2. Catherine Tramell

Played By: Sharon Stone
Movie: Basic Instinct (1992)

The poster girl for the contemporary femme fatale had all of San Francisco under pressure with the mini-skirt leg cross heard round the world. So much so that despite all signs pointing to her being a murderer, who likes to kill after sex no less, Detective Nick Curran (Michael Douglas) still hopped into bed with her, giving the phrase "to die for" literal meaning.

With a career defined by playing loathsome yet sexy women, Sharon Stone has revisited this type of character often, and we'd be remiss if we didn't give a shout-out to her turn as Arnold Schwarzenegger's loving wife turned fake spouse ice-cold homicidal government plant in Total Recall.