Our 2016 list is a sign of paradigm change happening in the entertainment industry. Some time ago, critics from here and there voiced their thoughts about the lack of diversity and keen eye for non-white talents in showbiz.
It looks like institutions paid heed to this. Take note that race and ethnicity is not the only thing being debated about. There were some exchanges between groups and individuals regarding the thoughts of a woman empowered, an exceptional young talent, and an aging beauty.
The list below shows nothing but a candid appreciation of a changing way to look at things. These actresses have been acknowledged by the entertainment universe for their accomplishments despite all the inconveniences they had to go through in a controversial industry.
Their portrayals of their roles helped people re-imagine reality and their view of themselves. They are entertaining and inspiring at the same time. Let us reveal what you need to know about these ten female artistic entertainers.
10. Alicia Vikander
Vikander is a Swedish actress who was recognized by mainstream entertainment and critics after her performance as the famous pacifist Vera Brittain in the movie Testament of Youth with Kit Harington, the actor portraying Jon Snow of the Game of Thrones.
Because of her performance in the movie, she was nominated for the BIFA’s award for best performance by an actress in a British indie film. She reached mainstream media when she portrayed a half-witch character by the name of Alicia deane in the fantasy film Seventh Son, a film adaptation of a fantasy novel.
She also portrayed spirited characters in films The Man from U.N.C.L.E. and Burnt, where she starred with Bradley Cooper from The Hangover trilogy and Limitless. But her greatest achievement yet is her performance as the artificial intelligence Ava in the movie Ex Machina and as the painter Gerda Wegener in The Danish Girl.
She received critical acclaims, nominations, and awards, including an Oscar, for these. Vikander is preparing for four films this 2016, where she’ll act beside the likes of James McAvoy and seasoned actress Rachel Weisz.
Vikander is loved by many for her innocent angelic face and petite body structure. She looks so young and pure. But more importantly, she is influential because people acknowledged her achievements at such a young age and such a short time in the mainstream media. She prefers staying away from the chaotic Hollywood social environment, showing her love for her craft and her control over her life.
9. Saoirse Ronan
Ronan is an Irish-American actress born in the Bronx and was raised in Ireland. Her film debut was the 2007 romantic comedy flick I Could Never Be Your Woman.
She also became internationally recognized the same year for her role as Briony Tallis in the movie Atonement, a role that helped her win a Best Supporting Actress in the BAFTA and other awards. This makes her one of the youngest actresses to be nominated for an Oscar.
She starred in the sci-fi film City of Ember the following year that earn her a nomination bid in the Irish Film and Televeision Awards. In 2009, she became famous for her lead role in The Lovely Bones, which earned her more awards. Her rise to fame rolled like as snowball and she earned roles in the movies Byzantium, Muppets Most Wanted, and The Grand Budapest Hotel.
Recently, Ronan earned a spot in the Forbes’ first ever Euro Influential 30-under-30 list. This pretty young woman from Carlow is influential for because of her fast rise to fame at a very young age. Even before the age of 21, she was already critically acclaimed as a performer. Her look, acting performance, and then roles she play captivates the minds of young viewers and makes them imagine themselves in the same glory. Saoirse Ronan’s first name is pronounced “sersha,” which rhymes with inertia.
8. Lupita Nyong’o
The Mexican-Kenyan actress and film director finished college in the United States with a Bachelor’s degree in film and theater from Hampshire College. Nyong’o’s first stint in the entertainment industry was when she got hired as a production assistant for a number of Hollywood movies.
She first acted before the camera in 2008 for a short film called East River. After this, she returned to Kenya to act for a TV series known as Shuga, which was aired in 2009. The same year, she took charge of writing, producing, and directing a documentary called In My Genes.
In 2012, she returned to the United States to finish her Master’s degree in acting in the Yale School of Drama. The turning point of her career was when she portrayed a role in her first feature performance in 12 Years A Slave, a historical drama film by Steve McQueen.
Nyong’o is an exceptionally influential personality. She was the first Kenyan AND Mexican to win an Academy award. She won the Academy Award for Best supporting Actress. She was also dubbed as People’s Most Beautiful Woman and Glamour’s Woman of the Year last 2014. Her achievements are a statement that no race, ethnicity, or nationality is ever barred from recognition of true talent and hard work.
She inspires non-white people to pursue their dreams without thinking of any possible existence of prejudice and discrimination and actually achieving them in the end. Nyong’o was known for her criticizing the Oscars’ alleged internal politics and preference for white actors and actresses despite recent notable performances from non-whites.
7. Helen Mirren
Dame Helen was born on 26 July 1945 as Ilyena Mironoff in England. She descends from an ethnic Russian family that immigrated to the United Kingdom. She is the granddaughter of a Russian diplomat who was an arms buyer for Russians who participated in the October Revolution.
Her great-great-great-great-grandfather was a renowned Russian general that fought in the Napoleonic wars that ended in Russia standing unconquered. She started actong onstage for Britain’s National Youth Theater and the famous Royal Shakespeare Company. She eventually moved to movies and TV shows. Some of her known roles were a police inspector in Prime Suspect, a TV show.
She was known to live with Liam Neeson before. Dame Helen eventually met director Taylor Hackford and moved with him to Los Angeles in 1986 and married him in 1997. She earned knighthood last 2003 and was appointed to be a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in Queen Elizabeth II’s birthday honors. She is also an Associate Member of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts, or RADA.
She became Dame Helen in 2003, when she was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the Queen’s Birthday Honours, and is also an Associate Member of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA).
Dame Helen is a perfect example of a woman who knows what she wants. She is a very candid person who knows how to take care of her body. She doesn’t see aging as an ugly process. She is honest with her rock n’ roll past and knew it when she had to settle down. She’s in a happy marriage and an open atheist. All of these came true because she decided that these things must come to life. Dame Helen is a golden woman every man will respect and every woman will idolize. This is why she’s influential.
6. Rachel Weisz
Rachel Weisz is the daughter of two Central European Jews that escaped the Holocaust. This English rose was born in London on march 7, 1971. Her father was a Hungarian medical inventor and her mother was an Austrian psychotherapists.
Rachel and her sister Minnie lived with their parents in London and were sent to England’s St. Paul’s and Benenden boarding school for girls, two of the most celebrated educational institutions in Great Britain.
Rachel’s film career started with a minor role in a film called Death Machine back in 1994. Her first major role, though, was a physicist in the 1996 film Chain Reaction, a movie also starred by seasoned actors Keanu Reeves and Morgan Freeman. Although Chain Reaction did not reach much success, Weisz got her global breakthrough when she was listed for a role in the timeless adventure film The Mummy as the leading lady, English Egyptologist Evelyn Carnahan, corresponding to Brendan Fraser, the main actor.
Rachel Weisz is that regal woman that’s been boggling you at night. How come this woman ages so perfectly? Rachel had won different awards, including an Oscar, and played and array of diverse roles. This woman is a true professional. She’s the proof that you won’t have to settle for stereotypical roles for her age just to land a project. Her influence is through her actions and she’s a woman James Bond would really stick with for a long, long time.
5. Charlotte Rampling
Charlotte Rampling is an English Actress born in Sturmer, England on February 5 1946. Her parents are painter Isabel Anne Gurteen and Olympic gold medalist Godfrey Rampling. She is best known for her performance in The Night Porter, a Liliana Cavani film, in 1974.
In this film, she took on the role of a concentration camp survivor who, by some twist of fate, met her torturer back in the camp, a Nazi guard who watched over her captivity. Rampling is a well-known personality in the Swinging Sixties.
Her first career was modeling and eventually, she became a fashion muse. She was also famous for the role of Meredith in the acclaimed film Georgy girl in 1996. She had a preference for acting in arthouse films, participating in Luchino Visconti’s 1969 film The Damned. She starred in Zardoz , Farewell, My Lovely, Woody Allen’s Stardust, and other films.
She also released her own album containing cabaret style music. Rampling is known for taking bold and off-beat roles. She once portrayed an odd role in the film Max mon amour. She was Margaret, a woman who fell in love with a chimpanzee. She was also a voice actor for the ring. Her attitude as a woman became her most influencing aspect. She never turns down opportunities that will make her do something new, and through this, she achieves self-fulfillment.
4. Jennifer Lawrence
Jennifer Lawrence is one of the most famous young actresses in Hollywood today. Born on August 15, 1990, Lawrence has received multiple different awards already at her age. Lawrence started her career in TV shows, playing a maor role as a member of the lead cast of The Bill Engvall show in TBS.
Her breakthrough performance was when she acted for the indie drama Winter’s Bone in 2010. She finally achieved the superstar status when she portrayed the blue mutant Mystique in the fourth installment of the X-Men franchise. Above all these achievements.
Lawrence is most known for her role as Katniss Everdeen, the heroine of the Hunger Games franchise. Her outstanding performance in the three movies led to Lawrence achieving the mark of the highest-grossing female action hero, after the trilogy ended. She also received critical acclaim and awards for her other performances in dramas American Hustler and Joy and the romantic comedy Silver Linings Playbook.
Jennifer Lawrence is the top-of-mind image of the female teen idol. She is a frank and wholesome personality that exudes the freedom and confidence every female teen wants.
Lawrence is known for being outspoken about her figure. She expresses her lack of care for so-called entertainment standards. Unlike Mystique, who changes her form whenever necessary or advantageous, Lawrence is the type of woman who stands adamant for her beliefs.
3. Jane Fonda
Jane Fonda is an American icon. She was born on December 21, 1937. She is a very talented individual, known for being an actress, writer, activist, fashion model, and fitness icon. She is an Academy winner twice and a receiver of the AFI Life Achievement Award. Fonda was once a performer in Broadway.
Her first theater stint in Broadway was the the play There Was a Little Girl in 1960. She earned two two nominations in the Tony Awards because of this. Her rise to fame began when she performed in 60’s films such as Period of Adjustment, Cat Ballou, Barefoot in the Park, Barbarella, and Sunday in New York.
She married roger Vadim, who directed her movie Barbarella. Fonda was an Academy favorite, being nominated for Academy awards 7 times. Fonda was an Oscar winner, who won two Oscars for the Best Actress award for the 1971 film Klute.
She was nominated for her roles in Julia, The China Syndrome, On Golden Pond, and others. She release her first fitness video in 1982, selling 17 million copies, eventually. She married billionaire Ted Turner after divorcing her second husband Tom Hayden. She divorced Turner in 2001.
She is an embodiment of female dominance. Fonda is also a prolific activist who voiced out aggressively against the Vietnam War and advocates women.
Jane Fonda is a powerful woman. She does not care about what other people say about her. She owned up to her decisions and mistakes and she never falters.
2. Cate Blanchett
Blanchett was born in Melbourne on May 14 1969. Before she was a film actress, she was performing onstage. Her first stage role was with Geoffrey Rush in the 1992 play Oleanna for the Sydney Theater Company. The same year, she was cast as Clytemnestra in an Electra play.
Her film debut was when she took on a role of an Australian nurse caught by the Japanese during World War 2 in Paradise Road. Her first lead role was as Lucinda Leplastrier in the romance drama Oscar and Lucinda, with Ralph Fiennes. Her big roles include Elizabeth I of England in the movie Elizabeth (which ignited her stardom) and the elven queen Galadriel of The Lord of the Rings.
Cate Blanchett has that androgynous appeal that increases her mysterious aura. She also looks and talks in a very educated manner. She is an actor who knows which roles fits herself the best. It’s really hard to imagine Cate Blanchett in a slovenly, skanky role but even if she may take one, she will probably make it regal. When you start talking about Cate Blanchett, people will automatically describe her as an actress. That’s how powerful Cate Blanchett’s branding is. She is a great influence to people due to her exquisite job of cementing an immaculately elegant image.
1. Viola Davis
The powerful Viola Davis. She was born at her grandparents’ house on the Singleton Plantation, St. Matthews, South Carolina. She is the daughter of a horse trainer father and a homemaker and civil rights activist mother.
Early in her life, she already knew that her heart is in acting. Davis’ most critically acclaimed performance was when she portrayed Aibileen Clark, a black maid in Jackson Mississippi. She earned two SAG awards and her second academy award nomination, which was won by Meryl Streep.
Viola Davis sealed her identity as an influential woman in the world when Time Magazine listed her as on one of the most influential people in the world last 2012. The same year, she was also Glamour’s Film Actress of the year. Meryl Streep presented her with the Women in Films Crystal Award in 2012 too.
Viola Davis is arguably the most influential actress in the world this 2016. Her roles and her attitude offscreen is downright strong and powerful. She reached her status right now through her own grit and skill and her identity just takes over her roles. You know that only Viola Davis can pull them off.
It won’t be surprising at all if Viola Davis becomes an icon like a female Samuel Jackson after portraying Amanda Waller in the Suicide Squad film this 2016. You’ll know how influential a person is when people are already envisioning you as a powerful being even before you actually do something to demonstrate your power.