Kristen Stewart Tapped to Play '80s Feminist Icon in New Series
Kristen Stewart Tapped to Play '80s Feminist Icon in New Series
Sheri ReedFri, March 20, 2026 at 4:49 AM UTC
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Actor Kristen Stewart, 35, took on the high-profile role of Princess Diana in the film Spencer in 2021 (and got nominated for an Oscar too), and now she's signed on to play another iconic woman in history—astronaut and physicist Sally Ride—in a new limited television series called The Challenger.
Stewart, whose movie acting career set ablaze during the Twilight series, has been pushing beyond the Bella Swan role for more than a decade now, and, as she showed us in Spencer, she's not afraid of reinventing herself with meatier roles. The Sally Ride role is her latest big move, and it'll be interesting to see how Stewart morphs once again to bring Ride to life.
Photo by Bettmann on Getty Images (Photo by Bettmann on Getty Images)
For historical context—on June 18, 1983, Sally Ride became the first American woman in space aboard the Shuttle Challenger, as well as an instant '80s feminist icon. Girls and women finally got an actual representative in space. Even Mattel couldn't help but introduce "Astronaut Barbie" in 1985. And Sally Ride, merely by being Sally Ride, showed the world that math and science aren't "guy" things and went on to push STEM education for girls throughout her life.
After her death in 2012, it was also disclosed that Ride was in a 27-year relationship with her partner Tam O'Shaughnessy, which makes her the first known LGBTQ+ astronaut as well.
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Based on the official logline for the show, The Challenger series focuses on the events before and after the January 1986 Challenger tragedy, which killed seven crew members including teacherChrista McAuliffe. However, the story will include Ride’s personal journey "through the ranks of the shuttle program, through initial recruitment and training, professional and personal highs and lows, until Sally’s historic glass ceiling moment as she becomes the first American woman in space.”
The official announcement for Stewart's new role reads as follows: "Amazon MGM Studios has officially greenlit The Challenger, a limited series starring Kristen Stewart as astronaut and physicist Sally Ride, who in 1978 became the first American woman to fly in space."
This is Stewart's first television project, and she will also be an executive producer on the series. No date yet for when The Challenger will air.
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This story was originally published by Parade on Mar 20, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
