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Top 15 Underrated Actresses Who Deserve Better

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Ignacio Weil

Entertainment - February 9th 2026, 11:00 GMT+1

Carrie Anne Moss cropped processed by imagy — 15. Carrie-Anne Moss

That sleek, black-coated silhouette sprinting across rooftops in *The Matrix* didn’t just make Trinity iconic – it rewired what blockbuster action heroines could look like. The thing is, the sunglasses-and-kung-fu cool is only one corner of her skill set: she’s been razor-precise in puzzle-box thrillers like *Memento* and carried grounded intensity on TV in *Jessica Jones* without leaning on “tough” as a shortcut. When a performer can sell physical choreography and quiet emotional math at the same time, Hollywood usually builds vehicles around them – yet Carrie-Anne Moss has had to keep proving it project by project. That’s exactly why she belongs in bigger, riskier leading roles, not just “the best supporting presence in the room.” | © Village Roadshow Pictures

Jennifer jason leigh in the hateful eight cropped processed by imagy — 14. Jennifer Jason Leigh

A great unsettling performance doesn’t announce itself with big speeches – it just sits there, daring you to look away. Watch how characters curdle under pressure in *Single White Female* and you’ll see what she does best: turning ordinary conversation into something slightly wrong, then letting the wrongness bloom until it’s terrifying. She’s also never been only “that vibe”; there’s wicked control in *The Hateful Eight*, and in *Annihilation* she finds calm in the middle of cosmic dread, like she’s translating fear into a steady gaze. The frustrating part is how rarely that caliber of craft gets treated as the headline. It’s past time for prestige projects to be built around Jennifer Jason Leigh, not merely improved by her. | © A Band Apart

Diane kruger inglourious basterds cropped processed by imagy — 13. Diane Kruger

Diane Kruger has one of those faces that reads modern even under ancient armor, which is why she doesn’t get swallowed by scale in *Troy* – she makes the politics feel personal. But limiting her to “elegant presence” misses the point: she can be sharp, funny, and quietly ferocious, whether she’s sparring with Nazi-era tension in *Inglourious Basterds* or navigating glossy adventure energy in *National Treasure*. On television, she proved she can carry a long emotional burn without losing the audience’s trust in *The Bridge*. Kruger’s choices keep hinting at a bigger career than the one the industry keeps offering her – more lead roles with teeth would make that obvious fast. | © Universal Pictures

Toni collette wayward cropped processed by imagy — 12. Toni Collette

Some actors can make a single reaction shot feel like a full scene, and you notice it most when a movie gives them just enough space to breathe. In *The Sixth Sense*, the grief is right there on the surface, but it never turns melodramatic – Toni Collette plays it like someone trying to function while the floor keeps shifting underneath her. Then she’ll pivot into something completely different: the scrappy warmth of *Muriel's Wedding*, the sunlit messiness of *Little Miss Sunshine*, or full-throttle horror devastation in *Hereditary*. Even ensemble hits like *Knives Out* can’t hide how consistently she raises the emotional IQ of every scene. If “deserves better” means anything, it means more starring showcases written at her level. | © Netflix

Judy greer ant man cropped processed by imagy — 11. Judy Greer

There’s a special kind of talent in being the character everyone remembers from the “supporting” corner – the best friend, the work rival, the voice that turns one line into a catchphrase – and making it feel like a full person anyway. That’s what’s happening in *13 Going on 30*, where the comedy lands because the ambition and insecurity underneath it feel real. She’s kept doing that trick across genres: voice-work chaos on *Archer*, smart studio comedy beats in *Ant-Man*, and a surprisingly grounded presence in modern slashers like *Halloween*. The industry clearly loves casting her as the ingredient that makes a scene pop – the overdue step is giving her the meal. That performer is Judy Greer. | © Marvel Studios

Zoey deutch set it up — 10. Zoey Deutch

Rom-coms live or die on timing, and *Set It Up* works because the lead can land a joke, sell a bruise of sincerity, and still keep the pace humming. What’s easy to miss is how that same spark flexes across wildly different tones: she’s breezy and magnetic in *Everybody Wants Some!!*, finds genuine ache under the premise in *Before I Fall*, and can pivot to sharp, internet-age discomfort in *Not Okay* without losing the human center. Even when she drops into bigger studio playgrounds like *Zombieland: Double Tap*, she never feels like “the funny side piece” – she feels like the person the camera should keep following. The industry keeps treating her like she’s perpetually one great role away from arriving, when she’s been doing the arriving part for years. That’s why “deserves better” fits Zoey Deutch so well. | © Netflix

Cropped robin wright house of cards — 9. Robin Wright

Star presence isn’t volume – sometimes it’s the way an actor makes stillness feel decisive. In *The Princess Bride*, the charm is effortless, but the craft is right there if you rewatch it: control, warmth, and an emotional clarity that never tips into parody. Then she flipped the switch into grounded Americana with *Forrest Gump*, and later turned television power games into something intimate and chilling on *House of Cards*. What really seals it is how she keeps showing up in different corners – from the glossy mythology of *Wonder Woman* to the cool futurism of *Blade Runner 2049*, and even smaller character turns where she adds gravity fast. Somewhere along the line, Robin Wright became the industry’s secret weapon instead of the obvious centerpiece, and that’s the imbalance that needs some calling out. | © Netflix

Lena headey 300 cropped processed by imagy — 8. Lena Headey

Lena Headey has the kind of intensity that can sharpen a scene like a blade, whether she’s standing in front of a green screen army or stuck in a grimy corridor with a single gunshot echo. A lot of people file her under “Cersei,” but that’s only one proof point: she’s fierce and physical in *300*, deliciously hard-edged in *Dredd*, and surprisingly tender (and funny) when the script gives her room in films like *Imagine Me & You*. Even in stranger studio fare, she has a way of making heightened worlds feel lived-in, not costumed. Hollywood clearly loves borrowing her authority to level up ensembles, yet it rarely hands her a story that belongs to her from frame one. That’s why she still reads as underused, even with a résumé most actors would kill for. | © Warner Bros. Pictures

Rebecca ferguson dune cropped processed by imagy — 7. Rebecca Ferguson

Big franchises have a habit of flattening characters into “cool,” but she keeps smuggling in interior life – doubt, steel, devotion, fear – like the role comes with a whole off-screen history. In *Dune*, that’s what makes Lady Jessica feel dangerous and heartbreaking at once, and in the *Mission: Impossible* films she plays competence as its own kind of magnetism rather than a pose. The range is wider than the headline roles, too: she can go full gothic menace in *Doctor Sleep*, tap into crowd-pleasing musical sheen in *The Greatest Showman*, and then carry quiet, grinding tension on TV in *Silo*. Somewhere between blockbuster scale and prestige taste, Rebecca Ferguson has become one of the most reliable “make this better” actors working – which is exactly why she deserves more projects built around her, not just upgraded by her. | © Legendary Pictures

Naomi Watts the ring cropped processed by imagy — 6. Naomi Watts

The most impressive screen performances don’t just make you feel something – they make you feel it shift in real time, like the ground moving under your feet. That’s the magic of *Mulholland Drive*, where the character’s identity seems to rearrange itself scene by scene, and you can practically hear the emotional logic rewriting the rules. Then she became the face of early-2000s studio dread in *The Ring*, carried bruising adult drama in *21 Grams*, and even inside a giant effects spectacle like *King Kong* she stays fully human, never swallowed by the scale. When disaster storytelling turns generic, she’s the one who keeps it specific (*The Impossible* is proof). It’s hard to think of many actors who can turn vulnerability into suspense as consistently as Naomi Watts. | © DreamWorks Pictures

Regina king jerry maguire cropped processed by imagy — 5. Regina King

A lot of Regina King’s best work lives in the space where a character is holding it together for everyone else – and you can still feel the cost. In *If Beale Street Could Talk*, she turns grief into something physical, like every sentence is dragged up from deep water, and it’s impossible to look away. She’s also got an instinct for turning genre into character study: *Watchmen* lets her play trauma, authority, and tenderness without sanding any edges off. Go back further and you’ll find her slipping sharp warmth into *Ray* or making supporting parts feel lived-in rather than functional. The résumé screams “centerpiece,” yet she’s still too often treated like a prestige multiplier instead of the main event. | © Netflix

Carla gugino spy kids cropped processed by imagy — 4. Carla Gugino

A script can throw every genre trick in the book at her – haunted house dread, action chaos, heightened satire – and she’ll still find the human pulse that makes the whole thing click. That’s why her collaborations with Mike Flanagan hit so hard: *Gerald’s Game* and *The Haunting of Hill House* don’t work unless the audience buys the person at the center, not the scares around her. She can be razor-dry funny when the material turns comedic, too, and she’s long been comfortable in glossy studio worlds like *Night at the Museum* or the stylized mayhem of *Sucker Punch*. The frustrating part is how often she gets cast as “capable support” when her range is screaming for more lead vehicles. Give Carla Gugino a grown-up thriller built around her, and watch the conversation change. | © Troublemaker Studios

Noomi rapace the girl with the dragon tattoo — 3. Noomi Rapace

Noomi Rapace doesn’t do “tough” as a pose; she plays it like a survival language the character learned years before the camera arrived. That’s why her Lisbeth in *The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo* feels iconic without being polished – all wiring and willpower, with a bruised interior you sense even in silence. Hollywood has used that intensity well in big swings like *Prometheus* and slicker studio fare like *Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows*, but the most interesting thing about her is how she makes extreme situations feel oddly intimate. In *What Happened to Monday*, she turns high-concept genre into a performance you can’t stop tracking, because every choice feels personal. She deserves more starring roles that aren’t just “grit delivery,” but full emotional canvases. | © Yellow Bird

Emily mortimer the newsroom cropped processed by imagy — 2. Emily Mortimer

She has a way of making a scene feel like it has a past – not backstory spelled out in dialogue, just a real lived-in texture. In *The Newsroom*, that grounded intelligence becomes its own kind of charisma, and in films she’s often the person who quietly raises the emotional temperature without demanding attention. You see it in the gentle family warmth of *Paddington*, the sharper adult tensions of *Match Point*, and the offbeat tenderness of *Lars and the Real Girl*, where she makes small moments land like turning points. Even in a big Disney musical like *Mary Poppins Returns*, she brings a believable, human steadiness that keeps the fantasy from floating away. The industry keeps using that skill as seasoning; Emily Mortimer deserves to be served the whole plate. | © HBO

Laurie metcalf lady bird cropped processed by imagy — 1. Laurie Metcalf

A mother-daughter argument on screen can be written as noise, but in the right hands it becomes the whole movie – the love, the pride, the resentment, the fear, all tangled together. That’s why *Lady Bird* hits like it does: the performance is funny and painful in the same breath, and the emotional “logic” never feels manufactured. Long before that, Laurie Metcalf proved how dangerous a single line reading can be in comedy (*Uncle Buck* is still a clinic), and on TV she’s been essential for decades in roles that demand speed, bite, and heart (including *Roseanne*). What’s wild is how often she’s still treated as a supporting asset rather than a lead with real box-office humanity. Let the last sentence be simple: build more films around her. | © Scott Rudin Production

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You know the feeling: a supporting character walks into a scene, says three lines, and suddenly the whole movie has a heartbeat. That’s the kind of performer this is about—women who keep elevating everything they touch, even when the industry insists on keeping them one rung below the spotlight.

Here are 15 actresses who should be getting bigger roles, bolder leads, and way more recognition than they currently do. And if you want to make it a proper double feature, the underrated actors edition is ready to pair with this one.

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You know the feeling: a supporting character walks into a scene, says three lines, and suddenly the whole movie has a heartbeat. That’s the kind of performer this is about—women who keep elevating everything they touch, even when the industry insists on keeping them one rung below the spotlight.

Here are 15 actresses who should be getting bigger roles, bolder leads, and way more recognition than they currently do. And if you want to make it a proper double feature, the underrated actors edition is ready to pair with this one.