When you hear the name Sigourney Weaver, you probably picture her propped up in that big, yellow, industrial-mechanical-loader, about to tell the queen alien exactly what she thinks of her. The extremely talented Sigourney Weaver will forever be synonymous with the Alien movie series. But, of course, Weaver has done plenty more than just going toe to toe with acid-spitting nightmares. Her talent has been on display for years, as she's portrayed a wide range of characters throughout her impressive career. Here are the best Sigourney Weaver performances (that aren’t Alien), ranked.
7. Ellen Mitchell, Dave (1993)
Directed by Ivan Reitman (Ghostbusters), 1993‘s Dave took place during a time when political comedies/dramas were all the rage and there was a certain mystical/magical aura surrounding all things White House. There was certainly a formula established: from the best-friend-secret-service-agent to the Downton Abbey-like staff. And this flick fell right in the middle of those parameters.
The movie follows the title character Dave (Kevin Kline), an average guy who happens to impersonate (and look just like) the president, so close to the real guy, it rivals an Alec Baldwin performance. When the actual president, Mitchell (also Kline) suffers a stroke while on top of the staff member he’s having an affair with, the White House Chief of Staff, Bob (Frank Langella), enlists Dave to use those impersonation skills to actually become the president, until they can figure out how to handle the scandal. Dave convinces everybody, except our Sigourney Weaver, who plays the First Lady, Ellen. Although she has been estranged from her husband for several years, she's able to see through the disguise. Weaver gives a spot-on performance as a woman, in the public eye, appreciating and eventually falling in love with the type of man she wishes she had married in the first place.
6. Dian Fossey, Gorillas in The Mist (1988)
Nominated for five Academy Awards, Gorillas in The Mist follows real life Dian Fossey (Weaver), an occupational therapist who completely devotes her life to study the behaviors of gorillas in Africa. There, to Fossey's horror, she finds that her study is greatly overshadowed by the poaching of gorillas to harvest their hands, heads, and skin. Despite her ongoing battle with the Rwandan government to end the out-of-control poachers, Fossey becomes an honorary member of the gorilla family, as they completely accept her non-stop presence within their jungle. The emotional life-sacrifice that Fossey endured is successfully expressed through Sigourney's performance. The powerful role, which brought much needed awareness to the issues these animals were experiencing in real life, made the movie truly worthy of the recognition it received at the time.
5. Dana Barrett, Ghostbusters (1984)
Although Weaver has appeared in not only Ghostbusters, but Ghostbusters 2 and Ghostbusters: Afterlife, it was the original where she put forward her best performance. Weaver plays the character Dana Barrett, a successful musician who lives in the most luxurious part of New York City. But it's not all peachy for Dana, as her apartment ends up being the location of one of the first (of many) paranormal experiences arising in the metropolitan area. In fact, she was the first character to really answer the question, "who you gonna call?" Although this first job for the Ghostbusters doesn’t pan out at first, a possible love connection between Dana and Peter Venkman (Bill Murray), begins to blossom. However, it's not looking good for Peter as Dana's eventual gatekeeper-possession puts her smack dab in the middle of Judgment Day. Weaver nails the role as her character tries to be as open-minded as possible, all the way up until her becoming a dog.
4. Katherine Parker, Working Girl
Before the devil wore any type of Prada, there was Working Girl. This white-collar comedy, directed by Mike Nichols (The Birdcage), focuses on Tess (Melanie Griffith), who is hired as an associate's secretary at a big-time Manhattan company. At first, this associate, Katherine (Weaver), seems like a boss who's open to hear out Tess' ideas and is helpful with advancing her career. However, Katherine ultimately rejects her secretary's big idea of a company merger, leaving Tess to accept her low-level position. But when Katherine is forced out of the office due to a bad skiing injury, Tess remains to push her big ideas forward, on her own. Weaver nicely blends her comedic and dramatic chops while her character watches her love interest, Jack (Harrison Ford), get closer with Tess as she helplessly convalesces at home. In the end, despite Tess' sneaky, yet, savvy business moves, Katherine has no choice but to give her earned props, as well as a promotion.
3. The Director, The Cabin in The Woods
The Cabin in The Woods is a unique horror comedy that is a cult classic. As for Weaver, although she only plays a small role, this film allows every actor to shine in their own way. And Weaver surely does shine, as she plays The Director of an underground, unknown, laboratory of sorts, which is dedicated to protecting the world from every possible horror creature threat you can imagine. However, Weaver is not in charge of the only location, as other superpower countries deal with the same issue in their own parts of the world. Usually all the steps (and bets) turn out to be a happy ending for the planet, but this time things are not working out as planned. So, whether you are someone already privy to this high-concept horror comedy, or someone lucky enough yet to experience it, it’s best to take a look at this film before the world ends.
2. Dr. Grace Augustine, Avatar
It’s hard to believe that James Cameron‘s science-fiction epic, Avatar, was released over a decade ago, and even harder to believe that we haven’t seen the much anticipated sequels yet. Well, that shouldn’t stop you from giving yourself a refresher look at this quality (and highly expensive) film, which includes a great performance from Weaver. She plays Dr. Grace Augustine, who is the chief scientific leader of the military’s Avatar program and direct liaison to the film's main character, Jake (Sam Worthington). Tough as nails, yet possessing a compassionate mother vibe, Weaver presents her character not only as someone you can rely on, but also a person you'd never want to mess with. The character of Grace is fascinating to watch as she earns the trust of her own soldiers, as well as the local alien tribe. Not a soldier herself, Weaver plays it practically indifferent when mortally wounded, and hints that her character may, just yet, return in the sequels.
1. Gwen DeMarco, Galaxy Quest
If you feel like, for some reason, you can only stomach one science fiction comedy/parody on your watch-list, Galaxy Quest flies past all options, at warp speed. This timeless classic follows the aging cast of an old Star Trek-like TV series entitled Galaxy Quest. In fact, you can pretty much match up each character with its Star Trek counterpart. Jason Nesmeith (Tim Allen), is the captain of this now-convention-circuit team of washed up actors, who are clinging on to their one connection to fame. Weaver plays Gwen, his busty-blonde sidekick whose purpose on the show was to pretty much repeat his orders to the computer. Despite this unflattering role, Gwen has accepted her post-fame status and unlike most of the other characters, seems fine with riding it out.
Meanwhile, in a distant galaxy, an alien race has picked up the signals of the old television show broadcast. These aliens believe the signals are actually historical records of the Galaxy Quest crew. In trouble themselves with violent enemies, these aliens enlist the help of Jason and his crew by teleporting them to the other side of the universe. From there, we see how a bunch of B-actors handle a real life-threatening galactic conflict. Weaver is hilarious as she finally gets a chance to burst through the stereotype she once portrayed, in order to be more involved in the story.