Pam Grier

Have no fear. Pam Grier... is here.

—Trailer for Foxy Brown

Born May 26, 1949, in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Pam Grier is more than just a woman, she's an icon. Any time you see a woman kicking ass in movies, you can thank her.

She is so iconic as an action girl that Quentin Tarantino wrote Jackie Brown so that she could play the lead role.

Pam Grier is the Trope Codifier for:

Action Girl - in film.

Pam Grier has performed in the following roles:

Film:

Beyond the Valley of the Dolls (1970): Partygoer
The Big Doll House (1971): Grear
Women in Cages (1971): Alabama
The Twilight People (1972): Ayesa
Cool Breeze (1972): Mona
The Big Bird Cage (1972): Blossom
Hit Man (1972): Gozelda
Black Mama White Mama (1973): Lee Daniels
Coffy (1973): Nurse Flower Child 'Coffy' Coffin
Scream Blacula Scream (1973): Lisa Fortier
The Arena (1974): Mamawi
Foxy Brown (1974): Foxy Brown
Sheba, Baby (1975): Sheba Shayne
Bucktown (1975): Aretha
Friday Foster (1975): Friday Foster
Drum (1976): Regine
Twilight of Love (1977): Sandra
Greased Lightning (1977): Mary Jones
Fort Apache, The Bronx (1981): Charlotte
Tough Enough (1983): Myra
Something Wicked This Way Comes (1983): Dust Witch
Stand Alone (1985): Cathryn Bolan
Badge of the Assassin (1985, television film): Alexandra Horn
The Vindicator (1986): Hunter
On the Edge (1986): Cora
The Allnighter (1987): Sgt. McLeesh
Above the Law (1988): Detective Delores 'Jacks' Jackson
The Package (1989): Ruth Butler
Class of 1999 (1990): Ms. Connors
Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991): Ms. Wardroe
A Mother's Right: The Elizabeth Morgan Story (1992, television film): Linda Holman
Posse (1993): Phoebe
Original Gangstas (1996): Laurie Thompson
Escape from L.A. (1996): Jack 'Carjack' Malone / Hershe Las Palmas
Mars Attacks! (1996): Louise Williams
Strip Search (1997): Janette
Fakin' da Funk (1997): Annabelle Lee
Jackie Brown (1997): Jackie Brown
Family Blessings (1998, television film): Mrs. Quincy
Jawbreaker (1999): Det. Vera Cruz
No Tomorrow (1999): Diane
In Too Deep (1999): Det. Angela Wilson
Holy Smoke! (1999): Carol
Hayley Wagner, Star (1999, television film): Sam
Snow Day (2000): Tina
Fortress 2: Re-Entry (2000): Susan Mendenhall
Wilder (2000): Detective Della Wilder
3 A.M. (2001): George
Love the Hard Way (2001): Linda
Ghosts of Mars (2001): Commander Helena Braddock
Bones (2001): Pearl
The Feast of All Saints (2001, television film): Suzzette Lermontant
The Adventures of Pluto Nash (2002): Flura Nash
Baby of the Family (2002): Mrs. Williams
First to Die (2003, television film): Claire Washburn
Back in the Day (2005): Mrs. Cooper
Ladies of the House (2008, television film): Roberta "Birdie" Marchand
Just Wright (2010): Janice Wright
The Invited (2010): Zelda
Machete Maidens Unleashed! (2010): Herself
Larry Crowne (2011): Frances
Corman's World: Exploits of a Hollywood Rebel (2011): Herself
Woman Thou Art Loosed: On the 7th Day (2012): Detective Barrick
The Man with the Iron Fists (2012): Jane
Mafia (2012): James Womack
Cleveland Abduction (2015, television film): Nurse Carla
Bad Grandmas (2017): Coralee
Being Rose (2017): Lily
Poms (2019): Olive
A Christmas Wish (2019, television film): Mary
Cinnamon (2023): Mama
Pet Sematary: Bloodlines (2023): Majorie Washburn

Live-Action TV:

Roots: The Next Generations (1979, episode "Part IV (1917–1921)"): Francey
The Love Boat (1980, episode "Kinfolk/Sis & the Slicker/Moonlight & Moonshine/Too Close for Comfort/The Affair: Part 1 & 2"): Cynthia Wilbur
Miami Vice (1985–1990 seasons 1, 2, 5): Valerie Gordon
Night Court (1986, episode "Hurricane: Part 1 & 2"): Benet Collins
Crime Story (1986–1988): Suzanne Terry
The Cosby Show (1987, episode "Planning Parenthood"): Samantha
Frank's Place (1988, episode "Frank's Place – The Movie"): Neema Sharone
Midnight Caller (1989, episode "Blood Red"): Susan Province
Knots Landing (1990, season 12): Lieutenant Guthrie
Monsters (1991, episode "Hostile Takeover"): Matilde
Pacific Station (1992, episode "My Favorite Dad"): Grace Ballard
In Living Color (1994, episode "Mrs. Ikefire"): Herself
The Sinbad Show (1994, episode "The Telethon"): Lynn Montgomery
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1994, episode "M is for the Many Things She Gave Me"): Janice Robertson
The Marshal (1995, episode "Rainbow Comix"): Marshal Vanetta Brown
Martin (1995, episode "All the Players Came"): Herself
Sparks (1996, episode "Pillow Talk"): Ms. Grayson
The Wayans Bros. (1996, episode "Goin' to the Net"): Erica
Mad TV (1998, episode "#3.25"): Host
Linc's (1998–2000 ): Eleanor Winthrop
For Your Love (1999, episode "The Sins of the Mother and... the Boyfriend"): Brenda
Strange Frequency (2001, episode "Time Is on My Side"): ?
Night Visions (2002, episode "Switch"): Dr. Lewis
Law & Order: Special Victims Unit (2002–2003, 2 episodes): Asst. US Attorney Claudia Williams
The L Word (2004–2009): Kit Porter
Smallville (2010, season 9): Amanda Waller
This Is Us (2018–2019, two episodes): Grandma
Bless This Mess (2019–2020): Constance Terry

Music Videos:

"Doggy Dogg World" (Snoop Dogg, 1994): Foxy Brown

Video Games:

Grand Theft Auto V (2013): Herself (DJ on the in-game radio station "The Lowdown 91.1")
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare ("Shaolin Shuffle" DLC, 2017): Herself

Western Animation:

Pinky and the Brain (1998, episode "Inherit the Wheeze"): Julie Auburn
The Wild Thornberrys (1999, episode "Stick Your Neck Out"): Mother Springbok
Happily Ever After: Fairy Tales for Every Child (1999, episode "The Empress' Nightingale"): The Empress' Nightingale
Justice League (2002, episode "A Knight of Shadows"): My'ria'h
The Great North (2022, episode "Slide & Wet-Judice Adventure"): Neckbone

Discography:

"Long Time Woman" (1971, single from the film The Big Doll House)
Communication (Bobby Womack, 1971): backing vocals
Understanding (Bobby Womack, 1972): backing vocals

Works written by Pam Grier include:

Foxy: My Life in Three Acts (2010)

Pam Grier provides examples of the following tropes:

Action Girl: Before Ellen Ripley and Sarah Connor codified this trope in movies, she pretty much defined it.
Badass
Blaxploitation: She and Tamara Dobson became the genre's leading actresses.
Hot Chick in a Badass Suit: Two Words: Jackie Brown.
Ms. Fanservice: Her boobs were an important part of a whole generation of men's puberties.
One of Us: a self-described bookish nerd in real life. The Mars Attacks! role appealed to her because of the comics she grew up reading.
- Or the sketch on Mad TV where she plays a back superhero from the future who goes back to the 1950s to reassure a bunch of black heroes from that era that their contribution to black hero-ing is indeed important.
Sassy Black Woman