People’s Sexiest Man Alive turns 40: Every winner since 1985

There are a few variations of the origin story behind the People’s Sexiest Man Alive award. In 2010, one-time executive editor Cutler Durkee admitted the now-famous title was an accidental meeting remark.

“Everyone loved Mel Gibson at that moment … and someone pretty much jokingly blurts out, ‘the sexiest man alive,’ ” he explained. “And he was kind of astonishingly hot at that moment. So we did it. There was a bit of [jokiness] to it, but what the heck, we put it out there.”

While the title stuck, Mel wasn’t exactly flattered by the honour. “That implies there are a lot of dead guys who got more points than I did,” he later scoffed.

After skipping a year, People’s Sexiest Man Alive returned in 1986, and the honour was bestowed on Mark Harmon; however, he was seemingly unaware he would be the recipient.

“Who votes on something like that?” he said. “I mean, come on! I think it’s all pretty silly … I started laughing hysterically.”

In 1987, Harry Hamlin became the third official People’s Sexiest Man Alive, but like his predecessors, he couldn’t quite relate to the bold title.

“Certainly, when I look in the mirror, I don’t get turned on,” he told People at the time. ”It’s not something I spend a lot of time considering.”

John F. Kennedy Jr. was ‘thoroughly amused’ by his Sexiest Man Alive title in 1988, according to close friend Robbie Littell.

“He didn’t want to be chased around but he loved the attention…so the idea of being Sexiest Man Alive was like, ‘Yeah, exactly. Unfortunately they’re gonna pick another one someday.’”

59-year-old Sean Connery saw the bright side after gracing the cover in 1989. “For once, I’m speechless,” he joked with the publication. “It’ll all be downhill from here!”

A year after awarding the oldest winner of People’s Sexiest Man, the publication gave the honour to their youngest winner, Tom Cruise, who was only 27.

When the Ghost star was awarded the title in 1991, his mother, Patsy Swayze, told the magazine that her son “knows he’s just an ordinary, down-home Texas kid.”

“He doesn’t think that his job deserves all that idolatry — if you want to call it that,” she added.

Described in the cover story as a “big-lug Adonis with the heart of gold,” The Prince of Tides star had a hard time believing he had won.

 “Are you sure you didn’t make a mistake?,” he questioned. “My personal choice is Walter Cronkite,” he exclaimed, according to the Associated Press.

The year was 1993, and the publication switched things up, awarding the title not to one single man, but rather the sexiest couple.

Technically, there was no Sexiest Man Alive cover in 1994, but in 2015, editorial director Jess Cagle retroactively awarded the title to Keanu Reeves.

Brad Pitt earned his first Sexiest Man Alive cover in 1995, but he later admitted to Entertainment Weekly that winning the honour was confusing.

“I was really uncomfortable. What does it mean? What are you talking about?” he said, “I’ve always been mistrustful of my own hubris, and it put me on guard. Like, it was dangerous. What do they say? Don’t believe your own hype.”

He added, “When you get older, you realize it’s just for fun. (George) Clooney and I were able to have fun with it later. But in some ways, I’m still a kid from Missouri and Oklahoma and I’m trying to find my way. By the way, we’re only talking about a blip. I didn’t spend much time thinking about it.”

“I don’t take myself too seriously,” People’s 1996 Sexiest Man Alive, Denzel Washington, admitted at the time. “I don’t stop in the mirror and go, ‘Hey, Sexy Man.’

George Clooney won his first Sexiest Man Alive title in 1997.

Like many of his predecessors, Harrison Ford was very humble when given the title.

 “Why this sudden outpouring for geezers?” Harrison, then 56, asked People. “I never feel sexy. I have a distant relationship with the mirror.”

After previously winning alongside Cindy Crawford as People’s Sexiest Couple, Richard Gere took out the solo title in 1999.

In 2000, Brad Pitt was named People’s Sexiest Man Alive for the second time.

When Pierce Brosnan won the title in 2001, co-star Julianna Margulies told People that the Irish actor’s sexiest quality was his love for his family. “When you see a gorgeous man holding hands with his wife and holding his baby, there’s nothing more sexy in the world,” she said.

Ben Affleck was named People’s Sexiest Man Alive in 2002, as his first romance with Jennifer Lopez started heating up.

“The word on the street is that he’s the ideal man, chatty, gorgeous, generous and intelligent,” Kevin Smith told the publication.

Johnny Depp won his first title in 2003.

“He’s the most beautiful man who ever walked the earth — an absolutely perfect oil painting,” co-star Naomi Watts said of Jude Law when he was named the Sexiest Man Alive in 2003.

Matthew McConaughey was named Sexiest Man Alive by People in 2005. “Wait until you see the roles I could take after this,” he joked to the publication after winning. “You’re going to see my gut hanging over, plus 22 [lbs.] It’ll be a whole new kind of sexy!”

George Clooney became the second celebrity to be named People’s Sexiest Man Alive twice in 2006.

“You’ve given an aging suburban dad the ego-boost of a lifetime,” Matt Damon told People after being named the Sexiest Man Alive in 2007.

“Women’s jaws drop when Hugh walks into a room,” Nicole Kidman told People after her costar Hugh Jackman was named Sexiest Man Alive in 2008.

Joining the ranks of George Clooney and Brad Pitt, Johnny Depp got his second title in 2009.

 “The most difficult part is going to be organically working this title into a conversation with random strangers,” Ryan Reynolds joked with People after being named Sexiest Man Alive by the publication in 2010.

“I think it’s really cool that a guy who doesn’t look like a model can have this [title],” the ever-humble Bradley Cooper told People in 2011. “I think I’m a decent-looking guy. Sometimes I can look great, and other times I look horrifying.”

Magic Mike, The Vow, 21 Jump Street – 2012 was a big year for Channing Tatum and it came as no surprise when he was named Sexiest Man Alive.

 “My first thought was, ‘Y’all are messing with me,'” he admitted to the publication.

“As a musician, you have fantasies that you want to win Grammys, but I didn’t really think that this was on the table,” Adam Levine told People at the time. “I was just amazed and stunned and it almost seemed like they were kidding, but they weren’t, so that’s cool.”

When named Sexiest Man Alive in 2014, Chris joked with People that the honour “bought me a couple of weeks of bragging rights around the house.”

“I never feel that I’m an attractive, sexy person,” David Beckham told People in 2015. “I mean I like to wear nice clothes and nice suits and look and feel good, but I don’t ever think of myself that way.”

 “I thought, ‘Wow, we’ve pretty much reached the pinnacle.’ I’m not quite too sure where we go from here. I’ve done it all, this is it,” The Rock told People in 2016.

Blake Shelton credited his now-wife Gwen Stefani, for convincing him to accept the title in 2017.

She goes, ‘Listen to me, you’re going to regret this for the rest of your life if you don’t take this gift and just live in the moment,'” he told People at the time.

I was like, ‘Come on, no way. Really?'” Idris Elba told the publication in 2018. “Looked in the mirror, I checked myself out. I was like, ‘Yeah, you are kind of sexy today.’ But to be honest, it was just a nice feeling. It was a nice surprise — an ego boost for sure.”

When John Legend was named Sexiest Man Alive in 2019, he joked The Voice co-star and previous winner Blake Shelton had helped him “learn his sexy ways.”

“I observed every move he made, every utterance that came from his mouth and I think some of it rubbed off on me.”

“Any one of my guy friends, everybody in the group chat — the group chat is gonna go crazy when this comes out. I mean the jokes aren’t gonna stop so it’s gonna be pretty… entertaining, trust me,” the Black Panther star told People TV. “I’ll snap shot a couple of them and post them because they’re brutal group chats.”

“I’m going to own this,” Paul Rudd told People after being honoured with the title in 2021.

“This whole thing is tough to be interviewed about,” Chris Evans joked with People in 2022. “It feels like a weird form of humble bragging.” 

At 57 years old, Patrick Dempsey was proud to be named Sexiest Man Alive in 2023.

“I’m glad it’s happening at this point in my life. It’s nice to have the recognition, and certainly my ego takes a little bump, but it gives me the platform to use it for something positive,” he told the publication.

“That’s not how I wake up, thinking, ‘Is this the day that I’ll be asked to be Sexiest Man Alive?’ And yet it was the day you guys did it. You guys have really raised the bar for me,” John Krasinski told People in 2024.

2025 was the 40th anniversary of the Sexiest Man Alive franchise, and Jonathan Bailey was the latest to be bestowed the title.

“A lot of my friends will [give me grief]. They’ll be furious that I haven’t told them. And then they’ll just squeal with delight,” he told the publication. “They’ve seen me grow up. Behind the mask of being identified as a sexy man are other truths that they know and they’ve witnessed. They know the secrets.”