Like leather jackets and quiff hairstyles, much of the reason we think sunglasses are cool is that they look good in the movies. Actors and directors know that people are more enigmatic when you can’t see their eyes. Behind the right pair of sunglasses you can hide mystery, mischief, defiance and lust, not to mention a stinking hangover.

In turn, audiences have always been drawn to a leading man in shades. Style icons like Steve McQueen are still known for the sunglasses they wore, and sales of Ray-Ban Aviators famously went up by 40 per cent after Tom Cruise wore a pair in Top Gun.

Below we’ve rounded up the best sunglasses from the movies. It’s worth saying up front that Ray-Ban is well-represented in our list. There are a couple of reasons for this.

First, the brand makes some of the best sunglasses you can get. No arguments there. But it’s also savvier than most when it comes to product placement in movies. Since the 1980s, starting with Risky Business and Top Gun, Ray-Ban has struck deals with Hollywood studios to see its shades appear in blockbusters and indie favourites alike.

Classics from Persol and lesser-known brands also have their time in the sun, of course, and below you’re bound to find a style that suits your face shape and style. Ready for your close-up?

Risky Business

Ray-Ban Wayfarer

These days, Wayfarers are some of the most ubiquitous and easy-wearing sunglasses you can buy, but they weren’t always this popular. After a quiet spell in the ’70s, the style was plastered across the poster for Risky Business, one of the first coming-of-age movies of the ’80s.

Paired with Tom Cruise’s megawatt smile, they became synonymous with youthful energy and yuppy style. Cruise wore his with a crew-neck tee under a blazer, a look that – incredibly – still works more than 35 years later. Although they’ll look just as good with your swim shorts.