“Star Wars.” “Alien.” “The Terminator.” “Harry Potter.” All of these film franchises and more are anchored by some of the most iconic female characters of all time.
DirecTV surveyed 1,003 people about who they thought were the most iconic female film protagonists ever and provided the results to Business Insider.
Below are the 17 characters people found the most iconic, ranked by the percentage of people that cited each character. Respondents were given a list of 70 female characters to vote on (here’s the full list), with a write-in option available.
The survey also asked people what films or franchises they would most like to see remade with female protagonists. The top result for films people would like to see with a woman in the lead role was the “James Bond” franchise with 15.4%, followed by “Indiana Jones” (13.8%), and “Mission: Impossible” (11.1%).
The top result for movies that people want to see remade with an all-female cast were "The Hangover" with 12.6%, followed by "Fight Club" (10.2%), and "Men in Black" (9.6%).
The results below are based on female and male votes, but broken down between men and women, the results were slightly different. Women found Leia Organa from "Star Wars" the most iconic, while men found Ellen Ripley from "Alien" the most iconic.
Below are the 17 most iconic film protagonists of all time, based on a DirecTV survey:
17. Marry Poppins
Percentage: 1.8%
Movie: "Mary Poppins" (1964)
Played by: Julie Andrews
16. Erin Brockovich
Percentage: 1.8%
Movie: "Erin Brockovich" (2000)
Played by: Julia Roberts
15. Belle
Percentage: 1.8%
Movie: "Beauty and the Beast" (1991)
Voiced by: Paige O'Hara
14. Alice
Percentage: 2%
Movie: "Resident Evil" franchise (2002-2016)
Played by: Milla Jovovich
13. Beatrix "The Bride" Kiddo
Percentage: 2.2%
Movie: "Kill Bill Vol. 1" (2003) and "Kill Bill Vol. 2" (2004)
Played by: Uma Thurman
12. Rose DeWitt Bukater
Percentage: 2.2%
Movie: "Titanic" (1997)
Played by: Kate Winslet
11. Sarah Connor
Percentage: 2.3%
Movie: "The Terminator" (1984) and "Terminator 2" (1991)
Played by: Linda Hamilton
10. Fa Mulan
Percentage: 3%
Movie: "Mulan" (1998)
Voiced by: Ming-Na Wen
9. Hermione Granger
Percentage: 4%
Movie: "Harry Potter" franchise (2001-2011)
Played by: Emma Watson
8. Alice Liddel
Percentage: 4.9%
Movie: "Alice in Wonderland" (1951)
Voiced by: Kathryn Beaumont
7. Scarlett O'Hara
Percentage: 5%
Movie: "Gone With the Wind" (1939)
Played by: Vivien Leigh
6. Lara Croft
Percentage: 5.1%
Movie: "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" (2001)
Played by: Angelina Jolie
5. Wonder Woman
Percentage: 5.6%
Movie: "Wonder Woman" (2017)
Played by: Gal Gadot
4. Katniss Everdeen
Percentage: 5.7%
Movie: "The Hunger Games" franchise (2012-2015)
Played by: Jennifer Lawrence
3. Ellen Ripley
Percentage: 6.5%
Movie: "Alien" (1979) and "Aliens" (1986)
Played by: Sigourney Weaver
2. Leia Organa
Percentage: 7.6%
Movie: "Star Wars" franchise (1977-present)
Played by: Carrie Fisher
1. Dorothy Gale
Percentage: 7.7%
Movie: "The Wizard of Oz" (1939)
Played by: Judy Garland
