As charming as she is endearing, Anne Hathaway has been warming hearts and capturing the attention of audiences ever since she came onto the scene in 1999 on the short-lived Clyde Phillips show Get Real. Since then, she’s managed to earn herself an Oscar win and an Oscar nomination and a few Emmy and Golden Globe wins, as well—just one Tony shy of being an EGOT-earning star.
She can play very serious roles just as easily as she can play family-friendly parts, and her dramatic and vocal ranges are dynamic enough to support her no matter what she’s doing on-screen. Musicals, dramas, romantic comedies, even action films—Hathaway is capable of anything her career throws her way, with both critics and audiences alike ready to eat it all up.
Rachel Getting Married
Her first Oscar-nominated performance more than deserved the acclaim it gathered back in 2008. Rachel Getting Married is a heavy and triumphant film from Jonathan Demme and an equally heavy and painful performance from Hathaway. It’s a story of recovery and addiction, family bonds and divisions, and Hathaway is capable of handling such a weighty role with ease.
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Colossal
One of the most divisive films of her career, Colossal, is also one of the strangest. As Hathaway’s character leaves New York City and returns to her hometown, she comes to discover she has some sort of connection to a string of destructive goings-on in Seoul, South Korea. It’s one of the most unique films of her career, and her performance is as great as the destruction is large.
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Interstellar
One of a couple Christopher Nolan collaborations throughout her career, Interstellar puts Hathaway front-and-center with Matthew McConaughey as two members of an elite crew of space explorers who enter a wormhole, unaware of the consequences to come. It’s a mind-bending experience akin to the second and third acts of Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey (one of Nolan’s obvious inspirations for the film). Hathaway really makes you believe in her character and the characters’ collective mission to save humanity.
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The Princess Diaries
One of the most charming movies of her career is The Princess Diaries, which Hathaway co-stars in with the iconic Julie Andrews. It’s as pleasant and sweet as any live-action Disney movie from the 2000s. Hathaway’s contribution in the leading role is all but completely endearing as a teenage girl who is thrust into the spotlight after discovering she is a secret princess.
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The Dark Knight Rises
Her first collaboration with Nolan is not as front-and-center as her part in Interstellar, but her rendition of Catwoman/Selina Kyle is unmissable for any fan of Batman or Hathaway herself. Who are we kidding? Odds are you’ve already seen this and can agree that she’s great in it.
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Les Misérables
The performance that earned her an Oscar and allowed her to show off her singing, Hathaway in Les Mis is unmissable. Fantine is one of the most famous characters in classic literature, but Hathaway doesn’t let that stop her from delivering a performance that is uniquely her own.
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The Devil Wears Prada
Like The Princess Diaries, Hathaway really shines when she’s given the opportunity to show off her skills as an everywoman. She’s incredibly winning here as the assistant to Meryl Streep’s infamous fashion mogul, and it’s one of her finest performances because of how thoroughly enjoyable the whole experience is.
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Ocean’s Eight
The most recent film on the list, Ocean’s Eight deserves a spot on the list because it shows off Hathaway’s ability to work well within an ensemble cast. It’s something she’s only done a few times, but she’s so great alongside the other all-stars that make up the crew in this semi-sequel, semi-reimagining of the Ocean’s series. Hathaway steals every scene she’s in as a vapid yet calculating starlet.
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Get Smart
Anne Hathaway is funny. This is something that might be easy to forget among her other very serious roles, but Get Smart is her goofiest and most hilarious role to date. She plays so well off of Steve Carell and Dwayne Johnson and the rest of the A-list comedians in the film, but she can also lead the way and shine on her own when she has to.
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The Intern
Nancy Meyers movies have an indescribable glow to them, warming your heart and your soul and reminding you of the more innocent things in life. Hathaway fits right into the Nancy Meyers universe, as you might imagine, and manages to hold her own against the likes of Robert De Niro (something that not many people could do). This movie is as lovable and pleasant as they come.
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