This blog is about my favorite strong introvert women characters in film and TV. Unfortunately, tough introverted women characters are not prevalent in film and TV. Most strong women portrayed in popular culture today are extroverts. That being said, the characters that I am writing about here today are extraordinary and if you are an introvert they should make you proud!
Aibileen Clark – The help
Aibileen Clark played by Viola Davis in The Help is my favorite introvert character in all of TV and film. She plays a warm compassionate maid in Jackson Mississippi in the 1960s during the civil rights movement. Over her career as a maid, she has raised 18 white children. When we see her with her current employer’s child, Mae Mobley we are struck by what a special person she is. She says to Mae in one scene, “you is kind, you is smart, you is important,” to try and balance out the damaging self-esteem comments her mother often says to her.
She is an inspirational character because she bears the oppression of the period with a strong and quiet resilience that is rarely seen in women characters. She is also courageous, risking everything when she decides to share stories of the racist housewives that mistreat her and the other maids in the town. Every time I watch this film it makes me want to be a better person. Aibileen Clark is someone that we should all aspire to be like!
Katniss Everdeen – The Hunger Games
Katniss Everdeen played by Jennifer Lawrence in The Hunger Games is another amazing introvert character. Katniss is stuck in a dystopian world where almost everything has been taken from her family and the district that she lives in. Her father has died and her mother wasn’t strong enough to step up, so Katniss has assumed the leadership role for her mother and sister Primrose.
Katniss is able to adapt to this new world in courageous and innovative ways. She learns to use a bow and arrow so she can hunt for food. This helps her family and also brings more food to the district because she trades it on the black market.
Her courage and character really come to light when she volunteers to go to the Hunger Games in place of her sister who was picked to go. While participating in the games she fights intelligently and valiantly, ultimately winning it all.
She does all of this in a quiet, reserved, and humble way. She is intelligent, thoughtful, and a born leader. All of the things that make introverts so special. This is why Katniss Everdeen is another one of my favorite strong introvert characters.
Iris Simpkin – The Holiday
Iris Simpkin played by Kate Winslet in The Holiday is such a likable and kind introvert. Iris is someone we can all relate to. She lives in a small town in London in a picturesque cottage with her dog. She spends hours drinking tea and reading by the fire.
Iris is in love with a man who uses her and doesn’t appreciate her. She flees her life and decides to take a vacation in Los Angeles. While in LA she befriends an old Hollywood writer and he helps her to see her worth and to realize that she needs to be the “Leading lady in her own life” and not the “best friend” role she has been playing.
Iris has such a beautiful character arc through which she realizes her own power and then has the courage to change. She is such a powerful introvert character!
June Osborne – The Handmaid’s Tale
June Osborne played by Elisabeth Moss in The Handmaid’s Tale is a bad-ass introvert. Of all the characters I’ve written about here today, she is the strongest. She has an inner indomitable spirit that can not be defeated. None of this strength is displayed outwardly, but the inner quiet strength that she has cannot be denied.
I won’t go into the details, of what June has to go through, in case you haven’t seen the show, but it is horrendous and something that no person should have to endure. She is courageous and selfless for her children and her fellow handmaids. She gives little thought to herself and her needs. She is a truly inspiring introvert and a character that I have the utmost respect for!
Jamie Sullivan – A Walk to Remember
Jamie Sullivan played by Mandy Moore in A Walk to Remember is the sweetest of introverts. She is the minister’s daughter in a small town in North Carolina. Jamie is shy and doesn’t have a lot of friends. Although in true introvert fashion this does not matter to her in the least. She reads during lunch at school and is perfectly happy with who she is as a person. She also has a strong steadfast faith in God.
Her life is turned upside down when Landon Carter resident bad boy in town enters her life. He is forced to volunteer to help tutor kids and be in the school play with her as punishment for a dangerous prank he played on a friend.
Jamie is at first annoyed by Landon, then she tries to help him and eventually falls for him. Her character shows how believing in someone, loving them, and having faith in God can change someone and their life trajectory.
Jamie’s character in this film shows what a force for good someone who believes in themselves and their convictions can be in the world. She shows the power of the introvert and I absolutely love her!
So those are my favorite strong introvert characters in film and TV. If you haven’t seen these movies and shows that showcase these amazing character’s yet, I hope that maybe you’ll give them a watch. Every one of them in their own way makes me proud to be a woman and an introvert!
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