Before 'The Heat': 12 Iconic Female Duos in Hollywood

'The Heat': Sandra Bullock and Melissa McCarthy

It’s not every day that a leading lady is cast to play a badass perp-catching, liquor-chugging detective; it’s even less common to cast two of them as anchors of an action comedy. But that’s just what Fox and director Paul Feig did with this weekend’s big release The Heat. Oscar winner Sandra Bullock and fan favorite Melissa McCarthy play an odd couple of special agents, attempting to disprove (once again) that strong female actors can’t draw at the box office.

Here’s a look at some other legendary female duos in pop culture:

'Big Business'

Based on William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors, Big Business finds Bette Midler and Lily Tomlin each playing dual roles as two sets of identical female twins who are mismatched at birth, one pair ending up mistakenly in a wealthy urban family and the other in a poor rural family. The female adaptation of Shakespeare's raucous comedy allowed the actresses free rein to take over the film and rewrite history.

'Bound': Corky and Violet

In the 1996 neo-noir film, Gina Gershon and Jennifer Tilly play two lesbians who fall in love and plan a heist that doesn’t go according to plan. Gershon, in particular, is a badass, playing a tough-looking, tough-sounding, short-haired mechanic who assumes the role of the male anti-hero in the genre film. Tilly’s femme fatale is beautiful and seductive, and together they are one of the most unorthodox female duos in film history.

'Charlie's Angels'

Though not a duo, the famous trio of fighting females made their television debut in 1976, with original Angels Farrah Fawcett, Kate Jackson and Jaclyn Smith. The show ran for five seasons -- with other actresses stepping in to the Angels' heels as needed -- before being canceled. However, the franchise was resurrected when McG directed two film adaptations in the early 2000s starring Cameron Diaz, Drew Barrymore and Lucy Liu.

'Gilmore Girls': Lorelai and Rory

Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel played mother and daughter -- and best friends -- Lorelai and Rory Gilmore on the hit WB/CW series Gilmore Girls for seven successful seasons. A young, single, carefree mother, Lorelai cared for and related to her intelligent, introverted daughter, bridging their own generation gap and bringing mother-daughter viewers closer together in the process.

'Laverne & Shirley'

Played by Penny Marshall and Cindy Williams, Laverne and Shirley were two single roommates in Milwaukee, both working as bottle-cappers for a local brewing company. The title song of the late '70s TV program declares that the characters are making their dreams come true, doing it their way -- and that’s certainly the case for the show itself. The show saw unprecedented success, finishing in the top three in ratings its first four seasons.

'I Love Lucy': Lucy and Ethel

Lucille Ball, one of television’s first iconic female faces, was never alone in her antics on I Love Lucy. In her best friend, Ethel, played by Vivian Vance, Lucy had a sidekick with whom she would conduct hilarious vaudevillian stunts and raucous physical comedy. I Love Lucy ran for six seasons, from 1951 through 1957, and was the most popular television show for four of them, making Lucy and Ethel the first great female duo in American entertainment.

'The Mary Tyler Moore Show': Mary and Rhoda

The popular 1970s program was seen as a breakthrough for women in the entertainment industry and in America. Mary Tyler Moore played Mary Richards, a working woman in her 30s, living in Minneapolis and in no rush to find a man to support her. Mary’s neighbor and best friend Rhoda, played by Valerie Harper, was also single, but dated frequently, ultimately finding love in the fourth season. The two leading ladies represented the liberated nature of the television program, free of the typical constraints of situation comedy and moving into revolutionary reality comedy that would influence shows like 30 Rock and Friends.

'SNL': Tiny Fey and Amy Poehler

Fey and Poehler were the first two women ever to co-anchor Saturday Night Live’s classic mid-show news segment "Weekend Update." The duo led the hilarious segment for only a single season before Fey left to write 30 Rock and do film work. However, they would reunite in 2008 to co-star in Baby Mama. Most recently, the NBC fixtures co-hosted the 70th Golden Globe Awards to rave reviews, cementing their place atop Hollywood’s list of funniest females.

'Thelma & Louise'

Maybe the most famous and significant on-screen female partnership ever, Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon's title roles as Thelma and Louise, respectively, caused moviegoers everywhere to rethink their views of women in cinema. Playing two women on the run from the law and responsibility, Davis and Sarandon carried the 1991 film with vigor throughout until their characters’ famous fated finale.

'Bridesmaids'

This 2011 summer flick exceeded expectations critically and at the box office. A Paul Feig-directed comedy starring an ensemble of comedy actresses in their 30s (including a break-out performance by The Heat's Melissa McCarthy), Bridesmaids was anchored by the on-screen relationship between maid of honor Wiig and bride Rudolph. The SNL veterans transitioned to the silver screen flawlessly and broke the bank in the process.

'Cagney & Lacey'

A predecessor to, and possible inspiration for, The Heat, Cagney & Lacey was a 1980s police procedural starring Sharon Gless and Tyne Daly in the title roles as a pair of police detectives. The ultra-feminist show also played on the role of women, pitting Daly’s Lacey, a married working mother, alongside Gless’s Cagney, a single woman focused on her career. The series was famously canceled twice in the early '80s.