History Main / BoyishShortHair

* Several of the more tomboyish fairies in ''Literature/RainbowMagic'' have short hair, with a notable example being Izzy the Indigo Fairy, the most masculine of the Rainbow Fairies.

* In ''Webcomic/TheOrderOfTheStick'' Haley's hair is cut down to this style due to the petty cruelty of her spiteful rival, Crystal, who also sports such a cut. While Haley does become more action-orientated around the same time, (she receives a major upgrade to her bow, making her even more TheArcher than she was before, gets a wicked melee weapon rather than being helpless in close quarters combat, concludes her rivalry with Crystal, etc.) she's also rather uncomfortable with the look and buys a new, [[ChainmailBikini somewhat skimpier set of armor]] to show off that despite the haircut, yes, she is a girl. And while the cut lasts awhile, (about 140 strips) she also takes advantage of the first chance she finds to magically grow her hair back out.

* ''ComicBook/PowerGirl'': Karen is really just an older version of ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} from an AlternateUniverse. Aside from being very muscular (and ''much'' [[MOstCommonSuperpower curvier]]), she's also distinguished from Supergirl by having much shorter hair to reflect her assertiveness. While her hair has been a SciFiBobHaircut for much of her existence, she did have her hair cropped to crewcut levels during her period as an Atlantean.

* ''Series/TheRising'': Neve, an ActionGirl and professional motorcross competitor, has a short haircut with it hanging to her jawline. She's also attracted to women along with men it turns out.

* ''Anime/WhenMarnieWasThere'': Anna has short hair that reaches her jawline. She is also rather tomboyish as she mostly wears unisex clothing and doesn't have any feminine interests. This is in contrast to Marnie, who has long hair and is very feminine.

** Averted for Toph, whose hairstyle (which gets mistaken for this trope) is actually a hair bun since she is seen with her hair down twice: In a bedhead variant in "The Tales of Ba Sing Se" and in a non-bedhead variant at the end of "Korra Alone".
** ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'': [[TheLadette Korra]] fashions her hair in [[TomboyishPonytail a ponytail]] for the first three seasons but near the beginning of the fourth season, she cuts her hair short into a shoulder-length bob, while she's roaming the Earth Kingdom in secret during her HeroicBSOD.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheOwlHouse'': Luz has a slightly outgrown pixie cut that is just long enough to cover her earlobes. Turns out this wasn't intentional -- it was because Luz was being careless with a sword she got at a convention. She slowly grows her hair out in between seasons, although the DistantFinale epilogue has it [[spoiler:cut back to an even shorter pixie cut]].

** During her time being mind controlled by Horde Prime before ultimately pulling a HeelFaceTurn in the first half of the final season of, Catra sports this hairstyle and would continue sporting it after being freed from Prime's control.

* In ''Firefighter'', a biopic of Cindy Fralick - the first woman to become a firefighter at the Los Angeles County Fire Department. She is informed that she must cut her long hair above her ears and above her shoulders to conform to the safety regulations - which of course were written for men. Her superiors are unhappy with it and insist she cut it even shorter. On seeing the new result she cries that she looks like a boy.

* Invoked in ''Anime/IsabelleInParis'' where the titular Isabelle cuts off her OjouRinglets to become a spy for France's sake and keeps this hairstyle even after her war duties are over.

* ''WesternAnimation/MyAdventuresWithSuperman'' gives Lois Lane a [[TombynessUpgrade tomboy makeover]], complete with shorthair to go along with her preference for casual wear, T-shirts, gym shorts, and ''[[MaleGaze yoga pants]]''. And she's portrayed as being [[OneOfTheBoys best friends with Clark and Jimmy]], her fellow interns at The Daily Planet.

* Barbra from ''Roleplay/DawnOfANewAgeOldportBlues'' has short, purple-dyed hair, and is a tomboyish, outspoken GamerGirl.

[[folder:Comic Books]]
* ''Franchise/TheDCU'':
** ''ComicBook/Batgirl2000'': Fitting her highly trained {{TykeBomb}} nature, Cassandra Cain has far shorter hair than [[ComicBook/{{Batgirl}} Barbara, Stephanie and Helena]].
** ''ComicBook/BatmanTheDarkKnightReturns'': Carrie Kelley has very short tomboyish hair.
** ''ComicBook/{{Batwoman}}'':
*** Kate Kane had short hair from high school all the way through her time as a cadet and typically sports an even shorter buzz cut in the ''ComicBook/DCRebirth'' era. Ironically, her early appearances have her with long hair before being ultimately depicted with a chin-length bob.
*** Kate's cousin Bette, who is more usually seen with a TomboyishPonytail, also cut her hair short when she enrolled at West Point.
** ''ComicBook/BlackCanary'': In the 1990s, Dinah usually has short black hair when not using her wig. She is a huge ActionGirl. She eventually grows out her hair and dyes it blonde.
** ''ComicBook/{{Catwoman}}'': In all modern comic portrayals, Selina Kyle has very short hair that she can fit easily in her cowl. In the 1960s, Selina has longer hair coming out of the back of her mask, similarly to ComicBook/{{Batgirl}}.
** ''ComicBook/PowerGirl'': Karen is really just an older version of ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} from an AlternateUniverse. Aside from being very muscular (and ''much'' [[BoobsOfSteel curvier]]), she's also distinguished from Supergirl by having much shorter hair to reflect her assertiveness. While her hair has been a SciFiBobHaircut for much of her existence, she did have her hair cropped to crewcut levels during her period as an Atlantean.
** ''ComicBook/Robin1993'': Near the end of her freshman year of high school, Callie Evans crops her light brown hair into a short pixie cut and dyes it orange.
** ''ComicBook/Supergirl2011'': The post-''ComicBook/{{Flashpoint}}'' ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} -- who is a short-tempered, hot-blooded brawler and not feminine ''in the least'' -- wears her blond hair this way.
** ''ComicBook/WonderGirl'': Cassie Sandsmark [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1987 originally]] had an incredibly short boyish hair cut to reflect her tomboy sensibilities, which she hid underneath a black wig while in uniform.

* ''Franchise/MarvelUniverse'':
** ''ComicBook/CaptainMarvelMarvelComics'': Carol Danvers has worn this since 2015 -- some time after ''ComicBook/SecretWars2015'' -- and up to a short time before the [[Film/CaptainMarvel2019 film]] (and [[Film/AvengersEndgame its follow-up]]) had Creator/BrieLarson's Carol adopting the haircut as well. Doubles as PowerHair. It's also the initial hairstyle of her ''ComicBook/UltimateMarvel'' incarnation, before going for long hair as well.
** ''ComicBook/SilkMarvelComics'': While Cindy initially had long hair, she commonly has a short bob nowadays.
** ''ComicBook/SpiderGirl'': May Parker has short brown boyish hair [[StrongFamilyResemblance much like her dad]], though she's still more popular than him during her high school days.
** ''ComicBook/SpiderMan'': Betty Brant has kept her short hair since TheSixties -- she's still very feminine, though. The only adaption to change this is the ''Franchise/MarvelCinematicUniverse'', in which Betty has long [[AdaptationDyeJob blonde]] hair, ironically making her resemble Gwen Stacy.
** ''ComicBook/UltimateXMen'': Jean starts off with short hair along with a {{Tomboy}} attitude. After a while, she lets her hair grow out to a shoulder-length bob similar to her main universe counterpart's.
** ''ComicBook/XMen'':
*** Rogue originally starts off with very short hair when she's first introduced. However, her hair [[BeautyEqualsGoodness grows longer]] after she makes a HeelFaceTurn, with Creator/JimLee giving her iconic massive hair.
*** Rachel Summers/Phoenix has short messy hair, unlike her mother Jean and her [[TimeyWimeyBall alternate reality adoptive niece]] Hope.
*** Callisto, TheLadette leader of the Morlocks, either has short or really short hair, DependingOnTheArtist.
*** Ever since her debut, Jubilee has had very short hair along with a punkish tomboy attitude, especially back in the 1990s (though she does [[TomboyWithAGirlyStreak have a girly side]]).
*** In ''ComicBook/XMenGold'', Kitty Pryde has very short hair, perhaps reflecting her new role as TheLeader.

** ''ComicBook/PowerGirl'': Karen is really just an older version of ComicBook/{{Supergirl}} from an AlternateUniverse. Aside from being very muscular (and ''much'' [[BoobsOfSteel curvier]]), she's also distinguished from Supergirl by having much shorter hair to reflect her assertiveness.

* [[Creator/KeiraKnightley Jules]] from ''Film/BendItLikeBeckham'' has short hair fitting her {{Tomboy}} nature. This becomes a plot point when Jess' sister's fiance's parents see them laughing together on the street and mistake Jules for a boy due to her short hair. The deeply conservative parents are outraged at the sight of Jess supposedly kissing a white boy out in public and [[ParentalMarriageVeto call off the wedding]], driving a temporary wedge between the sisters.

%%* Beverly in ''Film/It2017'', unlike [[Literature/{{It}} the book]] or [[Film/It1990 the previous adaptation]], has short hair after an ImportantHaircut. She is the only girl of the Losers' Club so it makes her fit in.

* Mary Margaret Blanchard, aka. Literature/SnowWhite, from ''Series/OnceUponATime''. Helps display that ''this'' version is significantly more of an ActionGirl than the Disney princess version.

** Arya, the feisty tomboy, has this while [[SweetPollyOliver passing as a boy]], and keeps it fairly short after. She loathes medieval female roles such as sewing, cooking, and dreaming of marrying a prince, and instead prefers beating her older brother at archery, learning how to fence, and so on. Cemented in season 2, when [[OddFriendship Tywin]] notes her unusual passion for history and [[ActionGirl warrior women]] from the past, and says that most girls prefer romantic tales about maidens with flowers in their hair and such. Arya's response? "Most girls are idiots."

* In ''Series/PowerRangersDinoFury'' athletic and tomboyish green ranger Izzy Garcia has her hair cut relatively short. She's also a butch lesbian. Funnily enough, Tessa Rao had more of a problem with cutting her hair for the role than she did with the fact that her character is lesbian. (Of course, that's also awesome.)

** ''VideoGame/FinalFantasyIX'': In one scene, when Garnet (aka Dagger) cuts off much of her hair into a bob hairstyle it signifies her having TookALevelInBadass and also becoming a bit more boyish. She grows it back out to its original length in the ending after she [[spoiler: reunites with Zidane]].

* Music/MelanieC of the Music/SpiceGirls had short hair during 1999-2000 before ultimately growing out it to chin-length. Fittingly, she was the "sporty" one of the group.

* Captain/Major/Lieutenant Colonel/Colonel Samantha Carter of ''Series/StargateSG1'' is a good example. She's definitely brainy (an astrophysicist) and an ActionGirl (she didn't get all those ranks for nothing.) However, she doesn't have much of a stereotypically masculine personality (though she is a StrawFeminist for the first couple of episodes) and she is definitely portrayed as super hot, though not sexualized. This is in large part {{justified|Trope}} by Air Force dress codes, and the show's [[BackedByThePentagon military advisers]] were known to complain if Sam's actress Creator/AmandaTapping let it get too long.

** Terizan, a tomboy lesbian, also has short dark hair herself it turns out.

* ''Literature/AMasterOfDjinn'': Fatma and Siti both have short hair, while they're skilled women warriors.

** Sanakan's short black hair frames a fair face with a [[PerpetualFrowner perpetual scowl]]. Despite having RavenHairIvorySkin, she is a crude, HotBlooded KidHero, as well as a [[HunterOfMonsters hunter]] in [[TheApprentice training]]. Hell, she even likes [[DropTheHammer big-ass hammers]] and [[{{BFS}} big-ass swords]].