Every single Margot Robbie film role, ranked
Are you ready to see some range?

MARGOT ROBBIE is everywhere, all at once. This year, the actor starred in Damien Chazelleâs Old Hollywood epic Babylon alongside Brad Pitt and Diego Calva, led Greta Gerwigâs Barbie (in which Robbie plays, er, Barbie) and had a teeny-tiny role in Wes Andersonâs Asteroid City. Thereâs also an Oceanâs 11 remake in the mix.
At just 32, Robbie has become a mainstay of cinema, and with that in mind, weâre taking a look at her career so far. She might not always be in the best films, but sheâs often the best part of those films. We didnât count the Peter Rabbit films, in which she voices Flopsy, as we are not children, but they are out there. Nor did we include her cameos in The Big Short (great), Slaughterhouse Rulez (we hadnât heard of it, either) or the aforementioned Asteroid City (sorry, Wes).
18. Terminal (2018)
Robbieâs undeniable screen presence has also been, at times, a curse. Terminal is a classic case: the film lazily puts Robbie in funny outfits and good lipstick, and just sees what happens. Unfortunately, nothing that good in this noirish thriller about two assassins. The film has such a tedious, overdone look, you couldnât even accuse it of being all style and no substance.
17. Suite Française (2014)
Sheâs not the starring role in this film adaptation of IrĂšne NĂ©mirovsky’s novel about Nazi-occupied France, which is handsome, if not exactly memorable. An inessential entry in the Robbie-verse.
16. Amsterdam (2022)
If some are experiencing Robbie saturation, it might just have started with this 2022 David O. Russell joint which teamed the actress up with a cast including John David Washington, Rami Malek, Anya Taylor-Joy, Taylor Swift (sure!), Christian Bale and Robert De Niro. The filmâboth twisty and exhaustingÂâwas a bomb, but Robbie isnât half bad; her chemistry with Bale and Washington is breezy enough.
15. About Time (2013)
Robbie isnât even the main blonde supporting role in Richard Curtisâ time-travelling rom-com (that would be Vanessa Kirby as the flirty side-kick to lead Rachel McAdams) but sheâs effective as Charlotte, the target of Domnhall Gleesonâs summertime affections.
14. Z for Zachariah (2015)
Loosely based (isnât it always?) on a science fiction novel from the â70s, this post-apocalyptic film brings together Robbie, Chiwetel Ejiofor and Chris Pine (Hollywoodâs best Chris) in a complicated love triangle, with a subplot about hydroelectric power. Itâs hard to feel much beyond admiration for this well-acted, slightly kooky film, but already Robbieâs ability to elevate any script is present.
13. Dreamland (2019)
Another middling film, in which Robbie plays a runaway bank robber. The film has its moments, and the premise is inventive, but it wonât go down as Robbieâs most memorable performance.
12. Focus (2015)
Just as Robbie was nearing household name status, she teamed up with one of the worldâs biggest movie stars: Will Smith. The star power is there, as is a bulletproof premise: Nicky (Smith) is a con artist training newbie Jess (Robbie). Inevitably, sparks fly. But the actorsâ chemistry never meshes, and the film is sunk by its plot twists.
11. Goodbye Christopher Robin (2017)
An entry into Robbieâs British cosplay collection (like many Australians before her, she once lived in Clapham). Domhnall Gleeson plays author A.A Milne grappling with the aftermath of war and embarking on Winnie-the-Pooh; Robbie plays his wife, Daphne, and mother to Christopher Robin. Her accent is cut-glass to the point of parody, but she certainly brings a watchable glamour to the sentimental British surroundings.
10. Whiskey Tango Foxtrot (2016)
Robbie plays a BBC journalist and friend to Tina Fey in this pleasingly daft comedy about war journalism. The British accent is iffy (an ongoing theme) but her comic timing is pretty decent, if not quite at Feyâs level (sheâs had more practice!).
9. The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
Robbie takes on the role of Jane Porter (of âMe Tarzan, you Janeâ fame) in this curiously rainy live-action remake of Tarzan, starring Alexander Skarsgard as the jungle icon. The film isnât always a successâthough the narrative about slavery is quite compellingâbut itâs enjoyable enough to watch a redheaded Robbie go up against Christoph Waltz (inevitably playing a villain).
8. Bombshell (2019)
Hollywood gathered three of its favourite blondesâRobbie, Nicole Kidman, Charlize Theronâfor this dramatisation of sexual harassment at conservative network Fox News. Theron plays Megyn Kelly, Kidman takes on Gretchen Carlson, while Robbie is given the fictional role of Kayla Pospisil, who is sexually harassed by then-CEO Roger Ailes. The results are mixedâthe film is more interesting as a document about #MeToo than anything elseâbut Robbie shines.
7. The Suicide Squad films
The role of pig-tailed, delightfully unpredictable villain Harley Quinn seemed like a perfect fit for the ascendant Robbie: a character she could make her own through madcap charm and outsized sense of humour. The films themselves are less watchable. 2016âs Suicide Squad (complete with a tiresome Jared Leto as the Joker) is an exhausting exercise in world-building. Its 2021 sequel, simply called The Suicide Squad, is a more self-aware and outrageous venture. In both, Robbie is vital, surrounded by a solar system of names like Idris Elba and Sylvester Stallone. Robbieâs standalone feature, Harley Quinn: Birds of Prey, has the best cast (and attitude), but even then, her performance as Harley you can probably catch in a YouTube highlights reel.
6. Mary Queen of Scots (2018)
At this point, I began to wonder whether Robbie has some kind of accent addiction. In this historical drama, she takes on the role of Elizabeth I as she grapples with the threat of her cousin Mary (Saoirse Ronan). If you have taken a history lesson in the UK, you know what happens. Nevertheless, the tension between the two actors drives the film convincingly towards its bloody conclusion, even if their paths rarely cross on-screen. It does show a meeting between the two women (which very probably, almost definitely never happened), and actually, that is the best part of the film. Maybe we should make more things up!
5. I, Tonya (2017)
Though itâs hard to know who wanted a revisionist take on Tonya Harding (besides the subject herself), Robbieâs performance as the disgraced figure skater is undeniable. The film performs a lot of gymnastics to create sympathy for Hardingâwhose husband (played by Sebastian Stan) orchestrated an attack on her Olympic rival Nancy Kerriganâbut Robbie is on fine form, and does little to damn or absolve Harding completely.
4. Babylon (2023)
If there were a recurring emotion to Robbieâs performances, it would be âmanicâ (it would be nice, just once, for Robbie to play someone who is capable of calm). In Damien Chazelleâs third feature filmâa dizzying, cocaine-fuelled ode to 1920s Hollywoodâshe plays Nellie LaRoy, an actress who struggles with the transition from silent film to talkies. Robbieâs energy is indisputable, and her scenes with Diego Calva (playing a film assistant who isâwhat else?âin love with her) are lovely, even if Chazelleâs excess is sometimes deafening.
3. Once Upon a Time⊠in Hollywood (2019)
Tarantinoâs choice of Robbie as doomed movie star Sharon Tate was equal parts inspired and inevitable. Her outfitâblack top, white skirt and bootsâwas enough to inspire many Halloween outfits that year. The part is, famously, quite small in this retelling of the Manson murders (and many of her scenes were cut) but Robbieâs screentime is reflective of her ability to do a lot with a little. Sheâs magnificent.
2. Barbie (2023)
Though Ryan Gosling stole the show as Ken in Greta Gerwigâs charming blockbuster, itâs Robbie who grounds the film and eventually provides it with a beating heart. I have tried to imagine other names in this role, and many were rumoured for the part, but itâs a testament to the actor that itâs impossible to think of anyone as big-hearted, comedic or fearless as Robbie.
1. The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)
The role that launched Robbie into the mainstreamâas swindling, foul-mouthed Naomi Lapaglia and wife to Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio)âis still her best performance. Shattering any image of a trophy wife, Robbieâs performance is the perfect foil to all the lechery brought by Belfort and his associates. Itâs a classic Robbie performance: transforming a potential clichĂ© into an essential role.
This article originally appeared on Esquire UK.