Claire Bennet (Hayden Panettiere), (season 1, season 2), a high school cheerleader formerly of Odessa, Texas, now living in Costa Verde, California, who has a regenerative ability. She is Mr. Bennet's adopted daughter, as well as Nathan Petrelli's biological daughter.
Noah Bennet (Jack Coleman), (season 1, season 2), more commonly referred to as "Mr. Bennet" or "the Man in Horn-Rimmed Glasses (H.R.G.)", initially worked for the Primatech Paper Company, which is actually a cover operation for an organization that investigates people with superhuman abilities.
Elle Bishop (Kristen Bell)[15] (season 2), a 24 year old woman [19] who is in search of Peter on behalf of The Company. Her father Robert "Bob" Bishop is head of "The Company". She has the power of electric manipulation.
Monica Dawson (Dana Davis)[16][20] (season 2), a restaurant worker at the Burger Bonanza in New Orleans. She is D.L. Hawkins' niece and Micah's first cousin. Monica has the ability to replicate any physical motion she witnesses.[21]
Maya Herrera (Dania Ramírez)[17] (season 2), from the Dominican Republic, is wanted for murder and is on the run to America. Under stress, Maya can create a deadly illness when she cries which is fatal to those around her, except her twin brother Alejandro.
Ando Masahashi (James Kyson Lee)[13] (season 1 recurring, season 2), Hiro Nakamura's friend, coworker, and traveling companion. He has no known superhuman abilities.
Adam Monroe/Takezo Kensei (David Anders)[14][22] (season 2), an Englishman who originally creates the role of the legendary warrior Kensei in feudal Japan. Monroe has a spontaneous regenerative ability which has made him effectively ageless, as he survives to the present day.
Hiro Nakamura (Masi Oka), (season 1, season 2), a programmer[23] from Osaka with the ability to manipulate the space-time continuum. He is convinced that he is a hero, and with other "special persons", he can change the future.
Matt Parkman (Greg Grunberg), (season 1, season 2), a former Los Angeles police officer with the ability to hear other people's thoughts, though his powers are developing further, such as his ability to control people's actions. He is currently an NYPD detective and the guardian of Molly Walker.
Nathan Petrelli (Adrian Pasdar), (season 1, season 2), a former New York Congressional candidate with the ability of self-propelled flight.
Peter Petrelli (Milo Ventimiglia), (season 1, season 2), a former hospice nurse with the ability to absorb the powers of others he has been near and recall them.
Micah Sanders (Noah Gray-Cabey), (season 1, season 2), a child prodigy and also a technopath, which allows him to "talk" to electrical devices, giving him control of machines and electronic devices.[24] He is D.L. and Niki's son.
Niki Sanders (Ali Larter), (season 1, season 2), a former internet stripper from Las Vegas who exhibits superhuman strength and a multiple personality disorder one of whom goes by the name of Jessica, the name of her dead sister. Another personality is Gina.
Mohinder Suresh (Sendhil Ramamurthy), (season 1, season 2), a professor of genetics from India who travels to New York to investigate the death of his father, Chandra. Through his investigations, he comes into contact with people his father listed as possessing superhuman abilities. Mohinder's blood contains antibodies against a virus which only infects people with special abilities.
"Sylar" (Zachary Quinto) (season 1 recurring, season 2),[12] real name Gabriel Gray, a former watchmaker with an intuitive understanding of how things work. He is a serial killer who seeks out superhuman individuals, killing them in order to take their powers. Sylar has multiple acquired abilities. Sylar takes his alias from the brand name of a watch company.
