Natalie Portman's 20 best performances, ranked

It’s easy to forget about her contribution considering it happens in the shadow of greats like Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, and Val Kilmer, but to discount Natalie Portman’s performance in Heat would be to miss out on a devastating turn with a small but memorable role in her early career. Portman plays Lauren, the troubled step-daughter of Vincent Hanna (Pacino) who attempts to take her own life in the film’s climax. She may have been just 14 at the time of filming, but Portman makes the most of her minor role, bringing yet another layer of emotional gravity to the action-thriller.

Most of her most well-known roles may be in dramas, but never let it be said that Portman can’t bring the humor when needed. Though not the most substantial of roles, her turn opposite Ashton Kutcher in 2011’s No Strings Attached is a testament to Portman’s ability to turn on the charm and deliver an appropriately lighthearted rom-com performance.

Serving as a producer as well as the lead, one of Portman’s lesser-known genre films is Jane Got A Gun, a Western which sees her star as the titular Jane, a mother who takes her family’s safety into her own hands when her husband comes home bullet-riddled and with enemies hot on his tale. The film had a troubled production history and a relatively lackluster reception, but Portman’s steely performance as Jane lends some much-needed credibility and speaks to her ability to navigate all manner of genres.

Heavily criticized upon release but having found a more appreciative fanbase among modern audiences, the Star Wars prequel trilogy featured a series of divisive entries in the iconic franchise’s canon. At times these movies may have felt more like political potboilers or romance films than sci-fi epics, but for all their VFX and screenplay faults, the Star Wars prequels have plenty of redeeming qualities, including Portman’s iconic turn as Padme Amidala, the senator of Naboo and future mother of Luke and Leia. As Padme, Portman is the emotional core at the center of all three films, bringing requisite regality and strength while also channeling Padme’s heartbreak and tragedy.

Another early career entry, 1996’s Beautiful Girls saw a then 15-year-old Portman star as Marty, a spirited pre-teen who nurses a crush on her much-older neighbor. As with a number of other films in the first few years of her career, Beautiful Girls explores the relationship between an underage girl and a much older man, pulling inspiration from classics like Lolita to deliver a murky, taboo-laden end product. The uncomfortable age difference may be a no-go for fans, but Portman brings a maturity far beyond her years to the role, and Scott Rosenberg’s script ensures the film thoughtfully explores boundaries without outright crossing them.

There are no small parts, just small actors, according to the old adage, and nowhere is that more true than in Natalie Portman’s role in Wes Anderson’s The Darjeeling Limited, a 2007 film which sees her briefly reprise a role she originated in Hotel Chevalier, a short that serves as a prologue to the film. Portman plays Rhett, the spirited, alluring love interest of Jason Schwartzman’s Jack, who confronts her partner after he suddenly disappears from her life and spends an entire month living alone in a hotel. Though her role in Darjeeling isn’t much more than a cameo, the poignancy Portman brings to Rhett in Hotel Chevalier is a key element in making The Darjeeling Limited as emotionally effective as it is.

The mid-to-late 2000s were a Hollywood heyday for war films concerning the Middle East, and Portman was among the actors who were swept up in that tide. Starring alongside Tobey Maguire and Jake Gyllenhaal in Brothers, Portman portrays Grace, the high school sweetheart of Maguire’s Sam. She begins a relationship with his brother Tommy (Gyllenhaal) after Sam’s presumed death. It’s a heavy, emotional, Odyssey-inspired psychological drama, and Portman brings the requisite gravity and tragedy to her depiction of a complicated woman caught in a messy, often harrowing love triangle haunted by war.

Though not the juiciest of her roles, few Portman characters are as easily recognizable as Jane Foster, Thor’s brilliant human physicist girlfriend in Marvel’s Thor films. Admittedly, Jane’s role in the first two Thors isn’t much beyond standard superhero love interest fare, but the character’s return in Love And Thunder gave Portman a chance to explore the achingly human parts of Jane after she’s diagnosed with terminal cancer. It’s a beautiful, earnest showing that feels slightly too good for an otherwise bonkers action-comedy, but her work is worth celebrating nonetheless.

A far cry from the girls next door and down-to-earth characters she tends to favor, 2018’s Vox Lux is without question one of Portman’s most unorthodox roles. The film sees her star as Celeste, a teenager who survives a harrowing ordeal that catapults her to superstardom as a global pop sensation. Though the film itself swings big in its messaging and visuals (epitomized by a bizarre late-game revelation) in a way that may sour some, Portman’s performance is undoubtedly worth celebrating—she’s bold, fierce, and volatile in the best way.

Proving once again that her talents extend beyond acting, A Tale of Love And Darkness sees Portman involved behind the camera as well as in front of it. Pulling triple duty as writer, director, and star of what she called a passion project, A Tale Of Love And Darkness wasn’t just Portman’s directorial debut, it’s also one of her meatiest roles. Based on Amos Oz’s memoir of the same name, the film follows young Oz’s upbringing amidst the Israel-Palestine conflict, with Portman playing his mother, Fania. Plagued with depression and devastated by her war-torn home, Fania is a complex, heavy character with whom Portman has strong ties—undoubtedly one of her most personal roles to date.

No Strings Attached may be her most name recognizable rom-com, but Portman’s career in the genre can be traced back nearly a earlier to Garden State, Zach Braff’s 2004 feature film debut as a writer/director. The film’s comedic sensibilities have aged slightly (the case with a large chunk of Braff’s work) yet Portman’s role as the eccentric, lovable Sam was so influential it’s often regarded as the genesis for the term “manic pixie dream girl”—an accolade that (though not entirely prestigious) is under-discussed and undoubtedly worth highlighting when examining the expanse of Portman’s career.

Another breakout role that helped shape Portman’s early career reputation as an effective, reliable teen/child actress, 1999’s Anywhere But Here sees Portman star alongside Susan Sarandon in a two-hander mother-daughter drama. The slice-of-life film follows the complicated relationship between Ann (Portman) and her mother Adele (Sarandon) as they clash over Ann’s interest in academia, which sits in stark contrast to Adele’s aspirations for her to become an actress. Playing opposite Susan Sarandon is no small feat, but Portman instills a welcome fire and strength in the moody, reluctant Ann that makes her relatable and empathetic without crossing the line to annoying or bratty.

Based on the 1997 play of the same name, 2004’s Closer saw Portman once again serving as the youngest costar amid a sea of A-list talent, this time including Julia Roberts, Jude Law, and Clive Owen. The film sees Portman star as Alice Ayers, an American woman who falls head-over-heels for a Brit while living in London, only to have her heart broken and eventually turn to sex work. Alice is messy, complicated, and emotional—a juicy role that nabbed Portman a Golden Globe win for Best Supporting Actress and an Oscar nomination in the same category.

Undoubtedly one of Portman’s most influential films in terms of pop culture staying power is V For Vendetta, the 2006 dystopian action film/political thriller that saw Portman star opposite Hugo Weaving’s titular anarchist freedom fighter. Portman plays Evey, an unsuspecting young woman who finds herself aligned with the mysterious, captivating V, eventually becoming a key asset in his plans to dismantle an institution. Serving as both audience insert and pseudo-romantic lead, Portman is tasked with much of the dramatic heavy lifting (considering Weaving is behind a mask), and she rises to the occasion effortlessly. The culmination of her efforts is a now famous head-shaving scene that was performed in one-take: yet another demonstration of Portman’s dedication to her craft.

Just as comfortable in historical dramas as she is in dystopian epics, Portman is one of the many actresses who’s brought Anne Boleyn, one of England’s most famous queen consorts, to the big screen. Starring alongside Eric Bana and a pre-MCU Scarlett Johansson, Portman’s Anne Boleyn in The Other Boleyn Girl encapsulates her paradoxical youth and maturity. Here Portman offsets the doomed royal’s infamous sultriness without letting the audience forget just how achingly young and inexperienced she actually was. Though Johansson’s Mary Boleyn (Johansson) is perhaps the juicer of the two leads, it’s Portman’s Anne who sticks with audiences long after the credits roll: a beautiful, tragic showing that highlights Portman’s most reliable strengths.

Sci-fi isn’t typically Portman’s genre of choice, but Alex Garland’s 2018 film Annihilation ascends typical genre conventions, acting at times much more like a psychological horror flick than anything recognizable as classic sci-fi. The film follows a crew of mostly female explorers and scientists (led by Portman’s biology professor/army soldier Lena) who undertake a dangerous mission to explore “The Shimmer,” a mysterious quarantine zone infected with an alien presence. The effects of the Shimmer turn a scientific mission into a deeply personal hellish dreamscape that pulls at the edges of each explorer’s sanity, and at the center of it all is Lena, whose stolid exterior is eventually broken down by the unsettling horrors she’s witnessed.

Serving as her feature film debut, Léon: The Professional (often shortened to just Léon) was the role that put Portman on the map, and for good reason. A then 12-year-old Portman starred alongside Jean Reno as Mathilda, a lonely child who lives down the hall from stone-faced hitman Léon. After her family is slaughtered, Mathilda turns to Léon for shelter, and for training to seek eventual revenge, and the duo develops a strange but effective cohabitation. Like a number of her early films, Léon: The Professional prompted skepticism from some who questioned the exploitative nature of how pre-teen Portman was hyper-sexualized, but what’s undeniable is the strength and fire she brings to the role, even at such a young age.

The latest entry in her storied 30-plus year career, May December provides Portman with one of her most fascinating, complicated, messy roles to date as she stars opposite Julianne Moore and Charles Melton. Loosely based on the real-life scandal of Mary Kay Letourneau, the film follows Elizabeth Berry, an actress (Portman) who shadows a tabloid-famous couple (Moore and Melton) in preparation for her film role as an adult woman who started a sexual relationship with a preteen after they met as coworkers in a pet shop. The film is chock full of harrowing work from Melton, Moore, and the ensemble, but Portman brings dimension and black humor to the deceptively shallow Elizabeth—a fascinating character whose bizarre relationship with Gracie (Moore) serves as the film’s backbone.

Few characters across Portman’s career are as instantly recognizable as Jackie Kennedy, the tragic First Lady brought to life in Pablo Larrain’s achingly intimate biopic Jackie. Meticulously studied and almost eerily true-to-life, Portman’s performance was praised by audiences and critics alike for her dedication and uncanny resemblance to the real Jackie. Beyond pure attention to detail, though, it’s the ever-present grief and devastation that Portman invokes that makes the film so memorable (and so effective). It’s an elegant portrait of loss and mourning brought to life by a pitch-perfect performance.

Trying to pick a single performance as Portman’s best among a sea of options is certainly a challenge, but few of her roles were as instantly iconic (and strangely quotable) as Black Swan’s tortured perfectionist Nina Sayers. In keeping with his infamous house style, Darren Aronofsky’s ballet drama is a psychological nightmare that follows a cripplingly insecure dancer whose sheltered upbringing and volatile romance with her ballet director eventually cause her to buckle under the pressure of perfection. At war with herself as often as she is with her mother, dance rival, or lover, Nina is an endlessly complicated leading lady and a goldmine of a role that landed Portman a well-deserved Oscar win.