Action Heroines in the 21st Century: Sisters in Arms

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Fran Pheasant-Kelly (Reader in Screen Studies, University of Wolverhampton) Christa Van Raalte (Associate Professor of Film and Television, Bournemouth University)

Action Heroines in the 21st Century

Sisters in Arms

Fran Pheasant-Kelly (Reader in Screen Studies, University of Wolverhampton), Christa Van Raalte (Associate Professor of Film and Television, Bournemouth University)

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English

Edinburgh University Press
31 August 2025

Film theory & criticism; Film & movie: styles & genres; Popular culture; Gender studies: women

Examines the collective agency of women in post-millennial action-led genres from television and cinema.

Action Heroines in the Twenty-First Century highlights the changing representation of female protagonists in recent action-led genres. It responds to an upturn in women-centred narratives over the past two decades, specifically, those that involve groups of women in action. The work demonstrates how this collective agency reflects an increasingly global rejection of violence towards women (illustrated through initiatives such as the #MeToo movement, and the united reactions to the deaths of Sarah Everard, Sabina Nessa and the deaths of young Iranian women detained by security forces in Iran in 2022). It is against this backdrop that an escalating number of action films released over recent years counter contemporaneous perceptions of women as victims in the face of threat and enable progressive media representations of women.

This book charts such representations from a diverse range of national cinemas and genres, moving from remakes of Charlie's Angels through to the Western, eco-activism, action-comedy and Marvel's superheroines, thus providing a broad platform for its argument and highlighting the growing significance of action heroines operating collectively.

Edited by: Fran Pheasant-Kelly (Reader in Screen Studies University of Wolverhampton), Christa Van Raalte (Associate Professor of Film and Television, Bournemouth University)
Imprint: Edinburgh University Press
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 234mm, Width: 156mm,
ISBN: 9781399529754
ISBN 10: 1399529757
Pages: 344
Publication Date: 31 August 2025
Audience: College/higher education , Professional and scholarly , Further / Higher Education , Undergraduate
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active

Dr Fran Pheasant-Kelly is Reader in Screen Studies and Director of Centre for Film, Media, Discourse and Culture at the University of Wolverhampton. Christa Van Raalte is Associate Professor of Film and Television at Bournemouth University. Her research interests include constructions of gender in science fiction and action films, narrative strategies in complex TV, and working conditions in the film and television industries. She has recently published articles on these topics in journals including the New Review for Film and Television Studies, the Journal of Popular Film and Television, and Media Industries, She is co-editor (with Frances Pheasant-Kelly) of Action Heroines in the 21st Century: Sisters in Arms to be published by EUP in August 2025

Reviews for Action Heroines in the 21st Century: Sisters in Arms

Interrogating recent trends in screen iterations of the action heroine and offering a global perspective in doing so, the unique focus of Action Heroines in the 21st Century on groups and partnerships of women marks it out from existing work on this cultural figure. Essential reading for anyone interested in the intersection of gender and genre in contemporary film and television.-- ""Hannah Hamad, Reader in Media and Communication, Cardiff University""