The 50 Best Female Actors of All Time

1. Liv Ullmann

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. PersonaIngmar Bergman1966
2. Scenes From a MarriageIngmar Bergman1973
3. Face to FaceIngmar Bergman1976
4. Cries and WhispersIngmar Bergman1972
5. ShameIngmar Bergman1968
Persona (1966). Ullmann’s performances build on the heartbreak, vulnerability, and anguish of Ingmar Bergman’s savagely poetic dialogue, and yet as demonstrated through her largely silent performance in Persona, her facial expressions could also reveal enormous depths to psychologically tortured characters without speaking so much as a single line.

2. Juliette Binoche

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. Three Colours: BlueKrzysztof Kieślowski1993
2. Lovers on the BridgeLeos Carax1991
3. Certified CopyAbbas Kiarostami2010
4. Code UnknownMichael Haneke2000
5. The English PatientAnthony Minghella1996
Three Colours: Blue (1993). Binoche’s quiet resilience and understated passion guides her characters through complex emotional scenarios, though it is also her diverse choice of projects across Europe and a willingness to take artistic risks which has also paid off massively for her.

3. Ingrid Bergman

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. CasablancaMichael Curtiz1942
2. NotoriousAlfred Hitchcock1946
3. Autumn SonataIngmar Bergman1978
4. Journey to ItalyRoberto Rossellini1954
5. GaslightGeorge Cukor1944
Casablanca (1942). Bergman worked both in the Hollywood studio system and European arthouse cinema, showcasing two distinct sides to her acting talents while possessing an innate grace in her warm, alluring screen presence.

4. Giulietta Masina

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. La StradaFederico Fellini1954
2. Nights of CabiriaFederico Fellini1957
3. Juliet of the SpiritsFederico Fellini1965
4. Il BidoneFederico Fellini1955
5. Variety LightsFederico Fellini, Alberto Lattuada1950
La Strada (1954). Masina was Federico Fellini’s muse and greatest collaborator, carrying a childlike wonder and poignant fragility in her expressive, round eyes, while her diminutive stature consistently puts her characters on the back foot against an overwhelming world.

5. Anna Karina

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. Vivre sa VieJean-Luc Godard1962
2. Pierrot le FouJean-Luc Godard1965
3. A Woman is a WomanJean-Luc Godard1961
4. Band of OutsidersJean-Luc Godard1964
5. Made in U.S.A.Jean-Luc Godard1966
Vivre sa Vie (1962). Karina was the greatest actress of the French New Wave, and also the purest embodiment of its mischievous, bohemian spirit, though it is her expressive eyes which manage to capture poignant emotion beyond her playful improvisations and subversive humour.

6. Barbara Stanwyck

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. Double IndemnityBilly Wilder1944
2. The Lady EvePreston Sturges1941
3. Stella DallasKing Vidor1937
4. Forty GunsSamuel Fuller1957
5. Ball of FireHoward Hawks1941
Double Indemnity (1944). Stanwyck confidently shifted between melodramas, screwball comedies, film noirs, and Westerns across here career, frequently playing leading women with a sharp intelligence and toughness that often outshone her male screen partners.

7. Julianne Moore

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. SafeTodd Haynes1995
2. Far From HeavenTodd Haynes2002
3. Boogie NightsPaul Thomas Anderson1997
4. Children of MenAlfonso Cuarón2006
5. May DecemberTodd Haynes2023
Safe (1995). Moore’s remarkable versatility and naturalism has seen her explore a range of deeply flawed, psychologically complex characters across her career, expressed in subtle gestures and layered expressions as she approaches total emotional breakdowns.

8. Diane Keaton

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. Annie HallWoody Allen1977
2. The Godfather Part IIFrancis Ford Coppola1974
3. ManhattanWoody Allen1979
4. RedsWarren Beatty1981
5. Love and DeathWoody Allen1975
Annie Hall (1977). Keaton balances humour, charm, and vulnerability in her quirky, naturalistic acting style, displaying brilliant comedic timing in her collaborations with Woody Allen and dramatic flair in The Godfather series.

9. Jeanne Moreau

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. Jules and JimFrançois Truffaut1962
2. Elevator to the GallowsLouis Malle1958
3. La NotteMichelangelo Antonioni1961
4. Chimes at MidnightOrson Welles1965
5. The TrialOrson Welles1962
Jules and Jim (1962). Moreau carries a world-weary introspectiveness and sullen defiance as she navigates complex relationships, radiating an enigmatic aura in her deadpan, emotional intensity.

10. Katharine Hepburn

Top 5 Performances
FilmDirectorYear
1. Bringing Up BabyHoward Hawks1938
2. The Philadelphia StoryGeorge Cukor1940
3. HolidayGeorge Cukor1938
4. Little WomenGeorge Cukor1933
5. The African QueenJohn Huston1951
Bringing Up Baby (1938). Hepburn was Hollywood’s leading lady of choice for roles that required sharp wit, commanding presence, and unapologetic individuality, all of which is distilled in that distinct, almost musical voice.
ActorTop 3 Performances
11. Ellen Burstyn1. Requiem for a Dream (2000)
2. The Exorcist (1973)
3. The Last Picture Show (1971)
12. Ingrid Thulin1. The Silence (1963)
2. Cries and Whispers (1972)
3. Winter Light (1963)
13. Tilda Swinton1. Orlando (1992)
2. We Need to Talk About Kevin (2011)
3. Only Lovers Left Alive (2013)
14. Marlene Dietrich1. The Blue Angel (1930)
2. Morocco (1930)
3. The Scarlet Empress (1934)
15. Monica Vitti1. Red Desert (1964)
2. L’Eclisse (1962)
3. L’Avventura (1960)
16. Meryl Streep1. Sophie’s Choice (1982)
2. Out of Africa (1985)
3. The Deer Hunter (1978)
17. Frances McDormand1. Fargo (1996)
2. Nomadland (2020)
3. Blood Simple (1984)
18. Lillian Gish1. The Wind (1928)
2. Broken Blossoms (1919)
3. The Birth of a Nation (1915)
19. Natalie Portman1. Black Swan (2010)
2. Jackie (2016)
3. May December (2023)
20. Judy Garland1. The Wizard of Oz (1939)
2. A Star is Born (1954)
3. Meet Me in St. Louis (1944)
21. Cate Blanchett1. Tár (2022)
2. Carol (2015)
3. The Aviator (2004)
22. Catherine Deneuve1. Repulsion (1965)
2. The Umbrellas of Cherbourg (1964)
3. Tristana (1970)
23. Mia Farrow1. Rosemary’s Baby (1968)
2. The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
3. Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
24. Maggie Cheung1. In the Mood for Love (2000)
2. Hero (2002)
3. Days of Being Wild (1990)
25. Scarlett Johansson1. Lost in Translation (2003)
2. Marriage Story (2019)
3. Under the Skin (2013)
26. Kirsten Dunst1. Melancholia (2011)
2. Marie Antoinette (2006)
3. The Virgin Suicides (1999)
27. Isabelle Huppert1. The Piano Teacher (2001)
2. Heaven’s Gate (1980)
3. La Cérémonie (1995)
28. Gena Rowlands1. A Woman Under the Influence (1974)
2. Opening Night (1977)
3. Gloria (1980)
29. Emily Watson1. Breaking the Waves (1996)
2. Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
3. Synecdoche, New York (2008)
30. Naomi Watts1. Mulholland Drive (2001)
2. 21 Grams (2003)
3. Eastern Promises (2007)
31. Bibi Andersson1. Persona (1966)
2. Wild Strawberries (1957)
3. The Seventh Seal (1957)
32. Kate Winslet1. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
2. Titanic (1997)
3. Steve Jobs (2015)
33. Jodie Foster1. The Silence of the Lambs (1991)
2. Taxi Driver (1976)
3. Panic Room (2002)
34. Anna Magnani1. Rome, Open City (1945)
2. Mamma Roma (1962)
3. Bellissima (1951)
35. Marie Falconetti1. The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928)
36. Faye Dunaway1. Chinatown (1974)
2. Network (1976)
3. Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
37. Deborah Kerr1. The Innocents (1961)
2. Black Narcissus (1947)
3. The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943)
38. Nicole Kidman1. Moulin Rouge! (2001)
2. Eyes Wide Shut (1999)
3. To Die For (1995)
39. Audrey Hepburn1. Sabrina (1954)
2. My Fair Lady (1964)
3. The Children’s Hour (1961)
40. Sissy Spacek1. Carrie (1976)
2. 3 Women (1977)
3. Badlands (1973)
41. Elizabeth Taylor1. Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? (1966)
2. A Place in the Sun (1951)
3. Cleopatra (1963)
42. Emma Stone1. Poor Things (2023)
2. La La Land (2016)
3. The Favourite (2018)
43. Julie Christie1. Doctor Zhivago (1965)
2. McCabe & Mrs. Miller (1971)
3. Don’t Look Now (1973)
44. Julie Delpy1. Before Sunset (2004)
2. Before Midnight (2013)
3. Before Sunrise (1995)
45. Setsuko Hara1. Late Spring (1949)
2. Early Summer (1951)
3. Tokyo Story (1953)
46. Isabelle Adjani1. Possession (1981)
2. Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)
3. The Tenant (1976)
47. Harriet Andersson1. Summer with Monika (1953)
2. Cries and Whispers (1972)
3. Through a Glass Darkly (1961)
48. Uma Thurman1. Pulp Fiction (1994)
2. Kill Bill (2003-04)
3. Gattaca (1997)
49. Vivien Leigh1. Gone with the Wind (1939)
2. A Streetcar Named Desire (1951)
3. That Hamilton Woman (1941)
50. Alida Valli1. The Third Man (1949)
2. Senso (1954)
3. Il Grido (1957)

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