18 of the Best Nerd Characters in Film

Listen, I know Cady Heron is supposed to be a nerd in Mean Girls, but she definitely has a problem figuring out her nerd identity. I'd much rather talk about Kevin Gnapoor (Rajiv Surendra), who is super happy to be a nerd but also not boxed in by it. Sure, he is super pumped to pick up a Mathletes jacket (with leather sleeves!). But Kevin's more than that: He's as unafraid to go all out at the school talent show as he is to ask out a pretty girl. We should all aspire to be so brave.

Speaking of brave, who doesn't love the smartest Gryffindor since Godric himself? Hermione (Emma Watson) is Harry Potter's Elizabeth Bennet, Jo March, and Matilda—basically, the canniest and pluckiest person in the room. But unlike those three characters, Hermione has Ron and Harry, who know she is the smartest person they'll ever meet. Seeing her in all her bushy-haired glory onscreen is a triumph for any girl who knows she can save the world (and her best friends from themselves), as long as she's got a library nearby.

Unlike Hermione, Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) just doesn't get any respect. While some nerds earn a ton of credit for their ideas (like, say, most Nobel Prize winners), Susan Cooper is left to languish in the CIA basement, pining after her co-worker Agent Fine and doing all the hard work for him while he got all the glory. (NOBODY ELSE DO THIS, PLEASE.) So it is incredibly satisfying to see her use all those nerd skills to best all her fellow agents and actually get the job done, in record time.

Meanwhile, The Mummy's Evie (Rachel Weisz) is so clumsy she might have been excluded from archeological projects on purpose, simply to avoid any terrible accidents. However, when she does get out there, she's the one who makes a plan to defeat the Mummy and remains brave in the face of kidnapping and potential demon possession.

Another brainy woman who is cool under pressure. Dr. Sattler (Laura Dern) has no time for Dr. Ian Malcolm's inappropriately flirty antics, or Dr. Hammond's hubris and sexism, or, you know, sudden influxes of velociraptors.

Unlike the suave and carefree Kumar, our beloved nerd Harold (John Cho) is hardworking, fastidious, and sweet to a fault, even in a world that's determined to crush him into a little box. While he starts the movie trying to toe the line and stay under the radar, by the end of the movie he's had it, and it is so satisfying to watch. After you calm a cheetah, survive a raccoon attack, and experience the usual microaggressions that come with being a person of color to finally get those goddamned White Castle burgers, telling off your racist co-workers and telling the girl of your dreams you're into her is a total cakewalk.

Malcolm (Shameik Moore) technically calls himself and his friends "geeks," but we think being bullied for getting good grades and applying to college definitely qualifies him as a nerd. Luckily, Malcolm's nerdiness actually gets him out of more than one difficult and dangerous situation—who knew bitcoins could be used for so much good?—and while he doesn't get the girl, at least he helps her get her GED.

Speaking of Childish Gambino, can we agree that Donald Glover's Rich Purnell is one of the best examples of a nerd on film? First, like an actual scientist, he cares more about correct calculations than appearances or authority figures. Second, he figures out how to save the main character with the quickest, sharpest plan—without needing to brag about it. Who needs to brag when your intelligence speaks for itself? Also, he makes rocket noises.

Arnau (Karan Soni) is protagonist Darius's fellow intern at Seattle Magazine. He may be a side character, but he's also shy and sweet, and a biology major who only took the internship to diversify his resumé. He seems perfectly content to let everyone be themselves, even as they push and pull him to be something better.

While the Lilly of the movies is written to be a lot less gung-ho than the book version, Heather Matarazzo brings a certain ruthless sass to her role as a princess's best friend. While Mia is certainly very nerdy, Lilly has a certain pride and alacrity to her nerdiness, with her strong opinions, argumentative spirit, and cable access show, Shut Up and Listen! She also encourages Mia to have the same spirit when it comes to her princesshood—to see her newfound power and privilege as a means to do good.

Between Lilly and Hermione Granger, you'll notice a lot of nerds tend to be impassioned and involved in activism that targets unfair power structures. Layla (Danielle Panabaker) joins the sidekick section of her superhero school because she protests the unfair two-track system of "sidekick" and "superhero." (Which, really, what a terrible way to organize education.)

One of the major precepts of nerdiness is caring too much about something most people know nothing about. So of course this ragtag group of aca-nerds definitely count.

Don't think I don't know this movie isn't basically an advertisement for Google—that it's the Wedding Crashers of Alphabet Inc. But listen, of course the kids who want to work at Google are total nerds. They can't talk to pretty girls (or boys), they get bullied by jerks with British-y accents and great hair, and they understand the newest technologies, but mostly, they work their butts off. And, okay, I can't NOT love a movie that stars a brown girl who reads fanfiction. Love you, Neha.

Data!!!!! All those Goonies would still be drowning in that mysterious body of water if it weren't for Data (Jonathan Ke Quan) and his amazing inventions. Data would definitely be the CEO of a Fortune 500 company who explores random ocean trenches in his spare time by now.

Gabriella (Vanessa Hudgens) is the nerd to Troy's jock in this Disney gem, but they both attempt to break out of their predetermined roles to be part of the school musical. Gabriella's nerd-dom is mostly telegraphed by her writing a ton of equations on a giant chalkboard and her fellow math nerds looking on in amazement. Classic movie nerd.

While most nerds are hardworking and dedicated, it's rare to see the kind of pressure they put on themselves (and receive from others) depicted. So often nerds are just shown with a stack of books and that's enough—but Brian (Anthony Michael Hall) talks about the actual pain he suffers under the intense scrutiny from his parents, his teachers, and himself. Tough as it might be, nerds everywhere sighed with relief to see this problem recognized.

Why just Tibby and Lena, and why not Carmen and Bree? Well, Carmen might actually be too cool to be a nerd. (Sorry, I don't make the nerd rules.) And Bree is clearly a jock. But Tibby (Amber Tamblyn), while dark-spirited, is committed to her documentary work, and Lena (Alexis Bledel) is most interested in getting closer to her grandparents and learning Greek. Both of them are introverted, self-contained worlds unto themselves, who only break out from them when people force them to.

Elle (Reese Witherspoon) is one of those secret nerds—kind of like a cross-cultural diplomat. In her story, some nerds can be just as mean and judgmental as the next person. But while being a nerd doesn't mean you're a good person, it does mean that you can get your client out of a murder charge AND set up a good friend with a cute guy AND show up your ex-boyfriend all at the same time.