Using concepts of visual meaning making and corporeal affect this dissertation examines how physical strength, ability, precision, dexterity, and power are embodied in the depictions of active female bodies in the popular action film genre. A distinction from representations that deal primarily with narrative and identity, this dissertation instead analyzes the affective corporeality of active female bodies. Affective corporeality meaning how the material body is articulated and, through that articulation, how audiences are encouraged to feel with and about the material body on screen. Utilizing close textual analysis and speaking into spaces of cinematic affect, genre, and representation I analyze cinematic depictions that rely on the affective qualities of the corporeal and physical ability of the female body. I will also analyze the ways specific actors utilize a range of media to curate a perception of their bodies as signifiers of physical strength, power, and corporeality within and outside of their filmic representations. This dissertation also illustrates how these practices function to “make their bodies real” primarily in the context of Hollywood action films but also within the social and cultural context of contemporary society. Visual media and the acts of visual meaning making have epistemological application which underlines the impact and influence popular culture have on the social and cultural comprehension of the female body. In short, this dissertation identifies the ways these visual representations contribute to a social understanding of female embodiment.