Rachel McAdams’ 10 Best Movies, Ranked

Rachel McAdams has starred in a wide range of dramas and comedies throughout her acting career. She made her Hollywood feature film debut in the 2002 comedy The Hot Chick, starring Rob Schneider, before rising to fame with an extremely successful year in 2004. In the same year, she starred in Tina Fey’s comedy Mean Girls and alongside Ryan Gosling in The Notebook. This cemented her status as one of Hollywood’s most sought-after actresses during the 2000s and beyond.

McAdams also appeared in the 2005 comedy Wedding Crashers before returning to blockbusters with 2009’s Sherlock Holmes, starring Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law. McAdams expanded her roles during the 2010s, appearing in several Oscar contenders, including the Best Picture winner at the 2016 Academy Awards. Further adding to her iconic status, the actor joined the Marvel Cinematic Universe in 2016 and has appeared in two installments of the Doctor Strange franchise, showing her range in blockbusters and Oscar-worthy films.

10

Doctor Strange (2016)

Dr. Christine Palmer

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McAdams entered the MCU with her role as Dr. Christine Palmer in Doctor Strange, playing the love interest of Benedict Cumberbatch’s Master of the Mystic Arts. Doctor Strange expanded the Marvel Cinematic Universe when it premiered in 2016 as one of the first movies of the Phase 3 era, which started the final run to the major Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame conclusion.

While McAdams didn’t play a significant role after this film, her performance was important in establishing Strange as a character.

While McAdams didn’t play a significant role after this film, her performance was important in establishing Strange as a character. 2016’s Doctor Strange was celebrated for its remarkable use of CGI and visual effects and strong performances from Cumberbatch and McAdams.

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Doctor Strange

PG-13

Action

Adventure

Fantasy

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8/10

10

7/10

Release Date

November 4, 2016

Runtime

115 minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Benedict Cumberbatch In The Doctor Strange Premiere

    Benedict Cumberbatch

    Dr. Stephen Strange

  • Headshot Of Chiwetel Ejiofor In The UK Paramount+ Launch Event

    Chiwetel Ejiofor

    Mordo

Doctor Strange follows the journey of a brilliant yet arrogant surgeon, portrayed by Benedict Cumberbatch, whose career is derailed. He finds redemption under the tutelage of a mystical sorcerer, learning to harness mystical powers to protect the world from dark forces. Released in 2016, the film expands Marvel’s cinematic universe into the realm of mysticism.

Director

Scott Derrickson

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It was the MCU’s first true “horror” movie and brought actual magic into the Marvel Cinematic Universe, which changed how the entire universe operated. McAdams also returned for her role as the intelligent and likable Dr. Palmer in 2022’s Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness, although in a smaller role.

9

Southpaw (2015)

Maureen Hope

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Jake Gyllenhaal shines as the protagonist boxer with a troubled past, Billy Hope, in Southpaw alongside Rachel McAdams, who plays his wife Maureen. The film offers a deeply passionate and emotional portrayal of a natural-born fighter who earnestly embodies what it means to be dedicated to a challenging ambition, heightened by the magnificent performances of Gyllenhall and McAdams.

Southpaw has a gritty screenplay by Kurt Sutter (Sons of Anarchy, The Shield) and is directed by Antoine Fuqua (Training Day), giving it a one-two punch that makes it compelling to watch. The film sees Billy considering retirement, with his wife almost demanding it, although he finds quitting hard to do.

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Southpaw

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Southpaw

R

Drama

ScreenRant logo

5/10

Release Date

July 24, 2015

Runtime

124 Minutes

Cast

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  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Naomi Harris

  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

Southpaw is a 2015 Drama and Sports film starring Jake Gyllenhaal. Directed by Antoine Fuqua and written by Kurt Sutter, the film chronicles the life and career of professional boxer Billy “The Great” Hope. Although he continues his dominant career, people around him begin to worry about his safety in the ring.

Director

Antoine Fuqua

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Sadly, Maureen is mainly used as a catalyst for Billy’s collapse and eventual return to the top. Still, in her short time in the movie, McAdams embodies the character with enough passion to show why Billy fights so hard to regain his spot based on the love he carries for her.

8

The Notebook (2004)

Allie Calhoun

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One of Rachel McAdams’ most famous roles was also one of her first in The Notebook, which has remained one of the most culturally relevant romantic dramas of the 21st century. The movie follows two timelines. The first sees an aging Noah (James Garner) reading a story to his long-time wife, Allie (Gena Rowlands).

Rachel McAdams as Allie and Ryan Gosling as Noah in The Notebook

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The second is that specific story playing out as the main part of the film, with a young Noah (Ryan Gosling) and Allie (McAdams) falling in love. Based on Nicholas Sparks’s novel, this is a sad romantic drama, but one that is at the same time uplifting.

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The Notebook

PG-13

Drama

Romance

ScreenRant logo

7/10

3/10

Release Date

June 25, 2004

Runtime

124 Minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Ryan Gosling In The Paris premiere of 'The Fall Guy'

    Ryan Gosling

  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

Adapted from Nicholas Sparks’ novel of the same name, The Notebook is a romantic drama film that follows a couple who fall in love during the 1940s. Duke, an older man, recounts the story of two young lovers whose lives never lined up quite right to a fellow patient in his nursing home. Reading from the notebook pages, the movie keeps flashing from the present into the past to tell the story of the one that got away.

Director

Nick Cassavetes

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While critics were divided on the quality of The Notebook, there’s no denying its impact on the millennial generation and the numerous parodies it inspired. The film is deeply romantic and sentimental, making it the perfect choice for viewers who want an emotional and cathartic experience. It has since become a cult classic.

7

Disobedience (2017)

Esti Kuperman

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In 2017, Rachel McAdams starred alongside Rachel Weisz in another romantic drama, Disobedience. The film tackles challenging themes of religious orthodoxy and the rigid structure it presents on the modern spectrum of love and romantic interest. Weisz stars as Ronit, a woman who returns home after her father dies.

She struggles as she was banished years before when she was caught in a romantic tryst with a female friend. That friend, Esti (McAdams), is now married and this film shows their complicated relationship. Director Sebastián Lelio (A Fantastic Woman) delivers a beautiful portrait of the romantic triangle between McAdams’ character Esti, Weisz’s Ronit, and Alessandro Nivola’s Dovid.

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Disobedience

R

Romance

Drama

Release Date

April 27, 2018

Director

Sebastián Lelio

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Mark Stobbart

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Nicholas Woodeson

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Alexis Zegerman

Disobedience, directed by Sebastián Lelio, follows a woman who returns to her Orthodox Jewish community in London after her rabbi father’s death. There, she rekindles a forbidden romance with her childhood best friend, now married to her cousin, challenging societal norms and personal faith.

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Deeply passionate and boundary-pushing, the thoughtful film offers one of McAdams’s most rich and nuanced performances. McAdams and Weisz both received BAFTA nominations for their performances, while Nivola was awarded the Best Supporting Actor honor.

6

About Time (2013)

Mary

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About Time is another profound love story starring Rachel McAdams and Domhnall Gleeson (Ex Machina, Black Mirror). In it, Gleeson’s Tim discovers he can travel through time and go back into his past to change the outcome of his life. In doing so, he meets McAdams’ Mary and forms a relationship with her, which starts out as a beautiful, positive change for him but eventually becomes more complicated.

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About Time

R

Comedy

Documentary

Drama

Sci-Fi

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7/10

9/10

Release Date

September 4, 2013

Runtime

123 minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Domhnall Gleeson

    Domhnall Gleeson

  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

When Tim Lake learns that he, like all the men in his family, has the ability to travel back in time, he decides to use this ability to help him find love and improve his and his loved ones’ lives.

Director

Richard Curtis

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About Time is a romantic fantasy done right, full of charming character performances, witty dialogue, and sentimental elements that make it innovative and gripping to watch. Critics praised the film as a sincere look at sentimentality and the realization that some things can’t be changed if a person wants to look forward to a great life ahead of them. The film was also praised for a soundtrack that included top acts like The Cure, Amy Winehouse, The Killers, and Ellie Goulding.

5

Game Night (2018)

Annie Davis

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Game Night is a fun and imaginative comedy starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, who play a married couple with a mutual love for playing games with friends. Bateman’s Mac and McAdams’ Annie find themselves in an unusual and mysterious real-life game scenario they must band together to solve. When Mac’s brother Brooks offers up a role-playing mystery, he is quickly kidnapped by two masked men, and Mac and Annie assume this is part of the game – something that becomes more questionable as the night grows deadly.

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Game Night

R

Comedy

Action

ScreenRant logo

7/10

8/10

Release Date

February 23, 2018

Runtime

93minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Sharon Horgan

    Sharon Horgan

  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

Written by Mark Perez and directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein. Starring Jason Bateman, Billy Magnussen, Rachel McAdams, and Sharon Horgan, the 2018 Comedy sees a routine game night turn into a mystery when one of the regular members is kidnapped.

Director

Jonathan Goldstein, John Francis Daley, Billy Magnussen

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After a series of mostly dramatic acting roles throughout the 2010s, McAdams returned to the comedy genre in a major way with Game Night, proving to be a perfect match for Bateman’s deadpan brilliance. Directed by John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein, the film was a box office and critical success. Both Bateman and McAdams earned Critics’ Choice Awards in the comedy category, and it has remained a lasting comedy favorite, although no sequel was ever released.

4

Mean Girls (2004)

Regina George

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Rachel McAdams has starred in several generation-defining movies in her career, and Mean Girls is arguably the best of them. Playing Regina George in her second Hollywood movie, McAdams rose to prominence from her appearance in the iconic Mark Waters film alongside Lindsay Lohan, Amanda Seyfried, Lacey Chabert, and Amy Poehler.

Mean Girls remains one of the most culturally significant comedy movies of the 21st century.

Regina is one of the mean girls who taunt and torment everyone they come in contact with until they cross the wrong person in Cady (Lohan). With a hilarious screenplay written by Tina Fey in her prime and outstanding casting choices with McAdams and Lohan, Mean Girls remains one of the most culturally significant comedy movies of the 21st century.

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Mean Girls

PG-13

Comedy

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9/10

10

6.7/10

Release Date

April 30, 2004

Runtime

97 minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Amy Poehler In The 2024 CinemaCon Big Screen Achievement Awards

    Amy Poehler

  • Cast Placeholder Image

    Lacey Chabert

Mean Girls tells the story of Cady (Lindsay Lohan), a teen girl who falls in with the wrong crowd. After returning to the USA after spending her childhood in Africa, Cady infiltrates her school’s group of mean girls, befriending the conniving Regina George (Rachel McAdams) and her cronies. However, Cady finds the high school hierarchy to be far more complicated than she had imagined, drawing her into a game of manipulation and deceit that threatens her reputation.

Director

Mark Waters

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It was a massive hit when it came out with 13 Teen Choice Awards nominations and Lohan won three. McAdams also won Breakthrough Female Performance at the MTV Movie Awards. Its legacy is strong, with video games, a musical, a musical film, and a sequel.

3

Midnight In Paris (2011)

Inez

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Midnight in Paris is one of Woody Allen’s better late-era films with a remarkable ensemble cast of Rachel McAdams, Owen Wilson, Michael Sheen, Tom Hiddleston, Marion Cotillard, Léa Seydoux, Adrian Brody, and Kathy Bates. Owen Wilson plays Gil, the screenwriting protagonist, who goes back in time and has conversations with several of his literary idols from the 1920s.

rachel-mcadams-time-travel-movies

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McAdams plays Gil’s fiancée Inez, a woman who might be having an affair with her old married college friend. The highly imaginative and well-written story is delightful to experience through the good-natured lens of Wilson’s character, invoking intellectually stimulating contemplations through a romantic and inspirational setting.

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Midnight in Paris

pg-13

Romance

Fantasy

ScreenRant logo

8/10

6/10

Release Date

May 11, 2011

Runtime

94minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of Owen Wilson In The 2006 MTV Movie Awards

    Owen Wilson

  • Headshot Of Tom Hiddleston In The 49th Annual People's Choice Awards 2024

    Tom Hiddleston

Written and directed by Woody Allen, Midnight in Paris stars Owen Wilson as Gil Pender, a struggling writer who, on a trip to Paris with his fiance, begins traveling back in time to the 1920s every night at midnight, leading him to meet and mingle with some of the city’s biggest names of the time. Besides Wilson, the cast includes Rachel McAdams, Tom Hiddleston, Kathy Bates, Marion Cotillard, Corey Stoll, and Adrien Brody. 

Director

Woody Allen

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The film also has a great way of integrating real-life historical figures who help Gil with his latest script, which is based on his life, including F. Scott Fitzgerald (Tom Hiddleston), Ernest Hemingway (Corey Stoll), Salvador Dalí (Adrien Brody), and Gertrude Stein (Kathy Bates).

2

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret. (2023)

Barbara Simon

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Rachel McAdams’ starred in the 2023 coming-of-age dramatic comedy Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret, based on the beloved Judy Blume novel of the same name. McAdams gives a stellar performance as Barbara Simon, the supportive mother of the teenage Margaret Simon, played by Abby Ryder Fortson. Margaret is an 11-year-old girl who learns her parents are moving from New York City to New Jersey, taking her away from her friends and grandmother, and she begins talking to God about her concerns.

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Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.

PG-13

Comedy

Drama

8/10

Release Date

April 28, 2023

Director

Kelly Fremon Craig

Cast

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  • Headshot of Abby Ryder Fortson

    Abby Ryder Fortson

  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret (2023) is a coming-of-age film adaptation of Judy Blume’s classic novel. Directed by Kelly Fremon Craig, the story follows 11-year-old Margaret Simon, portrayed by Abby Ryder Fortson, as she navigates adolescence and questions of religious identity following her family’s move to New Jersey. The cast also includes Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates in supporting roles.

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While the source novel has been popularized for generations, Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret is somehow traditional and refreshing, featuring wholesome and relatable performances from McAdams, Fortson, and Kathy Bates. The movie was a box office failure, but it was a huge critical success, with a 99% fresh Rotten Tomatoes score, and finished on many critics groups’ best-of lists for the year. McAdams was nominated for a Dorian Award for her performance.

1

Spotlight (2015)

Sacha Pfeiffer

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Spotlight won the Academy Award for Best Picture in 2016, and Rachel McAdams was nominated for Best Supporting Actress for her role as the determined news reporter Sacha Pfeiffer. The Tom McCarthy film features an extraordinary ensemble cast of Michael Keaton, Liev Schreiber, Mark Ruffalo, John Slattery, and Stanley Tucci as a group of Boston Globe reporters who uncover a massive scandal involving the Catholic Church, all based on the true and shocking story.

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Spotlight

R

Crime

Biography

Drama

ScreenRant logo

8/10

9.8/10

Release Date

November 25, 2015

Runtime

128minutes

Cast

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  • Headshot Of John Slattery In The FX Networks Star Walk at TCA

    John Slattery

  • Headshot Of Rachel McAdams In The Premiere of ‘Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret’

    Rachel McAdams

Based on a true story, Spotlight is a drama film that tells the story of reporters who are privy to terrible details about goings on within the Roman Catholic Church. When several allegations are levied against the church, the Boston Globe sends out a team of reporters to investigate John Geoghan, who was accused of molesting several children. Believing there is a cover-up, the team goes to incredible lengths to find the truth and prove the guilt and complicity of both John and the church.

Director

Tom McCarthy

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On top of Best Picture and McAdams nominations, the film also received nominations for Best Director, Best Supporting Actor (Ruffalo), Best Film Editing, and Best Original Screenplay (which it won). The profound and revealing film is incredibly poignant and treated with delicate and masterful care in every aspect, making it Rachel McAdams’ best movie.

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