Female superheroes fight as much as male superheroes. They’ve participated in ongoing battles against world threats, villains, and the evil badass characters you can hardly imagine. Female superheroes bring a sort of real humanity in characters. And with an ongoing struggle for equality in the world, we should show more appreciation for female heroes. What are some of the popular female superhero names?
Let’s take a look. We will talk about some of the badass superheroines, and the actresses that portrayed them.
Story Stages
Scarlet Witch – Portrayed by Elizabeth Olsen
Scarlet Witch made its debut in the Avengers: Age of Ultron movie. Nobody could expect she will grow to one of the most popular characters in the MCU. We cannot deny her power. And it is only growing bigger. In the upcoming series, WandaVision, Marvel will further explore her powers.
In the Marvel comics, Scarlet Witch is one of the most dangerous heroes. She is the daughter of Magneto, and originally, a mutant.
But because Marvel didn’t have the rights for the term “mutant” until recently, her story suffered. We finally see her release her power in the Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: End Game.
And now, she will only grow stronger and better. And we hope she gets a better character arc to go along with her awesome power.
Wonder Woman – Portrayed by Lynda Carter
Lynda Carter portrayed the original Wonder Woman from 1975 to 1979. Some of the younger generation fans do not remember her. But for the older generation, Lynda Carter is one of the most badass women in the world.
More than forty years have passed since she wore the mantle of Wonder Woman. Her costume with a tiara on her head served as a great cosplay inspiration.
Lynda left an iconic mark on the next generation of superheroines. In the 1970s, she didn’t have the emotional complexity of the heroes we see nowadays. But when you close your eyes and imagine the ideal version of a confident and crime-fighting woman, Lynda’s Wonder Woman comes to mind more often than not.
She appeared in CW’s Flash recently, portraying an “alien” character, paying reference to her Wonder Woman.
Wonder Woman – Portrayed by Gal Gadot
Wonder Woman is one of the most popular comic book characters of all time. That is why DC Comics tried to bring the character to the big screen. And Gal Gadot excelled as Diana Prince.
Gal made her debut in the Batman vs Superman movie and then had her own movie. And fans loved her. Wonder Woman served as one of the bright stars during the Justice League movie. Unlike many of her co-stars, she continued to get own movies.
Originally scheduled for 2020, her next Wonder Woman movie will come out in 2021.
Gal has everything. She has the looks, she has the brains, and the charisma to play Diana Prince for years to come. We hope she does.
Black Widow – Portrayed by Scarlett Johansson
Black Widow is another character that started slowly and then got more and more popular. Scarlett appeared in Ironman 2, and from there on, she continues to grace the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Apart from Robert Downey Jr, Chris Hemsworth, and Chris Evans, Scarlett has the most appearances in MCU movies.
Natasha Romanoff will now get her own movie, a long overdue. Same as Wonder Woman, the movie had a release date in 2020. But Covid-19 postponed the release date.
Scarlett manages to excel in a world dominated by male superheroes. She was the only female in the first two Avengers movies. Now, she has Scarlett Witch, Captain Marvel, and more on her side.
The portrayal of Johansson helped bring Natasha Romanoff higher in the ranks of female superhero names.
Mystique – Portrayed by Jennifer Lawrence
The X-men are some of the most popular characters in the world. And we have to admit, the X-men paved the way for modern superhero movies. Jennifer Lawrence didn’t play Mystique in the first X-men movies in the 2000s. Rebecca Romjin initially played Mystique.
Jennifer Lawrence inherited a popular character, and then took it to new heights. Lawrence managed to turn a one-dimensional character into a complex individual. Raven/Mystique is more of a tragic figure, never accepted for her true self.
Jennifer showed the complexity of the Mystique’s character. And by doing so, she helped millions of children, victims of bullies, relate to the character. And that is why fans around the world love her.
Storm – Portrayed by Halle Berry
Halle Berry appeared in the first X-men movies that made it to the big screen. She portrayed Storm in the 2000s X-men movies. Halle manages to bring the amazing mutant, a queen, goddess, and top fighters, into the spotlight.
We have to speak honestly, Storm already had a name for herself in the comics. But Berry portrayed the character on the big screen to perfection. Storm is one of the core members of the X-men cast and served as a mentor to the new X-men entrants.
And we cannot mention the character without her importance in diversity. Storm is the first big female hero of color given a key role in a movie. In the 2010s, we had Black Panther. But Storm paved that way.
Catwoman – portrayed by Michelle Pfeiffer
Michelle appeared in Batman Begins, a movie in 1992. Now, critics might not love that movie. Fans hate it as well. But nobody can deny the fact Michelle did a great job as Selina Kyle/Catwoman. Her performance remains one of the best multi-layered interpretations of Catwoman on the big screen.
Michelle gave voice to timid women thanks to her Selina Kyle character. And encouraged them to embrace their playful inner cats.
Fun Fact: Halle Berry also played Catwoman. But Michelle’s version leaned more toward the human side. That made her more relatable to fans around the world. Pfeiffer also helped bring Catwoman away from the traditional villain definition, and into the world of the conflicted antiheroes.
Jean Grey – portrayed by Famke Janssen
Famke is Jean Grey, period. Fans around the world already forgot the laughable 2019 movie, X-Men: Dark Phoenix.
Back in the days, Famke portrayed the most powerful mutant in the Marvel Universe. In the first movies, she played a secondary function. In the movies, she slowly learns the full range of her powers. When she releases her full spectrum of abilities, Jean transforms into the uncontrollable and murderous Phoenix. The 2019 movie fast-paced her entire path in one movie. And that is why it failed.
Same as Halle Berry and Storm, Famke gave voice to females around the world. She paved the way for more female superheroes in main roles.
Supergirl – Melissa Benoist
We all know Superman, arguably the most popular superhero character. But what about his cousin? Supergirl has a few memorable and notable appearances in the comics.
And when Melissa brought the character to life on CW’s Supergirl, fans loved it. We have to admit, Supergirl had a slow start.
But it lasted for six seasons. And during that time, Melissa also appeared on other CW shows. Supergirl brings another type of hero to the table. She is softer in her approach and often brings emotional stories to the table. In the show, Supergirl served as the moral quandary.
Wasp/Hope Van Dyne – Portrayed by Evangeline Lilly
Simply put, Evangeline Lilly saved the Ant-Man MCU franchise. The first Ant-Man movie did well at the box office. But when Lilly made her debut in the MCU in the sequel, fans went nuts. Evangeline brought charisma, fun, and entertainment to the character.
And she serves as the moral voice among men. Mostly a side-kick for Ant-Man, Hope Van Dyne played a key role in the MCU movies since her appearance.