From Marilyn to Margot: the most accomplished, talented and beautiful actresses of all time
The most famous actresses who became legends in their own time become movie goddesses, their immense talent and show-stopping beauty making them Hollywood royalty.
Certain women throughout the history of cinema have become symbols of their era, legends on and off screen and for some, simply recognisable in just one word... Marilyn, Garbo, Beyoncé.
But to become a siren of the screen you need a tad more than a pretty face. To be a real goddess, you need to have that certain something that makes us mere mortals weak at the knees, we must be captured by your spellbinding performances, entranced by your looks, air-punching along to your powerful interviews... but most of all, we need to believe everything you ever say rolls out like a movie script.
Perfect one-liners and perfect lipstick – movie goddesses ooze glamour, and are the kind of women we can spend an afternoon on the sofa with, simply getting lost in her magic.
We've also included women who have moved us off screen, too, whether through powerful speeches at awards ceremonies, captivating interviews, or empowering social media posts. Take Academy Award-winner Viola Davis. A clip of the actress calling out the ethnicity pay gap in Hollywood recently went viral, in which she says: "I have a career that’s probably comparable to Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, Sigourney Weaver... They had the same path as me, and yet I am nowhere near them... But I have to get on that phone and people say: "You’re a Black Meryl Streep... There is no one like you." Okay, then if there’s no one like me, you think I’m that, you pay me what I’m worth. You give me what I’m worth."
Can we get an amen?!
So, let's celebrate those iconic women whose talent, charisma and beauty have set screens alight over the last century. Here's to remarkable women.
PA Photos"I never said, "I want to be alone". I only said, "I want to be left alone". There is a whole world of difference."
Greta Garbo (1905-1990) See her in Anna Karenina
Swedish-born Greta was offered an MGM contract at only 18, and swiftly went on to win an Oscar nomination for her role in Anna Christie. She’s best remembered for Anna Karenina, a critical success that affirmed her goddess status. But, after WWII, disillusioned with the movie business she retired gracefully and disappeared along with her mysterious aura. "Being a movie star, and this applies to all of them, means being looked at from every possible direction. You are never left at peace, you're just fair game."
Rex Features"Most beautiful dumb girls think they are smart and get away with it, because other people, on the whole, aren't much smarter. "
Louise Brooks (1906-1985) See her in Pandora’s Box
This dancer from Kansas was drawn to the shiny lights of Hollywood and was acknowledged as a real acting talent. She became an adopted German movie star but was later to shun it all in favour of a quiet life of art. Her stunning brown bobbed haircut set a trend for the Twenties flapper movement.
Rex Features"Who is Katharine Hepburn? It took me a long time to create that creature."
Katharine Hepburn (1907 – 2003) See her in The African Queen
This savvy Connecticut girl was a record breaker when it came to Academy Awards winning a total of four Oscars plus countless nominations. She was a no nonsense kind of gal with a penchant for slacks and serious acting, causing irritation to her producers when she wouldn’t wear make-up or give interviews. Her affair with Howard Hughes was brought to life in The Aviator.
Rex Features"I will have one of the cleanest obits of any actress. I never did cheesecake like Ann Sheridon or Betty Grable. I just used my hair."
Veronica Lake (1917 – 1973) See her in The Blue Dahlia
Teeny tiny goddess Veronica had her best movie moments while still very young. Her trademark long blonde hair had women across the globe reaching for the dye, and the world fell in love with the Peek-a-Boo girl she came to be known as.
Rex Features"After my screen test, the director clapped his hands gleefully and yelled, She can't talk! She can't act! She's sensational"
Ava Gardner (1922-1990) See her in The Night of the Iguana
It’s funny to think of the woman often hailed as the most beautiful in Hollywood’s history was once a Southern farm girl. Hauled into a tight MGM contract for seventeen years, Ava was often considered more of set piece than a serious actress, but her performance in Mogambo and The Night of the Iguana proved she was the real thing. Was one of Frank Sinatra’s many wives.
Rex Features"I'm not interested in money; I just want to be wonderful."
Marilyn Monroe (1926 –1962) See her in Some like It Hot
Probably the world’s most iconic woman, her incredible sexuality, sultry voice and stunning looks left every man she met helpless. A tough early life perhaps led to her later erratic ways and dependency on drugs, but she remains the ultimate movie goddess, whose movie presence is, as yet, unmatched.
Rex Features"I hated Hollywood. It's a town without pity. I know of no other place in the world where so many people suffer from nervous breakdowns, where there are so many alcoholics, neurotics, and so much unhappiness"
Grace Kelly (1929–1982) See her in Rear Window
A genuine beauty who shot to fame in High Noon and went on to become one of Alfred Hitchcock’s favourite muses. Grace became a paparazzi obsession when she quit Hollywood to marry Prince Rainer of Monaco and raise their three children but she tragically died in a car aged just 52.
Rex Features"I never think of myself as an icon. What is in other people's minds is not in my mind. I just do my thing."
Audrey Hepburn (1929-1993) See her in Breakfast at Tiffany's
Born into money and Dutch royalty, life took a strange turn for iconic actress Audrey when Hitler’s army invaded her hometown in Arnhem, Holland. After the war she went to ballet school in London, was soon spotted by producers and her movie career was born with hits including Roman Holiday and Funny Face. After huge acting success, in her later life she became an ambassador for UNICEF.
Rex Features"If someone's dumb enough to offer me a million dollars to make a picture, I'm certainly not dumb enough to turn it down."
Elizabeth Taylor (1932 – 2011) See her in Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
Liz shot to fame after her performance in National Velvet aged just 12. She’s appeared in countless movies and is considered the grande dame of the movie business. This incredible beauty was married no less than eight times and her showbiz lifestyle and buddies kept her in the headlines till she died.
Rex Features"You have to be born a sex symbol. You don't become one. If you're born with it, you'll have it even when you're 100 years old."
Sophia Loren (1934- present) See her in Two Women
Tall, dark and beautiful, Sophia was Italy’s answer to Monroe but this lady scored an Oscar and had a long and (still going) acting career.
"Sex appeal is 50% what you've got and 50% what people think you've got.
Many people think they want things, but they don't really have the strength, the discipline. They are weak. I believe that you get what you want if you want it badly enough. "
Rex Features"I have been very happy, very rich, very beautiful, much adulated, very famous and very unhappy"
Brigitte Bardot (1934 – present) See her in And God Created Woman
Impossibly beautiful, Brigitte created a stampede into theatres when her movies were showing, but the actress was never really comfortable with fame and retired at 39. Her legacy includes the all-important Bardot up-do.
Rex Features"Working in Hollywood does give one a certain expertise in the field of prostitution."
Jane Fonda (1937 – present) See her in Barbarella
Born into Hollywood’s most royal of families Jane has held up a respectable acting career over many decades. But it was for a less respectable movie role that shot her to legendary status as the space-age, scantily clad Barbarella. Fonda used her fame during the Vietnam War to highlight anti-war protests and then in 91 she married media mogul Ted Turner. Oh – mustn’t forget those exercise videos from the 80s either.
Rex Features"I often say the last role I played that really touched me and where I was able to access what I really am was Bonnie, which is kind of sad when you think how early in my career that was"
Faye Dunaway (1941 – present) See her in Bonnie and Clyde
Faye will always be remembered as bank robber Bonnie in the 1967 hit movie but she was equally as alluring in Chinatown and the original The Thomas Crown Affair.
It’s worth checking out her movie Mommie Dearest based on Joan Crawford. Faye hated it, but it’s a cracker.
Rex Features“If I weren't doing what I'm doing now, the actress thing, the star business, if you want to call it that, whatever it is, I'd be in an asylum. I'm sure of it.”
Mia Farrow (1945 – present) See her in Rosemary’s Baby
Mia is one of those actresses that seem to have been embroiled in scandal from day one. But aside from the men folk (Frank Sinatra and Woody Allen amongst them) Mia earned her iconic status not only as Allen’s muse, and for her elfin crop, but as the lead in Polanski’s horror – Rosemary’s Baby. Mia has a whopping 15 children!
Rex Features"The reason that the all-American boy prefers beauty to brains is that he can see better than he can think"
Farrah Fawcett (1947 - 2009) See her in The Apostle
This Texan beauty became a poster girl for a generation in the 70s after starring in TV show Charlie's Angels. Voted 'Most Beautiful' at high-school Farrah went into acting and after marrying the Bionic Man (Lee Majors) went onto movies. Ever heard of the Fawcett Flick? Now you know where it came from.
Getty Images"The one thing I feel is lacking in Hollywood today is an understanding of the beauty, the power, the sexuality, the uniqueness, the humour of being a regular Black woman"
Viola Davis (1965 – present) See her in Fences
Viola Davis won the Academy Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role at the 2017 Oscars for her role as Rose Maxson in the phenomenal Fences, in which she starred alongside Denzel Washington. She's also known for her role as Annalise Keating in How To Get Away With Murder. As well as her film and TV work, Viola is an accomplished theatre actress and has won two Tony Awards.
A clip of Davis calling out the ethnicity pay gap in Hollywood recently went viral, in which the actress says: "I got the Oscar, I got the Emmy, I got the two Tonys, I’ve done Broadway, I’ve done off-Broadway, I’ve done TV, I’ve done film, I’ve done all of it. I have a career that’s probably comparable to Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, Sigourney Weaver. They all came out of Yale, they came out of Julliard, they came out of NYU. They had the same path as me, and yet I am nowhere near them, not as far as money, not as far as job opportunities, nowhere close to it. But I have to get on that phone and people say: “You’re a Black Meryl Streep…There is no one like you.” Okay, then if there’s no one like me, you think I’m that, you pay me what I’m worth. You give me what I’m worth."
Rex Features"I carried my Oscar to bed with me. My first and only three-way happened that night"
Halle Berry (1966-present) See her in Monster’s Ball
Halle won an Oscar for her role in Monster’s Ball and has always strived to combine a balance of blockbuster roles (X-Men) and the kind that taps into her real skills.
Rex Features"I'll get dressed up like a doll, a nice man puts lipstick on my lips and I say words - it's deeply satisfying" - on her job
Julia Roberts (1967-present) See her in Erin Brockovich
For many of us growing up, Julia was the ultimate movie star. Her striking features have never been 'girl-next-door' but that's only made us love her more and she was recently voted People Magazine's 'Most Beautiful' for a record fifth time. She can do serious, comedy, romantic - but love it or hate it, she'll always be the girl from Pretty Woman for us.
Rex Features"We are setting an example of what we think is beautiful and you really want to put that much make up on me?
Angelina Jolie (1975-present) See her in Girl Interrupted
Before Angelina became a full-time headline in every newspaper, magazines and gossip column she was a very promising actress. And still is. While her ever growing brood of children and relationships (including her now ex-husband Brad Pitt) steal her thunder let’s not forget she's an Oscar-winning actress, director, ambassador for the United Nations, charity worker, mum and a very, very beautiful woman.
Rex Features"I don't do damsel in distress very well. It's hard for me to play a victim."
Scarlett Johansson (1984-present) See her in Marriage Story
Scarlett has worked in movies since she was young and she the real deal when it comes to combining solid talent with just enough mystery and scandal to create the perfect icon. We loved her in last year's Marriage Story and Jojo Rabbit.
Beyonce.com"I love my job, but it's more than that: I need it."
Beyoncé (1981-present) See her in Dreamgirls
1/3 of the 90s R&B group Destiny's Child, Beyoncé Knowles found major success as a solo artist following the group break-up. She is considered one of the most influential and successful females artists in contemporary music, but she has had an equally impressive movie career starring in The Pink Panther, Dreamgirls, Austin Powers and Obsessed. Her marriage to rapper Jay Z has cemented the couple as one of the powerful couples in America. Basically, she's Queen Bey.
Getty Images"I really would not call myself a fashion icon. I would call myself somebody who gets dressed by professionals. [It's like], 'Dance, monkey, dance' right on the red carpet.' I would call me more of a monkey."
Jennifer Lawrence (1990-present) See her in X-Men: Dark Phoenix
Jennifer oozes old school Hollywood charm. She's funny, talented, gorgeous and never takes herself, nor her industry, too seriously. And that's why we love her so much. She knows how to work the red carpet AND keeps the crowds entertained. Her quotes are legendary. We can't wait to see her in the upcoming film Don't Look Up.
Getty Images"Everyone's like 'overnight sensation'. It's not overnight. It's years of hard work."
Margot Robbie (1990-present) See her in Birds of Prey
Margot Robbie has swiftly become one of the biggest names in Hollywood due to her performances in Wolf of Wall Street, I Tonya, Mary Queen of Scots, Suicide Squad and Once Upon A Time in Hollywood. Margot owns and runs her own production company, LuckyChap Entertainment, with her husband Tom Ackerley.
Getty Images"People quit on jobs. They quit on marriages. They quit on school. There's an immediacy of this day and age that doesn't lend itself to being committed to anything"
Emily Blunt (1983-present) See her in A Quiet Place Part II
She made her name as Emily in The Devil Wears Prada and has since given show-stopping performances in Mary Poppins, The Girl On The Train and Sicario to name a few. The sky's the limit for one of our favourite British actresses.
Getty Images"I realised that I don’t have to be perfect. All I have to do is show up and enjoy the messy, imperfect and beautiful journey of my life"
Kerry Washington (1977 – present) See her in Little Fires Everywhere
Kerry Washington has had major roles in both TV (Scandal) and film (Tarantino's Django Unchained), but this year it's been all about Little Fires Everywhere. An adaption of Celeste Ng's 2017 novel, Washington co-starred alongside Reese Witherspoon in the story that explores privilege, race, unconscious bias, identity, pressure and motherhood. She's also appearing in comedy-musical The Prom, set to be released this year, which also stars Meryl Streep and Nicole Kidman.
Getty Images"I have always regarded myself as the pillar of my life"
Meryl Streep (1949-present) See her in Little Women
She is undoubtedly one of the greatest actresses of our generation and the world cannot get enough of her. Meryl's wildly successful career in film and television has included lead roles in Mamma Mia, The Devil Wears Prada, It's Complicated, and in Big Little Lies and Little Women last year. All hail, Queen Meryl!
Getty Images"I think it's important that we don't all have to hold our heads high all the time saying everything's fine"
Nicole Kidman (1967-present) See her in Bombshell
Nicole Kidman has had an extensive career in film but she's having a particularly major year. After killing it as Celeste in Big Little Lies last year, she's now starring in Bombshell alongside Charlize Theron and Margot Robbie. She'll also appear in upcoming series The Undoing and Nine Perfect Strangers. Bring it on!
Getty Images"I find more interesting roles for women in period pieces. I do personally like watching period films; I think you can really get lost in the fantasy of them"
Keira Knightley (1985-present) See her in Official Secrets
Keira Knightley OBE burst onto the scene as Juliet in Love Actually and has since become one of the most iconic women in film with stand-out roles in Atonement, Pride and Prejudice and Pirates of the Caribbean. She has won an Empire Award and has been nominated for two BAFTA Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, and two Academy Awards.
