Is Betting On Box Office Good For Films? 
Marvel Still Looking For Captain America 
'Sopranos' Creator To Film Rock Drama 
LIVE-SNARKING THE 82ND OSCARS... 
'ALICE' IS A MONSTER! $116.3M Blows Past … 
Oscar Not-So-Thriller: Diller Mogul Picnic 
'Precious' Sweeps 25th Indie Spirit Awards 
Howard Stern Won't Be Next 'Idol' Judge 
Justin Theroux Readying 'Zoolander 2' For … 
Mickey Rourke Wooed For Two Big Roles, … 
CBS Reups Les Moonves Through 2015 
EXCLUSIVE: Who Will Be Captain America? 
Matt Damon To Star In New RFK Biopic 
Claire Danes Leaves ICM For WME; Also, ICM's … 
EXCLUSIVE: Jennifer Lopez And Sony Music … 
I don't do geek. So you can fight it out over the most iconic Sci-Fi Women Of All Time. The website Total Sci Fi Online just named Sigourney Weaver's Ripley from the Alien franchise #1 because she's "strong, smart, self-reliant, and sexy. And yet Sigourney Weaver's confident and utterly believable performance also challenged female stereotypes in Hollywood, and proved a far more inspiring action icon than a thousand Arnies." (Ripley was originally written as a male role, but then 20th Century Fox bigwig Alan Ladd Jr said a female would make the protagonist stand out in the genre.) Good news: Sigourney wants a 5th Alien.
Sarah Michelle Gellar's Buffy from the TV series Buffy The Vampire Slayer placed #2, and Katee Sackhoff's Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica #3, Gillian Anderson's Scully from The X-Files #4, Linda Hamilton's Sarah Connor from the Terminator franchise No. 5, Carrie Fisher's Princess Leia from Star Wars franchise #6, Billie Piper's Rose Tyler from Doctor Who #7, or Amanda Tapping's Sam from Stargate #8, Nichelle Nichols' Uhura from Star Trek #9, and Milla Jovovich's Leeloo from The Fifth Element #10. But even I know there's little sci-fi about #24: Jennifer Garner's Sydney from Alias.
Loading ...
Modern Geeks
While I agree with Ripley lets take a look at the babes from the sixties and seventies
Raquel Welch One Million Years BC
Jane Fonda Barbarella
Farah Fawcett Logan’s Run
The late Great Rosalind Cash Soylent Green
and if you want someone who really kicked ass in Sci-fi
Dakota Fanning in Push
Totally agree with Ripley being #1. But Sarah Connor must be #2. How could she not be? And what about Alice (Milla Jovovich) in Resident Evil? They totally ignored her.
Dana SCULLY, be still my heart…
Although I don’t wish to depend on Wikipedia, its entry on Alien conforms to what I remember reading at the time of its release: In Dan O’Bannon and Ronald Shusett’s original script, there was a note “explicitly stating that ‘The crew is unisex and all parts are interchangeable for men or women’ ” (only last names of characters were used, as in the final movie). So it may not be accurate to say that Ripley was originally written as a male role, although later in script development Ripley might have been thought of as male before Sigourney Weaver was cast.
I can still remember the first time I saw Aliens back in 86 as ten year old and completely falling in love with Sigourney Weaver. Not only was the movie great in itself, but her character was like this glimmer of light at the end of dank and scary tunnel and she was your guide that would tell you everything is going to be alright.
Up until that point my heroes were strictly Arnold, Sly, Harrison, it was inconcievable to me that a woman could ever match up with those guys. But holy shit when she burst on to the scene, it was over for me. My chauvenistic tendecies just simply evaporated. I didn’t look at women the same way ever again. Till this day I want my future wife to have the same qualities Ellen Ripley has. Every girl I meet has to go up against the Ripley model. Her character is strong, yet maternal. Vulnerable, yet decisive. Intelligent and doesn’t suffer fools. As far as hero characters are concerned she’s at the top of my list. I know Indiana Jones is a beloved icon, he’s great too, but I gotta go with my heart on this one.
Ellen Ripley and Sarah Connor are my two heroes and both take #1. Strong, amazing, intelligent, independent women.
I wish that Hollywood would create more strong female leads like those, instead of stupid catty bimbos (*cough Sex and the City *cough) in stupid rom-coms or “chick flicks” crap.
“I don’t do geek.”
Yet every time there is any industry story having to do with science fiction or comic books I feel compelled to say that to show how I am above it.
Enough.
“I don’t do geek.”
Or maybe I say it so as not to offend those who do as they seem to have very strong opinions.
Just a thought.
Yeah, Nikki, preceeding every “geek-bait” story with the “I don’t do geek” comment is called INSULTING YOUR TARGETTED AUDIENCE. Don’t you criticize network execs for making such comments? (Also, my fellow commentors are right- characters like Ripley and Sarah Conner ARE much better models than SEX IN THE CITY types.Why are you mocking material you should be praising?)
Buffy isn’t half the woman Rose Tyler is.
My husband would definitely put 7of9 at the top of the list.
The idea that “Katee Sackhoff’s Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica #3″ is “”iconic” is ridiculous. Maybe as a MARKETING TOOL (the Sci-Fi channel which you fail to point out, produces Battlestar so has a little bit more than an investment in the ratings.) That you, Nickki, would fall for this marketing strategy makes me wonder where your critical skills are thursday morning … did you lose them under the couch or something?
“Iconic” is, by definition, temporal – we know the icon because it’s been around for a while. Katee, albeit fierce in a Camille Paglia sort of way (well, if Camille were uneducated but this is an alternate universe) but way too young to qualify. The women on this list who resonate – even Buffy – have been around, either vis hit show status (Buffy) or through replay. Katee hasn’t. I think if you ask the average non geek consumer of sci-fi they wouldn’t have a clue who you were speaking about.
Katie Sackhoff in Battlestar as Kara Thrace
There are really only two American female icons of note in this regard.
Ripley in the Alien trilogy and Sarah Connor in the Terminator films.
These two heroines proved that women could shoulder a film and go beyond the damsel in distress and actualy kick some ass. Weaver Oscar nominated is the Queen. Nuff said.
Um… no Jaime Sommers, TV’s Bionic Woman, Lindsay Wagner?? That’s a devastating omission!
There is only 1 – Princess Leia.
Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner) as a sci-fi hero? Hhmm… that’s stretching it, but, not by tooooo much. Rambaldi was a freaky plot generator. Rebirth of life, eternal life, big red floating balls, not to mention DNA manipulation… but sci-fi? Eh. It isn’t the predominant element of the show.
Ripley for #1 and Sarah Conner for #2. Two sides of the same coin. Just damned awe inspiring!
Nichelle Nichol’s Lt. Uhura should be @ least #2 or #3 on the list, considering the barriers & stereotypes she broke some 40 years ago. But considering the lack, treatment & depiction of minorities in film & television today (let alone her placement on the list)apparently being such a pioneer doesn’t mean very much.
The Vulcan on Enterprise, played by Jolene Blalock – she was disturbingly, way hotter as an alien than she is as a human…
I second Milla from Resident Evil, totally awesome in both the looks and ass-kicking departments.
I thought this was an industry insider news website. I didn’t know this was like aintitcool or perez hilton. stick with the news please.
Needs. More. Trinity.
Thx for the pic – hot, perhaps, iconic, not.
I woulda chosen those Stepford Wives gals.
Also- Jennifer Garner “iconic?” Have these people never heard of Emma Peel?
An iconic list is not a “hot” list or a list of women in skimpy outfits (1,000,000 BC). It’s about symbols that define women in a positive light and are remembered for the roles they play.
The list is good. And I’m happy to see Major Sam Carter from SG-1 on the list. Very very deserving.
Please don’t forget to add Lucy Lawless. Xena, anyone? Lucy’s a great person, and Xena’s a great sci fi character.
An obscure but underrated female icon – Miss Parker from NBC’s The Pretender. Tough but tender when you least expected. Stylish, witty and nasty at the drop of a hat. The toughest man on the show.
Very disapointed they left out Jane Badler “Diana” from the original “V” miniseries.