Ass-Kicking Women of the Big Screen

In honor of Charlize Theron headlining Atomic Blonde, we’re exploring ten other ass-kicking women

Ass-kicking feature film roles seem to be disproportionately male-oriented. For every Foxy Brown, there are fifty John McClanes. But in spite of scarcity, there are still quite a few noteworthy instances of women kicking ass and taking names onscreen. There are even a handful of female performers that have had the occasion to do so more than once. One such example is Charlize Theron, who played a calculating assassin in Aeon Flux, a post-apocalyptic Imperator in Mad Max: Fury Road, and who is now gearing up to (hopefully) wow audiences as a female super agent in Atomic Blonde.

In anticipation of the July 28th release of Atomic Blonde, we are taking this opportunity to look back on other ten ass-kicking women of cinema who have tackled multiple memorable action roles.

Milla Jovovich

Actress and model Milla Jovovich has been kicking ass onscreen since the ‘90s, starring as Leeloo in Luc Besson’s dazzling action sci-fi epic The Fifth Element. Fans of horror-infused action flicks will undoubtedly recognize the actress from her work on the Resident Evil franchise, headlining all six screen entries. And, who could forget the critically-panned Ultraviolet? Say what you will about the film, but Jovovich certainly did her fair share of ass-kicking throughout the runtime of the 2006 sci-fi thriller.

Maggie Q

Maggie Q has managed to do the almost impossible: She has proven herself as an action hero in a male-dominated industry time and again and she has managed to sustain that position over the past ten years. Q popped up as an ass-kicking lady in Live Free or Die Hard (memorably facing off with Bruce Willis) and appeared in Mission Impossible III the following year. Since then, she has gone on to star as the titular character in television’s Nikita (itself based on a Luc Besson film) as well as to appear as Tori in Divergent, Insurgent, and Allegiant. Maggie Q most recently enjoyed a stint as a resourceful government agent on the ABC series Designated Survivor.

Kate Beckinsale

Although playing a death dealer in the Underworld franchise would be enough to earn Kate Beckinsale a spot on this list, she has also popped up in a variety of other high-intensity roles. The actress appeared in the 2012 reboot of Total Recall and headlined the 2009 action flick, Whiteout. In addition, Beckinsale also featured in the much-maligned Hugh Jackman Universal Monsters vehicle, Van Helsing.

Michelle Rodriguez

Michelle Rodriguez has kicked ass in the Resident Evil, Fast and Furious, and Machete franchises. Not to mention, she also played strong, capable characters in both S.W.A.T. and the critically-acclaimed Karyn Kusama picture Girlfight. Most recently, there is Rodriguez’s leading role in Walter Hill’s transgender actioner, The Assignment. Even when Rodriguez plays in more vulnerable roles, she makes looking tough appear effortless. She’s even been able to use that toughness to try and effect positive change in the world, most recently threatening to depart the Fast and Furious unless it improved its treatment of female characters.

Pam Grier

Often referred to as ‘The Queen of Blaxploitation,’ Pam Grier has played a multitude of characters that are as deadly as they are memorable. Grier has graced us with an endless supply of quotable dialogue and even managed to successfully move beyond exploitation to enjoy a career in more mainstream projects. Among her most powerful performances are Foxy Brown, Coffy, and Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown. Grier helped paved the way for nearly every other actress on this list.

Linda Hamilton

Linda Hamilton played the fiercely capable and always resourceful Sarah Connor in both The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day. Although the role has been recast for both the television incarnation and for the most recent sequel, Terminator Genisys, Hamilton defined the role and serves as the benchmark to which all future Sarah Connors will be compared. In addition to her turn as Sarah Connor, Ms. Hamilton is also noteworthy for kicking a little ass in the 1997 disaster film Dante’s Peak.

Michelle Yeoh

Many action fans first encountered Michelle Yeoh as a Bond Girl in Tomorrow Never Dies or playing opposite Jackie Chan in the Supercop films. Yeoh’s most noteworthy performance, however, is likely in Ang Lee’s Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon. She is elegant and graceful, but also establishes herself as a force to be reckoned with. Although she isn’t a martial artist by trade, you certainly can’t tell that by watching her onscreen.

Yeoh can soon be seen as part of the cast of CBS All Access’ Star Trek: Discovery.

Lucy Liu

Long before her turn on Elementary as Dr. Joan Watson, Lucy Liu had a penchant for kicking a little ass. She appeared as Alex in the Charlie’s Angels films and as homicidal crime lord O-Ren Ishii in Quentin Tarantino’s Kill Bill: Volume 1. She also popped up as a rogue government agent in the less-than-well-received action film Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever.

Cynthia Rothrock

Cynthia Rothrock spent most of the ‘80s and ‘90s translating her martial arts experience to a career as an action star. Rothrock hasn’t been in a great deal of big budget films, but fans of Kung Fu cinema and low-budget action pictures will no doubt know her name. If you haven’t heard of her and you enjoy exploitation-esque cinema, consider checking out Undefeatable or China O’Brien. Both showcase the actresses impressive martial arts skills.

Sigourney Weaver

No list of ass-kicking actresses would be complete without Sigourney Weaver. When Weaver appeared in Ridley Scott’s 1979 film Alien, she took a role that was originally written for a male protagonist and proved that she could be every bit as tough and capable as a man. And there’s not a man, living or dead, that could have played the role better than she did. Weaver later returned, with equally impressive results, for the 1986 sequel, Aliens. And she was also on board for Alien 3 and Alien Resurrection, but those entries have proven to be not quite as popular with franchise fans.

Although the full extent of her role remains a mystery for now, Weaver is set to face off against The Defenders when the Netflix Marvel series debuts August 18.

Who would top your list of ass-kicking women? Shares your additions or your thoughts on any of these entries in the comments below!