This list is a work in progress, so we'll be adding names and updating scores as we work our way through the canon of exploding helicopter films.
To qualify for entry, actors must have appeared in at least four films which feature an exploding helicopter.
RANK: =1 - Henry Strzalkowski
Exploding helicopter films: 24
- American Ninja (1985)
- Apocalypse Now (1979)
- Beyond The Call Of Duty (1992)
- Black Belt II (1989)
- Born On The Fourth Of July (1989)
- Death Bond (1988)
- Demon Of Paradise (1987)
- Eye Of The Eagle (1987)
- Fast Gun (1988)
- Firehawk (1993)
- Future Hunters (1986)
- Killer Instinct (1988)
- Live By The Fist (1993)
- Narco Dollar (1989)
- Operation Rogue (2014)
- Spyder (1988)
- Stranglehold (1997)
- Drug Connection (1993)
- Field Of Fire (1991)
- The Siege Of Firebase Gloria (1989)
- Return Of The Kickfighter aka Mission Terminate (1987)
- POW The Escape (1986)
- The Devastator (1986)
- Final Mission (1984)
RANK: =1 - Nick Nicholson
Exploding helicopter films: 24
- Apocalypse Now (1979)
- Slash (1984)
- The Firebird Conspiracy (1984)
- American Ninja (1985)
- The Devastator (1986)
- Dog Tags (1987)
- Eye Of The Eagle (1987)
- Demon Of Paradise (1987)
- Return of the Kickfighter (1987)
- SFX Retaliator (1987)
- Spyder (1988)
- Future Hunters (1988)
- The Siege Of Firebase Gloria (1988)
- Fast Gun (1988)
- Death Bond (1988)
- Blackbelt II (1988)
- Born On The Fourth Of July (1989)
- Narco Dollar (1989)
- Beyond The Call Of Duty (1992)
- Triple Impact (1992)
- Kill Zone (1993)
- Drug Connection (1993)
- Live By The Fist (1993)
- Stranglehold (1994)
RANK: 2 - David Light
Exploding helicopter films: 19
- Tornado – The Last Blood (1983)
- American Commados (1985)
- Commando Leopard (1985)
- Cobra Mission (1986)
- Future Hunters (1986)
- Opposing Force (1986)
- Demon Of Paradise (1987)
- Eye Of The Eagle (1987)
- Phantom Soldiers (1987)
- Hell Hunters (1987)
- Dog Tags (1987)
- Fast Gun (1988)
- Killer Instinct (1988)
- The Last American Soldier 1988 aka Commander (1988)
- The Commander (1988)
- Last Platoon (1988)
- SFX Retaliator (1988)
- Indio (1989)
- Indio 2 (1991)
RANK: 3 - Mike Monty
Exploding helicopter films: 15
- Raiders Of Atlantis (1983)
- Tornado: The Last Blood (1983)
- Slash (1984)
- The Firebird Conspiracy (1984)
- Commando Leopard (1985)
- Double Target (1987)
- Tough Cop (1987)
- Phantom Soldiers (1987)
- Eye Of The Eagle (1987)
- The Last American Soldier (1988)
- Dog Tags (1988)
- The Commander (1988) uncredited
- Eye Of The Eagle II (1989)
- Last Platoon (1988)
- Last Flight To Hell (1990)
RANK: = 4 - Eric Roberts
Exploding helicopter films: 12
- Heaven's Fire (1999)
- The Alternate (2000)
- Raptor (2001)
- Mindstorm (2001)
- The Dark Knight (2008)
- The Expendables (2012)
- Skin Traffik (2015)
- Monster Island (2019)
- Top Gunner (2020)
- Ape vs Monster (2021)
- Megalodon The Frenzy (2023)
- DC Down (2023)
RANK: = 4 - Dolph Lundgren
Exploding helicopter films: 12
- A View To A Kill (1985)
- Red Scorpion (1988)
- Silent Trigger (1996)
- Sweepers (1998)
- Bridge Of Dragons (1999)
- Retrograde (2004)
- The Expendables (2010)
- Detention (2011)
- The Expendables 2 (2012)
- The Expendables 3 (2014)
- Skin Trade (2014)
- Expendables 4 (2023)
RANK: = 5 - Samuel L Jackson
Exploding helicopter films: 11
- Deep Blue Sea
- Die Hard With A Vengeance
- SWAT
- The Other Guys
- Avengers Assemble
- The Incredibles (2004)
- XX2: The Next Level
- King Kong: Skull Island (2017)
- The Hitman's Bodyguard (2017)
- Avengers: Infinity War (2018)
- Incredibles 2 (2018)
RANK: = 5 - Kiyoshi Kobayashi
Exploding helicopter films: 11
- Golgo 13: The Professional (1983)
- Lupin the Third: Alcatraz Connection (2001)
- Lupin the Third: Bye Bye, Lady Liberty 1989
- Lupin the Third: Farewell to Nostradamus (1995)
- Lupin the Third: Napoleon’s Dictionary (1991)
- Lupin the Third: Prison of the Past (2019)
- Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)
- Lupin the Third: The Last Job (2010)
- Lupin the Third: The Legend of the Gold of Babylon (1985)
- Lupin the Third: The Mystery of Mamo (1978)
- Lupin the Third: The Pursuit of Harimao’s Treasure (1995)
RANK: = 5 - Goro Naya
Exploding helicopter films: 11
- Casshern (2004)
- Golgo 13: The Professional (1983)
- Lupin the Third: Alcatraz Connection (2001)
- Lupin the Third: Bye Bye, Lady Liberty (1989)
- Lupin the Third: Farewell to Nostradamus (1995)
- Lupin the Third: Napoleon’s Dictionary (1991)
- Lupin the Third: The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)
- Lupin the Third: The Last Job (2010)
- Lupin the Third: The Legend of the Gold of Babylon (1985)
- Lupin the Third: The Mystery of Mamo (1978)
- Lupin the Third: The Pursuit of Harimao’s Treasure (1995)
RANK: = 6 - Glenn Morshower
Exploding helicopter films: 10
- The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)
- Defense Play (1988)
- Under Siege (1992)
- Godzilla (1998)
- Black Hawk Down (2001)
- The Island (2005)
- Transformers (2007)
- Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)
- Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
- The Runners (2020)
RANK: = 6 - Jim Gaines
Exploding helicopter films: 10
- DNA (1996)
- Escape To Nowhere (1990)
- Dog Tags (1988)
- Robowar (1988)
- The Secret Of King Mahi’s Island (1988)
- Phantom Soldiers (1987)
- Opposing Force (1986)
- POW The Escape (1986)
- American Ninja (1985)
- Apocalypse Now (1979)
RANK: = 6 - Donald Pleasance
Exploding helicopter films 10
- Last Platoon (1988)
- The Commander (1988)
- Double Target (1987)
- Ground Zero (1987)
- Cobra Mission (1986)
- Warrior Of The Lost World (1983)
- Treasure Of The Yankee Zephyr (1981)
- The Pumaman (1980)
- Telefon (1977)
- You Only Live Twice (1967)
RANK: = 7 - Morgan Freeman
Exploding helicopter films 9
- The Sum Of All Fears (2002)
- Dreamcatcher (2003)
- The Dark Knight (2008)
- The Dark Knight Rises (2012)
- Olympus Has Fallen (2013)
- The Lego Movie (2014)
- London Has Fallen (2016)
- Angel Has Fallen (2019)
- Gunner (2024)
RANK: = 7 - Gary Daniels
Exploding helicopter films: 10
- The Secret Of King Mahis Island (1988)
- Firepower (1993)
- Deadly Target (1994)
- Riot (1996)
- No Tomorrow (1999)
- Epicenter (2000)
- Retrograde (2004)
- The Expendables (2010)
- A Hitman In London (2015)
- Dancin' It's On! (2015)
RANK: = 8 - Arnold Schwarzenegger
Exploding helicopter films: 9
RANK: = 7 - Charles Napier
Exploding helicopter films: 9
- Rambo: First Blood Pt II (1985)
- Raw Justice (1994)
- Future Zone (1990)
- Riot (1996)
- The Last Match (1990)
- Cop Target (1990)
- Armstrong (1998)
- Indio 2 (1991)
- Steel (1997)
RANK: = 8 - Sylvester Stallone
Exploding helicopter films: 8
- Rambo II (1985)
- Rambo III (1988)
- Cliffhanger (1993)
- The Expendables (2010)
- The Expendables 2 (2012)
- The Expendables 3 (2014)
- Rambo: Last Blood (2019)
- Expendables 4
RANK: = 8 - Pierce Brosnan
Exploding helicopter films: 8
- The World Is Not Enough (1999)
- Die Another Day (2002)
- Dante's Peak (1997)
- GoldenEye (1995)
- No Escape (2015)
- Tomorrow Never Dies (1997)
- Death Train (1993)
- Black Adam (2022)
RANK: = 8 - Martin Kove
Exploding helicopter films: 8
- Crocodile 2: Death Swamp (2002)
- Rambo: First Blood Pt II (1985)
- The Chemist (2015)
- To Be The Best (1993)
- Firehawk (1993)
- Soft Target (2006)
- Shadow Warriors: Assault on Devil's Island (1997)
- Without Mercy (1995)
RANK: = 8 - Bruce Willis
Exploding helicopter films: 8
- Die Hard (1988)
- Die Hard With A Vengeance (1995)
- Die Hard 4.0 (2007)
- Surrogates (2009)
- The Expendables (2010)
- The Expendables 2 (2012)
- A Good Day To Die Hard (2013)
- A Day To Die (2022)
RANK: = 9 - Michael Dudikoff
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Navy Seals vs Zombies (2015)
- Soldier Boyz (1995)
- Cyberjack (1995)
- American Ninja 4: The Annihilation (1990)
- American Ninja 2: The Confrontation (1987)
- American Ninja (1985)
- Uncommon Valor (1983)
RANK: = 9 - Michael Madsen
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Executive Target (1997)
- The Sender (1998)
- Supreme Sanction (1999)
- The Alternate (2000)
- Die Another Day (2002)
- Piranhaconda (2012)
- A Hitman In London (2015)
RANK: = 9 - William Smith
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Commando Squad (1987)
- Red Dawn (1984)
- Bulletproof (1987)
- Jungle Assault (1989)
- Taken Alive (1995)
- Doublecross On Costa's Island (1997)
- Hell On The Battleground (1988)
RANK: = 9 - Michelle Rodriguez
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- SWAT (2003)
- Avatar (2009)
- Battle: Los Angeles (2011)
- Resident Evil: Retribution (2012)
- Furious 7 (2015)
- The Fate Of The Furious (2017)
- Fast X (2023)
RANK: = 9 - Art Camacho
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Half Past Dead (2002)
- Half Past Dead 2 (2007)
- Ring Of Fire: Lion Strike (1995)
- Cyber Tracker (1994)
- CIA II: Target Alexa (1993)
- Firepower (1993)
- To Be The Best (1993)
RANK: = 9 - Sven Ole Thorsen
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle (2003)
- The Sum Of All Fears (2002)
- The Alternate (2000)
- Best of the Best 4: Without Warning (1998)
- On Deadly Ground (1994)
- Terminator 2: Judgement Day (1991)
- Predator (1987)
RANK: = 9 - Chuck Norris
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Breaker Breaker (1977)
- Invasion USA (1985)
- Missing In Action 2: The Beginning (1985)
- The Delta Force (1986)
- Braddock: Missing In Action 3 (1988)
- Delta Force 2: The Colombian Connection (1990)
- The Expendables 2 (2010)
RANK: = 9 - Don 'The Dragon' Wilson
Exploding helicopter films: 8
- Crooked (2006)
- Terminal Rush (1996)
- Virtual Combat (1995)
- Batman Forever (1995)
- Cyber Tracker 2 (1995)
- Cyber Tracker (1994)
- Ring Of Fire 3: Lion Strike (1994)
- New York Ninja (2021)
RANK: = 9 - Steven Seagal
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- Under Siege (1992)
- On Deadly Ground (1994)
- Exit Wounds (2001)
- Half Past Dead (2002)
- Today You Die (2005)
- Shadow Man (2006)
- General Commander (2019)
RANK: = 9 - David Carradine
Exploding helicopter films: 7
- POW The Escape (1986)
- Future Force (1989)
- Bird On A Wire (1990)
- Future Zone (1990)
- Field Of Fire (1991)
- Double Trouble (1992)
- Kill Zone (1993)
