Make way for the sci-fragettes: how sci-fi films like Star Wars are breaking the female stereotype

It started with Uhura. Then came Leia, Ripley, Scully, Buffy, Cersei, Katniss (Everdeen), Furiosa and Jessica Jones. And with a female protagonist in the shape of Daisy Ridley’s Rey, and the gender-flipped casting of Gwendoline Christie as baddie Captain Phasma, Star Wars: The Force Awakens is looking to add to that list.

These are iconic characters, and not just because they fall into the trope of “strong female protagonist”. They are complicated, unpredictable, unapologetic and flawed. In fact, while they might be (literally) out of this world, they’re some of the most realistic women on film and television. The stereotypical binds have been loosened in sci-fi, and as a result it’s where actresses have long turned to find roles that will challenge them.

These women don’t have to be likeable; they can be incestuous, alcoholic, relentless and sulky.

Melissa Silverstein, founder and editor of the Women in Hollywood website says: “We’ve always looked to those genres to challenge the norms in our culture — Battlestar Galactica was one of the first. The genre allows people to switch things up in ways they might not be able to do in something that is much more grounded in reality. These genres are very freeing, because you can experiment.”

Actress Tatiana Maslany has now played 10 different clones in three seasons of sci-fi thriller Orphan Black, from a perfectionist soccer mum with a gun habit to a feral Ukrainian assassin with an unexpected loyal streak. She’s supported by veteran Irish actress Maria Doyle Kennedy as the tough and mysterious Mrs S, and their screen time more than passes the Bechdel test.

One of the best films of the year, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night, features Sheila Vand playing a kohl-eyed, vinyl-loving, shape-shifting vampire in what the director calls “the first Iranian vampire western”. Inventing a genre from scratch is one way to liberate your characters from expectations.

Even in the fantasy genre representation is not perfect — the numerous debates around the portrayal of sexual violence in Game of Thrones are a case in point — but it is still the place to see some of the most complex women in television.

And sometimes of course, however fantastical the content the old school stereotypes persist: Jurassic World still managed to relegate Bryce Dallas Howard’s character to running about in high heels while everyone repeatedly makes reference to the fact she doesn’t have kids.

But by the very definition of science fiction and fantasy genres, anything is possible — even, as it turns out, having female characters that are multidimensional and fully formed.

@littlewondering