A lot of movies usually do not enforce women as their primary lead but it does not mean that women are not great actors. Here are five women who have solidified their place in Hollywood (some of them are even doing better than their male co-stars).
I. Meryl Streep
Starting with the queen herself. Meryl Streep is considered to be the best actress of all time. Many of her counterparts have had their fair share of success but Meryl has stood out to be the undisputed queen of them all. Starting in the 70's she quickly rose to fame by winning the primetime Emmy award for the miniseries "Holocaust". Turning her attention towards the movies, she received her first Oscar nom for the acclaimed "Deer Hunter" and then finally won it for "Kramer Vs Kramer" in the following year. Since then she has bagged over 170 awards including an AFI lifetime achievement award (2004), a national medal of arts by former president Barack Obama (2010) and, the commander of the order of arts & letters by the French government (2003).
II. Sandra Bullock
One of the top 100 most influential person according to Times magazine, Sandra Bullock has established herself as a versatile actor & also a savvy businesswoman. Starting out in the late 80's she found her breakthrough a couple of years later in the movie Speed (1994) alongside Keanu Reeves. Since then, she has been the recipient of several awards including an academy award for "The blind side". Although rom-coms may be her strong suit, she is not shy to explore drama and horror as well. Apart from being an actor, she has also founded her own production company called "Fortis Films" which has produced three successful films and co-produced a mediocre sitcom called "George Lopez". Her acting and business alike had made her the highest-earning actress through the years 2010 to 2016.
III. Julia Roberts
When you talk about commercial success, only one name pops in my head - Julia Roberts. Julia Roberts is one of the richest actors in Hollywood with a net worth of over 170 million dollars. Her films have amassed a record-breaking 2.8 billion dollars collectively. She found her breakthrough by doing the "Pretty Woman" (1990) but that was just the tip of the iceberg. It is not just that Julia prefers doing only commercial movies. Throughout her career, she has had 13 primetime Emmy nominations and 4 Oscar nominations one of which she won for her mindblowing performance in "Erin Brokovich" (2000). Apart from her acting acumen, she has also been named the "most beautiful woman" by the People's magazine for a record of 5 times!
IV. Kate Winslet
If total commitment to the character had a face, you would be looking at it right now. Kate Winslet is known for her work in period dramas portraying women with some form of emotional instability. Her first screen appearance was at the age of 15, three years later she signed her first film, and three years from that, she achieved global stardom for her work in the "Titanic" alongside Leonardo DiCaprio. With six Oscar nominations, she finally won the golden lady for her brilliant performance in "The Reader" (2009). Apart from acting, she has also co-founded a charity to create autism awareness and also wrote a book about the same (The golden hat: talking back to autism - 2010). In 2009, Time's magazine hailed her as one of the top 100 most influential people, and in 2012, she was appointed as the commander of the order of the British Empire (CBE) which is one of the highest honors given to a British citizen.
V. Charlize Theron
The American-South African beauty is the undisputed queen of action movies. She is not a cliched actor and her versatility is seen through her work. She rose to international fame during the 90s and quickly won an Academy Award for the portrayal of a serial killer "Aileen Wuornos" in the movie "monster" (2003). Apart from the acclaim for her acting, she has also founded her own production company under the name of "Denver and Delilah productions". She finally became an American citizen (while holding her original South-African nationality as well) in the year 2007 and is also honored by the motion picture star on the "Hollywood walk of fame".
Apart from these badass women, many actresses across the world have made an impact in their respective industries. In recent years, more female-centric roles have been written and joyfully consumed by the audience (forAnya Taylor-Joy in The Queen's Gambit) which point towards nothing but a change in the society and the movie culture.