Foxy Brown is considered to be one of the most influential blaxploitation films,[23] with Pam Grier's character seen as the female archetype of the genre.[24][25] The film and the character of Foxy Brown have directly influenced or were referenced in multiple films in subsequent years, including Girl 6 (1996), Urban Legend (1998), Undercover Brother (2002), and Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002).[24] Jackie Brown, the Quentin Tarantino film starring Grier in the title role, is an homage to Foxy Brown.[26] In the 2001 horror film Bones, Grier references her Foxy Brown character.[27]
It is often noted by film historians as one of the first blaxploitation films to provide a portrayal of a strong and independent woman; until Grier, women often existed exclusively to support their men for a small part of the film.[6]
Additionally, Foxy Brown and the preceding film Coffy are unique for their establishment of pushers and pimps as villains.[28] Before these films, the blaxploitation genre often espoused empathy for the social positions of such individuals.
Pam Grier titled her memoir Foxy: My Life in Three Acts (2010), influenced by this film.[29]
