Top 10 Scarlett Johansson Non-MCU Movies From the 2010s (According to Rotten Tomatoes)

Scarlett Johansson has been on screen for the majority of her life, starring in numerous films throughout her childhood and adulthood. As a result, she’s built her career and reputation so that she’s currently the highest paid actress in the world. This year she was nominated for 2 Academy Awards, one for Best Actress and one for Best Supporting Actress.

Johansson’s fanbase has blown up even further on account of her role as Black Widow in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. After playing a largely supportive role in the Avengers, she is finally getting her own standalone movie in May. While she has been most recognized for her role as Black Widow during the 2010’s, her other roles during the decade have been just as memorable (for better and for worse). Here are her top 10, non-MCU films of the 2010’s ranked by Rotten Tomatoes.

10 Don Jon (79%)

Don Jon (2013) was actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt’s directorial debut. In addition to directing the movie, he also wrote the screenplay and starred as the male lead. Like Johansson, Gordon-Levitt has been an established actor since childhood, having also spent most of his life on camera. Because she was a fan of his acting, Johansson expressed interest in working with him early in the the film’s production.

Joseph Gordon-Levitt told Entertainment Weekly, “I owe a great deal of credit to Scarlett, who got on board before anybody, before we even had our financing. Her making that commitment was a huge part of us being able to do it.” The film went on to garner positive reviews, with Johansson’s performance as rom-com obsessed Barbara Sugarman being praised.

9 Jojo Rabbit (80%)

Scarlett Johansson has starred in films of varying genres, but she rarely has the chance to play comedic characters. Her supporting role in Taika Waititi’s Jojo Rabbit (2019), gave her an opportunity to flex her comedy chops as single mother, Rosie. Due to its somber setting in Nazi Germany, the film is as dramatic as it is comedic, containing elements that made audiences laugh and cry in equal measures.

For her performance, Johansson received her first Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress. Her role in Marriage Story netted her a second nomination for Best Actress in the same year. Of playing Rosie, Johansson said, “I wanted her to feel playful and just be a really creative, positive person who was in the middle of her life, who had joie de vivre…so you miss her when she’s not there.”

8 Under The Skin (85%)

Jonathan Glazer’s 2013 sci-fi film Under The Skin, has Johansson portraying an extraterrestrial woman hunting down men throughout Scotland. It’s an unconventional, low-budget film, mainly made using hidden cameras and non-actors. Johansson was attracted to the role because the character offered her the chance to portray a non-biased perspective on humanity.

She told the Guardian, “I thought it would be incredibly challenging to play a character that’s free of judgement, that has no relationship to any emotion I can relate to.” The film received polarized reactions, but many critics considered it one of the best films of 2013. Despite not having typical emotion, or even very much dialogue, Johansson’s performance is one of the most memorable of her career.

7 Hail Caesar! (86%)

In Hail Caesar! (2016), Johansson plays the role of DeeAnna Moran, a fictional variation of real life Hollywood actress Esther Williams. Of working with her in Jojo Rabbit, director Taika Waititi told The Hollywood Reporter: “She’s so funny; I was always amazed people had not really tapped in that.” In Hail Caesar! Johansson proves this with her performance as Moran, who is not as squeaky clean as her public image suggests.

The film took almost 20 years to be made, with the Coen brothers first pitching the idea to actor George Clooney in 1999. When it finally premiered in 2016, the comedy was lauded for its screwball depiction of 1950’s Hollywood and the performance of the ensemble cast, including Johansson.

6 Chef (87%)

Jon Favreau is not only Scarlett Johansson’s frequent MCU costar; he  directed her in her MCU debut, Iron Man 2 (2010). Their working relationship is perhaps the main reason Johansson and other MCU mainstay Robert Downey Jr., had no reservations about appearing in Favreau’s 2014 film Chef.

Like Joseph Gordon-Levitt in Don Jon, Favreau wrote, directed, and starred in the film, while Johansson plays his friend/coworker/brief lover Molly. Unlike like most of Favreau’s films, Chef’s was a lower budget indie production. He attributes much of the film’s success to casting actors such as Johansson and Downey Jr.

5 Isle of Dogs (90%)

Scarlett Johansson’s voice is just as distinct as her looks. Over the years she’s done voice acting for many films (including two others on this list!). In Wes Anderson’s stop-motion animated film Isle Of Dogs (2018), Johansson voices the show dog, Nutmeg.

Isle of Dogs was a heartwarming, critical hit and was nominated for Best Animated Feature Film at the 91st Academy Awards. In addition to Johansson, the cast boasts stars such as Bryan Cranston, Greta Gerwig, Jeff Goldblum and Edward Norton.

4 The Jungle Book (94%)

Johansson collaborated with director Jon Favreau for a third time in his live-adaptation of Disney’s The Jungle Book (2016). This time she provided the voice of Kaa, a snake with hypnotic abilities who tries to lead the film’s protagonist, Mowgli, astray.

Traditionally, Kaa is a male character, but Favreau cast Johansson in the role so that the film would not become “too male-centric.” She said that Kaa is “the mirror to Mowgli’s past. The way she moves is very alluring, almost coquettish.”

3 Her (95%)

Of the movies she has lent her voice to, her voice is perhaps most associated with Spike Jonze’s sci-fi romance Her (2013). In it, she’s the voice of an AI virtual assistant known as Samantha. She is used by Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) and the two develop a romantic connection.

Johansson was not attached to voice Samantha initially. The role had originally been Samantha Morton’s but Jonze switched out her voice with Johansson’s in post-production. It was a good creative decision, with many of the film’s reviews singling out Johansson’s vocal performance.

2 Marriage Story (95%)

As mentioned earlier in this list, Scarlett Johansson received 1 of her 2 Oscar nominations for her starring role in Noah Baumbach’s Marriage Story (2019). This made her one of only 11 actors to be nominated for a lead and supporting Oscar in the same year.

Her performance was layered and realistic, most likely because she was going through her own divorce proceedings at the time. “There’s a sort of whimsy about the ending. If they could have been different people somehow, it could have worked, but that’s not how life is.” she said of the film to The Hollywood Reporter.

1 Chasing Ice (96%)

While Johansson did not make an acting appearance in the documentary Chasing Ice (2012), she sang the end-credits song “Before My Time,” performing with violinist Joshua Bell. They were not, however, involved in the composition of the music and lyrics, done by J. Ralph.

“Before My Time” was nominated for Best Original Song at the 85th Academy Awards. Johansson has released albums as a singer and supported charitable causes. So, it makes sense that she used her star power for a documentary shedding light on how global warming has caused the melting of Earth’s glaciers.

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