Time has a remarkable ability to reveal which films truly endure. While some titles make noise on arrival, then slip into cultural silence as trends evolve, others mature gracefully, gaining depth and relevance with every passing year. Scarlett Johansson’s body of work spans action, drama, and intimate character studies, but a few of her endeavors now carry an added resonance — reflecting how cinema, stories, and even viewers have changed over the years.

With these standout performances, a renewed appreciation is building around three films that continue to impress long after their original release.

Scarlett Johansson delivers one of her most emotionally raw performances in Marriage Story, portraying Nicole Barber, an actress navigating the dissolution of her marriage while trying to rediscover her identity beyond her husband’s shadow. Through courtroom conflicts, tense custody debates, and heartfelt personal breakthroughs, Nicole’s journey reflects the complexities of falling out of love with someone you still deeply care for. Johansson plays her with remarkable nuance, embodying a woman torn between independence, motherhood, and the painful nostalgia of what once was.

Starring alongside Adam Driver, Johansson forms one half of the central couple whose separation drives the entire narrative. Directed by Noah Baumbach, the film takes a deeply personal and realistic approach to modern relationships and co-parenting. The supporting cast includes Laura Dern — whose performance as Nicole’s lawyer won her an Academy Award — along with Ray Liotta and Alan Alda. The film earned critical acclaim for its writing, performances, and grounded storytelling, securing multiple Oscar nominations.

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Released in 2014, the following Scarlett Johansson movie became a global box-office success and remains one of her most memorable standalone lead performances.

In Lucy, Scarlett Johansson leads as the titular character — an unwitting woman forced into drug trafficking who becomes exposed to a synthetic substance that unlocks access to increasing percentages of her brain’s cognitive capacity. As Lucy’s abilities evolve beyond human limits, she gains superhuman strength, telekinesis, and the power to manipulate matter, blurring the line between human and transcendence. Johansson brings intensity and vulnerability to the role, charting Lucy’s transformation from fear and chaos to unstoppable intellectual dominance.

Morgan Freeman stars opposite Johansson as Professor Norman, a scientist who becomes Lucy’s anchor to humanity and helps explain her rapidly evolving powers. The sci-fi thriller is directed by Luc Besson, known for Léon: The Professional and The Fifth Element, and blends action with philosophical meditations about human potential and evolution.

Scarlett Johansson plays Nola Rice, an aspiring actress whose life becomes entangled in a forbidden affair with a wealthy socialite’s brother-in-law. Her character is seductive yet vulnerable, caught between ambition and desire as the romance spirals into betrayal and obsession. Nola’s relationship with Jonathan Rhys Meyers’ Chris Wilton drives Match Point's psychological tension, with Johansson beautifully portraying the desperation of a woman battling both love and circumstance. The 2005 release is widely regarded as one of Woody Allen’s strongest films of the 2000s.

Watching these films today will show just how well they have aged. Each one marks a different stage in Scarlett Johansson’s growth as an actor, and the passage of time has only sharpened the power of those performances. Instead of slipping into the background, these stories continue to resonate in surprising ways, adding fresh layers to her cinematic legacy and strengthening her million-dollar empire shaped by talent, instinct, and roles that stay with audiences long after they end.

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Which of the Scarlett Johansson films on the list will you watch first? Let us know in the comments.