10 Best Lone Wolf & Cub Duos From Movies & TV Shows

Summary The "lone wolf and cub" trope is iconic, popularized by Lone Wolf and Cub and adopted by various genres and franchises in Hollywood.

Characters like Obi-Wan & Leia, Arya & The Hound, and Wolverine & X-23 embody the parent-child dynamic in unique ways.

Relationships like Joel & Ellie, Mando & Grogu, and Ripley & Newt showcase the emotional depth and sacrifices made in these powerful duos.

From The Witcher to Stranger Things, the “lone wolf and cub” trope has become particularly popular in the past few years. The originator of the trope is Lone Wolf and Cub, an iconic manga series that was adapted into a classic movie franchise. The series revolves around shōgun’s executioner Ogami Ittō, who, after being disgraced by the Yagyū clan’s false accusations, takes on the life of an assassin and hits the road to exact revenge – with his three-year-old son, Daigorō, in tow. The Lone Wolf and Cub movies are among the most beloved gems of the samurai genre.

The “lone wolf and cub” trope has since been adopted by Hollywood productions in the sci-fi, fantasy, horror, and action genres. The series’ basic setup of a badass warrior protecting a young child on a journey through a deadly environment has been used as a vehicle to tell all kinds of stories. The Last of Us sees lone wolf Joel escorting his cub Ellie across a zombie-infested post-apocalyptic wasteland. Star Wars shows from The Mandalorian to Obi-Wan Kenobi have borrowed this trope. There are a ton of great “lone wolf and cub” duos in movies and TV shows.

10 Ogami Ittō & Daigorō (Lone Wolf & Cub)

It goes without saying that one of the most iconic “lone wolf and cub” duos is the original one. Lone Wolf and Cub’s Ogami Ittō and Daigorō are the originators of this trope and still rank among the most iconic. In Shogun Assassin, Ogami gives Daigorō a choice: he can either take Ogami’s sword, choosing to join his vengeful quest, or he can take his own ball, choosing death to be with his late mother in Heaven. He chooses the sword, and thus begins their epic journey.

The Lone Wolf and Cub movies established all the hallmarks of this trope. The parent-child relationship provides the story with its heart as the two characters are surrounded by violence and hostility. They seek revenge, but they get swept up in a bunch of different side missions along the way.

9 Obi-Wan Kenobi & Leia Organa

Ewan McGregor reprised his role as the Star Wars saga’s most lovable Jedi in the Disney+ miniseries Obi-Wan Kenobi. The story picks up with Obi-Wan in the middle of his post-Purge exile on Tatooine. At the behest of Bail Organa, Obi-Wan reluctantly puts his cushy exile on hold to save a 10-year-old Princess Leia from a band of goons hired by the Empire. After he saves her, the two go on a wild intergalactic adventure on the run from Imperial forces.

Vivien Lyra Blair did a terrific job of recapturing Carrie Fisher’s rebellious spirit from the original trilogy, and shared endearing chemistry with McGregor as her reluctant father figure. This series explained why Leia reached out to Obi-Wan in her hour of need in the original Star Wars movie. They developed an unbreakable bond while fleeing the Empire together.

8 Arya Stark & The Hound (Game Of Thrones)

From Jon Snow and Samwell Tarly to Jaime Lannister and Brienne of Tarth, the sprawling ensemble cast of Game of Thrones was full of unlikely duos brought together by unusual circumstances. One such duo is a “lone wolf and cub” pairing: Arya Stark and Sandor Clegane, better known as “The Hound.” They start off as enemies, but after traveling together, they eventually make peace with each other. In season 4, Arya has the chance to kill the Hound – something she vowed to do for years – and decides to spare his life.

In George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire books, Arya and the Hound didn’t stay together for very long. But the TV show’s writers recognized what a great dynamic they had and fleshed it out across a few episodes. They became one of the show’s most memorable character pairings.

7 Léon & Mathilda

A professional assassin reluctantly takes his orphaned 12-year-old neighbor under his wing after her family is massacred by a corrupt DEA agent in Léon: The Professional. As they get to know each other better, Mathilda becomes Léon’s protégée and he teaches her the art of killing. However, as Mathilda gets closer and closer to actually becoming a killer, he starts to regret teaching her his trade and tries to avoid sending her down the same dark path he took.

Jean Reno gives a pitch-perfect turn as a grizzled hitman jaded from years of killing for blood money and shares spectacular chemistry with his on-screen protégée Natalie Portman (in her feature film debut). Most “lone wolf and cub” stories revel in teaching their young wards to kill. But Léon will do anything to sway Mathilda away from the life of a killer.

6 Jim Hopper & Eleven (Stranger Things)

When a superpowered kid named Eleven escapes from a secret government lab and wanders into the quaint little town of Hawkins in Stranger Things, the local police chief Jim Hopper takes her under his wing. He welcomes her into his home and vows to protect her from the mad scientists who want to recapture her to keep experimenting on her. Hopper lost his own daughter, Sara, so raising Eleven gives him a second chance at fatherhood.

This is a rare case of a “lone wolf and cub” duo where the cub is actually more powerful than the wolf. Thanks to a bout of illicit experimentation, Eleven has been imbued with supernatural abilities. The wolf has dedicated himself to protecting the cub, but in this case, the cub is even able to protect the wolf, so they look out for each other.

5 Geralt Of Rivia & Ciri (The Witcher)

Magical monster hunter Geralt of Rivia and the heir to the Elder Blood, Ciri, the crown princess of Cintra, are linked to each other by fate in The Witcher. While they were destined to join forces from the very beginning, Geralt and Ciri didn’t actually meet until the season 1 finale. This allowed season 2 to hit the ground running as a “lone wolf and cub” story as Geralt and Ciri began their journey across the fantasy kingdom.

Henry Cavill and Freya Allan were required to share such powerful on-screen chemistry for it to be believable that cosmic forces brought their characters together – and against all odds, their dynamic didn’t disappoint. Throughout their journey, Geralt has to fend off various attackers who want to seize the Elder Blood for themselves. He would risk anything to protect Ciri.

4 Wolverine & X-23 (Logan)

In Wolverine’s bittersweet cinematic send-off Logan, director James Mangold combined the dark no-living-with-a-killing themes of Shane with the heartwarming father-daughter road trip of Paper Moon. Just when he thinks he’s done with the superhero life, Wolvie is forced to do one last good deed when his long-lost cloned daughter Laura – also known as X-23 – arrives on his doorstep. She needs him to take her across the border, where her fellow young mutants have established a safe haven.

Hugh Jackman and Dafne Keen have the same gruff but deeply touching father-daughter dynamic that Ryan and Tatum O’Neal shared in Paper Moon. At the beginning of the movie, Logan couldn’t care less about Laura or her quest to get home. But by the end of it, he’s willing to make the ultimate sacrifice to give her and the next generation of mutants a chance.

3 The Mandalorian & Grogu

The “lone wolf and cub” duo that brought the trope back into the mainstream was the titular bounty hunter and his young, pointy-eared ward Grogu in The Mandalorian. The first episode of The Mandalorian introduced Mando as a cold-blooded Man with No Name-type antihero, but the surprising final twist showed a much softer side of the character. When he finds his 50-year-old bounty is actually a baby from Yoda’s species, he has a change of heart.

Mando used to kill his bounties, but after meeting Grogu and growing to love him like a son, suddenly he would kill anyone else just to keep his bounty safe. He turned his back on his fellow bounty hunters and took on the might of the Imperial Remnants to protect his surrogate son. Mando is a great father in a franchise made iconic by a terrible father.

2 Ellen Ripley & Newt (Aliens)

One of Hollywood’s earliest “lone wolf and cub” duos can be found in James Cameron’s action-packed sci-fi sequel Aliens. After narrowly escaping the wrath of one xenomorph, Ellen Ripley reluctantly agrees to go with a band of Colonial Marines into an off-world human colony that’s been overrun by them, just because there might be survivors who need saving. When she gets there, she meets the only survivor: a young girl named Newt.

Ripley lost her own daughter while she was drifting through space in cryosleep, while Newt’s entire family was ripped apart by bloodthirsty aliens, so they need each other. They develop a moving surrogate mother-daughter relationship as Ripley is determined to get Newt off the planet alive. This dynamic is brilliantly contrasted with the xenomorph queen, who similarly just wants to protect her children.

1 Joel & Ellie (The Last Of Us)

Arguably the most iconic “lone wolf and cub” duo after the original pair is Joel and Ellie from The Last of Us saga. Ellie is immune to the fungal infection that brought civilization crumbling down and Joel is tasked with smuggling her across the deadly wasteland that remains, so that a radical group known as the Fireflies can develop a cure. Joel lost his own daughter on the outbreak day, and in the 20-year interim, he’s become so closed off from his emotions that he initially just views Ellie as walking, talking cargo.

Ellie looks up to Joel as a father figure, but he’s reluctant to embrace that love, because he knows the loss that could follow. However, after their incredible journey across the country – and after they’ve saved each other’s lives a few times – Joel finally embraces Ellie as his surrogate daughter. That love has dark side effects, but the one consistency that follows is that Joel would do anything to protect Ellie.