2. Catwoman
Movie: Batman Returns (1992)
Batman Returns really was the gift that just kept on giving, especially in the villains department. Joining DeVito’s game-changing Penguin was Catwoman, who has become one of the biggest pop-culture female icons of all time, thanks in no small part to Michelle Pfeiffer’s incredibly powerful performance.
You can also see Burton’s influence on this character too, as the movie chose to explore the dark side of Selina Kyle’s story. Selina, an oppressed assistant constantly put down by the men in her life, decided to take back the power, leaning into her strength to become Catwoman. As she told that woman in the alley, she didn’t need a “Batman” to save her. She had died and been reborn as her own hero – one that was willing to take it to anyone who got in her way.
Selina’s growth was one of the many aspects of brilliance in Batman Returns. She was a force to be reckoned with on-screen (as was Pfeiffer), proving to Batman and The Penguin that she was an equal.
When all was said and done in Batman Returns, the zoo was destroyed and The Penguin and Max Shreck were dead, and it was Catwoman who rose to watch the Bat-Signal. She outlasted all of those who wronged her and stood tall in the process. An image – and a portrayal – we will never forget.