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An evocative inversion of the “damsel in distress” trope, the femme fatale has become one of cinema’s most compelling character archetypes. A femme fatale is a cunning seductress ensnaring men with her charm and beauty only to bring about their downfalls.
The archetype has long been used in literature, with femme fatale characters making appearances in ancient Greek works. Mid-2oth century motion pictures really popularized it though, with performances by actresses like Gene Tierney and Barbara Stanwyck cementing the trope as a Hollywood mainstay.
A welcome departure from puritanical, two-dimensional depictions relegated to women in early Hollywood, the femme fatale archetype has allowed actresses to assume the kinds of intoxicating, morally ambiguous, or outright villainous roles traditionally reserved for men. Given the parts’ complexity, it comes as no surprise that the characters rank among Hollywood’s most memorable. Here, we examine some of the most iconic femme fatales in film and TV history.
Claire Underwood - House of Cards (2013-2018)
Calculating, ruthless, and endlessly ambitious, House of Cards’ Claire Underwood is the cold-blooded Lady Macbeth of modern American politics. A Machiavellian operator in every respect, Claire gleefully ascends the political hierarchy in pursuit of her insatiable lust for power. Holding allegiance only to herself, Claire methodically destroys anybody who dares step in her way—a viciousness that even extends to her equally morally reprehensible husband, Frank.
Claire’s lack of a moral center allows her to go to exceedingly extreme lengths in her conquest for power. Actress Robin Wright is spellbinding in her role as the icy tyrant and was (befittingly) awarded the Golden Globe for Best Actress - Television Series Drama for her portrayal of Underwood in 2013.
Cersei Lannister - Game of Thrones (2011-2019)
Played indelibly by British actress Lena Headey, Cersei Lannister remains the series’ most cunning manipulator in a show teeming with impossibly sinister players. Cersei is a compelling character because of her inability to be purely, illogically evil. Despite her obvious moral depravity, Cersei manages to hold some small semblance of humanity through her genuine, uncompromising love for her family, especially her children.
Despite Cersei’s sincere maternal affection remaining one of her few redeeming qualities, that same unyielding love is malignantly warped by her sinister nature. It drives her to commit some of the most heinous and grisly acts of the entire series in the name of the Lannisters. Cersei aptly summarizes her ethos during a season one conversation between herself and her son Joffrey. She tells him, “Everyone who isn’t us is an enemy.”
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Amy Dunne - Gone Girl (2014)
An inconspicuous antagonist (and possible anti-hero), Amy Elliot Dunne is one of the central figures in Gillian Flynn’s best-selling novel Gone Girl and its corollary David Fincher film adaptation. An aristocratic, erudite WASP from New York, Amy grows resentful of her dimwitted, philandering husband Nick. She meticulously plans to fake her death and frame her dullard husband to enact her vengeance.
Midway through the film, Amy performs her seminal “Cool Girl” monologue, lamenting her subjugation under her husband and unveiling her manipulative nature for the audience’s viewing pleasure. Often characterized as one of the most nuanced depictions of female sociopathy in media, Amy has a captivating malice that coaxes audience members to her side.
The Catwoman - Batman (1966-1968)
Played wonderfully by Julie Newmar, Lee Meriweather, and Eartha Kitt, Catwoman was the perfect foil to Batman in the campy, upbeat original TV adaptation of the classic comic character that first aired on ABC in 1966. Kitt stood out in season three with pitch-perfect line delivery and poise as Gotham's infamous jewel thief.
Her love-hate relationship with Bruce Wayne makes Catwoman one of the most interesting villains, sometimes working with or against the caped crusader depending on her interests and eventually becoming an antiheroine of her own in other comic stories and future adaptations.
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Annie Wilkes - Misery (1990)
An unhinged nurse and literary obsessive, Annie Wilkes is gifted a boon of serendipity after rescuing her favorite author, Paul Sheldon, from a blizzard. She had been stalking him throughout his stay at the nearby Silver Creek Lodge, where he’d been working on his latest book.
After rescuing Sheldon, Wilkes takes the injured author to her nearby home to treat his injuries. Though initially grateful to Annie for having saved him, Sheldon gradually realizes that he is now a prisoner as the extent of Annie’s obsession is revealed.
Annie forces Paul to continue work on his Misery novel series. She becomes increasingly brutal and punishing when Paul acts or writes in a way in which she disapproves. Wilkes conceals her violent and sinister nature behind a provincial congeniality. She feigns innocence through her childish vocabulary and abhorrence of profanity. This chilling performance by Kathy Bates won her an Academy Award for Best Actress.
The Bride - Kill Bill (2003)
Beatrix “the Bride” Kiddo, also known by her Deadly Viper Assassination Squad moniker “Black Mamba,” is a highly trained former member of the prestige assassin syndicate. She abandons the organization after becoming pregnant by the titular Bill, the squad’s leader for whom she develops feelings.
While seemingly going along with getting married at first, Bill instead orders the Deadly Viper squad to kill everyone at the wedding rehearsal and then shoots the Bride in the head himself. Managing to survive and brimming with rage, the Bride swears vengeance on Bill and the whole squad. By taking the role of a violent vigilante, The Bride embraces an archetype traditionally reserved for men. The film flips the action genre on its head and establishes the Bride as one of the most notable action franchise stars in history.
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Jennifer Check - Jennifer’s Body (2009)
The 2009 camp classic follows Jennifer Check (Megan Fox), a popular high school student who was transformed into a murderous succubus subsisting on the flesh of boys following her sacrifice during a Satanic ritual performed by a local emo band.
Jennifer’s best friend, a shy bookworm named Needy (Amanda Seyfried), becomes suspicious of Jennifer’s odd behavior and eventually uncovers the truth behind her transformation. Jennifer’s feedings remain some of the most frightening scenes in the entire film. They depict a demure, smirking Jennifer, toying with her prey until just moments before transforming into her true demonic form. Her jaw unhinges like a python’s to reveal razor-sharp teeth. Fox gives a career-best performance, embodying Jennifer’s cunning and self-exploitation of her sexuality.
Jackie Brown - Jackie Brown (1997)
Pam Grier burst onto the scene in the 1970s and was heralded as one of the first female action stars in roles like Coffy and Foxy Brown. Quentin Tarantino's Jackie Brown took direct inspiration from these blaxploitation films, so it made perfect sense for Grier to take the lead role of a struggling flight attendant caught between the feds and the arms dealer Ordell Robbie (Samuel L. Jackson) she smuggles for.
Grier shines in this chaotic story, with Jackie promising Ordell to continue smuggling while pretending to help the ATF and LAPD, but secretly manipulating both parties to try and walk away with $500,000 herself.
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Catherine Tramell - Basic Instinct (1992)
Perhaps the character best known to typify the “femme fatale” archetype, Basic Instinct’s Catherine Tramell is a beautiful, wealthy heiress whose connection to a slew of suspicious deaths invites the attention of two San Francisco homicide detectives. Cunning and uninhibited, Tramell weaponizes her wealth, beauty, and sexuality to manipulate and control those around her, allowing her to exact her sadistic fantasies on unsuspecting suitors.
With motives unclear even to herself, Tramell has an inexhaustible desire for power that puts her in increasingly dangerous situations. They test the limits of what her intellect, looks, and privilege will allow her to get away with. A career-defining role for actress Sharon Stone, Tramell has solidified her legacy as one of the most unforgettable villains of all time.
Alex Forrest - Fatal Attraction (1987)
After a one-night stand between high-powered, married New York attorney Dan Gallagher (Michael Douglas) and publishing editor Alex Forrest (Glenn Close), Alex becomes enamored with Dan, much to his chagrin.
When Gallagher’s wife and child return home from a weekend away, he attempts to end the short-lived affair with Alex. Distraught by Dan’s rejection, Alex begins to spiral, and her obsession with him takes a decidedly darker turn. Dan quickly learns of Alex’s true, psychopathic nature as she begins to threaten not only his safety but that of his family. The uncanny performance by Glenn Close earned her an Academy Award nomination.
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Phyllis Dietrichson - Double Indemnity (1944)
The plot of Double Indemnity was inspired by real-life murderer Ruth Snyder, a New York woman executed in 1928 after being found guilty of murdering her husband in a bid to collect a sizable life insurance payout. Dietrichson serves as the primary antagonist in the 1944 film, based off of a James M. Cain novella.
Like Snyder, Dietrichson plots to murder her unwitting husband in a ploy to collect on a lucrative insurance policy she’d tricked him into signing prior to his death.
Actress Barbara Stanwyck earned her third Academy Award nomination for the role.
Jacqueline Broyer - Boomerang (1992)
Womanizer Marcus Graham (Eddie Murphy) is given a taste of his own medicine when he falls in love with his boss Jacqueline Broyer (Robin Givens), with her behavior as noncommittal and manipulative as he is with the women he sleeps with.
Sorely underrated by critics at the time, Boomerang stands up now as a phenomenal romantic comedy with a talented ensemble cast including Murphy, Givens, Halle Berry, David Alan Grier, Martin Lawrence, Grace Jones, and Eartha Kitt.
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Ellen Berent - Leave Her to Heaven (1945)
Starring Gene Tierney, Cornel Wilde, and Vincent Price, Leave Her to Heaven is a 1945 film noir following the relationship between renowned novelist Richard Harland (Wilde) and Ellen Berent (Tierney). Berent, a Bostonian socialite, becomes overwhelmed with a pernicious jealousy following her whirlwind romance with Harland.
Unlike many other femme fatales, Berent’s motives are not financial or material but rather stem from her obsession with Harland. She sees the author as a proxy for her late father with whom she’d had an equally all-consuming relationship. The film is a favorite among film critics for its rich mythological allegory and ingenious blend of genre. Berent’s insatiable desire for love inevitably becomes her downfall and parallels Greek figures like Electra and Madea.
