Rey - The 121st female action hero!
As decades of unrealistic, super-powered-yet-usually-human female characters are released in movies, SJW’s focus on Rey and think a female action lead is a new and daring thing for Disney to do, here is a list of female action heroes from film and TV, feel free to add to it. :)
Often fans of TFA cite criticism of Rey, namely her being a Mary Sue as misogyny, which is absurd, as the list proves many action orientated films with female leads have been very successful, many of them being the type of movies a Star Wars fan would watch.
Famous Female Action Heroes before The Force Awakens:
Æon Flux from Æon Flux
Alice from the Resident Evil series
Barb Wire from Barb Wire
Batgirl from Batman and Robin
Beatrix Kiddo from Kill Bill
Black Widow from Marvel Cinematic Universe
Buffy Summers from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Cameron from Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles
Cathy Gale from The Avengers
Catwoman from Catwoman
Diana Prince from Wonder Woman
Elektra from Daredevil
Ellen from The Quick and the Dead
Ellen Ripley from the Alien series
Emma Peel from The Avengers
Evelyn Salt from Salt
Faith from Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Flying Snow from Hero
Fox from Wanted
Jaime Sommers from The Bionic Woman
Jane Smith from Mr. & Mrs. Smith
Kara Zor-El from Supergirl
Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games
Lara Croft from Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
Lucy from Lucy
Mei from House of Flying Daggers
Miho from Sin City
Morgan from Cutthroat Island
Neytiri from Avatar
Nikita from La Femme Nikita
Princess Leia from Star Wars
Sarah Connor from the Terminator series
Selene from the Underworld series
Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica
Red Sonja from Red Sonja
Rita from Edge of Tomorrow
Tank Girl from Tank Girl
Trinity from The Matrix series
Violet Song Jat Shariff from Ultraviolet
Xena from Xena: Warrior Princess
Yu Shu Lien from Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
And from the list you’ll find most are leads! :)