7. Daryl Dixon (The Walking Dead)
In the hands of an average actor, canon foreigner Daryl Dixon would not have lasted very long. Fans of the comic initially disliked the idea of the TV adaptation replacing characters they loved with all-new characters they had no emotional investment in. But in the hands of Norman Reedus, then best known as half of The Boondock Saints, the titular characters of a cult hit film of the same name, Daryl quickly proved he had teeth, and not the zombie kind. Originally intended to be a minor background character, (and depending on who you ask dead before the first season ended), Norman played Daryl as the wounded bitter loner staying with the group at first only because it's smarter to have numbers, but quickly began to show subtle hints of a deeper more complex personality than the redneck stereotype he began as. Before the season's end, he had clearly become a breakout fan favorite, even among nitpicky comic fans that scrutinized every point where TV strayed from Comic. He was upgraded to full "I'm in the opening credits bitches!" series regular by the beginning of season 2, where he won the fans over even more. First by his intense dedication to finding the missing daughter of a group mate he was clearly becoming close to, determined to bring her daughter back alive and almost dying in the process. Then through his slow careful letting down of his walls until, even though he remained wary and on the edge of the group, began to see them as family and grew protective of them. By the end of the second season a few of the hardcore comic fans began to hate Daryl due to what they viewed as "Aggressive Fangirls trying to make everything about Daryl", but outside that small minority, he's still easily one of the most popular and beloved characters, along with Hershel, Glenn and Michonne. Judging by the newly released Comicon trailer for Season 4, Daryl appears to be taking more of a hands-on leadership role among the survivors, and barring Norman deciding to leave the show himself, is likely to be sticking around.