25 movies and shows about queens

The enormous success of Netflix’s Bridgerton led to the commissioning of a prequel series focused on Queen Charlotte, one of the most fascinating side characters. In the prequel, viewers see the fateful courtship between Charlotte and King George, a pairing that will have major consequences for British society. There is an undeniable sweetness and romance to their bond, but there is also an air of tragedy, as the viewer knows that George will ultimately go mad and have to be locked away for his protection. India Amarteifio is inspired casting as the young Charlotte. At the same time, Golda Rosheuvel delivers yet another great performance as the older version of the character, someone who hides her sadness behind a caustic and cynical exterior. 

Ostensibly, Showtime’s The Tudors focuses on Henry VIII, but, in reality, it’s his wives who are often the most compelling characters. Whether it’s Maria Doyle Kennedy’s loyal and devout Katherine of Aragon, Natalie Dormer’s sly and seductive Anne Boleyn, or Joely Richardson’s noble and loving Catherine Parr, these are the women around whom the Tudor court revolves. All of them, in one way or another, have to find some way of surviving this cutthroat world, as well as the caprice of Henry himself. The series as a whole is a fascinating portrait of royal women and the struggles they faced.

The image of Queen Victoria that has come down to the present is of the dowdy old woman perpetually clad in mourning garb for her late husband, Albert. In The Young Victoria,  however, viewers get a very different vision of this major historical figure: a young woman still full of life, excitement, and enthusiasm. Just as importantly, this film shows the burgeoning love between the young Victoria and Albert, the man who would become the love of her life. Emily Blunt is particularly compelling as Victoria, though Rupert Friend is likewise well-cast as Albert. 

Elisabeth of Austria, better known as Sisi, has exerted a powerful hold on the imagination during her life and afterward. As Empress of Austria and Queen of Hungary, she was one of the most notable monarchs of the 19th century, but as Corsage makes clear, her royal position is as much one of imprisonment as it is of privilege. Vicky Krieps gives a truly inspired performance as Sisi, and she allows the viewer to see how her life has become one of boredom. Determined to live life on her own terms, she becomes something of a royal rebel, and Corsage allows the viewer to celebrate her triumphs and her desire to break out of the mold. 

Judi Dench is one of Britain’s most acclaimed actresses, and she has always excelled at playing complicated, often prickly women. One of her most notable roles was Queen Victoria in Mrs. Brown, which focuses on the close bond that emerges between an aging Victoria and her Scottish servant, John Brown. Dench is superb as Victoria, capturing her stern strength with just a bit of vulnerability, and this remains one of her finest roles (no small thing, considering her storied career). She is supported by an equally strong cast of supporting actors, including Billy Connolly and Geoffrey Rush. 

Anne Boleyn has gone down in history as one of the infamous wives of Henry VIII. Though often depicted as promiscuous, she is fortunate that she has found a new afterlife in the cinema. In Anne of the Thousand Days, she is played by Geneviève Bujold. She imbues Anne with the right mix of innocence and intelligence, and she is so convincing it’s easy to see why Henry found himself so smitten with her. Her inevitable demise is all the more wrenching, and the film’s brilliance lies in its ability to convince the viewer, for just a moment, that history might have been otherwise. 

Starz has long been a network known for its ability to produce compelling costume dramas focused on women, and The White Queen is one of the best. Focusing on Elizabeth Woodville (Rebecca Ferguson), it charts her rise to power after she weds King Edward IV (Max Irons), even as the Wars of the Roses unfold around them. Based on the Philippa Gregory novel of the same name, it shows the extent to which noblewomen of the Middle Ages were able to wield some kinds of power, even in a patriarchal culture that worked very hard to ensure that they were denied such authority. 

The Lion in Winter remains one of the most literate costume dramas and is also superbly acted. Among the cast, arguably the greatest performance is that given by Katherine Hepburn as Queen Eleanor of Aquitaine, who has been imprisoned by her husband, Henry II, for plotting against his throne. The two meet with their surviving sons, and the result is a fascinating look at a family in deep dysfunction. Hepburn is truly extraordinary as Eleanor, a woman of indomitable will and willpower who is still deeply in love with her husband, despite their many differences. It’s thus no wonder that she won an Oscar for the role. 

The late Glenda Jackson gives one of the best performances of her life in Elizabeth R, in which she plays the Virgin Queen herself. The series spans a major part of the monarch’s life, starting with her time as a potential heir and dangerous opponent to her elder sister Mary and going right up to her death. It’s a truly epic undertaking, and its vast scope allows the viewer to see how Elizabeth changes as her life goes on, going from a relatively naive young woman to one of the most famous and influential figures in English history.

The rather clumsily titled The Private Lives of Elizabeth and Essex takes place in the troubled last years of Elizabeth I’s reign, and it focuses in particular on her fraught relationship with the haughty but handsome nobleman Essex. Bette Davis gives a biting and acerbic performance as the aging queen, while Errol Flynn is perfectly cast as Essex. The two constantly vie with one another for power, though it’s obvious the extent to which Elizabeth is truly the one with all their power. Theirs is a quasi-romance that is ultimately doomed to end in tragedy, particularly once the foolish and headstrong Essex decides to revolt against his sovereign, setting the stage for his demise at her hands. 

Mary Queen of Scots has proved to be a very popular subject for the cinema, and in 1971’s film that bears her name, she is portrayed by the extremely talented Vanessa Redgrave. It’s a very lavish production, and Redgrave is truly superb in the role. She is matched by Glenda Jackson, who plays Mary’s rival and cousin, Elizabeth I (she appeared in the BBC production Elizabeth R the same year). Though it takes some rather notable liberties with established historical facts, Mary Queen of Scots is still a fascinating and evocative portrait of a royal woman whose life was frequently marred by tragedy and heartache. 

Mary Queen of Scots is one of the many tellings of the tumultuous and tragic life of the title character. In this case, she’s played by the incomparable  Saoirse Ronan, who imbues the young queen with an unquenchable spirit and a determination to live life on her own terms. She’s matched, however, by Margot Robbie’s Elizabeth I, a young queen similarly caught in the conflict between political duty and personal happiness. Each of the women shows remarkable strength, even as they find themselves constantly brought into conflict by the world around them, an encounter only one of them is fated to survive. 

Scathingly funny and deeply tragic, The Favourite  depicts the fateful love triangle between Queen Anne (Olivia Colman), Sarah Churchill (Rachel Weisz), and Abigail Masham (Emma Stone). As Anne’s mental and physical health continues to deteriorate, Sarah and Abigail compete for royal favor, leading to bad blood and brutal political machinations. Whatever its inaccuracies, The Favourite nevertheless demonstrates the corrosive effect that thwarted desire can have, particularly among those who are fortunate enough to be able to wield enormous power. The chemistry among the three leads is positively electric, and one can almost hear the air thrum any time the three are in the same scene together. 

Cleopatra is one of those queens who looms large in the public imagination. In 1963, she was memorably brought to life by Elizabeth Taylor, who imbued the ancient Egyptian ruler with all of the glamor and majesty she no doubt had in life. The film, simply titled Cleopatra, is a stupefying production, as grandiose and epic as anything ever produced by classic Hollywood. It depicts Cleopatra as a woman very much in control of her destiny and image, determined to not just sit on her own throne but, through first Caesar and then Antony, to forge an entirely new world. 

Greta Garbo turns in one of her most noteworthy performances in Queen Christina, the film focused on the life of Queen Christina of Sweden. Though she is a wise and capable queen, Christina finds her duty to her nation tested when she falls in love with the Spanish envoy, Antonio Pimentel de Prado (played by John Gilbert), and she has to decide whether she will follow her duty or her heart. This is a fascinating portrait of one of history’s most extraordinary women, and to make it even more compelling, there’s more than a little play with gender identity and sexuality. 

Though The Crown, one of the most popular series on Netflix, is ostensibly about the institution of the monarchy, it is very much about Queen Elizabeth II in particular. In the first few seasons especially, she is the center of the drama, as she first learns how to be the sovereign that her people need in the uncertain years after the Second World War and then, as she ages, how to contend with the monarchy’s changing status in British life. Claire Foy and Olivia Colman give particularly strong performances as the Queen in her youth and middle age, respectively, while Imelda Staunton gives her an icy grandeur as she approaches her senior years. 

As she always does, Helen Mirren shines in The Queen,  a feature film that focuses on Queen Elizabeth’s troubled reign in the aftermath of Princess Diana’s death. Mirren seems to truly inhabit the mind and soul of the late Queen of England, allowing viewers to see her as fully human rather than as a mere icon. What’s more, the film demonstrates the extent to which the current monarchy is very much at the whim of the press, with almost every action dictated by how it will be construed by the public, a prison from which even the queen herself cannot escape. 

Sofia Coppola directs Kirsten Dunst in Marie Antoinette, a riotous film focused on one of the most notorious queens. In this vision of the monarch, she’s far from the callous creature who says that hungry peasants can eat cake. Instead, she’s a young royal thrown into a court she barely understands. As the film continues, Dunst allows one to see the woman behind the obscuring myths of subsequent rumors. It becomes impossible not to cheer her as she discovers that her desires are valid, even as the film never quite loses sight of the looming darkness that will soon sweep her and her husband off the throne and, ultimately, to the guillotine. 

Catherine the Great has long exerted a powerful hold on the cinematic imagination, and in the unique hands of director Josef von Sternberg and star Marlene Dietrich, she becomes something truly special. The film follows Catherine as she is sent to Russia to marry Peter. However, Dietrich’s Catherine isn’t someone to simply bow and accept her fate. As the film goes on, she slowly realizes her erotic power, and she uses this to finally overthrow her husband and seize the throne for herself. Visually striking, compellingly acted, and propulsively watchable, The Scarlet Empress remains a testament to the uniquely productive relationship between von Sternberg and Dietrich. 

Samantha Morton turns in an inspired performance in The Serpent Queen, one of the many costume dramas produced for Starz. In it, she plays Catherine de Medici, who rises from a despised member of the de Medici clan to a formidable ruler in her own right. Along the way, she has to contend with heartache and betrayal, particularly from her husband, who remains in thrall to his mistress. Morton’s performance allows us to see the heartache in Catherine’s soul, though she decides to turn this into ambition rather than letting it eat her alive. The result is a triumphant period drama highlighting women's power in several Renaissance kingdoms. 

Throughout the 2000s and 2010s, Helen Mirren played a number of royal figures, including Catherine the Great, in the HBO series of the same name. The series focuses, in particular, on her fraught and tumultuous relationship with one of her most important generals, Grigory Potemkin. Though Catherine is a woman driven by feeling, she also has a keen mind and will always put the well-being of her people and her realm above her own desires. Mirren is sublime in the role, and she is expertly cast as one of the titanic figures of the 18th century, a woman determined to shape Russia in her own image.

Throughout her career, Helen Mirren has proved time and again how much she excels at portraying powerful women. Her skills are much on display in the HBO production Elizabeth I, which follows the Virgin Queen in the later years of her reign. Mirren’s Elizabeth is a woman of formidable strength, but she is also someone who experiences more than her fair share of heartache, as she loses first her beloved Robert Dudley and then is forced to execute his stepson, Essex, one of her most notable favorites. Bloody, brutal, and beautiful, Elizabeth I gives viewers a reasonably accurate representation of this pivotal historical period.

Perhaps no actress has portrayed Queen Elizabeth I quite as effectively as Cate Blanchett. It’s not just that she looks like the Virgin Queen; she seems to completely lose herself in the role, to such an extent that it’s hard to see where the performer ends and the role begins. The film takes some notable liberties with established historical facts, but it still captures the paranoia and political fear permeating the uncertain early years of Elizabeth’s reign. It also aptly demonstrates the types of personal sacrifice the young queen made as she slowly molded herself into a monarch for the ages.

Produced as a follow-up to Elizabeth, Elizabeth: The Golden Age takes place several years later, once Elizabeth is reasonably secure on her throne. In the film, she faces personal and political conflicts as she has to deal with her growing love for Walter Raleigh and the looming invasion from the Spanish Armada. As she did in the previous film, Blanchett gives a powerful performance as the Virgin Queen, allowing the viewer to glimpse the human behind the inscrutable mask and the legend. Ultimately, Elizabeth chooses duty over anything else, again showing why she is one of the most notable monarchs in British history. 

What it lakes in historical accuracy The Great  more than makes up for in style and panache. Starring Elle Fanning as Catherine the Great and Nicholas Hoult as Peter III, it focuses on the former’s rise to power once she arrives in Russia and marries the latter. By turns bitingly fun and deeply disturbing, it’s a fascinating look at the way that history is made, asking probing questions about just how it is that gets to tell the story that’s passed down the generations. As the series progresses, Catherine finds herself torn between her affection for the (very mad) Peter and her commitment to bringing Russia into a brighter, more enlightened future.