Why Women Dominated The Biggest Pop Culture Moments Of 2016

Most of us are pretty excited for 2016 to end. Dubbed as a dumpster fire of a year by the internet, the year was rife with hackings, shadings, Twitter beefs, and all kinds of A-list breakups.

We all know where we were when Kim Kardashian exposed Taylor Swift for (kind of) lying about that whole "Kanye didn't tell me about 'Famous'" flub. And while Brangelina ended in a flash, Meghan Markle became the new American princess who stole Prince Harry's royal heart.

This year saw meaningful conversations about domestic violence and sexual assault, when Amber Heard and Gabrielle Union spoke out and pushed those issues forward into the mainstream. For no reason at all, Leslie Jones received so much racist and sexist vitriol online that Twitter had to step in and take control of the situation. And when Kardashian was robbed at gunpoint in a terrifying attack in Paris, close readings of celebrity, social media, and safety took center stage.

At the heart of all these viral stories were powerful, independent, and strong women who are not going anywhere. Like them or not, they controlled the narrative in 2016, and they'll be back even bigger in the new year. Ahead, a look at how they had us talking these past 12 months.