| 100% | ESTRAGON | 8 | Major character in Samuel Beckett's stage play Waiting for Godot; the French name for a common herb |
| 70% | ESTRAGON | 8 | French name for the herb tarragon; character in Samuel Beckett's stage play Waiting for Godot |
| 41% | POZZO | 5 | Master of Lucky in 1953 Samuel Beckett stage play Waiting for Godot |
| 39% | SIRPETER | 8 | & 16D 1787 Epsom Derby winner named after a character in R B Sheridan stage play The School for Scandal |
| 36% | GODOT | 5 | Vladimir and Estragon wait for him in a Samuel Beckett play |
| 33% | GODOT | 5 | Waiting for __, Samuel Beckett stage play |
| 33% | ARIEL | 5 | Uranian moon named for a character in The Tempest |
| 32% | WALKER | 6 | Most common name for a zombie in the Walking Dead |
| 32% | SULU | 4 | "Star Trek" character who was named for a sea in the Philippines |
| 32% | GODOT | 5 | Character in a Samuel Beckett play who never shows up |
| 31% | LOTHARIO | 8 | Character in 1702 Nicholas Rowe stage play The Fair Penitent whose name has come to mean any rake or libertine |
| 31% | BBALL | 5 | A casual name for the sport played by teams in 16a: Hyph. |
| 31% | BECKETT | 7 | He wrote the play "Waiting for Godot": Samuel __ |
| 31% | GODOT | 5 | Whom Vladimir and Estragon were waiting for, in a Beckett play |
| 31% | OURTOWN | 7 | Play in which the Stage Manager is a character |
| 31% | HOOLIGAN | 8 | The —, 1911 one-act stage play by W S Gilbert subtitled A Character Study |
| 30% | CHARLIEDAY | 10 | He plays a character with the same first name (and the last name Kelly) on "It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia": 2 wds. |
| 30% | PLEBEIAN | 8 | Name for a common citizen in Ancient Rome |
| 29% | GUY | 3 | Titular role for Ryan Reynolds in a 2021 movie (also, coincidentally, Ryan Reynolds's character's name in The Croods) |
| 29% | WAITING | 7 | Samuel Beckett play, __ for Godot |
| 29% | MET | 3 | The __, affectionate name for a major NYC museum |
| 29% | ASIDE | 5 | Remark in a stage play intended to be heard by the audience alone, not the other characters |
| 29% | EEL | 3 | California river named for a common sight in it |
| 29% | AIMWELL | 7 | 1785 Derby winner named after a penniless rake in 1707 stage play The Beaux' Stratagem by George Farquhar |
| 28% | ARCHIERICE | 10 | Title character in 1957 John Osborne stage play The Entertainer |
| 28% | CLOVES | 6 | Herbs named after the French word for nails |
| 28% | GODOT | 5 | Unseen character in a Beckett play |
| 28% | GODOT | 5 | Awaited character in a Beckett play |
| 28% | SAMUELBECKETT | 13 | "Waiting for Godot" playwright with a Dublin bridge named in his honor: 2 wds. |