Scarlett Johansson's transformation: her best film roles

Some may not know or remember but Scarlett Johansson (1984) started her acting career at an early age. Let's review her evolution throughout (almost) all her movies.

What a difference, the little Scarlett of the 90s! Here we see her in one of her first movies. She appeared as a supporting actress in 'If Lucy Fell' in 1996 when she was only 12 years old.

Image: TriStar Pictures

This was the film that put the young Scarlett Johansson on the radar. She was 14 years old but she managed to place Robert Redford in her shadow - as well as Kristin Scott Thomas, who's not in this picture.

Image: Touchstone, Walt Disney Studios

Thora Birch (from 'American Beauty') was the protagonist of this indie film that turned both her and Scarlett into the muses of a generation.

Image: MGM

At the age of 17, Johansson was under the Coen brothers' direction and shared the stage with Billy Bob Thornton, James Gandolfini, and Frances McDormand. She was already a star, but she didn't know it yet.

Image: Focus Feature

Then 'Lost in Translation' came out. Scarlett went from a girl to a woman, from a teenager to a sensual superstar. All of this with a performance that was just as great as Bill Murray's.

Image: Focus Features

When an American actress is called for a UK production, it is because she is very good. And when Scarlett Johansson paired up with Colin Firth, she turned out to be perfect.

Image: Pathé

With 18% on Rotten Tomatoes, this was the weakest role she ever played. She did meet her fellow Avenger at that set: Chris Evans. But she and Chris did not know it yet.

Image: Paramount Pictures

Scarlett Johansson got a taste of costume dramas. And let's be fair, the historic looks worked really well.

Image: Lionsgate

The actress was under the direction of Michael Bay and shared the screen with Ewan McGregor - a match made in heaven.

Image: Warner Bros.

Woody Allen elevated Scarlett Johansson's female appeal to unknown levels. Her Nola Rice (image) is pure sensuality and her chemistry with Jonathan Rhys Meyers is tremendous. A year later, again directed by Woody Allen, the actress shared the screen with Hugh Jackman, and they, too, had a great connection in 'Scoop.'

Image: Paramount

In this magical movie, Scarlett Johansson worked once again with Hugh Jackman. This time the director was Christopher Nolan instead of Woody Allen, with all the matching fireworks.

'The Prestige' is one of the 60 most popular movies in history

Image: Warner Bros.

She was back together with Chris Evans and in the role of a nanny who is working with a tremendously wealthy family. The movie was a commercial success, but critics didn't like it that much.

Image: MGM

And the dream of millions of fans came true: Scarlett Johansson and Natalie Portman played together in a film. They were competing sisters in an epochal story based on real events.

Image: Universal Pictures

She's the Cristina of the title. Crazy, passionate, and ready to live life. The city in this case is Barcelona. Her chemistry with Javier Bardem was better than his with Penélope Cruz.

Image: MGM

A police flick with a touch of film noir. Is there a better project for Scarlett Johansson? Her Silken Floss is hypnotic. Director Frank Miller knows what he's doing.

Image: Starz Entertainment, Warner Bros.

An okay comedy with a spectacular cast. Johansson shared the spotlights with Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Connelly, Drew Barrymore, and Bradley Cooper, among others.

Image: New Line Cinema

The first time we saw Natasha Romanov, aka Black Widow, we knew that this love would be eternal. Ten years later, nothing's changed.

Image: Paramount, Walt Disney Studios

In this weird but sweet film, Scarlett is adorable, but she has less chemistry with Matt Damon than with her other cast partners.

Image: 20th Century Studios

She looked like the real Janet Leigh in the biopic of the brilliant director Hitchcock, focusing on his most controversial film: 'The Birds'.

Image: Searchlight Pictures

The Black Widow continued to stand out as a heroine among the group of testosteronic Avengers. Her fans kept screaming for a saga revolving around her, but Marvel looked the other way and gave it to... Ant-Man!

Image: Paramount, Walt Disney Studios

A film in which she starred with Joseph Gordon Levitt. Scarlett played the girlfriend of a guy who was addicted to intimate videos and photos. Unbelievable...

Image: Relativity Media

More Avengers, more box office success, and more reasons for Black Widow to have her own saga.

Image: Walt Disney Studios

With Luc Besson's help, the actress showed how great she is for action films. Scarlett Johansson and Charlize Theron are the best in that genre in Hollywood.

Image: Eurocorp, Universal

The money that Scarlett Johansson has made thanks to Marvel and Disney is hard to keep track of. In 2015, the possibility of Black Widow having her own saga began to be rumored.

Image: Walt Disney Studios

One of the biggest animated surprises of the year was about an animal musical talent show. Scarlett Johansson gave Ash a voice.

Image: Universal Pictures

Unfortunately, in this film, the Black Widow is eclipsed by the relationship between Captain America and Bucky.

Image: Walt Disney Studios

Scarlett made her move in an Anime that passed over to real action. While the project was promising, the actress got much criticism for playing a Japanese character. This white-whasing accusation caused a setback and was bad for business.

Image: Shochiku, Manga Entertainment, Metrodome Distribution

What if you're having a bachelorette party with your friends and the stripper ends up dead? If this ever happens to you, it's better to have Scarlett Johansson on your side.

Image: Columbia, Sony

Although fans kept waiting for Black Widow's own franchise, everything in 'Endgame' pointed to this being Black Widow's last appearance in the Avengers universe. It was a decade of an intense relationship between Johansson and Marvel, and it seemed to be moving towards a finale.

Fortunately... Marvel made it clear soon enough that a 'Black Widow' movie was still in the making.

This comedy-drama about World War II got Scarlet Johansson her first Oscar nomination in 2020. She plays the supporting role of a mother who hides a Jewish girl in the attic while her son is an active Hitler Youth member. The extreme political divide in the house causes many comical situations.

Image: Searchlight Pictures

And here's the second film for which Scarlett Johansson got an Oscar nomination. This time she has the leading role of Nicole Barber, a young mother and actress who decides to divorce her husband Charlie and move with her son to the other side of the country. The tragic but also funny interactions between Johansson and her acting partner Adam Driver are phenomenally suited for an Oscar statue.

Image: Netflix

In 2021, 'Black Widow' came out. It had taken a while due to the pandemic, but now everyone could see Scarlett Johansson in her own Avenger movie.

Image: Walt Disney Studios

It was the eighth time Scarlett Johansson played the Marvel character Natasha Romanoff - aka, Black Widow. Some say that this was also the last. Several insiders have told the media that the actress will not return in the next Marvel movies.

Image: Walt Disney Studios

Always in continuous artistic growth, in 2023 he starred alongside Tom Hanks, Jason Schwartzman, Jeffrey Wright, Edward Norton, and Bryan Cranston in this Wes Anderson film, which blends drama, comedy, and romance.

Image: Universal, Focus Features

Along with Channing Tatum, Woody Harrelson, and Ray Romano, she stars in this romantic comedy about a marketing campaign to improve NASA's public image by hiring marketing expert Kelly Jones (Johansson).

What will Scarlett Johansson's next great project be?

Image: Columbia Pictures

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