Ripley in Alien, Dian Fossey in Gorillas in the Mist, Gwen/Tawny in Galaxy Quest, and most recently, 14-year-old Kiri in Avatar: The Way of Water, are just a few of the remarkable characters that Sigourney Weaver has developed. Weaver has captivated audiences for more than 50 years of her career and is recognized as one of the most talented and adaptable actors on theater and television.
Much of the success of 2009’s Avatar goes to the actors standout performances, which included Sigourney Weaver. She recently returned in Avatar: The Way of Water, where she plays a completely new role. The three-time Oscar nominee actress participated in some of the most beloved and lucrative series in history, such as Alien and Ghostbusters, and landed a number of legendary parts during her career. The New York City artist made her long-feature film debut in Woody Allen’s Annie Hall (1977), and she rose to international fame as a result of playing one of the first female lead characters in a sci-fi series.
But which of Sigourney Weaver’s many science-fiction movie and television roles is the best? Which is the worst? Read on to find out our definitive ranking of her best and worst movie and television parts.
11. Alien: Resurrection (1997) as Ripley Clone #7
Scientists clone Ripley centuries after she passed away using DNA gathered from the events in Alien 3. However, they altered her DNA to include the Queen Alien. Ripley 7 was the seventh Ripley clone and was arguably the most human in appearance before Ripley 8’s creation.
Outwardly, Ripley 7 closely resembled Ellen Ripley, but much like her predecessors, number seven’s body was also badly deformed due to the unstable mixture of Alien and human DNA during the cloning process. Surgical scars on her torso imply that the USM scientist at least attempted to locate and remove a possible Chestburster from her body, although it is unlikely any viable material was recovered. Deemed a failure, number seven was kept alive within the laboratory via life support machines.
The seventh clone of Ellen Ripley is a monstrosity and Weaver doesn’t even act. It’s definitely her worst role. But there’s one slightly better.
10. Alien: Resurrection (1997) as Ripley Clone #8
The fourth movie in the Alien franchise is set hundreds of years after the last one. Using DNA gathered from the events in Alien 3, scientists were able to clone Ellen Ripley. However, they altered her DNA to include the Alien Queen, giving the Ripley clone strength and xenomorphic skills. The clone had already provided the scientists with alien embryos, and they utilized convicts to house the adult aliens. In this movie, xenomorphs resume their rampage and wreak havoc. Ripley now has to choose her loyalties.
After ten years of work, the cloning project finally bore fruit in the creation of “Ripley 8”, who outwardly appeared no different to the adult Ellen Ripley, and was created with an intact and viable infant Alien Queen growing safely within her chest cavity. Before the alien Chestburster could hatch, it was surgically removed from Ripley 8 by Dr. Gediman (Brad Dourif) and subsequently developed under USM supervision.
Weaver’s strong, resourceful, and grim performance in “Alien” is commendable. Ripley’s scenes, such as playing basketball with a crewman, showcase her unique abilities and sense of alien presence. However, her performance is unbalanced by cornball one-liners, pushing her away from her pragmatic workplace roots.
9. Chappie (2015) as Michelle Bradley
Chappie is about a robotic police force that patrols the streets in the near future and deals with criminals. But the populace is now rising up and taking action. One police robot gains the ability to feel and reason for himself after being stolen and given fresh programming. The authorities start to view the robot, known as “Chappie” (Sharlto Copley), as a threat to society and law, and they will stop at nothing to make sure that Chappie is the last of his type.
The movie was a critical and box office failure. Chappie showcases more of the bold concepts and artistic flair for which filmmaker Neill Blomkamp has become renowned, but also, regrettably, more of the narrative flaws.
Sigourney Weaver portrays Michelle Bradley the CEO of Tetravaa. Bradley orders Deon Wilson (Dev Patel) to abandon his plan for artificial intelligence. She believes a thinking robot might be the end of humanity. Weaver’s character gave the command to kill Chappie and everybody who was associated with him by giving Vincent Moore (Hugh Jackman) control of the MOOSE robot.
This movie is Sigourney Weaver’s most disappointing role. It is always good to see Weaver in a genre movie, but her character in this one is written as too much of a dope for her to be believable as the CEO of anything. Plus, her appearance is far too fleeting. While many blasted the movie, Weaver said the backlash was “disappointing”. She called the movie “meaningful” about a young robot “who cares and feels and is much more human”. The Blomkamp movie is one of the few times she plays a villain. But she returns as a hero in the next role.
8. Alien 3 (1992) as Ellen Ripley
Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) is the only survivor after she crash lands on Fiorina 161, a barren wasteland populated by former inmates of the planet’s maximum security prison. Newt and Hicks died in the crash landing. Weaver chose to play Ripley as a fierce fighter but vulnerable because she’s so alone in this situation without her friends.
As the alien pursues the inmates and guards, Ripley must once again deal with uncertainty and the extraterrestrial. Without modern weapons or technology, Ripley directs the boys into battle with the terrifying beast.
Since the movie was sold as the final Sigourney Weaver film in the Alien trilogy, she said she “put everything I could into this last one” to make it as good as she could be. Fincher’s direction has passages of eerie, sometimes nightmarish beauty and more than a few quasi-experimental touches, including very long dissolves that seem to unite the various characters into a hive-mind. Weaver delivers another richly imagined performance that is very different in tone from the preceding two.
Ms. Weaver approaches the subject with a quick, direct style. She never compromises it, and she never implies that the film is anything other than a horror movie for the space age. It’s not her worst. Her return as a villain in the next role is slightly better.
7. Paul (2011) as The Big Guy
In the 2011 British-American science fiction comedy film Paul, Sigourney Weaver plays the villain known only as The Big Guy. Two sci-fi nerd pilgrims Graeme Willy (Simon Pegg) and Clive Gollings (Nick Frost) travel to the UFO heartland of America. They unintentionally run across a wise guy alien named Paul (voiced by Seth Rogen) who escapes from a military compound. He takes them on a crazy road trip that permanently changes their world.
The Gorillas in the Mist star plays a mysterious female superior in the United States Secret Service. Weaver said, “It’s a love letter to sci-fi aficionados,” and enjoyed being in a comedy that honors science fiction. Sigourney Weaver does her best with the material. But it’s mostly predictable jokes. It’s a waste of her talent. But her acting helps keep the role from being a total waste.
6. Avatar: The Way of Water (2022) as Kiri
In the Avatar sequel, Jake Sully (Sam Worthington) and his alien family are living on Pandora, years after the Na’vi successfully defeated the Resources Development Administration’s (RDA) invasion. While everything appears to be calm, the RDA has other ideas and intends to invade and seize Pandora. To try to drive out the intruders, Sully establishes a guerilla organization.
In the last Sigourney Weaver movie in the franchise, she plays scientist Dr. Grace Augustine. After she dies, a mysterious biological daughter of her avatar named Kiri is born. The Na’vi child is adopted by Jake Sully and Neytiri (Zoe Saldaña). In Avatar: The Way of Water, the fourteen-year-old is one of the primary characters. Weaver said that to play the role of a teenager, she had to “become” an adolescent. That work is shown in the film.
Kiri is one of the more endearing children in the group, and Weaver does a good job portraying a young person, although she is frequently sidelined throughout the movie for other reasons. Her role is underused in this movie too. Probably because she’s being set up for one of the many, many, many sequels Cameron has planned. Sigourney Weaver’s next movie role is much funnier.
5. Galaxy Quest (1999) as Gwen DeMarco / Lieutenant Tawny Madison
In the 90s comedy Galaxy Quest Sigourney Weaver plays Gwen DeMarco, one of the main characters in the fictional television series Galaxy Quest. The movie follows the cast of the show years later as they struggle to secure substantial acting roles and now focus on making money through fan conventions or electronic store launches. An alien race called Thermians approaches the arrogant alcoholic Jason Nesmith (Tim Allen). Shakespearean-trained actor Alexander Dane (Alan Rickman) along with Fred Kwan (Tony Shalhoub), Tommy Webber (Daryl Mitchell), and Guy Fleegman (Sam Rockwell) must act out their roles for real. They need faith in their play-acting to succeed without screenwriters, especially when dealing with General Sarris, the archenemy of the Thermians.
Gwen DeMarco plays the NSEA-Protector’s computer officer, Lt. Tawny Madison. Madison is the lone female crew member and a sex icon. Her role on the crew consists solely of conversing with the ship’s artificial intelligence (AI), or, to put it another way, repeating what the computer says despite everyone else being able to hear it. Here, Weaver demonstrates a comical talent that is lacking in Ghostbusters. Sigourney Weaver portrays the exact opposite of her own “Ripley” character from the Alien films, which she expertly parodies. “Look, I have ONE job on this lousy ship! It’s stupid, but I’m going to do it, okay?!”
Galaxy Quest is one of her greatest sci-fi roles. But there’s another role that’s much less humorous.
4. Marvel’s The Defenders (2017) as Alexandra Reid
Sigourney Weaver’s next noteworthy project is the 2017 Netflix mini-series The Defenders. She plays Alexandra Reid, the commander of the villainous Hand. Matt Murdock / Daredevil (Charlie Cox), Jessica Jones (Krysten Ritter), Carl Lucas / Luke Cage (Mike Colter), and Danny Rand / Iron Fist (Finn Jones) star as “The Defenders”. They’re a group of four exceptional heroes united by the desire to save New York City. This is the tale of four isolated individuals, each struggling to overcome their obstacles, who realize that they might be more powerful as a group.
After the five founders of the Hand were expelled from K’un-Lun for their heresy, they became known as the “fingers” of the Hand. She had put a lot of work into extending her life and getting back home. Reid was able to resuscitate Elektra Natchios / Elektra (Elodie Yung) and have her resurrected as the “Black Sky”, the Hand’s ultimate weapon, after obtaining her corpse. Reid encountered resistance from both the Defenders and the other Hand commanders, who questioned all of her choices as they sought to capture the Iron Fist to carry out their schemes.
Weaver said she didn’t want the character to be a stereotypical “ice queen” and sees herself as the hero of her own story. After being presented in her first scene at a time of great vulnerability, she quickly establishes herself as the best character on the show and is certainly on par with Kingpin (Vincent D’Onofrio) or Kilgrave (David Tennant). Additionally, she portrays an unintentionally amusing immortal who repeatedly reveals her age by saying things like, “You know who was nice? Beethoven” and “This food reminds me of Ancient Constantinople.”
But despite all Weaver’s acting skills she can’t rise above the mediocre series. She sure tried though.
4. Futurama S04E03 “Love and Rocket” as The Female Planet Express Ship
Sigourney Weaver plays the female voice of “The Planet Express” delivery ship in the animated comedy Futurama. Philip J. Fry (Billy West), a pizza delivery boy, freezes and awakens in the future. He works for Planet Express Corporation to transport packages all over space. He encounters Captain Turanga Leela (Katey Sagal), the one-eyed alien, and the robot Bender (John DiMaggio).
In the season four episode “Love and Rocket,” Bender chooses one of the upgraded personalities available on the Planet Express spacecraft and experiences a brief but intense love affair. Sigourney Weaver guest stars in one episode and delivers a compelling performance as the Planet Express ship’s upgraded A.I. personality. Ultimately, the show wastes Weaver’s exceptional talent. Without her, the storyline could have been a train wreck.
3. Avatar (2009) as Dr. Grace Augustine
Paraplegic Marine Jake Sully agrees to participate in a mission on the faraway world of Pandora in exchange for the spinal surgery that will heal his legs. in James Cameron’s Avatar. The soldier is forced to take a stand and fight back in an epic battle for the fate of Pandora as Jake develops a bond with the local tribe and falls in love with the stunning alien Neytiri.
The “Avatar Program” is overseen by xenobotanist Dr. Grace Augustine. She wrote a thorough book about Pandora’s vegetation, making her a legend among scientists. She worked with Jake Sully on the Program. Eventually, Colonel Quaritch (Stephen Lang) shoots her in the chest, killing her. Despite her wounds she talks to Jake about her sentiments before passing away at the “Tree of Souls”.
Sigourney Weaver’s movies often showcase her sense of humor. This one showcases classic one-liners like “Just let your mind go blank. That shouldn’t be hard for you.” With her puckered lips and flame-red hair Sigourney Weaver does a variation of Ripley from the Alien movies. She is older but just as intensely driven.
Weaver was nominated for a Saturn and Scream award for “Best Supporting Actress”. She won the “Best Supporting Actress Saturn Award”. It’s an amazing role, but Sigourney Weaver’s next role is her most iconic.
2. Alien (1979) as Ellen Ripley
The crew of the commercial spaceship “Nostromo” is returning to Earth in the far future when they pick up a distress call from a far-off moon. The spaceship then drops on the little planetoid with the crew’s duty to explore. Three crew members exit the spaceship following a rocky landing to explore the region on the planetoid. The ship’s computer determines the communication to be a warning rather than a distress call at the same time that the crew comes upon a hive colony of an unidentified monster. The crew learns that it is not alone aboard the spaceship when one of the eggs is disturbed, and it must deal with the repercussions.
Actress Sigourney Weaver portrays the character of Ellen Louise Ripley, also known simply as Ripley, in the Alien film series. Weaver gained popularity on a global scale thanks to the character, and the part is still her most well-known one.
Early in the filming, Alien director Ridley Scott decided that Ripley should no longer be a typical masculine action hero and instead become a heroine. Weaver begins the action looking girlish and serious but changes into the tough self-reliant woman who defined her subsequent roles. Her natural air of command and refusal of the gender-stereotyped romantic submissiveness has subtly colored all her roles ever since. Weaver’s bold characterization is what took Alien out of the sci-fi horror ghetto and helped establish it as potent satirical and political commentary on the idea of empire, conquest, and the Other.
Vulnerable, resilient, believably scared but charismatic and funny nonetheless, Alien’s heroine is the beating heart of the movie and the secret to its success. It remains one of her best performances and won her a Most Promising Newcomer BAFTA and Golden Globe awards.
1. Aliens (1986) as Ellen Ripley
Ripley is a well-known figure in pop culture and is frequently regarded as one of the most important female heroines in film history. As a result of her appearances in novels, comic books, and video games, Ripley’s popularity has grown beyond the original movie franchise in modern times.
Ellen Ripley is called back 57 years after her close brush with the alien species from the previous film, this time to assist a squad of highly skilled colonial soldiers in fending off the evil extraterrestrials. But this time, a space colony on the moon LV-426 has been overrun by aliens. The marines discover they are up against more than they anticipated when they are ordered to examine the abandoned space colony. The space marines engage the aliens in combat while using specially adapted machine weapons and firepower. Ripley has to make an effort to save a small girl named Rebecca “Newt” Jorden (Carrie Henn) who is the only survivor while the Marines try their best to defend themselves.
Sigourney Weaver plays a more muscular and much more confident character. Weaver now talks in witty quips and snarky comments. Ripley is tougher, the story is bigger, the monsters are more numerous, and the tone is far more fun. With an admirable streak of anti-corporate satire and a lot of heavy artillery, Aliens is the most shamelessly entertaining outing of the franchise
Weaver was nominated for a “Best Actress” Oscar and won the “Best Actress” Saturn award. How did Sigourney Weaver view this film compared to all the other Alien films?
“The best-constructed story for the character to tell was in ‘Aliens,’ just because Jim [Cameron] has such an amazing sense of the structure of story,” Weaver recently told Collider. “To take this character out of hyper-sleep, have no one believe her, have her be exiled into this limbo land where no one believes her and her family’s dead. The whole set-up for Ripley in ‘Aliens’ and then what she ends up doing and… finding this new family by the end. The whole structure of that story, to me, was gold.”
Aliens is not only the best Alien movie. It’s also Sigourney Weaver’s greatest film.
Which is your favorite of Sigourney Weaver’s movie roles? Which one do you hate? Let us know in the comments below!
Paul Reubens the actor, best known for developing the enduring Pee-wee Herman character and playing him in numerous films, died at the age of 70 following a long, personal battle with cancer.
Of course, Paul Reubens provided millions of people with entertainment in roles other than Pee-wee, and we’ll cover all the finest of them in our list of Paul Reubens films and TV episodes that fans can now stream online in his honor. Let’s start, though, with some of the better ones starring our favorite man-child.
9. Mystery Men (1999) as The Spleen
The spleen is a small organ that helps with your immune system. The superhero known as The Spleen is a socially awkward unattractive man from Champion City. He was cursed by a gypsy woman at 13 with powerful flatulence and the ability to fart at will.
Paul Reubens’ career was on life support at this point and he was struggling to remake himself as a character actor. It had been almost a decade since his arrest in 1991. He had earned an Emmy for his recurring guest role on the popular television show Murphy Brown. This was his first movie role since Matilda (1996). When he wasn’t just a voice anyway. He threw himself into interviews as himself and made public appearances to promote the film.
While the movie was panned his role as the disgusting superhero is inspired. Besides the pimply skin, Reubens affected a hilarious lisp. The best part of the character is his supreme overconfidence despite having arguably the worst superpower in the world. While the former Groundling was a brilliant character actor this character couldn’t save the film.
You can stream it on Peacock or AppleTV+
The next role had him play a far less nauseating character.
8. Gotham (2017) as Elijah Van Dahl
The Batman prequel series Gotham features a younger version of the classic comic book villain Oswald Cobblepot aka The Penguin. In the series, Cobblepot’s father makes an appearance on the show. The crime lord Oswald Cobblepot’s biological father was affluent socialite Elijah Van Dahl.
Elijah’s brief appearance revealed him to be a highly accepting and caring person. Elijah adored his son just as much as his mother did. He was delighted to learn that Oswald was his son and embraced him. Even after learning about Oswald’s troubled history, his father continued to accept his son, telling him that it didn’t matter what happened in the past since he loved him. In a wonderful bit of intentional irony, they cast Reubens who played The Penguin’s cruel father in Batman Returns.
This character could have been a breakout role but he has very few scenes racked up over a handful of episodes. He played the role with an intentional campiness that didn’t really fit match his acting skills. But it’s still memorable. You can watch a key scene from the show below.
You can watch Gotham on Max or AppleTV+
Over the years he had many memorable voice roles. Here’s his most obscure one.
7. Star Wars Rebels (2014) as RX-24 (voice)
RX-24, also known as “Rex,” is a character from the Star Wars franchise. Introduced in the 1987 Star Tours ride at Disneyland, he is an RX-series pilot droid working for the fictional “Star Tours” travel company voiced by Paul Reubens. Rex’s appearances in Star Tours attractions are considered part of the Star Wars Legends continuity.
He was later introduced into the official Star Wars canon in 2014 with his appearance in Star Wars Rebels. Reubens gave the character a fun, friendly, bumbling quality that made him sparkle. You can watch a clip of his appearance in Rebels here. Here’s a fun video from a 2011 convention where he talked about his voice being removed from the ride.
You can watch Star Wars: Rebels on Disney+ or AppleTV+
Speaking of an obscure role let’s go to one of his many cameo roles on a popular television shows.
6. Mork & Mindy (1981) as Dickie Nimitz
For the 1980–1981 season of Saturday Night Live, Reubens gave an audition, but he later claimed to Entertainment Weekly that Gilbert Gottfried, who was “the same type of performer,” was hired instead. He was bitter about losing the opportunity. He had been working on the character of “Pee-wee Herman” for the previous few years. So Reubens decided to establish his own show in Los Angeles using borrowed money. He called it “The Pee-wee Herman Show” and it became a cult hit. For four months the show was sold out. HBO noticed the success and ran a special.
In 1981, the same year The Pee-Wee Herman Show HBO special aired he earned a guest spot on the popular TV sitcom Mork & Mindy. The show was about an alien, played by Robin Williams, who lives with a human named Mindy. In the season four episode “Long Before We Met” Reubens plays an old high school classmate named Dickie. As with many of his roles, he plays a nerdy socially awkward character. At Mindy’s High School reunion, he tells Mork about how she dated Steve when she was a teenager. It makes the Orkan becomes so jealous he goes back in time to meet her at Mindy’s prom.
The role is small but memorable and even though the actor doesn’t have much to do he gives the role enthusiasm and manages to keep up with Robin Williams which is always a challenge.
There aren’t many clips out there but you can watch it on DVD, Amazon Prime with a subscription, or Pluto for free. What’s weird is that neither streaming option has the episode. Make of that what you will.
But it’s not the first time he played a nerdy role. Let’s talk about when he played a nerdy supervillain.
5. Batman: The Brave and the Bold as Bat-Mite (voice)
Bat-Mite is a DC Comics imp with near-infinite magical powers, using advanced technology from the fifth dimension similar to Mister Mxyzptlk. Unlike Mxyzptlk he idolizes his superhero target, Batman, and visits him to set up events. Bat-Mite is more of a nuisance than a supervillain and often departs upon angering his idol. Since his first appearance in 1959, he appeared in many comic books and animated shows.
Reubens gives Bat-Mite an almost childlike voice and attitude. His infectious enthusiasm shines in this role and it’s one of his best.
You can watch Batman: The Brave and the Bold on Max
Another nerdy character that Reubens voiced had an even smaller but more influential role.
4. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles (2014) as Martin Milton/Sir Malachi (voice)
In 2014 Reubens played the villainous Mr. Vargas on the Blacklist. That same year he played the mutant sparrow Martin Milton, a.k.a. Sir Malachi, the sparrow wizard,” in the second season of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles TV show. He forces them to play a role-playing game.
The Emmy-nominated comedian gives Milton a weak and vulnerable voice and elevates the episode to another level.
3. Tron: Uprising (2012) as Pavel (Voice)
After the sequel to the cult classic Tron was released an animated science fiction television program called Tron: Uprising aired. It’s tied into the wider Tron franchise. It takes place sometime after related tie-ins Tron Evolution: Battle Grids, Tron: Evolution, and Tron: Betrayal and is set between the Tron and Tron: Legacy movies. Between May 18, 2012, and January 28, 2013, Disney XD in the US produced and broadcast a total of 19 episodes.
Paul Reubens provides the voice for the evil Pavel. He’s General Tesler’s second in command and has a covert desire to succeed Tesler. Pavel is frigid and a sycophant. He rivals General Tesler in his delight of exercising control over others and surpasses him in his readiness to derez or exterminate Argonian individuals for no other reason than to relish their misery. In his plots to rise in power and position, he has been known to look for allies like Gorn and Link, but he views them as disposable, and he is quite willing to turn them against him for his own advantage or to get rid of an apparent threat.
Pavel is a psychopathic program, but he’s written so well that I get chills every time he’s on screen. Paul Reubens does an amazing job voicing the character and clearly enjoyed every minute of it. It’s the exact opposite of the beloved kid’s show host.
2. Batman Returns (1992) as Tucker Cobblepot
Paul Ruebens’ greatest role was after one of the lowest points in his life. In 1991 he was at the top of his career. Pee-wee’s Playhouse was a top-rated children’s show and earned multiple Emmys. All this came crashing down in July 1992.
Reubens was arrested for indecent exposure at a Florida adult movie theater. While many voiced support for him his name became the subject of ridicule.
One person that threw his support behind him is Tim Burton. The director had his big break with Pee-Wee Herman’s first film Pee-Wee’s Big Adventure. So when he was casting the minor role of Oswald Cobblepot’s father he reached out to him. Paul Reubens and Diane Salinger appear as Tucker and Esther Cobblepot, Oswald’s wealthy, elite parents. The two are horrified by their child’s deformity and throw him into a river to drown him. The small role is powerful and their gestures and cold performance spoke volumes and showed what a wonderful actor he really was.
1. Flight of the Navigator (1987) as Trimaxion/Max (voice)
Paul Reubens’ film, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure (1985) was a financial and critical success. His character quickly became a beloved figure. But a year after his first big movie he took on a voice role in a science fiction film. Flight of the Navigator is a 1986 American science-fiction adventure film starring Joey Cramer as 12-year-old David Freeman abducted by an alien spaceship in 1978 and returned 8 years later.
At this point, Pee Wee Herman’s voice is hard to miss. He didn’t want to distract from the film. So he asked that the credits list him as Paul Mall and he uses his normal voice through most of the film. Near the end, he switches to his Pee Wee voice.
Paul Reubens suffered from cancer for six years without telling the public. He was an intensely private person and, like his role in Navigator, he often hid behind a mask. His role as the alien computer pilot is his greatest role and one that will be remembered for generations. Even if many people may never see it.
You can watch Flight of the Navigator on Disney+
Which is your favorite role from Paul Reubens? Is there any roles we missed?
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