Far Out Magazine looks back at 1986, which the piece argues was a standout year for morally complicated film characters, tracing how antiheroes evolved from John Wayne's Ethan Edwards in the 1950s through the darker, more transgressive figures of the 1970s. It notes that by 1986 audiences had grown more accepting of flawed protagonists, even if the era's antiheroes were tamer by today's standards, and highlights the year's strongest examples of characters willing to bend morality to achieve their goals.

Among the entries discussed are Jeff Goldblum's Seth Brundle in David Cronenberg's The Fly, whose scientific ambition leads to his tragic transformation into an insect-like creature; Paul Newman reprising Fast Eddie Felson in Martin Scorsese's The Color of Money, playing opposite Tom Cruise; and Bob Hoskins as an ex-con drawn into a dangerous infatuation in Neil Jordan's Mona Lisa. The article was cut off before completing its full list, though it also references Gary Oldman as another entrant recognised for a daring performance that year.