Contributed by Info Guru Oliver VanDervoort

Putting together a list of the top 10 romantic actors is not quite as easy as it might seem.

While there are some actors who almost exclusively spend their careers making romantic dramas or even romantic comedies, quite a few others go from action, to suspense to plots filled with love affairs. With so many actors hopping genres these days it can be task pinning down the crème of the crop. Some actors on this list might surprise you at first because we know longer think of them as belonging in that genre despite the fact that they earned their acting chops stealing our hearts. Without further ado, we bring you the best of the best of those actors.

10. Richard Gere

Over the course of his career, Richard Gere has hopped from one genre to another quite adeptly. He’s taken a turn as a lawyer who defended a vicious pshycopath to someone who encountered supernatural entities to someone just looking for love. His most notable turns were most likely in “An Office and a Gentleman” and “Pretty Woman.”

9. Patrick Swayze

While Patrick Swayze is probably most remembered for being an action star in movies like “Red Dawn” and “Roadhouse,” this star also took quite a few roles as a romantic lead. Starring opposite Demi Moore in “Ghost” and emitting the line “nobody puts baby in the corner,” in “Dirty Dancing” helped make Swayze a sex symbol.

8. John Cusack

John Cusack is one of those actors who has done just about everything over the course of his career. He’s been in movies where the world was about to end and he’s been in others where the only tragedy was that he didn’t get the girl he wanted. He’s still probably best known as being the lead in some of the best romantic comedies of our generation.

7. Leonardo DiCaprio

While most people consider Leonardo DiCaprio one of the all-around best actors of our time, he has earned his romantics chops with starring roles in movies like Titanic and Romeo and Juliet opposite Claire Danes.

6. Hugh Grant

Hugh Grant, perhaps more than any other actor on this list, made his bones working in the romantic comedy side of movies. Perhaps the only reason he isn’t a little higher on this list is because he did very few romantic dramas. Still, whether talking about Notting Hill or Four Weddings and a Funeral its hard not to give Grant a heavy nod as one of the top romantic actors or our generation.

5. Tom Hanks

Hanks is another actor who has a wide range of genres under his belt at this point in his career but he certainly won the hearts and minds of most film fans doing his turns in romantic comedies. Perhaps the most interesting thing about Tom’s career is just how many times Meg Ryan ended up being the woman he was chasing after.

4. Clark Gable

Clark Gable came around just as movies were hitting their golden age. Despite the fact that the actor took a turn in plenty of action movies, he will most likely always be known best for putting Scarlett O’Hara in her place in “Gone with the Wind.” Simply mention the most romantic leading men and Gable will almost always be brought up quickly.

3. Humphrey Bogart

Bogart might have been the biggest genre jumper of his days as he took a turn as a hard as nails private eye as well as the leading man in one of the most popular movies in history (Casablanca). Bogart absolutely belongs on this list and he could have taken the top spot.

2. Gene Kelly

Gene Kelly just might have been the actor that laid the groundwork for guys like Hugh Grant. Kelly was certainly considered a romantic actor but his talents lied more in the romantic comedy than those that required soulful glances.

1. Cary Grant

Cary Grant was another one of those genre hoppers who certainly put in his time in the romance section of the movie industry. One of the original Hollywood heartthrobs he did romantic comedy as well as drama and did them all well.