Adria Arjona is brutal, feral, and unapologetically mother in the action movie Onslaught. And we need more of this kind of action hero in 2026 and beyond. Because I’m sick and tired of getting action roles that aren’t really written for women. Usually they’re written for a man and they just pop in an actress to play the lead role. And they always miss out on the nuances that come with being a woman.
When it comes to Celeste, I’ve met women like her. Women who are trying their best but are a mess and have heaps of trauma. Women who don’t fit inside of this box that society tries to force us into when it comes to how we’re supposed to act as women, friends, neighbors, or mothers. And women who become absolutely feral when it comes to protecting their children when danger arrives.
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On that last bit, of me describing Celeste as feral, I want to make it clear that I’m not saying she was out of control or “wild.” Because a lot of times when it comes to the word “feral” in reference to women, it’s used in sexual situations to the advantage of men or to “other” women. When I say that Celeste was feral in Onslaught, I mean that she did not live by social rules that are expected of women.
Celeste wasn’t the one that had custody of her child Daisy all the time. She also wasn’t super on top of her house, had a foul mouth, and had no problem reaching towards that anger that she had inside after what had happened to her. And when these three super soldiers came on the scene, she used that feral nature inside of her to protect her child from death.
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So when I say that we need more action heroes like Arjona’s Celeste, I mean that I want to see women leading the charge, taking down the bad guys, being messy, and being a mother all at the same time. We don’t have to pick and choose. We can have it all. And that’s what I see when I look at Celeste. She’s a fighter, a landlord, a survivor, an action here, and she just happens to be a mother too. All of them exist in the same space and one does not have to be sacrificed for the other.
The success of Celeste as an action hero, at least for me, has 100% to do with Adria Arjona’s acting. Everything felt natural when it came to her anger at possibly being separated from her child because her ex is planning on moving, her gentleness when telling Daisy bedtime stories, or even her goofiness when having dinner with her daughter. I didn’t feel like I was watching an actor playing someone. Arjona was immersed in this role and I was just watching a mother fight for her child in the same way Sigourney Weaver’s Ripley fought for Newt in Aliens.
That’s not to say that everything was perfect in Onslaught.
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I didn’t like this Hans Kammler guy and what was going on with his dominatrix wife Hannah. It felt unnecessary and like it didn’t fit with what was happening with Celeste. I also didn’t need this up close shot of a dominatrix’s bottom to the point where I wondered if maybe they should up the rating of the movie because I could almost see everything and it didn’t add to the plot at all.
If anything, I needed more of Drew Starkey’s Cyrus covering up this whole mess. Because outside of his introduction, he was interesting for his methodical yet twisted way of looking at things. Also, I kind of like that ridiculous haircut that he had. It suited him with those brows. On the super soldier front, I also needed more of The Butcher, The Crybaby, and The Cockroach. They were creepy and reminded me of ’70s slashers. Also I really liked the reflection in their eyes and how they just felt larger than life but also unstoppable.
Going back to Arjona in Onslaught.
From what we see in the end credits scenes, Celeste and Daisy are missing. Obviously Mrs. Kammler has seen something in Celeste’s survival that she wants to explore. And this could mean a possible sequel in the future. But if anything, I just want to see more of Arjona in lead roles that allow her to be brutal, unhinged, unrestricted, and angry. She unlocked something in Onslaught when it comes to her acting. And I can’t wait to see how she pushes forward into new territory.
Crossing fingers that maybe that new territory sees her heading to Themyscira next…
Onslaught is now in theaters.
