Sexiest Movie Couples of All Time

Top 25 Sexiest Movie Couples

What's the only thing better than a sexy movie star? Two sexy movie stars, engaging in meet-cutes, flirtations, first dates, love scenes and, occasionally, some good wholesome sadomasochism. We studied the chemistry and measured the heat factor to bring you this countdown of the sexiest movie couples ever to grace the silver screen. -- By Stacy Jenel Smith, Stephanie DuBois and Emily Feimster

25. Antonio Banderas and Catherine Zeta-Jones

'The Mask of Zorro' (1998)

Now here's a man who knows how to use a sword! Sexy Spaniard Banderas won us all over when he undressed the beautiful Zeta-Jones with the simple slashing of his sword, then scooped her into his arms for a sensuous kiss. Call her a damsel in undress. Muy caliente!

24. Matthew MacFadyen and Keira Knightley

'Pride & Prejudice' (2005)

Some insiders weren't sure if the young Knightley could keep up with the classically trained MacFadyen on-screen, but the two ultimately proved to be a perfect pair in this adaptation of the beloved Jane Austen novel. And who are we kidding, people? English accents are hot.

23. Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange

'The Postman Always Rings Twice' (1981)

They have an adulterous affair and off her husband, so we know that Frank (Nicholson) and Cora (Lange) are very, very bad. But what really got people going in this adaptation of the James M. Cain novel was the kitchen-table sex scene that looked so hot, audiences questioned whether or not it was actually simulated.

22. Richard Gere and Julia Roberts

'Pretty Woman' (1990)

Scenes like the one in which Gere's corporate raider is lying in a steamy bubble bath with Roberts' never-ending legs wrapped around him left moviegoers breathless. The fact that audiences could fall so hard for the story of a John and his hooker with a heart of gold speaks volumes about the stars' magnetism.

21. Naomi Watts and Laura Harring

'Mulholland Dr.' (2001)

What does David Lynch's neo-noir mind-bender all mean? Who cares, when the movie offers a scene as steamy as Watts and Harring's unexpected detour into girl-on-girl erotica. Though Watts hasn't does anything nearly as risqué since her star-making role, we're still holding out hope.

Top 25 Sexiest Movie Stars

20. Denzel Washington and Sarita Choudhury

'Mississippi Masala' (1991)

"Hot and spicy, Miss Masala -- that's what I'm going to call you," says Denzel's Demitrius Williams, smitten with the Indian beauty he first encounters in a fender bender on the rural roads of the titular state. Their ensuing passion in this story about love and racism is sensual, sweet and, yes, hot and spicy.

19. Omar Sharif and Julie Christie

'Doctor Zhivago' (1965)

Sharif brought new meaning to the description "tall, dark and handsome" as Dr. Yuri Zhivago, the surgeon-poet torn between loyalty to his wife and true love for his mistress and muse, Lara (Christie), in this Oscar-winning epic tale set against the backdrop of the Russian Revolution. And Christie wasn't too shabby herself.

18. Ryan Gosling and Rachel McAdams

'The Notebook' (2004)

They're star-crossed lovers -- Allie (McAdams) is rich, Noah (Gosling) poor -- whose passion survives war, family betrayal, even betrothal to others. Gosling and McAdams make us believe in the young love that becomes the enduring bond able to bring them back from the abyss of Alzheimer's in their twilight years.

17. Robert Redford and Barbra Streisand

'The Way We Were' (1973)

Katie (Streisand) is a Jewish Marxist activist, and Hubbell (Redford) is a Goy Boy gadabout writer -- and together they prove opposites can attract, quite mightily. In one unforgettable scene, her face radiates with the sheer bliss of waking up and finding the super-studly Redford in her bed. Good morning, indeed.

16. Patrick Swayze and Jennifer Grey

'Dirty Dancing' (1987)

Sparks are bound to fly in a movie about sexually suggestive rump-shaking, and what girl didn't want to be Grey when the swaggering Swayze boldly proclaimed, "No one puts Baby in a corner!"? Though the two actors initially didn't get along off-screen, their chemistry in front of the camera is undeniable.

15. Marlon Brando and Eva Marie Saint

'On the Waterfront' (1954)

"It felt like he understood me more than I understood myself, knew more about me than I felt I knew about myself," Saint said in Moving Pictures Magazine, recalling her relationship with Brando while making this Oscar-winning classic. It's no wonder: Their intimacy is palpable during every frame together.

14. Oliver Martinez and Diane Lane

'Unfaithful' (2002)

The lust-soaked film about an out-of-control affair between a wife (with Richard Gere as the cuckold!) and a mysterious book dealer demanded plenty of endurance -- and nudity -- from its stars. Director Adrian Lyne reportedly did so many takes of their explicit sex scenes, he repeatedly used up full magazines of film. Tough job ...

13. Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal

'Brokeback Mountain' (2005)

It may not be the most conventional love story -- it's about two "gay cowboys," as it was simplified during its release -- but it's certainly one of the steamiest, with two of Hollywood's hottest actors boldly giving themselves over for their craft. The forbidden love tale also produced the unforgettably heartbreaking confession, "I wish I could quit you."