Aubrey Plaza’s 10 Best Films, According To Letterboxd

Unlike many other Hollywood actresses, Parks and Recreation star Aubrey Plaza puts her idiosyncrasies on display in almost every interview. The film roles she selects often fit the mold of an offbeat, deadpan oddball that Plaza has been filling in Hollywood for over a decade. While comedy is her genre of choice, she’s also done great work in dramas and thrillers.

From Julie Powers in Scott Pilgrim vs. the World to the titular Ingrid in Ingrid Goes West, Plaza has put out some great performances while exploring the range within her usual typecasting. Plaza’s excellent work has gotten a lot of love from fans, which brings the high ratings on Letterboxd.

The End of Love (2012) – 3.21

Mark Webber’s drama follows a struggling actor who is forced to step up and reevaluate his life following the sudden death of his young son’s mother. Webber stars in the film, which features the likes of Plaza, Jake Johnson, Michael Cera, and Amanda Seyfried.

Plaza plays a dramatized version of herself in The End of Love and is one of the people present for Mark’s journey to becoming a better father. Webber’s Mark is forced to grow up and confront his shortcomings to be the father his son deserves, finding single fatherhood harder than expected.

Happiest Season (2020) – 3.24

Plaza plays a supporting role in Clea DuVall’s Christmas comedy Happiest Season. Starring Kristen Stewart and Mackenzie Davis, the movie follows a lesbian couple visiting one of their homes during the holiday season. Stewart’s Abby plans on proposing but finds out her girlfriend lied about coming out to her conservative family. Tensions grow between the two as both are forced to return to the closet.

As Riley, the ex-girlfriend of Davis’s Harper, Plaza steals the show and ends up having more chemistry with Abby than her current girlfriend. Along with Dan Levy, she steals each scene she’s in and is one of the film’s most likable characters.

Mystery Team (2009) – 3.25

Making her feature film debut in Dan Eckman’s 2009 Mystery Team, Plaza stars alongside other sitcom darlings Donald Glover, Ellie Kemper, and fellow Parks and Recreation castmate Ben Schwartz. The mystery-comedy hybrid follows a group of former child detectives as they try to prove themselves by solving a more mature mystery—a double homicide.

As Kelly, the eldest daughter of the deceased couple, Plaza wants actual law enforcement to handle the situation. Glover’s Jason also develops an attraction to Kelly and following all their misadventures, the two become a couple. Plaza makes a relatable older sister who wants nothing to do with the younger teens. However, as she gets sucked into the mystery, she’s able to hold her own.

King Knight (2021) – 3.25

Richard Bates Jr.’s black comedy King Knight follows Matthew Gray Gubler and Angela Sarafyan as Thorn and Willow, a married couple who serve as high priest and priestess of a small witches coven in California. Their lives are turned upside down after Willow finds out about one of Thorn’s past secrets.

A trippy film, King Knight is the most recent release on this list and features a great cast who become these eclectic characters. Plaza is not visibly part of the film—she instead provides her voice for the role of Pine Cone.

Safety Not Guaranteed  (2012) – 3.27

Plaza stars in Colin Trevorrow’s Safety Not Guaranteed alongside Jake Johnson, Mark Duplass, and Karan Soni. The sci-fi romantic comedy follows 3 Seattle Magazine employees who try to investigate a classified ad looking for a time travel companion and profile the man behind it.

In Safety Not Guaranteed, Plaza plays Darius Britt, an intern at the magazine who poses as one of the candidates for joining the time travel mission. She grows close with Kenneth Calloway, the man who placed the ad, and the two open up to one another. Like many of Plaza’s characters, Darius starts with a more stoic exterior before finding ways to connect with those around her.

Monsters University (2013) – 3.29

A prequel to the hit 2001 Pixar film Monsters, Inc., Monsters University follows Mike and Sulley during their first year as scaring students at the titular college. The two start as rivals, trying to one-up one another in their scaring courses before failing out of the program. When the university’s “Scare Games” arrive, the two work together to get themselves, and the rest of the Oozma Kappa fraternity, back into the scaring program.

Plaza voices Claire Wheeler, one of the students at Monsters University and commentators of the annual “Scare Games.” Despite her more gothic appearance, Claire is the president of the college’s Greek Council and cares more about the “Scare Games” than she’d likely admit. A great sequel to one of Pixar’s most treasured films, Monsters University puts a fun twist on its friendship origin story.

Ingrid Goes West (2017) – 3.38

Plaza and Elizabeth Olsen make a fun comedic duo in Matt Spicer’s comedy Ingrid Goes West, the chemistry between the two undeniable. Following the death of her mother, Plaza’s Ingrid travels to Los Angeles during her emotional crisis in hopes of befriending Olsen’s Taylor Sloane, an influencer with whom Ingrid has become obsessed.

Throughout her time out West, Ingrid slowly inches closer and closer to falling off the edge. One of Plaza’s darker characters, Ingrid is a complex woman battling her demons as she tries to achieve the life and connections she’s become obsessed with. A more modern genre, Ingrid Goes West is one of the best tech horror movies.

Black Bear (2020) – 3.56

In one of her meatiest roles yet, Plaza plays Black Bear’s protagonist Allison, a young woman at the center of the film’s trippy 2 parts. A film director in “Part One: The Bear,” Allison arrives at the remote lake house of Gabe and Blair. Throughout the evening, the tension between the married couple and the new arrival slowly builds, climaxing with a steamy rendevous and a car accident caused by a black bear.

In “Part Two: The Bear by the Boat House,” the main trio have switched roles. Allison and Brie are two actresses in Gabe’s newest film, and the director is now married to Allison. Gabe pushes Allison to her breaking point throughout the production of his film, lying to her and having an affair with Blair to get a raw performance from his wife. An intense psychological thriller that starts more humorous, Black Bear is one of Plaza’s best films ever.

From Up on Poppy Hill (2011) – 3.66

Plaza lends her voice to the English dub of Studio Ghibli’s From Up on Poppy Hill. The animated film tells the story of Umi Matsuzaki, a kind-hearted high school student who lives in 1960s Japan. Every morning, she raises a set of signal flags to honor her father, a sailor who died during the Korean War. Umi develops feelings for Shun Kazama, a fellow student, and the two grow close throughout the film.

Plaza voices Sachiko Hirokōji, an art student who lives at the same boarding house as Umi. Soft-spoken and awkward, she is a nice woman who helps Umi when she can. While it’s one of the less popular Studio Ghibli features, From Up on Poppy Hill is still a wonderful film with a lot of heart.

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World (2010) – 3.88

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Edgar Wright’s adaption of the graphic novel series, tops Plaza’s filmography on Letterboxd. Starring Michael Cera in the title role, the movie centers around a wannabe Canadian rockstar forced to defeat the 7 evil exes of Ramona Flowers, the girl he hopes to date. The cast features future Marvel heroes and dramedy heavy hitters, the comedy gaining a cult following since its 2010 release.

Plaza plays Julie Powers, Stephen’s on-again, off-again girlfriend who never fails to bring Scott down a few pegs. While not the main focus of the plot, Julie is the character that ends up connecting many characters in Scott Pilgrim. Deadpan and mean, Julie and Plaza’s most iconic role, April Ludgate, are both cut from the same cloth.

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