| 100% | IRENE | 5 | Adler who is the protagonist of the novel “Good Night, Mr. Holmes” |
| 48% | JANE | 4 | Patrick ___, protagonist of the drama "The Mentalist" who was based on Sherlock Holmes |
| 47% | BILL | 4 | "___ Denbrough," fictional character who is the main protagonist of Stephen King's 1986 novel "It" |
| 46% | BONDS | 5 | Baseball great who was the subject of the 2006 best seller "Game of Shadows" |
| 45% | BLU | 3 | Fictional macaw who is the protagonist of the "Rio" franchise and is named after his color |
| 44% | BELLA | 5 | "Twilight" protagonist who is the mother of Renesmee |
| 44% | LUIGI | 5 | Mario's younger and taller fraternal twin brother who is the protagonist of the video game "Mario is Missing!" |
| 43% | EMILEZOLA | 9 | Author who was the title subject of the Best Picture of 1937 |
| 42% | CANDICEBERGEN | 13 | Actress who was the first female host of "Saturday Night Live": 2 wds. |
| 42% | NERO | 4 | Detective Wolfe who was the subject of 33 mystery novels by Rex Stout |
| 42% | AMES | 4 | Harry of the novel "The Man Who Cried I Am" |
| 42% | SEBASTIAN | 9 | Shakespearean character who is the brother of Viola in "Twelfth Night" and who settled in the region of Illyria |
| 41% | CANDICEBERGEN | 13 | "Murphy Brown" star who was the first female host of "Saturday Night Live": 2 wds. |
| 41% | GEORGECLOONEY | 13 | "Good Night, and Good Luck" director who directed the 2023 film adaptation of Daniel James Brown's nonfiction novel "The Boys in the Boat" (2 wds.) |
| 41% | VINCENTVAN | 10 | Post-Impressionist Dutch artist who is the renowned painter of "The Starry Night," ___ Gogh: 2 wds. |
| 41% | DANIELLESTEEL | 13 | Novelist who is the fourth best-selling fiction writer of all time |
| 40% | ANNASEWELL | 10 | English novelist who published only one novel in her lifetime, "Black Beauty," which is one of the top ten best selling children's novels: 2 wds. |
| 40% | MONICA | 6 | "The First Night" singer who was the other half of 18-Across's duet |
| 40% | NIGEL | 5 | Richards who is generally regarded as the best Scrabble player of all time |
| 40% | SAMROCKWELL | 11 | "The Best of Enemies" actor who is the voice of Vic Reynolds on "F Is for Family" (2 wds.) |
| 40% | MANSFIELDPARK | 13 | Jane Austen's novel published in 1814 which is the story of the protagonist Fanny Price: 2 wds. |
| 40% | PETERSON | 8 | Patrick ___, Arizona Cardinals cornerback who was rated as one of the best of 2016 |
| 40% | MADDEN | 6 | Benji and Joel ___, twin brothers who are part of the rock band Good Charlotte |
| 40% | TOLLS | 5 | "For Whom the Bell ___," novel by Ernest Hemingway, set in the Spanish Civil War and is regarded as one of his best works |
| 39% | KETCHUM | 7 | Ash ___, fictional character in Pokemon franchise who is the main protagonist of the anime series |
| 39% | MEGA | 4 | ___ Man, animated protagonist of the eponymous video game franchise who is also known as Rockman |
| 39% | ALEX | 4 | ___ Cross, fictional former FBI agent and psychologist created by James Patterson who is the protagonist in many of his books |
| 39% | GUS | 3 | Mouse who was best friends with the protagonist in the 1950 animated musical fantasy film "Cinderella" |
| 39% | HUCKLEBERRY | 11 | ___ Finn, a fictional character who first appeared in 51a and is a friend of the protagonist |
| 39% | ALEC | 4 | Baldwin who was the first performer on screen in the current season of "Saturday Night Live" |