4. Haymitch Abermathy - The Hunger Games (2012)
As its sequel hits cinemas, it's worth remembering the contribution that Harrelson made to getting The Hunger Games off the ground. In case you didn't know, The Hunger Games is a dystopian sci-fi thriller set in the fictional future country of Panem. Every year a teenage boy and girl are chosen from each of twelve districts to compete in the titular Hunger Games, a televised fight to the death whose victors enjoy great wealth and prosperity. The first film focusses on the fate of Katniss Everdeen (Jennifer Lawrence), who goes in her younger sister's place from District 12 and proceeds to shake things up... The Hunger Games is a fantastic, smart and often shocking sci-fi thriller, which borrows liberally from the genre's past to raise important ideas about our present-day culture. Harrelson's role is a crucial one, as the jaded, alcoholic former champion who coaches both Katniss and Peeta (Josh Hutcherson) to victory. He succeeds where many others would have failed, making the character eventually sympathetic and trustworthy without taking the rough, sarcastic edges off him. It's a very fine performance whose weathered, wily scepticism counterpoints Katniss' stubborn idealism.