I've generally avoided tropical species exactly as you say, but after having decent luck with some of the "you can't kill this" plants (zz plant, sansevieria, some ferns/aloe/simple cacti) I figured I'd throw a wider net.

Unfortunately our house both gets _very little_ light and is often quite cold so that already precludes a lot of options. Some day I'd love to live somewhere that allows the "room full of giant bushy plants indoors" setup.

Aspidistra elatior could work. A modest (boring) slow-growing creature. After some years can produce small and very alien flowers eventually.