Sometimes it's not fandom. It's a fantasy.
Couldn't stop rewatching 2004's Catwoman regardless of the terrible reviews? Were you so obsessed with Heathers you turned your room into a Winona shrine?
It's likely you were queer for these badass female characters even before you knew you weren't exactly straight. In celebration of the most powerful on-screen personas, we've compiled a list of the most impactful female characters that sexually awakened queer women everywhere.
Shego, "Kim Possible"
Maybe it was the amazing neon catsuit. Or her ninja combat skills. But likely it was her uninvested attitude. The jet-black-haired sidekick of Kim Possible's nemesis was the one we were all rooting for.
Lara Croft, "Tomb Raider"
Angelina Jolie is enough to make any woman gay, but she's at her bisexual finest as this video game character turned action film hero. Her fierce, unapologetic treasure hunter made all women feel empowered, but gay women feel especially so. Sure, the reboot was okay (sorry, Alicia Vikander), but it left some of us longing for what Jolie made us feel watching her in the role.
Nancy Drew, "The Nancy Drew Mysteries"
She's smart. She's intuitive. She's a lesbian icon. Whether on the page or played by Emma Roberts or Bonita Granville, this sleuth solved the mystery behind many queer women's sexuality.
Elektra, "Elektra"
Before we had the near-flawless Wonder Woman, we had 2005's Elektra, starring Jennifer Garner as Elektra Natchios, an assassin who stole our hearts. The movie was a commercial and critical failure, but Garner has never looked more like a crimson goddess. Equipped with knives, a fierce costume, and a serious attitude, Elektra woke us up even if the movie put us to sleep.
Catwoman, "Catwoman"
Imagine a world where Halle Berry dies, is resurrected by a thousand cats, and decides to wear only leather afterward. The lesbian appeal of the character Catwoman is generally well-known, but this version is especially amazing. Even if the movie was a relative bomb, it still stole many queer girls' hearts.
Stella Carlin, "Orange Is the New Black"
Despite the backlash against lesbian Ruby Rose for landing the role of Batwoman, her role in the already queer-friendly Orange Is The New Black was a display of charm that made tons of millennials and Generation Zers proclaim themselves as gay. Piper Chapman's untrustworthy love interest, Stella, is bad in all the right ways. Even though she wears a prison uniform, it's criminal not to acknowledge the cultural impact the character had for many young women.
Claire Bennet, "Heroes"
The cheerleader with the power to rapidly heal herself was once a huge TV crush. She couldn't feel pain but was a total heartbreaker. But she was more than her abilities. "I like to think of myself as just a girl who happens to have powers. And it's just one thing in a list of attributes -- loyal, friendly, regenerative, good skin, you know," as the character, played by Hayden Panettiere, once put it.
Ellen Ripley, "Alien"
Those white '80s panties she walks around in aren't doing her any favors, but Sigourney Weaver's action-packed portrayal of a space traveler who defends cats from monsters is one for the ages. Fearless, strategic, and altruistic, Ripley is everything we wanted and needed.
Trinity, "The Matrix"
The Matrix franchise, created by the groundbreaking transgender Wachowski siblings, brought to life Trinity, a badass apocalyptic girl-crush. A calm and collected hacker who knows her share of kung fu, Trinity, played by Carrie-Anne Moss, was the girl of our dreams (while also waking the human race up from nightmares).
Lisbeth Salander, "The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo"
The bisexual heroine is everything you'd look for in a crush -- perceptive, individualistic, and able to take down all the predatory men in the world. Whether you prefer the Swedish film starring Noomi Rapace or Rooney Mara's interpretation in the 2011 David Fincher version, there's no doubt that she ended doubts we all had about being attracted to women.
Winona Ryder in Everything
From Beetlejuice to Heathers to Edward Scissorhands, Winona ruled the late 1980s and much of the '90s, but she also reigned as the queen of our hearts. Consistently playing headstrong women who rebelled against authority and gender expectations, she is a gay icon for both men and women.
