Bad To The Bone – Hollywood’s Coolest Bikers

Samuel Hames, SpicyPulp.com
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Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of Hollywood's best known motorcycle enthusiasts.

Arnold Schwarzenegger is one of Hollywood's best known motorcycle enthusiasts.

This year the Governator himself, Arnold Schwarzenegger, returned to the silver screen in the continuation of the Terminator franchise with Terminator Genisys, and as always Harley Davidson had a role to play. Arnie redefined cool in 1992’s Terminator 2: Judgment Day with the help of a 1990 Harley Davidson Fatboy, which he rode in the film’s adrenaline charging chase scene. Schwarzenegger passion for bikes got us thinking about other members of Hollywood’s A-List who are bikes fans, and here’s our top five list.

Marlon Brando

Brando with his Triumph Thunderbird in The Wild One.

The original wild one, Marlon Brando, was an acting force of nature that lived up to the spirit of his role as motorcycle rebel Johnny Strabler in the 1953 film which put motorcycle clubs on the map in The Wild One. Brando’s use of a Triumph Thunderbird 6T would become legend, even inspiring other actors to adapt them, as did James Dean who brought a Triumph TR5 Trophy to help emulate his acting idol. Brando’s image as a rebel motorcyclist set the stage for a new type of screen anti-hero, and would inspire many other actors in the years to follow to adapt a passion for motorcycles.

Steve McQueen

The epitome of 1960s Hollywood cool, Steve McQueen was a legendary motorhead with an obsession for anything that he could drive, ride or fly. When he started out motoring was a way for him to provide for himself, and his first wife, Neile Adams, as McQueen would use his skills on a Metisse Desert Racer to earn money in dirt bike races. His call to Hollywood super stardom would be behind the handlebars of his 650 Triumph TR6 Trophy in The Great Escape, culminating in the infamous wire fence jump. In a testament to his skills, McQueen was reportedly too fast for cameras to capture him on screen, and was asked to slow down by director John Sturges.

Tom Cruise

Tom Cruise, the ultimate Hollywood A-Lister who redefined the notion of cool in 1986 with Top Gun, and a Kawazaki GPZ900R (above), which undoubtedly made him a superstar. As one of Hollywood’s leading motor enthusiasts, and one of its biggest daredevils, Cruise continues to push the limits of what’s possible with a motorcycle as seen in Mission Impossible 2 when he rode a Triumph Speed Triple 955i in the films climatic chase. Cruise has again returned as super spy Ethan Hunt with Mission impossible: Rogue Nation and teared up the screen on a BMW S1000RR superbike. 

Ryan Reynolds

Ryan Reynolds, Hollywood’s all around good guy is known just as much for his love of bikes as he is for his good looks, and outstanding comedic timing. He learned to ride as a kid, and has a passion for Triumphs, with his top choice of recent years being a Triumph Bonneville. Reynolds is known to prefer the more classically styled bikes, although he was recently seen on a BMW S1000RR. He regularly posts his bikes to his social media pages, and a shot of him with famed designer Dustin Kott on the recent set of Deadpool left fans very excited. 

Ryan Reynolds with Dustin Kott of Kott Motorcycles.

Charlie Hunnam

Charlie Hunnam in FX's hit series Sons of Anarchy

Charlie Hunnam is the new rebel of the bunch, a rising Hollywood star who could be considered to be the spiritual descendant of Brando’s Strabler in his performance as outlaw biker Jax Teller on Sons Of AnarchySince the show first aired Hunnam has made it his thing to be seen never without his Harley-Davidson Dyna-Glide Sport both on or off set, with numerous paparazzi shots showing him on his bike, and sporting the rebel attitude that made him famous. 

 

What do you think of our picks? Let us know who you think are Hollywood's top bikers on Facebook at Facebook.com/DrivenNZ

-SpicyPulp.com