11 Brave Women of Film and TV Who Were Symbols of Empowerment in Past Decades

Action and adventure features featuring female characters in the lead roles are still few if compared to the number of works produced with male protagonists. Only in recent years has this reality changed. Famous titles like captain marvel🇧🇷 Wonder Woman and resident Evil have already proven that powerful women are also box office hits. But do you remember the heroines of movies and series that were symbols of girl power in the past?

Today the awesome.club recalls the valiant characters who voiced female empowerment in film and TV during earlier decades. Check out!

In Alien, the Eighth Passenger, Lieutenant Ellen Ripley was part of the crew of the ship Nostromo, but she was far from representing the weakest side of the team. Brave, she faces the frightening alien creature and emerges victorious from combat. The science fiction classic debuted in 1979 and the character, played by Sigourney Weaver, was named one of the 50 greatest heroic figures in history by the American Film Institute. The actress was nominated for an Oscar thanks to her performance in the second film in the franchise, from 1986.

The action series produced in the 90s had a particular charm of that decade. In Xena the Warrior Princess, was no different. Filled with mythological figures, the attraction was a success between 1995 and 2001. In the story, we follow the adventures of Xena (Lucy Lawless), a brave warrior who, with the aim of redeeming herself for her past crimes, decides to use the powerful abilities he has to fight evil. The character first appeared in Herculesanother classic program shown at the time, and won its own series shortly afterwards.

Arnold Schwarzenegger Wasn’t The Only Punisher In The Franchise Terminator🇧🇷 The fearless Sarah Connor, played by Linda Hamilton, also earned her place in the fans’ affectionate memory. In the second film, from 1991, she reveals all her heroine potency. Decided to protect her son, who is pursued by futuristic androids, Sarah faces the powerful machines and succeeds in fulfilling her mission. In 2019, the character was revived by Linda Hamilton in the feature dark fate, the sixth part of the saga. Now over 60 years old, the actress proved that she is still a symbol of girl power🇧🇷

Another classic from the 90s, Buffy the Vampire Slayer marked a generation of fans of the horror genre. In the series, produced between 1997 and 2003, the protagonist Buffy Summers, played by Sarah Michelle Gellar, discovers that she was predestined to fight supernatural monsters using her mystical powers. While fighting evil, she also has to deal with the conflicts of a teenager’s life like any other. Strong and skillful, the blonde was an icon for many young women at the time.

In jackie brown, from 1997, director Quentin Tarantino introduces audiences to one of his many powerful female characters. To bring the protagonist to life, the filmmaker cast Pam Grier, a star who had already represented strong women in the cinema of the seventies. In the feature, a flight attendant is committed to collaborating with a criminal scheme, but manages to come out on top of everyone involved in the plan. For her performance, Pam was nominated for the Best Actress award at the Golden Globes.

Acclaimed work by director Luc Besson released in 1990, Nikita: Built to Kill tells the story of a delinquent who is captured in her youth. Thanks to her skills, she is trained and assigned by the government to become a special agent for the French Intelligence Service. At the time, the film and its lead actress, Anne Parillaud, garnered numerous award nominations around the world.

In 1997, Academy Award winner Geena Davis starred in the film Awakening from a Nightmare🇧🇷 In the story, the actress plays Samantha, a woman who works as a teacher and has lived with amnesia for 8 years. Until, one day, after having an accident, she begins to develop fighting skills and realizes that she is being pursued by members of a conspiracy. In search of her past, Samantha faces enemies who want to destroy her and discovers that she is, in fact, Charly, a powerful and ruthless CIA agent.

the title of the movie beautiful and dangerous, from 1991, is quite suggestive. The film follows the story of Vic Warshawski, played by Academy Award-nominated actress Kathleen Turner. In the plot, a private investigator is surprised by the death of her boyfriend and decides to investigate the crime on her own. A symbol of courage, the blonde faces the dangers of her journey and does not rest until she unravels the mystery.

Long before the Marvel and DC Comics franchises were successful in theaters, a space hero was already showing how to save the world on the big screen. Launched more than 50 years ago, in 1968, barbarella chronicles the adventures of an agent from the future, fighting evil to prevent the destruction of the universe. Eternized by the award-winning Jane Fonda, the Queen of the Galaxy is one of the unforgettable female icons of the film industry.

Determined to protect an orphan boy who is being pursued by the mafia, a woman faces the group of criminals alone to fulfill the promise she made to the child’s parents. This is the plot of Glory, a 1980 film starring Gena Rowlands, which earned her her second Academy Award nomination for Best Actress. The long one won remake released years later, in 1999, in which Sharon Stone played the main character.

Milla Jovovich is an expert in embodying powerful characters on film. movie star like resident Evil and Ultraviolet, the actress already showed her talent for giving life to brave women years before these productions, still in the nineties. In Joana D’arcreleased in 1999, she is responsible for telling the story of the famous French heroine, combatant and symbol of the Hundred Years’ War.

Do you have memories of other heroines who marked your generation? Which powerful TV or movie character is your favorite? Tell us in the comments!