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Scarlett Johansson has spent more than two decades moving between massive blockbuster roles and small indie roles. She has played a variety of characters, which earned her two Oscar and five Golden Globe nominations, as well as becoming the highest-grossing lead actor in history along the way.
From Jojo Rabbit to The Avengers, each movie traces the arc of her versatility. Each movie is worth watching for its own merits, yet together they form a concise master-class in what modern screen acting can be: emotionally intimate, stylistically bold, and fearless about crossing genres. They balance critical acclaim with cultural impact, while also benefiting from the specific gravity Scarlett Johansson brings to the screen.
Disclaimer: The following movies are ranked in no particular order. This article solely contains the writer’s opinion.
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7 must-watch Scarlett Johansson movies
1) Lost in Translation (2003)
Sofia Coppola’s Oscar-winning dramedy strands two Americans, washed-up actor Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and recent Yale philosophy graduate Charlotte, in Tokyo. Their accidental friendship begins in the quiet hours of hotel bars, karaoke boxes, and late-night hospital waiting rooms. It culminates in a platonic romance that neither of them can quite name.
Against the city’s busy streets, both characters deal with personal disappointments: Bob’s career malaise and distant marriage, and Charlotte’s uncertainty about who she wants to become.
Scarlett Johansson was only 17 during filming, yet she projects the weariness of someone much more mature without surrendering youthful curiosity. By underplaying Charlotte’s dialogue and letting long takes rest on her reactive close-ups, she turns quiet moments into emotional exploration for the viewer.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
2) Her (2013)
Spike Jonze’s near-future love story follows lonely letter-writer Theodore Twombly (Joaquin Phoenix) as he installs an AI operating system named Samantha, voiced by Scarlett Johansson.
What begins as a productivity tool blossoms into full-scale romance, forcing Theodore to confront the limitations and limitlessness of disembodied affection. The film’s pastel production design and soft-focus cinematography create a setting where human longing and machine learning feel equally important.
Although Scarlett Johansson never appears onscreen, her vocal performance is textured. She modulates pace, breath, and timbre to chart a development arc from helpful assistant to curious intellect to heartbroken entity.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
Read also: 7 best coming-of-age movies of all time
3) Marriage Story (2019)
Noah Baumbach’s heart-splitting domestic drama chronicles the slow-motion uncoupling of theater director Charlie (Adam Driver) and actress Nicole.
Set between New York’s experimental stage world and Los Angeles’ studio lots, the film follows two decent people who weaponize kindness until lawyers, geography, and ego pry them apart. It’s a rare divorce narrative that refuses to paint a villain, opting instead for detailed compassion toward everyone involved.
Scarlett Johansson’s lived-in Nicole feels like a culmination of every observation she has stored about performative strength, earning her an Oscar nomination. Her monologue to attorney Nora (Laura Dern) veers from brittle humor to tears, then softens into playful warmth with Charlie’s unsent letter.
Where to watch: Netflix
4) Under the Skin (2013)
Jonathan Glazer’s experimental sci-fi descent casts Scarlett Johansson as an unnamed alien who drives a black van around Glasgow, luring unattached men to an oily void where their bodies are harvested.
Shot with hidden cameras and non-actors, Under the Skin film blurs documentary and nightmare, turning everyday Scottish streets into an alien trap. Its minimalist script and Mica Levi’s screeching score strip the narrative down to predator-prey ritual until the hunter begins to mimic humanity too well.
The role required ScarJo to act without backstory and minimal dialogue, relying instead on posture, gestures, and repeated flirtation. Many interactions with unaware civilians forced her to stay in character, creating a performance that feels discovered rather than staged.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV
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5) The Avengers (2012)
Joss Whedon’s superhero summit unites Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.), Thor (Chris Hemsworth), Hulk (Mark Ruffalo), and Captain America (Chris Evans) under the banner of “Earth’s Mightiest Heroes,” yet the film’s emotional spine belongs to Natasha Romanoff, aka Black Widow.
Introduced in Iron Man 2, Natasha graduates here from her “honey pot” role to a strategic lynchpin who manipulates gods and monsters with timing and nerve. A pivotal interrogation sequence flips the damsel trope on its head, revealing that she was the one fishing for intel while pretending to tremble.
Scarlett Johansson’s dry delivery and tactical body language sell the idea that a mere mortal can stand beside a demigod without looking like cosplay. By keeping Natasha’s expressions economical amid green-screen action, she prevents the character from being overwhelmed by CGI effects.
Where to watch: Disney+
6) Jojo Rabbit (2019)
Taika Waititi’s anti-hate satire filters the Holocaust through the lens of a ten-year-old H*tler Youth member, played by Roman Griffin Davis, whose imaginary friend is a clownish Adolf H*tler, played by Waititi. Scarlett Johansson plays Rosie, the boy’s secretly anti-N*zi mother who hides a Jewish girl in the attic, played by Thomasin McKenzie, while projecting breezy optimism to shield her son from horror.
The tonal balance demands that Rosie be whimsical, maternal, and ultimately tragic without fracturing the film’s cartoon-realism palette. Costumed in retro frocks and punctuating tense scenes with playful cigarette gestures, Scarlett Johansson channels wartime screwball energy.
Behind the levity, ScarJo conveys dread, most devastatingly in a lingering shot of her shoes that reframes everything the audience has laughed at. The role earned her an Oscar nomination for showing how decency endures within absurdity, echoing her career-long habit of grounding style with emotion.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV, Hulu
7) Ghost World (2001)
Terry Zwigoff’s cult adaptation of creator Daniel Clowes’s graphic novel drifts through the post-high-school limbo of best friends Enid and Rebecca, played by Thora Birch and Scarlett Johansson, respectively.
The pair mock consumer culture by answering personal ads for sport, when Enid spirals into an entanglement with lonely record collector Seymour (Steve Buscemi), while Rebecca craves adult normalcy. Shot on sun-bleached strip-mall locations, the film captures the time when minimum-wage boredom meets the fear of selling out.
As Rebecca, Scarlett Johansson operates as a teenager with a deadpan seriousness that predates the millennial wave of sarcastic coming-of-age stories. Her sarcasm and detached body language suggest Gen-X cool, but her insecurity shows when Enid pulls away.
Where to watch: Amazon Prime Video
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Across genres, budgets, and decades, Scarlett Johansson keeps demonstrating that presence is more valuable than dialogue count. Her films chart an evolutionary path from snarky sidekick to dramatic heavyweight while proving blockbusters and art houses are not mutually exclusive playgrounds.
Each title offers a different entry point for newcomers, yet together they form a guide on how charisma, restraint, and risk-taking combine to create lasting stardom.
