Another themed cryptic clues puzzle. This time the theme is simply "characters". The solutions will be characters, but they can be from anything, including but not limited to books, movies, TV shows, songs, operas, comic books etc.
Heard beam in space (3)
Container for selfless lookalike (6)
Two cans from Belgium (6)
He escapes quickly down the street? (10)
In racecar, mentor is stabbed (6)
Hint:
The answer to clue number two comes from a famous piece of literature.