Throughout decades of cinematic history, one species has reigned supreme alongside their human co-stars: cats. From classic dramas like The Godfather and The Long Goodbye, to horror films like Pet Sematary and Re-Animator, to action movies and comedies alike, cats have often played a pivotal role in some of history's greatest films. Mankind's cat obsession may have even reached peak cinematic cuteness with the arrival of Peter Atencio's title tabby, Keanu, in which Keegan-Michael Key and Jordan Peele go to great lengths to retrieve their kidnapped kitten.

With that in mind, we've put together a collection of history's best movie cats and kittens. One caveat here: we avoided animated cats and "big cats" like lions and tigers for the sake of consistency. What follows is a lovingly curated list of the best house cats and kittens to ever appear on the silver screen, be they constant companions, harbingers of doom, or just plain jerks. Let us know your favorite movie cats and kittens in the comments below!

‘Alien’ & ’Aliens’ - Jones

Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley is rightly extolled as a resourceful survivor of the Alien franchise, but another survivor is often overlooked: Jones the cat. Onboard the USCSS Nostromo to control the rodent population and accompany Ellen Ripley, Jonesy managed to avoid the Xenomorph’s rampage throughout the ship. While his human cohorts, save Ripley, ultimately met their demise, the alien had little interest in Jonesy. The tomcat then joined Ripley in her hypersleep chamber for both the journey aboard the Narcissus, and again on Ripley’s return to Earth. Jonesy even survived those 57 years asleep, but likely died (off camera, of course) after Ripley left him behind on Earth one last time. –Dave Trumbore

'Sleepwalkers' - Cats

It’s a rare thing for a movie to include a clowder of feral cats as heroes, and rarer still to pit them against their shape-shifting energy vampire nemeses known as Sleepwalkers, but fret not; Stephen King provides. Though the title terrors have the power of illusion, cats can see right through them; their claws are also able to inflict mortal wounds upon the Sleepwalkers (just another reason to never get your cats declawed). Dogs may have the coveted title of “man’s best friend,” but if the Sleepwalkers are around, you’re going to want to befriend as many cats as possible. –Dave Trumbore

Here's a bonus clip if you'd like one:

‘Breakfast at Tiffany’s’ – Cat

Played by two-time Patsy Award winning cat-actor Orangey, the simply named “Cat” endures all sorts of horrors as the pet of Audrey Hepburn’s Holly Golightly, not the least of which being Mickey Rooney’s racist depiction of Yunioshi. It’s also, like in Harry & Tonto, a symbol of self-reliance and the inability to connect to actual people, exemplified by the series of men Holly leaves reeling. Even when she does find love though, poor Cat is squished between Holly and her paramour as they embrace in the rain. A prime, steaming-hot slice of hell for any cat, but for the star of The Incredible Shrinking Man and the Mission: Impossible TV series, it’s an outright offense. – Chris Cabin

'Men in Black' - Orion

Cats often play the role of pet, partner, or even a familiar in movies that decide to feature them, but you don’t often see a simple feline as the guardian of an entire galaxy. In this movie, however, Orion the cat does a fine job of evading humans and Bugs alike, protecting his Arquillian master’s prized possession and incredible source of energy. The moral of the story: if you need something kept secret and safe, let a cat guard it. –Dave Trumbore

‘The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ - Tjorven

Here’s an unfortunate fictional cat story, one I’d advise the animal lovers out there to avoid if you’d rather not be upset by it. In the Stiegg Larsson novel, a dismembered stray cat named Tjorven is left on Mikael Blomkvist’s porch as a warning to discontinue his investigation. The Swedish film directed by Niels Arden Oplev opted not to include Tjorven, but David Fincher’s 2011 remake decided to build quite the relationship between Daniel Craig’s character and the stray. Though Tjorven was eventually left bloody and dismembered on the stoop, Fincher clarifies in the movie’s DVD commentary that he was quite fond of Scotty the cat’s performance and insists that the animal actor was very far away from this violent scene in which a fake cat was staged. –Dave Trumbore

And a bonus scene, if you're so inclined:

'Mouse Hunt' – Catzilla

The major star of Gore Verbinski’s hugely charming and quite funny Mouse Hunt is, as you might expect, a mouse, who faces off against two bumbling brothers (Nathan Lane and Lee Evans) and an obsessive exterminator (Christopher Walken). But one of the film’s key scenes is the chase between the mouse and Catzilla, a monster-cat that has survived numerous gassings and acts largely like a hungry lion in butcher shop. Their encounter plays out like a live-action Tom & Jerry cartoon, if Tom had been abused by the family from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, and that’s meant as a tremendous compliment. – Chris Cabin

‘True Grit’ – General Sterling Price

“General Price don't belong to me. He just rooms with me. Cats don't belong to nobody. 'Course, I depend on him.” That’s how John Wayne’s Rooster Cogburn explains his relationship with his beloved cat, who drinks beer out of a saucer, and it says as much about how Price fits into the 1969 Western. In almost every sense, the Coen Brothers’ 2010 remake of this film is the superior picture, but the fact that they have excised the General is a major misstep in detailing Cogburn’s pickled perspective and unpredictable empathy. – Chris Cabin

‘The Black Cat’ (1934) – The Black Cat

The titular creature in Edmund Goulding’s vibrant, beguiling 1934 (loose) adaptation of Edgar Allan Poe’s story of the same name is enough to scare Dracula himself Bela Lugosi. Sure, he’s owned and trained by Boris Karloff, but still, if a feline doesn’t get immediate points for scaring the ever-loving bejesus out of the king of the vampires, when does it? – Chris Cabin

‘Inside Llewyn Davis’ - Cat

One of the only humanizing features of Oscar Issac’s prickly and selfish Llewyn Davis is how he ends up caring for a American shorthair cat that — much like in Meet the Parents — ends up being different from the cat he was meant to look after. The lithe, ginger escape artist in the movie may be one of the most gorgeously filmed cats ever (the shot of him looking out the train window is particularly lovely), and his desire for freedom is certainly admirable. It may not make him the greatest traveling companion, but there’s never a dull moment. — Allison Keene

‘Re-Animator’ - Rufus

While modern films and their realistic effects might enrage audiences with their presumed mistreatment of animals, the fake cat used in Stuart Gordon’s 1985 cult classic Re-Animator can be spotted a mile away. Still, it’s an iconic scene in which rogue scientist Herbert West (Jeffrey Combs) brings his roommate’s dead cat Rufus back to life … with hilariously horrific consequences. The events of Re-Animator get much more disturbing after this moment since, like any “dead cat” scene, it heralds worse things yet to come. –Dave Trumbore

‘James Bond’ Movies – Blofeld’s Cat

Perhaps the Movie Cat to beat all movie cats, or at least the first one that most people think of, is this nameless, white-furred and blue-eyed Persian cat. The cat might actually be more iconic than its evil owner, Ernst Stavro Blofeld, since it serves as an on-screen representation of the off-screen villain early on in From Russia with Love and Thunderball. Once Blofeld made his appearance in You Only Live Twice, the cat had already become a part of his mythology. So much so, in fact, that an anonymous villain in For Your Eyes Only is assumed to be Blofeld due to the trademark cat’s appearance. The cat came back in a big way late last year in Spectre, now in the arms of Christoph Waltz’s new iteration of an old villain. –Dave Trumbore

‘Harry Potter’ Movies – Mrs. Norris

They say that every story is only as good as its antagonist, so it makes sense that the feline foe prowling the halls of Hogwarts for minor misdeeds and late night rendezvous is a total bastard. A know-it-all and a tattletale, Mrs. Norris shares an unusually strong connection with her equally unpleasant human counterpart, the resident squib and Hogwarts caretaker, Argus Filch, alerting him to any rule breakers. Like her master, Mrs. Norris isn't quite a villain, certainly not when up against folks like Voldemort and worse, Umbridge, but she sure is a thorn in the side. In a world of dark marks, Horcruxes, and basilisks, who'd have thought a little dust-colored cat could cause so much trouble? And that's what makes her one of the best, though perhaps not admired, cats in movie history. – Haleigh Foutch

'Harry & Tonto' – Tonto

So, you’ve been kicked out of your New York City rent-controlled apartment in the name of demolishing to make…another building, and all you’ve really got to rely on is your cat. What do you do? If you’re Art Carney’s lovable Harry, a seventy-something ex-school teacher, you hit the road with faithful Tonto the cat, who is a key reflective symbol for Paul Mazursky’s protagonist. Just as Tonto wanders on, under his own accord as an animal, Harry finds his new position as both a burden and a liberating experience, pushing him to explore America and reconnect with family and connect with new friends. And honestly, how many cats do you know that have the capacity to let you know when they need to relieve themselves? – Chris Cabin

‘Batman Returns’ – Selina’s Cats

Long thought to have supernatural powers or walk the line between the magical and the mundane, cats have had a variety of mystical appearances on the big screen. One of the most memorable has to be the resurrection of Selina Kyle (Michelle Pfeiffer) by a glaring of alley cats. After being unceremoniously defenestrated to her presumed death by her boss, Selina is swarmed by strays until she snaps back to wakefulness. The only catch to being reanimated by feral cats is that Selina develops a dissociative identity disorder and takes on the mantle of Catwoman. Fans, audiences, and Batman himself should thank the cats for this fact. –Dave Trumbore

‘The Godfather’ – Vito’s Cat

A nefarious man in a suit, petting a cat at his desk—while he orders a murder—has become a bit of a cinematic trope. But Vito’s cat is a standout. Usually these cats on the laps and knees of diabolical men are still and perched like a gargoyle, an extension of their owner’s evil, being stroked like a physical resemblance of their ego. Not the cat in Vito Corleone’s lap. This cat wants to play. You can tell that the cat trusts Vito (Marlon Brando), as he stretches out on his back exposing his vital organs to the Don. Yes, he bats at Vito, but the claws aren’t out. Vito plays with this rascal of a cat while listening to a man ask for a murder at Vito’s daughter’s wedding. Vito doesn’t want to do business on such a day. He just wants to take some time to play with his cat. And even though he routinely orders the murders of men, introducing him with a playful cat on his lap, and showing how carefully Vito can allow a cat to play while also listening with intent, makes us like him from the start. –Brian Formo

‘The Hunger Games’ – Buttercup

Buttercup is basically Katniss in cat form – a good hunter, the ultimate survivor, and deeply devoted to Prim – so it's no wonder they're enemies. After all, no one hates Katniss Everdeen like Katniss Everdeen. The so-called hideous (untrue, all cats are adorable) yellow cat with a smushed nose and half-missing ear is arguably one of the toughest mofos in all of The Hunger Games. Katniss tried to drown him. Didn't take. The Capital bombed District 12. Didn't take. Buttercup just keeps trucking on, hissing his head off and offering solace when it's most needed.

Fun fact: Buttercup is such beloved feline folk that he was re-cast as a proper ginger fluff at the request of author Suzanne Collins and producer Nina Jacobson after fans responded negatively to the black and white tuxedo cat cast in the first film. – Haleigh Foutch

‘Homeward Bound’ – Sassy

Her name, which is technically Sassy Burnford-Seaver, says it all. A prototypical cat complete with all of her grooming habits, particular nature, and at-times prickly personality, Sassy became an animal icon thanks to the voice work of Sally Field and the on-screen performance of Tiki the cat. The subtitle to this film was “The Incredible Journey,” a description that’s earned, not just by the plot’s improbable adventure, but also by the amazing animal work among the two dogs and their sassy feline friend. If the scene above doesn’t move you on some level, it’s probably safe to say you’re not an animal lover. –Dave Trumbore

‘Pet Sematary’ – Church

Poor Church. Based on the Stephen King novel (which was inspired by the author's real-life experience after his daughter's cat was run over), Pet Sematary centers on The Creeds, a family of nice folk who move into a home on an all too busy road that also happens to have a mystical cemetery capable of reviving the dead. Church, The Creed family's loving, playful house cat falls prey to the high-speed traffic – foreshadowing both the dangers of the speedway and the powers of the burial ground – and returns from the dead a changed furball. Aggressive, clumsy and putrid smelling, Church goes from beloved pet to fearful antagonist, ever-hissing, eyes glowing, in the background as the Creed family is torn apart by grief (and the undead).  – Haleigh Foutch

‘Harry Potter’ Movies - Crookshanks

Hermione’s giant ginger cat initially seems to cause trouble for the magical trio, finding particular exception with Ron (we’re introduced to her when she jumps on his head). However, not only does Crookshanks make friends with Sirius Black in his dog form and even works as a kind of assistant, she also continually attacks Ron’s rat Scabbers, who of course is the evil Peter Pettigrew in disguise. So really, she’s the hero. After that, she settles back into occasionally thwarting the group’s attempts by just behaving like a cat (trying to eat their listening ear, etc), but is generally a pretty great ally to have around. — Allison Keene

‘The Long Goodbye’ – Philip Marlowe’s Hungry Cat

Can you blame Philip Marlowe’s cat for wanting a different type of food? While his private detective owner (Elliott Gould) is routinely on stakeouts during the odd hours of the night, his cat is home alone, eating the same meal over and over. Enough is enough. Bring home something new, Marlowe! Spice up the routine! The glorious opening shot of Robert Altman’s neo-noir concerns Marlowe’s cat not wanting to eat his food. Marlowe resigns himself to go get his fussy kitty some new food, and Marlowe’s youthful hot tub neighbors ask him to get some brownie mix to bake their weed into. His response to both, is a “yeah, yeah.” This 70’s California P.I. doesn’t have the tough guy makeup of Humphrey Bogart’s Marlowe, he’s mellow and he abides. And he totally wins us over when the supermarket is out of his cat’s favorite wet food and he doesn’t just get some other can, despite the clerk’s declaration that “all this shit’s the same.” No it isn’t, guy. Marlowe knows his cat will send him out again. –Brian Formo