Actressexual Honors - Best Leading Actresses of 2024
Sunday, March 16, 2025 at 1:15PM By Nathaniel R
It took me a second viewing to appreciate what Margaret Qualley was up to in "The Substance". Great work!
Reckless sex workers, repressed CEOs, witches-in-training, and a triple helping of “Elizabeths” (!?!) factor into the incredible characterizations offered up by gifted actresses in leading roles this past film season. As we say goodbye to the year in cinema just behind us, a tribute to my personal dozen favourites (alpha order) from leading ladies. Though it’s a full dozen I still had to leave out highly enjoyable star turns from June Squibb in Thelma and Scarlett Johansson in Fly Me to the Moon, as well as Amy Adams' funny and underappreciated juggling of dowdy and feral as “Mother” in Nightbitch. The actual shortlist for my own Best Lead Actress honors is revealed at the end.
top dozen - alpha order
Danielle Deadwyler keeps proving both range -- "Cuffee" in The Harder They Fall to "Berneice" in The Piano Lesson this is quite a spectrum -- and a gift for fearless operatic feeling. I long to see her in something really demanding in terms of character, genre, and co-stars who challenge her MVP status… like an Emilia Perez only good!
As noted in the Best Actress volley, what I admired most about Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande's Wicked duet, aside from the chemistry and incredible vocal chops, was the deft handling of the very specific demands of this material. Both women have to humanize the witches just enough to ground the fantastical, but not enough to throw off the rather broad demands of genre, feeling, and archetype.
Marianne Jean-Baptiste is memorably furious as “Pansy” in Hard Truths but why? The Mike Leigh favourite provides no easy answers but by burrowing into the pain she makes you feel as protective as her screen sister, despite how oft-putting this character is. I have two questions: How'd you do that Marianne? Who hurt you, Pansy?
Speaking of screen sorcery, Nicole Kidman does her most inspired work in several years as powerful CEO “Romy” in Babygirl. The way she navigates the free-fall spaces between Romy’s blindspots, restless needs, and impulsive leaps off a sexual cliff is simply breathtaking. You’re practically panting alongside her on a hotel carpet.
Oscar winner Mikey Madison is live-wire electric as “Ani” in Anora. She’s so “real” in her role-playing, as stripper, sex worker, and devoted bride, you see why every john – and most deliciously, Ani herself – buys what she’s selling. Despite the controversy in the moment, that Oscar win probably age well.
The dream/nightmare team of Demi Moore and Margaret Qualley as “Elisabeth Sparkles” and “Sue”, respectively, in The Substance, demand placement in this top dozen. Moore is sensational as an aging celebrity consumed with desperation and loneliness, and Qualley is sneakily inspired as her narcissistic reborn id. A Confession: It took me a second viewing to fully appreciate what Qualley was up to but I got there. And the final line reading of “It’s me, Sue” is bathetic perfection.
Reinata Reinsve, who broke out so sensationally with The Worst Person in the World, wows yet again with the fascinating psyche of actress/mother “Elisabeth” in Armand. This complicated woman revels in her own chaos agent power at least as much as she’s genuinely unraveling and grappling with an incredibly concerning situation with her child.
"Supporting" Actress winner Zoe Saldaña gamely dances through all sorts of conflicting character and auteur demands as “Rita” in Emilia Perez with a physically expressive passion.
Tilda Swinton is frazzled, flawed, funny and maddening as “Elizabeth” in Problemista but proves ultimately endearing nonetheless. I realize this is borderline role and I have no objections to people calling it supporting but she's top billed so I can't really go there. Tilda received more awards buzz for her turn in Almodóvar's The Room Next Door but she's stronger here. It's yet another example of awards voters (and the media which influences their decisions) automatically finding drama more 'worthy' than comedy.
Finally, Fernanda Torres beautifully modulates the story of happy wife and mother “Eunice Paiva” faced with terrible circumstances from her fascist government in I’m Still Here. Bonus points for all those thin veils of pleasantry and smiles, masking pain whether in defiance or as mama bear protectiveness.
P.S. Here are the nomination tallies in the Oscar-parallel categories. The Brutalist leads the pack comfortably with 8 nods. The Substance (6), Wicked and Anora (5 each) proved its nearest rivals (at least in these traditional categories). The extra categories are in progress and will be finished within the week.
Reader Comments (24)
Curious if you saw The Outrun? Saoirse Ronan gave my favorite lead actress performance of the year.
I was dragged kicking and screaming to see Wicked (disliked the play), and I thought Grande and especially Erivo were terrific. They sold me!
But of the five Oscar-nominated actresses, I would have picked Madison. What a complicated role to pull off.
I am sad Room Next Door never caught on...I especially loved Julianne Moore in this -- but I always love Julianne Moore.
Would have paid good money for this to be the final 5! At one point, it could have been. Kidman takes the gold for me this year - her work in that Hotel room scene is the best thing she’s done since the Paperboy.
Will you ever hand out medals for last year? I’ve been waiting patiently 😂
I love Qualley too! She's so good that it's kind of a shock that her fraud campaign didn't work.
BTW - she's missing from your awards page. I don't want her semi-finalist nod to get lost to the sands of time ;)
17/20 of the acting nominees (i think) are recognized on your page. That has to be a record!
The only one of your Top 5 I haven't been lucky enough to see is Torres but i'm looking forward to it
Kidman sort of No for reasons I won't get into but if you remember the Kidman of the 90's you might guess why but has her moments,best she's been since 2017.
Baptiste Definitley No I didn't get this character at all,one note,Austin far more nuanced
Madison Certainly Not loathed this obnoxious character,the win will age poorly
Saldana very good but Gascon is the MVP for me.
Reinsve loved her in A Different Man,not seen this film.
Erivo solid vocals but no charisma,Ariana is supporting ,it's not her story but Elphaba's
Moore sensational and correct Qualley is a co lead
Swinton fine in Room Next Door but chilly,Moore was better.
Deadwyler fine but not as impressive as she was in Till
My own 5 nominees
Demi Moore The Substance My Winner
Pamela Anderson The Last Showgirl a real revelation,a nice small film,really enjoyed it
Kate Winslet Lee still delivering the goods 30 years later,sadly overlooked
Saoirse Ronan The Outrun a real shame this role never caught on,well done Bafta
Karla Sofia Gascon did people turn on this performance due to those tweets,still think she was great.
My picks for best actress:
Soheila Golestani- Seed of the Sacred Fig
Fernanda Torres- I'm Still Here
Kani Kusruti- All We Imagine as Light
Cynthia Erivo- Wicked
Karla Sofia Gascon- Emilia Perez
These are the 5 that should've been nominated.
My personal ballott is exactly the same, only replace Torres with Juliette Gariépy for her incredible work in Red Rooms.
Even though there were a handful of great/very good performances, I'd say it was kind of a weak year for actresses.
And, on a side note, after watching The Last Showgirl, I can not believe the praise Anderson, or the movie, got. It's truly a laughably bad performance. That said, I was happy to see her get her moment.
As for the runner ups:
Reinata Reinsve is fantastic in Armand. That laughing fit scene....wow.
Danielle Deadwyler is, once again, incredibly over the top. She doesn't do it for me at all.
Cynthia Erivo & Ariana Grande. Erivo is fine, she gets the job done. That's where the praise ends. Grande, even if she's mimicking Chenoweth, has impeccable comedic timing.
Only Tilda Swinton can play such a gross person and make you love her. She's amazing. Supporting, though
Zoe Saldaña is great in Emilia Perez. Not on my personal ballott, but don't mind her being an Oscar winner.
Lily-Rose Depp
Cynthia Erivo
Nicole Kidman
Tilda Swinton
Zendaya
(Still need to see Adams, Jean-Baptiste, Reinsve, Torres...)
I think Anne Hathaway was forgotten in awards season due to the Spring release of the rom com The Idea of You. As art gallery owner Solène Marchand, Hathaway took the story of a lonely middle aged divorcee and gave a richly layered performance exploring betrayal, sensuality, maternal love, and empowerment. Watch the scene where Solène recounts the dissolution of her marriage to a handsome pop star while struggles to repress the growing sexual attraction she is feeling. The former Oscar winner is masterful in revealing the character’s emotions. Hathaway deserved better.
I'm a weird film fan. I get why Problemista didn't catch fire and take over the world, but it should have.
Mike -- she was actually there -- i just forgot to bold her name and I had Deadwyler listed twice - lol. So thanks because now it is fixed and looks better.
Robert G -- same. Easy top 5 for me. For a while I thought it would be my #1 of the year!
Finbar -- i always love her. I thought The IDea of You was better than it had any right to be ;)
Oh, what I wouldn't give for this to have been the Oscar five.
Kidman was so good in Babygirl. I also think it's a great case of her handing herself over to a director's vision in a way that few leading actors really do (similar to Demi this year).
I still find the reticence by the industry to embrace Babygirl and Nicole this year to be quite odd. It really does feel like she'll need another Rabbit Hole or a bio-pic if she wants to win film awards again.
I found the three-combo of Moore, Madison and Torres very solid even when I'm not crazy about Moore and prefer Qualley, I also don't totally get the argument about an acting (or film) "aging well" but I realy hope these three keeps in the audiences memory for so long
It susprises me some people in the comments prasising Gascón when she, Saldaña and Gomez are playing basically soap opera stylish performances, and the talking parts is very awkward from the three honestly, but I guess is more obvious for spanish native speakers
I just could add Vic Carmen Sonne, Lily Rose Depp and Naian Gonzalez Norvind in Corina but I don't tink that last one film gets so much interest outside Mexico and gonna stays it as a local reference
@Cesar it's apples and oranges
The way you don't get Gascon,I didn't get Baptiste Madison and Kidman
I get why more people aren't discussing Gascon,it was the tweets.
Winslet,Ronan and Anderson being underdiscussed is odd to me,loved those 3 performances.
Each to their own though and now 2026 looms.
Torres & Jolie unseen.
I'm sure I'm alone with my opinion, but I found Marianne Jean-Baptiste's performance more tiring than great. Mike Leigh has this weird ability to overemphasize certain character traits in his movies. Jean-Baptiste is always angry and shouting in HARD TRUTHS, Hawkins giggles and laughs throughout HAPPY-GO-LUCKY, while Brenda Blethyn sobs and whines all the way through SECRETS & LIES. It's just not very realistic as a human portrayal. We can't be just one thing. Also, MJB completely missed the mark with her comedic timing in most scenes. It just wasn't a very well-calculated performance.
I hated Saoirse Ronan in THE OUTRUN and was quite disappointed by Kate Winslet in LEE. The former hasn't done anything noteworthy acting-wise since BROOKLYN (yes, not even in LITTLE WOMEN).
Despite the controversy, I thought Karla Sofia Gascón was amazing and by far the best (and only good thing) in EMILIA PÉREZ. Zoe Saldana, however, gave an absolutely forgettable performance. It's sad that nowadays you can get away with not only mediocre performances but also category fraud.
Nicole Kidman has always been daring as a performer, but I expected more dirt in BABYGIRL.
Margaret Qualley was a worthy counterpart to Demi Moore. Tilda Swinton was also a worthy counterpart to Julianne Moore, but I preferred the latter, which I think was the harder role to pull off.
The dynamic duo of Kristen Stewart & Katy O'Brian was also fire in LOVE LIES BLEEDING.
--
My Semi-Finalists
Naomi Scott in SMILE 2
Julianne Moore in THE ROOM NEXT DOOR
Sophie Thatcher in HERETIC
Amy Adams in NIGHTBITCH
Naomi Ackie in BLINK TWICE
Olivia Colman in WICKED LITTLE LETTERS
Lily Gladstone in FANCY DANCE
Pamela Anderson in THE LAST SHOWGIRL
My Finalists
Chloe East in HERETIC
Cynthia Erivo in WICKED
Ariana Grande in WICKED
Demi Moore in THE SUBSTANCE
Mikey Madison in ANORA
My Winner
June Squibb in THELMA
It's sad that this hardworking veteran was even denied a Golden Globe nomination. But you see, I thought the marketing for THELMA was off. Instead of going with the 'Squibb is an action star at 95' angle, they should have marketed it as an indie drama. It sounds ten times more prestigious, and honestly, it is more of an indie drama than a freakin' action comedy.
@HungariaVoice
You didn't like Ladybird,I thought she should have won the Oscar,nice to hear a conflicting opinion.
You obviously saw what is saw in Hard truths and articulated it much better than I did.
Can't agree on Kate in Lee,I think she's always so good that she's now taken for granted and so happy she kept her face is natural,some others get a pass and hosannas for not looking like themselves and not being expressive.
I liked Pamela too.
Hey @Mr Ripley79,
As much as I applaud Greta Gerwig's success in the industry, I never really thought of her as a great director. I think LADY BIRD is generally unoriginal and lack of vision. I've seen plenty of much better-directed coming-of-age stories that didn't get Oscars love (for example, THE EDGE OF SEVENTEEN directed by Kelly Fremon Craig in the exact same year). Ronan was decent, but I don't think she did anything Oscar-worthy in the movie. That said, props to her for trying to challenge herself in genres beyond period pieces.
Overall, LEE didn't interest me. I think the historical figure is far richer than the product about her. Winslet, of course, is one of the greats, and she definitely should have been nominated for AMMONITE recently.
Glad you liked Pam! :)
Great nominees, Nathaniel!
My top 2 are Nicole Kidman in Babygirl and Mikey Madison in Anora. Love both performances so much
The rest of my top 10 (haven't decided the order):
Marianne Jean Baptiste (Hard Truth)
Lea Seydoux (The Beast)
Juliette Gariepy (Red Rooms)
Naomi Scott (Smile 2)
June Squibb (Thelma)
Fernanda Tores (I'm Still Here)
Demi Moore (The Substance)
Lea Drucker (Last Summer)
@Mr Ripley79
I don't think the tweets is the only reason, before that, even in this site some people in the comments expressed they don't consider her a strong nominee.
I understand what you say about appreciation but don't subestimate others thinking that they are close minded like the Oscar that look themselves much worse multinominating a film but regreting their decission for a scandal for an item apart from a movie that supposedly they believe in
Nathaniel — Since we’re a quarter way through the century, seems now might be a fun time for rankings, like ranking all the best pictures, actor and actress winners, etc. of the century so far
STEPHEN -- ooh. Great idea.
Great post, Nathaniel!
It's always nice and unique when you write.
My nominees (obviously in alphabetical order):
Nicole Kidman, "Babygirl"
Marianne Jean-Baptiste, "Hard Truths"
Demi Moore, "The Substance"
Julianne Moore, "The Room Next Door"
Tilda Swinton, "The Room Next Door"
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