The new millennium brought with it a new breed of movie heartthrob. Rather than the over-inflated muscle men and dandified pretty boys of the past, Hollywood offered up leading actors that had both strength and sensitivity. Here are the top heartthrobs of the decade by year, plus a runner-up.

Photo by DREAMWORKS/20TH CENTURY FOX, Everett Collection2000: RUSSELL CROWE - Gladiator
Runner-up: HUGH JACKMAN - X-Men

Hugh Jackman came out of nowhere and instantly became a movie star as the gruff-but-sensitive mutant Wolverine in "X-Men." But it was his fellow Aussie Russell Crowe who combined wounded vulnerability with merciless resolve to win not just hearts but also an Oscar.

Photo by NEW LINE CINEMA/WARNER BROS.2001: VIGGO MORTENSEN - The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Rings
Runner-up: GEORGE CLOONEY - Ocean's Eleven

Viggo Mortensen was a last-minute replacement in the role of Aragorn, but can you imagine anyone else doing it so well? He truly captured the "heart of a warrior/soul of a poet" dichotomy. Not even George Clooney as super-suave criminal mastermind Danny Ocean could stack up to Viggo.

Photo by DREAMWORKS/UNIVERSAL2002: LEONARDO DICAPRIO - Catch Me if You Can
Runner-up: MATT DAMON - The Bourne Identiy

After "Titanic," Leonardo DiCaprio tried his best to be considered a serious actor rather than a matinee idol. As charming and clever con artist Frank Abagnale Jr., he couldn't help but do both. Also turning heads that year was Matt Damon, who got tough playing amnesiac spy Jason Bourne.

Photo by WALT DISNEY/NEW LINE CINEMA, Everett Collection2003: JOHNNY DEPP - Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
Runner-up: ORLANDO BLOOM - The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King

The hair, the beads, the eyeliner. When studio execs first saw footage of Johnny Depp as Capt. Jack Sparrow, they freaked, but when audiences watched him swagger on screen, they flipped. His "Pirates" costar Orlando Bloom wowed them as well when he took down a giant elephant as blond elf Legolas.

Photo by NEW LINE CINEMA/20TH CENTURY FOX, Everett Collection2004: RYAN GOSLING - The Notebook
Runner-up: JAKE GYLLENHAAL - The Day After Tomorrow

As Noah Calhoun, the South Carolina boy who falls for a heiress, Ryan Gosling showed that he was dedicated, passionate and uncompromising. Basically the kind of guy you wouldn't mind getting stuck with on a rowboat in the rain. But if a massive ice storm forces you to hide in a library with someone, you could do worse than Jake Gyllenhaal.

Photo by 20th Century Fox/Warner Bros., Everett Collection2005: BRAD PITT - Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Runner-up: CHRISTIAN BALE - Batman Begins

Though he had already been a Hollywood fixture for over a decade, this role as a secret suburban assassin (and the resulting tabloid headlines with Angelina Jolie) made Brad Pitt the most talked-about star of the year. Not even Christian Bale's bulked-up Batman could compete with him.

Photo by MGM/20TH CENTURY FOX2006: DANIEL CRAIG - Casino Royale
Runner-up: SACHA BARON COHEN - Borat

How can you choose between Bond and Borat? They both have charming accents; they both are committed to their missions in foreign lands; and they both turned heads with their signature swimwear. But Craig's 007 slightly edges out the Kazakhstani reporter with his more dapper suits and the fact that women don't find him nauseating.

Photo by Warner Brothers Pictures2007: GERARD BUTLER - 300
Runner-up: WILL SMITH - I Am Legend

Will Smith was the singular focal point of his movie, holding the screen by himself for most of its running time. But even though he was surrounded by 299 other barely-dressed Spartan warriors, Gerard Butler was still the center of attention as the brave, ferocious and devoted King Leonidas.

Photo by Summit/Paramount Pictures2008: ROBERT PATTINSON - Twilight
Runner-up: ROBERT DOWNEY JR. - Iron Man

After a tumultuous decade, Robert Downey Jr. found a role that truly suited him (literally), and he gained a new legion of fans as billionaire superhero Tony Stark. Yet no one inspired as much screaming, fainting, and generally pandemonium as Robert Pattinson as the pale and prepossessing vampire Edward Cullen.

2009'S CONTENDERS

Who will be the top heartthrob of '09? It could be Zac Efron, who made a big-screen splash this year with "High School Musical 3" but will get to stand on his own in "17 Again." Or maybe Chris Pine when he takes the captain's seat of the USS Enterprise as Kirk in "Star Trek." "Step Up" star Channing Tatum goes from dancer to action star in "G.I. Joe." And Daniel Radcliffe is grown up and casting spells in "Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince."

Got a favorite who didn't make the list? Let us know in the comments.