Noomi Rapace and Rooney Mara have both played with fire as Lisbeth Salander, the female protagonist in the wildly popular Girl with the Dragon Tattoo films. Now, it seems, their careers are ablaze in Hollywood with Rapace starring in Dead Man Down this weekend and Mara starring in Side Effects (in theaters now).
Inevitably the question is asked: who is the better Lisbeth? Well, that question has been asked to death, and frankly we think there is a much more looming question at hand: who is the bigger badass overall, Noomi Rapace or Rooney Mara?
We’re comparing their roles to uncover who is currently kicking the hornet’s nest hardest in Hollywood. Each role will be ranked out of 5 stars, with 5 being the most badass.
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Mara)
Mara provides us with a much meeker Salander, a character who appears weak enough to be backed into a corner, but will strike with shocking strength when threatened. With a timid exterior that perfectly conceals her cunning, Mara brought Lisbeth to life and garnered herself an Academy Award nomination for Best Actress.
Most badass moment: Ditching her customary dark look, Salander plays dress-up and uses her hacking savvy to steal a quarter of a billion dollars from the corrupt businessman who tried to ruin her BFF Blomkvist’s career. Nothing is more badass than being a billionaire. 4.5/5
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo (Rapace)
Rapace brings a much harder exterior to Salander, seemingly eager to take on her oppressors and those who would do her harm. She unflinchingly looks evil in the eye and takes it down. Some say that this is a departure from the Salander in Larsson’s trilogy, but critics and audiences worldwide loved her fierce depiction of the girl who played with fire, and so did we.
Most badass moment: After recording the rape she endured at the hands of her “guardian,” Nils Bjurman, Lisbeth blackmails the bastard and brands him with a tattoo reading: "I’m a sadistic pig and rapist." 5/5
A Nightmare on Elm Street (Mara)
In the 2010 remake of the horror classic A Nightmare on Elm Street, Mara is hunted in her dreams by knife-happy Freddy Krueger and becomes a formidable force to be reckoned with when she pulls the dream-killer back to reality to give him a taste of his own medicine.
Most badass moment: Brandishing a blade to chop off Krueger’s knife-laced hand before opening his throat. 3.5/5
Prometheus (Rapace)
Elizabeth Shaw is so eager to discover the origin of mankind that she is almost humanity’s undoing. As the crewmembers of the Prometheus are taken down one-by-one on an alien planet, it’s Shaw who must stop the menace she unwittingly set loose.
Most badass moment: Self-administering an alien abortion. 4/5
The Social Network (Mara)
You don’t get to 500 million friends without making a few enemies… or without being dumped for being a douche. Playing Mark Zuckerberg’s (Jesse Eisenberg) girlfriend in the opening scene, Mara leaves the future billionaire drunk and humiliated, prompting him to create a site called “Facemash,” which would eventually lead him to create Facebook. Anyone who acts as the inspiration for a multibillion dollar company is basically a badass.
Most badass moment: Ignoring Zuckerberg’s Facebook friend request at the end of the film, leaving him to continuously hit “refresh” on his homepage. 4/5
Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows (Rapace)
Rapace joins Sherlock Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and Dr. Watson (Jude Law) as Simza, the knife-wielding vixen who may hold secrets to preventing the next world war. While Game of Shadows was met with mixed reviews, it proved to be a commercial success, making more than $500 worldwide.
Most badass moment: In their first encounter, Simza flees Holmes, slinging daggers his way with sniper-like precision. 3.5/5
Side Effects (Mara)
Mara’s character, Emily Taylor, is depressed (which is slightly hard to understand considering she’s married to Channing Tatum). As her crippling depression worsens, she turns to Dr. Jonathan Banks, a top psychiatrist, to treat her. When the medication he prescribes her turns out to have unforeseen side effects, an interesting blame game begins.
Most badass moment: If you’ve seen it, you know. If not, it’s not too late to check out Side Effects in theaters!
Dead Man Down (Rapace)
Playing a mysterious woman with painful past, Rapace joins forces with Colin Farrell in the hopes that he’ll help her settle the score with the man who ruined her life by scarring her face. She bites off more than she can chew when she discovers that Farrell’s character has a revenge agenda of his own. When embarking on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.
Most badass moment: See Dead Man Down on March 8 and decide for yourself!
For now, the score is pretty close. Weigh in on who you think bad-asses it best in the comments below.
