The Best Claire Danes Movies & TV Shows, Ranked

It’s absolutely wild to think about Claire Danes being 15 years old and starring in Little Women as Beth March. It’s even wilder to know that this movie is her feature film debut. The only reason why this movie is last on this list is that it’s Danes’s first big role in a movie, and it only gets better from here. From the pages of Louisa May Alcott’s book to the big screen, Beth is quite an insular character, which could make her hard to portray. Danes brings those internal developments to the surface in her performance, making it so easy to know, love, and mourn Beth March.

Of course, this movie is now often compared to Little Women (2019), which I prefer as a massive Greta Gerwig fan. I also can’t quite get over the recast of Amy from Kirsten Dunst to Samantha Mathis. It feels like two different versions of the same character, rather than a continued representation of Amy March. Still, I understand why those who grew up with the 1994 version have an attachment to it. It’s cozy, nostalgic, and embraces linear storytelling in a way that the 2019 adaptation doesn’t. Therefore, each adaptation offers something different.

This movie almost broke my brain when I watched it when I was younger. I don’t think I’d seen that many fantasy movies, so I was just entirely engrossed in Stardust’s entirely immersive qualities. I was—and still am—intrigued by Claire Danes playing Yvaine, a fallen star who becomes human. That concept alone should be almost impossible to convey, but Danes does it. 

I really love how Danes imbues the character with a personality as she learns what it means to be human. The monologue she delivers about love and humans’ capability for it is a standout scene in the movie. Stardust also made me realize that I’d loved Charlie Cox, who plays Tristan Thorn, long before I met him as Matt Murdock/Daredevil in Netflix’s Daredevil (2015).

There are some fantastical romances that I will always link together based on vibes, and Romeo + Juliet goes with Ever After (1998) because of the heroine’s wings. This movie is a visual masterpiece; it’s no wonder Baz Luhrmann finds its closest spiritual successor in Moulin Rouge! (2001). Romeo + Juliet also features an incredible performance from Claire Danes, who was only 17 years old during production. 

I still argue that she deserved more accolades than the MTV Movie Award for Best Female Performance. With her role as Juliet, she proved her star power on the big screen after her debut earlier in the ‘90s. Danes also has incredible, palpable chemistry with Leonardo DiCaprio. It may be controversial, but I can’t imagine DiCaprio as Jack in Titanic (1997) without his success in Romeo + Juliet. 

Homeland is one of the longer-running political spy thrillers, like The Americans (2013). Coincidentally, Matthew Rhys was in The Americans, and starred opposite Danes in The Beast in Me. The intensity of Homeland isn’t my cup of tea as I’m more of a Scandal (2012) fan. I prefer my political dramas with romance.

Nevertheless, I still know about Danes’s performance in this show. I watched as she won two Emmy Awards and two Golden Globes for her performance as CIA Officer Carrie Mathison. I saw people commend her realistic performance of what it looks like to live with bipolar disorder. It’s not all that surprising that this is one of Danes’s best performances because it’s the longest time that she has spent with a character—eight seasons with nearly 100 episodes. 

To be completely honest, The Family Stone is one of my favorite movies ever. I have to watch it every holiday season, like Elf (2003). It’s a complete comfort and carries a ton of nostalgia. Admittedly, one of the load-bearing pillars of this movie is Diane Keaton and Rachel McAdams’s characters’ mother/daughter relationship. I can’t avoid crying when Sybil (Keaton) tells Amy (McAdams), “That’s you and me, kid.”

Because of them and this entire cast of characters, it’s quite the challenge for Claire Danes to enter the scene halfway through the movie. She plays Jules, Meredith’s (Sarah Jessica Parker) sister, and ends up falling for her sister’s fiancé, Everett (Dermot Mulroney). If that sounds complicated and a bit confusing, it is, but it’s so worth the watch. The Family Stone is a complex family drama that has realistic dynamics and surprisingly endearing romances. It’s great! 

I was born after My So-Called Life came out, so I had the complete joy of going back and watching it for the first time a few years ago. Even so, I knew about the show and Jordan Catalano (Jared Leto) long before I ever watched it. So many of the creatives behind the shows that I grew up watching and loving, like The Vampire Diaries (2009), often talked about it. 

Watching it, My So-Called Life does feel like the teen drama that set the bar for those that followed. It told honest, grounded stories and proved that YA shows could explore heavy, relevant subject matter that impacted the target audience. The show also just so happened to launch Claire Danes’s career, and for that, it deserves the #1 spot. She won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a TV Drama in 1995 for her performance as the show’s relatable lead and narrator, Angela Chase. If you’re looking for another one-season wonder from the ‘90s to enjoy, try Freaks and Geeks (1999).