Lily James's Best 15 Performances (2024)

Lily James joined the iconic British drama Downton Abbey in the third season as Lady Rose Aldridge, the great-niece of Violet Crawley (Maggie Smith). She quickly became a fan favorite, but left in season 5 to focus on her movie career. Yet, as , of all the characters she's played, Lady Rose is closest to her: "fun-loving, warmhearted, a little mischievous."

James did not appear in the Downton Abbey film, to the disappointment of fans everywhere, explaining "My character Rose moved off to New York, so it would be farfetched to bring her back."

Watch Downton Abbey on Netflix

No list of best Lily James roles is complete without her breakout turn as the iconic Disney princess in 2015. Director Kenneth Branagh hand-picked James to star as Cinderella.

Playing the rags-to-riches princess opposite Richard Madden as Prince Charming and Cate Blanchett as the evil stepmother, James was mesmerizing whenever she was on screen.

However wearing Cinderella's famous blue gown—designed by Sandy Powell and made of layers of silk— was "like torture" because of how tight and delicate it was. Yet, as James told the Washington Post, "It did feel quite magical every time I put it on. So it kind of does all the work for you.”

In short, Lily James in Cinderella was, well, quite magical.

Watch Cinderella on Starz

Watch Cinderella on Amazon Prime

A zombie twist on Jane Austen's famous Pride and Prejudice? Say less. In this action/comedy/horror film, James stars as heroine Elizabeth Bennett—who in this version is a warrior trained in martial arts. Based on the best-selling novel by Seth Grahame-Smith, Jane Austen's characters fighting the zombie apocalypse isn't for everyone—but it is very fun.

Burr Steers, the director of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, that James reminded him of "Jessica Lange when she was younger, doing The Postman Always Rings Twice or Frances. Lily has that kind of sex appeal and glamour."

Watch Pride and Prejudice and Zombies on Tubi

In BBC's six-part adaptation of Leo Tolstoy's War & Peace, James starred as Natasha Rostova—calling it the "greatest acting challenge" of her career so far. James joins a long line of famous actresses to Natasha (from Audrey Hepburn to Denée Benton).

The series was filmed on location in Russia, which James spoke about as enhancing her performance. "When you’re filming in Russia in Catherine’s Palace, and you’re in the real place where the Tsar’s ball really happened, all those years ago, it does so much of the work for you. It’s so vivid. You escape into this different time through the costumes, the sets and the atmosphere. When we were filming in Russia, it was just so intense," James told Collider.

"I’m so lucky that, as an actor, you get to visit these places where you’re usually confined by a red rope and you’d be going around on a tour. We got to live and exist in these rooms. There was this Russian orchestra playing as I waltzed around the room with hundreds of extras, and it was candlelit." Sounds like a dream.

The series received rave reviews—one critic wrote in The Telegraph that "it is safe to say that this is the greatest TV costume drama of the past decade and has raised the bar in a genre for which we are already renowned all over the world."

Watch War & Peace on Amazon Prime

A romantic war film set during World War II? It obviously stars Lily James. Based on the novel The Kaiser's Last Kiss by Alan Judd, the film is set in Occupied Netherlands at the home of the exiled Kaiser Wilhem II (Christopher Plummer!) Nazi officer Stefan Brandt (Jai Courtney) is sent to Wilhem's home to investigate whether or not there's a British spy on the grounds, and falls in love with one of the maids, Mieke (Lily James). Mieke eventually reveals to Stefan she's Jewish, and a bajillion other things go down in the plot. The film conveniently ignores the Kaiser's antisemitism, and a Nazi-Jewish romance is always icky, however Lily James and Christopher Plummer are both fantastic.

"Working with Christopher was just completely incredible, he’s phenomenal to watch and it gave me chills. It’s just power and truth and he’s fun and funny and such a charming, wonderful man," James told BriefTake.

Keep casting Lily James alongside acting legends!

Watch The Exception on Showtime

A shift from ballgowns and corsets!

"It was heaven,” James told W Magazine of her role in Baby Driver. "That waitress outfit was pretty tight, but I would breathe, which was a change. And it was great. I really wanted to do something contemporary, which felt like an escape. It was breath of fresh air to get into 2017."

In this film, James plays waitress Debora, the love interest of the main character, getaway driver Baby (Ansel Elgort). This was James's first major foray out of period dramas and her first time playing an American woman. She worked with a dialect coach, and tried to stay in an American accent even when she wasn't filming.

"When I saw the finished movie with the cast, I was like, 'This movie is so cool, I can’t believe I’m in it,'" James told W. "It feels really iconic and I think it could be a real cult classic."

While I'm not sure on its cult classic status (yet), it's a must-watch for all Lily James fans.

Watch Baby Driver on Amazon Prime

This was not Lily James's biggest role in 2017 (see Baby Driver above), but it was her first time starring in a movie with major Oscar buzz.

Darkest Hour tells the story of Winston Churchill's early days as Prime Minister during the beginning of World War II. Gary Oldman stars as Winston Churchill, which earned him the Academy Award for Best Actor, and James starred as Elizabeth Layton, Churchill's personal secretary.

Watch Darkest Hour on Netflix

Lily James just shines in historical pieces. Based on the #1 bestselling novel of the same name by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows, The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society follows writer Juliet Ashton (James) as she learns about a remarkable group of people on Guernsey in the aftermath of World War II. The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society began as a cover for residents breaking curfew during the German occupation of the British island. Soon, the club became something of a found family.

The rest of the plot is honestly not worth getting into here, but know it's absolutely worth watching for Lily James. This movie proved beyond doubt she's a star. And, fun fact, the film was something of a mini Downton Abbey reunion because it featured so many Downton actors.

Watch The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society on Netflix

Little Woods did not get the hype it deserved when it came out, so let me retroactively give it hype: Little Woods is so, so good. Set in North Dakota, it tells the tale of two estranged sisters (James and Tessa Thompson) who "are driven to extremes when their mother dies, leaving them with one week to pay back her mortgage." Director Nia DaCosta was inspired by debate over women's health care issues and the battle for abortion access, setting out to make a story that focuses on the gendered experience of poverty.

"For me to be directed by a woman, and for us all to be of a similar age and really be talking about it and discovering what it is and sharing something that felt so honest—I felt so assured that there would be a shared experience, that we would get to something that felt really truthful and real," James told Vulture of her experience on the film.

Little Woods is "fiercely feminist" and pairing Lily James with Tessa Thompson was an inspired decision.

Watch Little Woods on Hulu

Not that I'm ranking Lily James performances, but if I did, this is the best Lily James performance. In this sequel to Mamma Mia (2008), we get the backstory of Donna Sheridan (Meryl Streep, also Lily James). But the plot doesn't really matter here. What matters is that this film is 1 hour and 54 minutes of pure joy and ABBA songs and Lily James dancing in overalls.

"I really panicked about taking on the role of Donna after Meryl had so magically and vividly brought it to life," James told the Independent. "I panicked about the singing and the dancing and the time to prepare. And then I finally decided to bite the bullet." To prepare, she watched the original Mamma Mia "thousands and thousands of times."

For what it's worth, her preparation paid off. "I had such a great time making this movie—I fell in love with the cast, I fell in love with the island, I fell even further in love with ABBA. The whole thing was just the most joyous experience, and I think films like this don't come around very often, and that makes it all the more precious," James told Teen Vogue.

I mean, the film stars James alongside Meryl Streep, Christine Baranski, Julie Walters, Cher, Amanda Seyfried, Pierce Brosnan, Colin Firth, Stellan Skårsgard... What more could you want? The Mamma Mia cinematic universe is perfect. Please make Mamma Mia 3 happen.

Watch Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again on Amazon Prime

What if no one had heard of The Beatles? That's the premise of Yesterday, and you just have to go with it. Lily James co-stars in this musical romantic comedy as Ellie, the love interest of Jack Malik (Himesh Patel).

While James does not get to sing as much as she does in Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again, it's a heartwarming romcom filled with great music. As she wrote on Instagram when the film premiered, "God i had a good time. Danny Boyle and Richard Curtis it doesn’t get any better. 💛 Oh and @himeshjpatel sings the Beatles like you could only dream of."

Watch Yesterday on Amazon Prime

Let's agree to ignore Armie Hammer and focus on Lily James, okay? In this adaptation of the classic novel by Daphne Du Maurier, James stars as the second Mrs. Maxim de Winter, trying to figure out what happened to her predecessor.

James finished filming Rebecca right "before the world fell apart." But it wasn't an easy experience, she told the Guardian, as reading the gothic novel got under her skin.

"Towards the end of making it, I started getting this thing where my heart was beating so loudly that you could hear it. It’s really scary. All of a sudden, you become very, very aware of your heartbeat and you can feel it going really fast," she said. "And when you look at the psychological aspect of the book, and the darkness and the twistedness in it, it suddenly made sense."

The movie was appropriately scary—down to the sinister stationery!

TL;DR watch for Lily.

Watch Rebecca on Netflix.

The Dig is yet another classic Lily James period drama. On the eve of World War II, a British widow Edith Pretty (Carey Mulligan) hires a self-taught archaeologist (Ralph Fiennes) to dig up "mysterious formations" on her land. James plays Peggy Piggott, also known as Margaret Guido, another archeologist.

It’s based on the 2007 historical novel by John Preston and the true story of the Sutton Hoo excavation, where some of the most important archaeological discoveries in Britain were unearthed. A subplot in the film features a romance between Peggy (James) and Edith's cousin Rory Lomax (Johnny Flynn). The movie was nominated for five (!!) BAFTAs, including Outstanding British Film.

Watch The Dig on Netflix

Once again, Lily James can't resist a period piece, and viewers can't resist Lily James in a period piece. Directed and written by Emily Mortimer, The Pursuit of Love is based on a novel of the same name by Nancy Mitford. In this miniseries, James stars as Linda Radlett. The series follows glamorous Linda and her friend Fanny Logan (Emily Beecham) as they navigate life between World War I and World War II.

"The choices she makes at times feel harsh and quite brutal but I instinctively feel I understand her and love her deeply. I recognize a lot of myself in her," Lily told the BBC of playing Linda.

Another A+ role for Lily James

Watch The Pursuit of Love on Amazon Prime.

Last but certainly not least: Lily James as Pamela Robinson in Hulu's Pam & Tommy. James is basically unrecognizable as the Baywatch star starring opposite Marvel's Sebastian Stan as the Mötley Crüe drummer. James's hair and makeup transformation took at least four hours each day before filming; Stan's took around three.

"Lily and I didn’t really see each other outside of those costumes until the end," Stan told the New York Times. "Even now, we see each other for press, and we’re like, 'This is your hair?'"

Pam & Tommy tells the story of the fallout of their sex tape that "changed pop culture." While James's casting confused many when it was first announced, once you watch, there's no one else you can imagine playing Anderson.

"A lot of people assumed we would cast whoever the biggest bombshell is," Robert Siegel, the show's creator, told the Times. "But one of the takeaways of the show is that Pam is not who you think she is, and we’ve all underestimated her. You’re misjudging Lily maybe the way you’re misjudging Pam."

Watch Pam & Tommy on Hulu