Which well known fictional character has been depicted by the most actors?

Having been depicted on screen (big and small) 254 times, Sherlock Holmes, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional detective, has been awarded a world record for the most portrayed literary human character in film and TV. Guinness World Records (aka The Guinness Book of Records), an annual reference book published since 1955, listing world records both of human achievements and the extremes of the natural world, as recent as 2018 again confirmed the above facts about the fictional character Sherlock Holmes and the actors who played him.

Holmes has been portrayed by at least 75 different actors on either TV or film, making up 254 depictions in total. Originally created as the main character of Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional detective series in 1887, the role has been given to a variety of talented actors including Basil Rathbone, Sir Christopher Lee, Charlton Heston, Peter O'Toole, Christopher Plummer, Robert Downey Jr, Benedict Cumberbatch, Johny Lee MIller, and many more. This is the largest legacy of individuals (actors) who have played a human character, Sherlock Holmes, on TV or film associated with three centuries (19th, 20th, and 21st). Next, according to Guinness World Records, Sherlock's appearances beat Shakespeare's Hamlet by 48 portrayals to claim the record for the most portrayed literary human character on TV and in film.