Tom Helmore was a British actor known for his long film career, which extended from the 1930s to the 1960s. He was noted for portraying sophisticated, elegant, and often ambiguous or mysterious men.

His most celebrated performance was as Gavin Elster in Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece, *Vertigo* (1958), where he embodied the crucial role of the manipulative antagonist. Helmore also enriched the cast of numerous other films, including *To Catch a Thief* (1955), *Desk Set* (1957), and *The List of Adrian Messenger* (1963). His acting style was characterized by impeccable diction and a gentlemanly bearing, making him ideal for English gentleman characters, sometimes with a hint of duplicity.