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When we think of superheroes, names like Superman, Batman, and Spider-Man come to mind. Female superheroes are often left out of the spotlight. Even though there have been some great women in comic books, their representation in movies and TV shows hasn’t been ideal.
For decades, female superheroes were side characters. Fans demanded solo movies or series, but when they finally got them, they didn’t perform well. The first female-led superhero movie, ‘Sheena: Queen Of The Jungle,’ came out in 1984, followed by ‘Supergirl.’ Both movies flopped at the box office.
The 2000s didn’t bring much improvement. DC’s ‘Catwoman’ in 2004 with Halle Berry and Marvel’s ‘Elektra’ in 2005 with Jennifer Garner both did poorly. These movies had weak stories and poor character representation.
Marvel kept female superheroes in side roles, and this worked better. Characters like Black Widow and Scarlet Witch were loved. DC saw success with ‘Wonder Woman’ in 2017, which gave hope for future female-led movies.
Marvel’s first MCU female-led movie, ‘Captain Marvel,’ did well, but others didn’t follow the same success. ‘Black Widow,’ ‘She-Hulk: Attorney At Law,’ and ‘The Marvels’ all bombed. DC also had major disappointments with ‘Birds Of Prey’ and ‘Wonder Woman 1984.’ Sony’s ‘Madame Web’ joined the list of flops recently.
The main issue with these projects is storytelling. Origin movies like ‘Iron Man’ and ‘Batman Begins’ set high standards that female-led movies couldn’t match. Movies like ‘Birds Of Prey’ and ‘The Marvels’ lacked character development.
‘Black Widow’ suffered from poor writing and didn’t provide a good send-off for Scarlett Johansson’s character. DC is now in a rebuilding phase with James Gunn, hoping for better female-driven movies or TV shows. Marvel is planning to include popular female characters like Jean Grey and Storm with the X-Men.
We’ve seen successful female-led movies in other genres. The ‘Alien’ franchise with Sigourney Weaver, ‘Halloween’ franchise with Jamie Lee Curtis and ‘Captain Marvel’ showed that these stories can succeed. The focus should be on developing better screenplays and giving female-centered projects the love they deserve.
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