10 Smartest Decisions In Sci-Fi Movie History

5. "Nuke The Entire Site From Orbit" & Fighting The Alien Queen With A Cargo-Loader - Aliens

Ellen Ripley (Sigourney Weaver) just might be the most consistently smart and cool-headed character in all of sci-fi cinema, honestly.

In Ridley Scott's original Alien, she refuses to let Dallas (Tom Skerritt), Lambert (Veronica Cartwright) and Kane (John Hurt) aboard after the latter is attacked by the xenomorph.

Despite being the ranking officer on the ship and citing reasonable quarantine regulations, however, android Ash (Ian Holm) lets them aboard regardless.

While it's common for movie heroes to get dumber in sequels, Ripley actually seems to grow more of a brain in James Cameron's sequel, Aliens.

When Ripley and the Marines are discussing how to deal with the xenomorph infestation on Acheron, Ripley suggests they take off and "nuke the entire site from orbit" in order to guarantee the aliens' extermination.

Though Ripley's plan is sadly never executed despite plenty of enthusiasm from the Marines, it's incredibly refreshing to hear a character cut through the bulls*** and offer up the cleanest and most logical solution possible.

If that's not smart enough, Ripley also pulls off the ingenious feat of battling the xenomorph Queen at the end of the movie by using a cargo-loader, allowing her to match its strength while also ensuring that its dangerous inner-jaw can't get within snapping distance of her face.

And that is why Ripley remains the all-timer emblem of the "strong female character", even earning Weaver a Best Actress Oscar nomination for her efforts.