It's no secret that female representation in film is poor. Of the major character in the top grossing film in 2014, only 30 percent were female and only 19 percent of protagonists were women.
The most common excuse I've heard for this lack of representation is that female leads don't sell. This defense is false, as the following 11 films prove that female leads are successful.
1. "Alien" $204 Million World Wide
Originally intended for a male lead, "Alien" introduced us to The SciFi Queen, Sigourney Weaver. Up until "Alien," science fiction films had women as passive characters, like in "Forbidden Planet," or women were rarely seen, like in "2001: A Space Odyssey." Even in "Star Wars: A New Hope," Princess Leia is the only woman and is not the lead.
Weaver's character Ripley challenges the gender roles of the science fiction and horror genre by being an active heroine. She's in a position of power, challenges those who questioned her authority and stands by her decisions, paving the path for more inclusion of women like her in these genres.
2. "Thelma and Louise" $45 Million World Wide
"Thelma and Louise" presents a story about two women breaking away from the restrictions and abuse life imposes on women. Both women are taken advantage of by men and acknowledge that society would believe the offenders more than the victims.
The film also stands out because both women have romantic interests that don't define them. Instead they are developed as independent characters that find meaning through their liberation.
Despite having a smaller world wide gross than the other films on this list, the film received recognition from the Academy in the categories Best Actress and Best Film, and it won the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay.
3. "Chicago" $307 Million World Wide
This Oscar winning musical centers around two female convicts, both going to jail because of their male partners. While the reason behind their sentencing is male driven, their motives throughout the film are personal gain.
Velma, played by Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Roxie, played by Renee Zellweger, desire fame and fortune, indulging in the freedom and power the limelight gives them. The film also acknowledges that these women are manipulative criminals. Instead of trying to falsely paint them as victims, the film embraces that they're bad people. Therefore, it acknowledges that women can be selfish, flawed and morally questionable instead of further depicting women as flawless human beings.
4. "Kill Bill" $181 Million World Wide
Uma Thurman leads this revenge tale. Not only does this action packed film have a female lead, but most of the major characters are women. Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox, Chiaki Kuriyama and Daryl Hannah all play big roles in this acclaimed film.
Not only does the film have multiple major female characters, but each character is different and well developed. From Fox turning from cold-hearted killer to loving mother to Liu overcoming her family's murder and becoming a crime boss to Thurman fighting against all odds to exact revenge on the man who ruined her life, the film embraces female characters that are morally grey, showing that women are not one dimensional.
5. "Bridesmaids" $288 Million World Wide
Ensemble comedies are produced over and over again, from "The Hangover" to "Tropic Thunder" to "The Big Lebowski." In 2011, Kristen Wiig and Maya Rudolph stared in the female fronted ensemble "Bridesmaids," reminding audience members that women are funny.
From Wiig getting wasted on an airplane to Maya Rudolph going to the bathroom in the middle of the road, "Bridesmaids" shows audience members that woman are hilarious and imperfect.
6. "The Hunger Games" $694 Million World Wide
"The Hunger Games" is one of many films inspired by young adult novels, but this one stands out in particular because not only is it fronted by a woman, but also her story is not focused on a romance. Instead Katniss' story is about her going into a death match and trying to survive for the sake of her sister.
The film exposes how the media manipulates a situation for the sake of entertainment, and in the case of "The Hunger Games" it's glamorizing the deaths of children. Katniss however wants to keep her humanity and doesn't want to be turned into a product of consumption. Instead she does whatever it takes to protect her loved ones.
7. "Pacific Rim" $411 Million World Wide
"Pacific Rim" has a simple premise: giant monsters fight giant robots. While films like "King Kong" and "Transformers: Age of Extinction" rely on an active male protagonist and a damsel in distress, "Pacific Rim" challenges the idea that a woman needs rescuing.
Instead the film has two leads that work together as opposed to one relying on the other to be saved. The male lead, Raleigh Becket, works side by side with his equal, the female lead, Mako Mori.
Throughout the film, Mori proves that she is more than capable to fight beside Becket, but the film also shows Mori's weaknesses. By showing Mori as a strong fighter with a loyal personality, brilliant mind and painful past, Mori is a realistic and admirable depiction of a woman.
8. "Lucy" $459 Million World Wide
"Rambo," "Donnie Darko" and "Indian Jones" are just a few protagonists whose names share the titles of their films, establishing themselves as the central character. Scarlett Johansson's character Lucy adds herself to this list of titular characters.
"Lucy" is shamelessly about it's female protagonist and her transformation from normal girl to human computer, thus having the film also fall into a common action trope that has been predominately reserved for men. Transformation from an average human to someone super is a repeated theme seen in films like "Captain America: The First Avenger," "The Matrix" and "RoboCop." "Lucy" joins these films, proving that women can also transform into heroic characters.
9. "Mad Max: Fury Road" $375 Million World Wide
Despite being titled after the male character, "Mad Max: Fury Road" is about the women of the film. The protagonist is Furiosa, a truck driving, redemption seeking amputee determined to liberate the villain's five sex slaves with the assistance of a clan of bike riding, gun toting women.
The film's theme is women are not things, and the female characters of the film exemplify this theme by challenging the patriarchal rule of Immortan Joe, by holding their own against an army of crazed warboys and by rising above the destruction of this world by clinging onto the idea of hope. This theme is especially potent because movies, specifically in the genre this film falls into, tend to treat women as objects more than as people.
10. "Star Wars: The Force Awakens" One Billion Dollars and Growing World Wide
While the original trilogy and the prequels had male leads, the focus of "The Force Awakens" is on Rey. Through out the film Rey proves again and again that she is competent, whether it is fixing a droid, piloting the Millennium Falcon or taking on Kylo Ren. Besides being one of the most competent characters in the entire franchise, Rey is also one of the most sympathetic characters, driven by a strong sense of hope and her loyalty toward her friends.
This film is proof enough that female led films are successful. "The Force Awakens" has broken several records, from being the highest grossing film in North America to having the biggest domestic opening and the biggest global debut, and you cannot dismiss that this film, as well as other female led films, are in demand and successful.
