10 Movies With Title Characters Who Aren't The Lead

8. The Great Gatsby

Godfather Marlon Brando
Warner Bros. Pictures/Roadshow Entertainment

Despite what the title would suggest, F. Scott Fitzgerald's classic novel The Great Gatsby is Nick Carraway's story, not Jay Gatsby's. Nick narrates the novel and appears in every scene. Gatsby, on the other hand, comes in and out of the story, feeling more like a mysterious specter at times than a character, and dies with a chapter still to go.

Baz Luhrmann's 2013 adaptation of Fitzgerald's work keeps Nick in the leading role, but Gatsby's name remains in the title. It's still Nick's story, even as Tobey Maguire gets second billing to Leonardo DiCaprio.

Still, The Great Gatsby works well as a title, since it sets up Gatsby as a mysterious figure in Nick's life.

Contributor
Contributor

Richard C. Kraus (Richie to pretty much everyone) is an American college student and world record holder for most views of the 2015 film Ant-Man. He aspires to be a screenwriter, actor, and not tired.