best Native American Characters, Ranked

The Best Native American Characters In Movies & TV

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Walter Crow Horse

Walter Crow Horse is a fictional character from the 1992 film Thunderheart.

Kicking Bird

Wind In His Hair

Chingachgook

Chingachgook is a fictional character from the 1968 film The Last of the Mohicans.

Suzy Song

Suzy Song is a fictional character in the 1998 film Smoke Signals.

Chief Bromden

Chief Bromden is a fictional character from the 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest.

Chester Lake

Detective Chester Lake is a fictional character played by Adam Beach in the American crime drama television series Law & Order: Special Victims Unit on NBC. Lake is the first detective of Native American descent on a Law & Order series. Lake is first seen during the eighth season working with the Brooklyn division of the New York Police Department's Special Victims Unit. At the end of the season, he transfers to the Manhattan SVU, where he is partnered with Fin Tutuola during the ninth season. Lake is arrested in the season finale, "Cold", after he kills a fellow police officer.
Beach met series creator Dick Wolf while filming Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee and signed on as a regular to the show shortly afterwards. However, it was quickly felt that there were too many detectives in the cast, and the character of Lake was written out after only one season. The character was unpopular with viewers, and reception of Lake was generally negative.

Thomas Builds-the-Fire

Thomas Builds-the-Fire is a fictional character in the 1998 film Smoke Signals.

Little Bear 

Maggie Eagle Bear

Maggie Eagle Bear is a fictional character from the 1992 film Thunderheart.

Virgil White

Victor Joseph

Victor Joseph is a fictional character in the 1998 film Smoke Signals.

Warpath

James Proudstar, known first as Thunderbird II and then as Warpath, is a fictional superhero appearing in American comic books published by Marvel Comics, commonly in association with the X-Men. Proudstar first appeared as the second Thunderbird in New Mutants #16.
Originally blaming the X-Men for the death of his brother, Thunderbird, he joined the villainous Hellions group to get revenge. He later reconsidered his views and became a longtime member of the militant X-Men offshoot X-Force. After a long journey to the Shi'ar Empire with the Uncanny X-Men, Warpath became a member of the new incarnation of X-Force, but he left after the events of Necrosha.
An Apache Native American, Proudstar possesses mutant superhuman strength and speed. His powers resemble those of his older brother, the short-lived X-Men member Thunderbird, although Warpath's power-levels are much higher. Warpath is one of the few mutants to retain his powers after the Decimation.
Warpath appeared in the 2014 film, X-Men: Days of Future Past, portrayed by Booboo Stewart.

'Jose' Chavez y Chavez

Tonto

Tonto is a fictional character, the Native American companion of the Lone Ranger, a popular American Western character created by George W. Trendle and Fran Striker. Tonto has appeared in radio and television series and other presentations of the characters' adventures righting wrongs in 19th century western America.
In Spanish, "tonto" translates as "moron" or "fool". So in the Spanish dubbed version, the character is called "Toro".
Tonto made his first appearance on the 11th episode of the radio show, which originated on the Detroit, Michigan, radio station WXYZ. Though he became well known as the Lone Ranger's friend, Tonto was originally created just so the Lone Ranger would have someone with whom to talk. Throughout the radio run, with only a few exceptions, Tonto was played by American actor John Todd.
This character was portrayed on television by Jay Silverheels. This was the highest-rated television program on the ABC network in the early 1950s and its first true "hit."
In The Tarzan/Lone Ranger Adventure Hour, he was voiced by Ivan Naranjo, a Blackfoot/Southern Ute actor who hailed from Colorado.

Billy Sole

Hanzee Dent

Ohanzee "Hanzee" Dent is a fictional character in the FX television series Fargo. He appears very briefly in the first season, played by Mark Acheson, and then as a supporting character in season two set 27 years earlier, played by Zahn McClarnon.

Chakotay

Chakotay is a fictional character who appears in each of the seven seasons of the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Voyager. Portrayed by Robert Beltran, he is First Officer aboard the Starfleet starship USS Voyager. The character was suggested at an early stage of the development of the series. He is a Native American, the first time that a main character in the Star Trek franchise has come from that culture. This was an intended move by the producers of the series, who sought to provide an inspiration as with Uhura in Star Trek: The Original Series for African Americans. In order to develop the character, the producers sought the assistance of Jamake Highwater. Despite first being named as a Sioux, and later a Hopi, Chakotay was given no tribal affiliation at the start of the series, something that was later resolved in the episode "Tattoo". Beltran was not of US Native American descent, but is of Mexican descent.
The character first appeared in the pilot episode of the series, "Caretaker". The character continued to appear throughout the series in a main cast role, with his final appearance in the finale, "Endgame".

Nightwolf

Nightwolf is a fictional character in the Mortal Kombat fighting game series. He debuted in Mortal Kombat 3 as a Native American shaman and historian who is chosen as a warrior of Earthrealm during Shao Kahn's invasion. As one of the main characters, he was also featured in the game's companion media, such as the live action film Mortal Kombat Annihilation and the animated series Mortal Kombat: Defenders of the Realm.
He is also playable in the updates Ultimate Mortal Kombat 3 and Mortal Kombat Trilogy. After being absent from Mortal Kombat 4 and Mortal Kombat: Deadly Alliance, he reemerged as a player character in 2004's Mortal Kombat: Deception and also appeared in the follow-ups Mortal Kombat: Armageddon and the 2011 Mortal Kombat reboot. Response to the character has been mixed, with some citing Nightwolf as an example of a Native American stereotype.

Stands With a Fist

Fern White

John Redcorn

John Redcorn III, is a character in the animated series King of the Hill. He is addressed or referred to as "John Redcorn" or "Mr. Redcorn" by every character in the series, and very rarely just "John" or "Johnny."
A former roadie for Winger and "Licensed New Age Healer", he is Nancy Gribble's Native American masseur, her lover of 14 years and the biological father of Joseph Gribble. Both Dale and Joseph are completely unaware of this, although it is obvious to everyone else in the neighborhood, due to the close resemblance between Joseph and Redcorn. He has a sister, who Nancy seems to assume told everyone about their affair. A recurring gag is that whenever Dale makes a comment about marijuana, John Redcorn shows up.
In episode 38, Peggy Hill, still oblivious to the relationship between John Redcorn and Nancy Gribble, goes to Redcorn for help with a real headache. When Hank confronts Redcorn, he says he would never "heal" Peggy the way he heals "other women". The implication is that Redcorn is somewhat known as a womanizer.
John Redcorn drives a tan Jeep Wrangler, and becomes the lead singer of the band Big Mountain Fudgecake, for which Lucky plays guitar and Dale is briefly the manager. Following the breakup of the band, Redcorn begins singing toned-down solo acoustic children's versions of his songs at the Strickland company barbecue and becomes instantly popular. It was revealed that Big Mountain Fudgecake got back together near the end of the episode "Earthly Girls are Easy". When driving, he is often heard playing Pat Benatar including the hits "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" and "Heartbreaker". He is also notable for playing music from the band Foreigner, such as "Hotblooded" and "Double Vision." Redcorn is often seen reading a book about Native American rights in North America, entitled This Land is Our Land. A recurring gag is that when he begins speaking about matters related to Native traditions and their spiritual meanings, Redcorn's long black hair is dramatically whisked up in a breeze. Despite Redcorn's dedication to his heritage, it has sometimes backfired on him. When Bobby Hill becomes interested in Native American rights, Redcorn seems pleased. However, Bobby unknowingly says that Redcorn's tribe engaged in cannibalism, which then causes a mortified Redcorn having to explain to everyone how that practice was discontinued centuries ago.

Elisa Maza

Elisa Maza is a fictional character and the human protagonist of the Disney animated television series Gargoyles, voiced by American actress Salli Richardson. In the series, she is an NYPD detective who is the steadfast ally of the titular gargoyles' Manhattan Clan.
Elisa has an especially close relationship with the gargoyle Goliath, the clan's leader. She also serves as the clan's guide to the modern world as well as its voice of reason, often curbing the irrational impulses of its members.

Pocahontas

Pocahontas is a fictional character from the 2014 film Search Party.

Apache Chief

Apache Chief is a Native American superhero from the various Super Friends cartoons, which were created by Hanna-Barbera and based on the comic book series of same name. He was one of the new heroes added to increase the number of non-white characters in the Super Friends ranks. He was voiced by Michael Rye in most of his appearances, Regis Cordic in his debut appearance and Renny Roker in "History of Doom".
In the Challenge of the Super Friends series, Apache Chief was seen in every episode except one, but had spoken lines in only nine out of the sixteen episodes of the series. His arch enemy from the Legion of Doom was Giganta, who also happens to be an original arch enemy of Wonder Woman.

Looking for the best Native American characters in film and TV history? When it comes to fair representation in pop culture, Native Americans are pretty ...