Scarlett Johansson's Top 15 Movie Roles, Ranked from Worst to Best

Scarlett Johansson has one of the most versatile careers in Hollywood, seamlessly moving between indie dramas, blockbuster franchises, and art-house experiments. Over the years, she’s taken on roles that demand vulnerability, wit, and power – sometimes all in the same scene. From a sci-fi alien to a struggling mother, Johansson’s filmography is packed with performances that show just how fearless and adaptable she can be.

In this list, we’re ranking Scarlett Johansson’s top 15 movie performances – not the movies themselves. That means a few lackluster films might rank surprisingly high, simply because Johansson managed to outshine the script or elevate a mediocre project with her talent. This is all about the acting, the impact, and the moments that prove why she remains one of the most compelling performers of her generation.

15. Avengers: Infinity War (2018)

Massive ensemble spectacle is both blessing and curse for Scarlett here – she’s Natasha Romanoff caught in world-ending chaos, but there’s not as much room for emotional nuance when Thanos is smashing half the universe. The action and CGI are dazzling, though, and she manages to anchor brief moments – guilt, resolve, fear – amid the franchise’s pressure cooker. It’s not her deepest performance; her character is often a reactive pivot in someone else’s story. Still, there are flickers of what makes her Black Widow more than just the action figure: loyalty, grief, sacrifice. If you're ranking by role, not movie, this stays lower because she’s spread thin.

14. Avengers: Endgame (2019)

Closing an arc that spanned over a decade, Endgame gives Scarlett some of her most emotionally charged material as Natasha – the weight of decisions, inclusion in betrayal, and finally the ultimate sacrifice. It’s hard not to feel the gravitas when her character gets the spotlight in one of her few truly central scenes. Even when screen time is shared between dozens of heroes, she makes her moments count, giving complexity to what might have been melodrama in lesser hands. Some dialogue here feels functional rather than lyrical, yet her commitment turns setup into real stakes. This film doesn’t win her the top spot – because others demand more risk – but it’s a critical step in her growth.

13. The Prestige (2006)

Not your usual superhero fare, and maybe that’s what makes The Prestige interesting for Scarlett: she plays Olivia Wenscombe, caught in moral ambiguity, deception, and emotional betrayal, parts of the film’s darker undercurrent. The film’s structure (flashbacks, illusions, secrets) has less wiggle room for small character beats, but she brings a grounded sincerity, especially in scenes of personal conflict. Her character is used to raise stakes, but doesn’t get to outshine the two magicians’ duel – which is fair, since that’s the point – yet she makes Olivia more than just plot device. Watching it now, you see how early she could hold her own in heavyweight casts. The Prestige doesn’t let her soar completely, but she certainly impresses.

12. Don Jon (2013)

Here she plays Barbara, romantic idealist, against Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s character who’s more broken and abrasive, and that contrast works: she’s the foil, yes, but not a passive one. The movie itself does some murky signals – critiques, love, real vs ideal – and she navigates them cleanly, giving warmth, frustration, and moral weight as someone who’s trying to believe in connection. She isn't the lead, but in a film that’s part comedy, part drama, part critique, she gives grounding. Some moments feel not quite fully explored, though; the role asks more in being reactive toward Don Jon than pushing the story forward herself. Still, her performance here earns respect for subtlety.

11. Asteroid City (2023)

Wes Anderson’s style always demands something peculiar: precision, whimsy, ensemble interplay, and Scarlett fits into that world not just by being there but by owning her peculiar corner of it. As Midge Campbell, she contributes to the eccentric humor, the dreamy dislocation of setting, and reveals vulnerability under the quirk. The film never lets any one person dominate – it’s a tapestry – so her role is about suggestion: small gestures, reaction shots, comedic timing that says a lot with little. Some will say the movie is more style than substance; she makes sure her character isn’t lost in that gloss. It’s not her most dramatic role, but it shows she’s versatile even when the narrative isn’t linear.

10. Match Point (2005)

Playing Nola Rice in Match Point puts Scarlett in an emotional no-man’s land: alluring, damaged, and not quite in control of her own story. The film, directed by Woody Allen, thrives on moral tension, luck versus guilt, and she gets to bring both fragility and danger to her role. The character often feels drawn more by the men around her, but Johansson pushes back – making Nola more complex than just “the other woman.” There are scenes where she’s quietly powerful, where the stillness under her words speaks louder than the more bombastic actors. It’s not her biggest screen time, but the quality of what she does with what she has earns this spot.

9. The Man Who Wasn’t There (2001)

In this Coen brothers’ neo-noir, Scarlett is Rachel “Birdy” Abundas, a high school girl caught in the peripheral tragedy swirling around Ed Crane. She may be young, but her role requires emotional honesty – not just as foil or object of obsession but as someone whose artistic dreams and moral clarity contrast sharply with the murky world of adults. Her scenes with Billy Bob Thornton carry tension: Birdy admires him, challenges him, judges him, all while being – and staying – herself. The film gives her less screentime than leads, but each appearance deepens the texture. Some viewers might see her as underused here, but that underuse underscores how well she makes every moment count.

8. Vicky Cristina Barcelona (2008)

When Vicky Cristina Barcelona swings between romantic collisions, Johansson as Cristina gives us someone who lives in contrast: bold, impulsive, emotionally messy (in a good way). She isn’t defined by elegance or restraint so much as by a messy heart, which means her laughter, jealousy, and longing all hit harder. Surrounded by strong personalities (Cruz, Bardem, Hall), she risks being overshadowed, but she leans into her unpredictability and lets us see the contradictions. Not every plot beat lands, but her risk-taking in rapport and improvisation makes her one of the more memorable threads. Her performance is less about redemption and more about the messy middle, and it works beautifully.

7. Scoop (2006)

Johansson steps into comedic mystery in Scoop, playing Sondra Pransky (an American journalist with a ghost story in tow), and it's a role where her charm and timing lean into fun rather than grit. The movie doesn’t treat her with the gravitas some of her dramas do, but that doesn’t mean she’s just along for the ride: she wrings playfulness, confusion, and curiosity out of moments that could’ve felt secondary. Between supernatural hinting, British aristocrats, and Woody Allen’s signature deadpan style, she holds a nice balance. There are stretches where the humor lands unevenly, but she never seems lost in the mix. For performance-ranking, it’s lower not because she’s less good, but because the role demands less wrangling of pain, ambiguity, or risk.

6. Ghost World (2001)

Rebecca in Ghost World gives Scarlett one of her earliest roles that feels lived in: cynical, funny, disillusioned but still wanting something real. The film is about outsiderdom more than plot, and she brings authenticity to Rebecca’s awkwardness, her critiques of pop culture, and the bittersweet tension around growing up. It’s subtle – she’s not the lead (Thora Birch is), but Johansson makes Rebecca’s few scenes ripple, in voice, posture, and timing. Some lines are edgy, some nearly invisible, but she uses them all. For many fans, this is one of those roles that ages well: you watch it later and you see how much she already had, even then.

5. Girl with a Pearl Earring (2003)

Scarlett steps into the shoes of Griet, a young maid navigating the rigid world of Vermeer’s home, and in Girl with a Pearl Earring she plays power in restraint – silence, observation, longing, all under candlelight. The film’s beauty often comes from what isn’t said: the art, the tension between class and creativity, and how Griet’s presence disturbs order more than loud rebellion ever could. When she looks at that painting, or admires pigments and light, you believe she’s changed by it – turned from outsider to someone integral. It’s a role that demands patience from the audience, but she rewards it. The supporting cast and visuals are lush, sometimes overshadow, but Johansson makes sure Griet is the emotional anchor. It remains one of her most quietly commanding turns.

4. Marriage Story (2019)

Divorce isn’t cinematic gold by default – but Marriage Story gives Scarlett the material to dig into heartbreak with honesty, resentment, tenderness, and all the ugly truths in between. Playing Nicole Barber, she’s someone trying to reconcile love with loss, dreams with obligations, and scenes where she’s being heard just enough to hurt. There are no villains here, just people with jagged edges, and her performance refuses easy sympathy: she’s sharp, sometimes unforgiving, always human. When arguments turn to silence, or when she’s just sitting in a room trying to process, that’s when she shines brightest. The film offers her range, and she takes it – voice cracking, pride wounded, love lingering. It’s a central role in her career for a reason.

3. Under the Skin (2013)

There are few roles that demand more from restraint than Under the Skin, and Scarlett takes on its alien-in-human form with chilling ambiguity and haunting grace. She mostly walks, watches, seduces, repels – with minimal dialogue – and yet, every tilt of her head or blank stare feels loaded. The film’s weirdness, its moments of emotional blankness, could easily flatten an actor; instead, she lets the weirdness expose something fragile, something broken, something yearning. Scenes where she impersonates normal human interaction are discomfiting not because she overplays them, but because she’s so convincingly composed until she isn’t. It’s less about what the movie gives her and more what she brings to make its sparse landscapes feel alive. In roles like this, you see why she takes risks: for artistry, for disquiet, for impact.

2. Jojo Rabbit (2019)

Balancing satire and heart is a tightrope act, and Jojo Rabbit lets Scarlett lean into both as Rosie, the subversive mother in Nazi-Germany trying to hold a fractured family together. She’s funny, fiercely protective, quietly subversive, and the film gives her moments both absurd and deeply moving. That scene in the attic or the clash between her hope and the world’s indoctrination – those are Scarlett at her layered best, carrying so much emotion even when she’s forced into whispers or forced to be strong. The script gives big swings, but she makes sure each one lands – not just for laughs, but for grief, resistance, love. It’s one of the heaviest emotional packages she delivers while also letting you laugh. And it’s near the top because of that blend: heart, humor, pain.

1. Lost in Translation (2003)

Few movie roles feel as defining as Charlotte in Lost in Translation – a bored newlywed adrift in Tokyo, trying to communicate, trying to matter, trying to find something in the neon blur. Scarlett’s performance is quiet but electric: she listens more than she speaks, she observes more than she acts, and yet you feel everything – loneliness, curiosity, a longing that’s both painful and sweet. The space she occupies is emotional limbo, and she fills it with subtle gestures: a glance, a sigh, the weight of not wanting to be invisible. The film’s beauty comes from those moments that almost feel like breathing; her skill is making them feel profound. It set a standard for her career: this ability to carry a film not by volume or spectacle, but by presence, by vulnerability, by being human.