It is safe to say that Dakota Johnson‘s chances of pursuing an acting career were very high: she is Melanie Griffith and Don Johnson’s daughter and Tippi Hedren’s granddaughter, which is why she grew up on sets, among props, and close to movie cameras. Indeed, Johnson made her acting debut in 1999, at the young age of 9, when she played a small role in Crazy in Alabama, a film directed by Antonio Banderas, with her mother in the lead role. However, she did not appear in any other projects until 2010, when she returned to the big screen with The Social Network, David Fincher’s three-time Oscar-winning drama about the creation of Facebook.
From then on, Johnson has been involved in numerous productions, but the one that launched her to fame was the Fifty Shades of Grey trilogy, in which she starred alongside Jamie Dornan. In this trilogy, the actress plays Anastasia Steele, a timid young woman who ends up having an affair with a peculiar billionaire. The trilogy is inspired by the eponymous E.L. James novels and did not receive the best reviews. Although Anastasia is by far the role most associated with Johnson, the actress has many more brilliant performances. Here’s a look at some of Dakota Johnson’s best performances.
Update February 16, 2024: In honor of the release of Madame Web, this article has been updated to include more of Dakota Johnson’s best movies and where each title can be streamed.
10 The Five-Year Engagement (2012)
Johnson’s early career is filled with memorable small parts in some popular movies. The first big one was in The Social Network, but she also had a small role in 21 Jump Street. Her best of these types of small roles is in The Five-Year Engagement. The movie stars Jason Segal and Emily Blunt as a couple whose relationship becomes strained due to their engagement being prolonged. The two break up and go their separate ways, with Blunt’s character starting a relationship with a professor, played by Rhys Ifans, and Segal’s character beginning a relationship with a hostess at a restaurant he is working at, played by Johnson.
Why Dakota Johnson Is Great In It
There is an expression: there are no small parts, just small actors. Even in a few scenes, as Johnson makes an impression on the audience. She perfectly fits the role of the cute girlfriend, but not one that is meant to last, and the audience is attracted to her even though she is not the right fit for Segal’s character. This is a movie that features Chris Pratt, Alison Brie, Kevin Hart, Mindy Kaling, Kumali Nanajani, and Randall Park, to name a few. Johnson is able to stand out of the bunch, and it is clear that she has the magnetic wow factor to be a star. Stream on Peacock.
9 The High Note (2020)
The 2020 movie The High Note was directed by Nisha Ganatra and features Johnson as Maggie, the overworked assistant of Grace Davis (Tracee Ellis Ross), a music star whose talent landed her on top of her game. Maggie spends her days running errands for her boss, willing to fulfill every whim, but she dreams of becoming a music producer and is secretly preparing an album of her boss’s best singles. However, when Grace’s manager (Ice Cube) offers the singer a chance to take her career in another direction, both women come up with a plan that may change their lives forever. The cast of the film is rounded out by Kelvin Harrison Jr., Bill Pullman, and Zoe Chao.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
The movie received positive reviews but was slightly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic; as the film was initially scheduled for a theatrical release, it was then made available on PVOD. But the most intriguing element of the movie has to be Maggie and her relationship with Grace. Though Maggie’s character seems a little too idealistic for someone who has worked in the business for some time now, we cannot help but love her enthusiasm and love for music. Johnson and Ross had incredible chemistry on screen that transformed them into a powerful dynamic duo that everyone loved. Stream on Fubo, Peacock and DirecTV
the high note
- Release Date
- June 10, 2020
- Director
- Nisha Ganatra
- Runtime
- 113
8 A Bigger Splash (2015)
Luca Guadagnino directed this remake of the French film La Piscine and tells the story of a married couple enjoying a quiet vacation in Sicily when their peace is interrupted by the appearance of the wife’s old lover, a lying, profiting man whose attractive daughter accompanies. When her husband begins to seduce her ex-lover’s daughter, a spiral of jealousy and suspicion begins among the four of them, with irreversible consequences. The cast of A Bigger Splash is headed by Tilda Swinton (Marianne Lane, the singer), Ralph Fiennes (Harry Hawkes, the old lover), Johnson (Penelope Lanier, Hawkes’ attractive daughter) and Matthias Schoenaerts (Paul De Smedt, Marianne’s partner).
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
A Bigger Splash notably came out the same year as Fifty Shades of Grey and showed a different side to Johnson. While critics might have tried to dismiss her in Fifty Shades of Grey, A Bigger Splash showed she was not one to be written off. Her role is not as big as the two leads of Swinton and Fiennes, but she still leaves an impression. This is also the second installment in Guadagnino’s self-described Desire trilogy, which began with 2009’s I Am Love and concluded with 2017’s Call Me By Your Name. Rent or Purchase on Apple TV+, Vudu, Google Play, or Prime Video
7 Black Mass (2015)
Black Mass is a 2015 movie directed by Scott Cooper, based on the bestseller Black Mass: The True Story of an Unholy Alliance Between the FBI and the Irish Mob. It follows James Whitey Bulger (Johnny Depp), who grew up with his friend John Connolly (Joel Edgerton) on the streets of South Boston. They meet again as adults, but their paths have diverged: Connolly is an important player in the Boston FBI office, and Bulger has become a leader of the Irish mob. Both men team up for a collaborative mission with a goal in common: to eliminate the Italian mob. This unthinkable alliance triggers several violent events that allow Whitey to elude the law’s control, consolidate his power and become one of the most powerful gangsters in Boston’s history.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
The cast of Black Mass is rounded off by Benedict Cumberbatch, Peter Sarsgaard, Kevin Bacon, and, of course, Dakota Johnson, who plays the role of Lindsey Cyr, Bulger’s longtime girlfriend and the mother of his child. In a male-led crime drama, Johnson holds her ground and stands out as one of the only notable women in the film. There certainly is something to the fact that she is paired with Johnny Depp as her romantic partner despite being so much younger than him, but it is fitting for the character. Stream on Max and DirecTV
Black Mass
- Release Date
- September 4, 2015
- Runtime
- 122
6 Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)
Bad Times at the El Royale is a neo-noir thriller that takes place in a hotel called the El Royale. The guests made up of a Catholic Priest named Daniel Flynn (Jeff Bridges), a struggling singer, Darlene Sweet (Cynthia Erivo), a salesman Laramie Seymour Sullivan (Jon Hamm), and a hippie woman named Emily Summerspring (Dakota Johnson), all have their own secrets to hide. But during the course of the film, all of their secrets are revealed, and they catch up to them, including what happened in the hotel ten years ago.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
The movie has a pretty great cast, which also includes Chris Hemsworth, who plays a cult leader named Billy Lee. Emily is shown to have kidnapped someone, who turns out to be her sister Rose (Cailee Spaeny), whom she rescued from Billy’s cult. Johnson’s performance in the movie as a protective older sister is fantastic, even as her sister tries to get away from her and into Billy’s arms. Released the same year as the Fifty Shades series concluded with Fifty Shades Freed, Bad Times at the El Royale was an important film for Johnson as, for many, it helped break the image they had of her as the lead of three poorly received erotic thrillers and here could cut loose as one of the best parts in a truly underrated gem. Rent or Purchase on Apple TV+, Vudu, Google Play, or Prime Video
5 Our Friend (2019)
In the film Our Friend, Dakota stars as Nicole, a woman who must face the hardest time of her life when she learns she has terminal cancer and only six months to live. Together with her husband Matthew (Casey Affleck), they decide to cope with it and tell their two daughters. To help them and ease the situation, Dean (Jason Segel), the couple’s best friend, moves into their house for a while to take care of their daughters and lend them a helping hand during this difficult time. But the impact of this situation will be much greater than anyone could have imagined.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
Our Friend was directed by Gabriela Cowperthwaite and is inspired by a true story. Upon its release, the movie received positive reviews but due to premiering at the Toronto International Film Festival in September 2019 it would not get a theatrical release until January 2021 and was obviously impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic which resulted in a very limited release and many people did not get the chance to see it. In the film, Dakota’s character Nicole is shown undergoing treatment for cancer and coming to terms with the fact that her illness is terminal. The film’s ending is predictable but quite heartbreaking nonetheless. Johnson’s touching performance is enough to bring tears to people’s eyes. Stream on Prime Video
4 Cha Cha Real Smooth (2022)
Cha Cha Real Smooth tells the story of a man named Andrew (Cooper Raif) and how his life changes when he meets a woman named Domino (Johnson) and her autistic daughter Lola (Vanessa Burghardt) at a bat mitzvah which he attends with his 12-year-old brother David (Evan Assante). He becomes close with Domino and her daughter, which makes him rethink some of the decisions in his life and move on from his girlfriend, who went to Barcelona.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
Cha Cha Real Smooth is sweet, funny, and romantic, even though the main leads never end up together. Johnson did a great job of portraying a mother, and her acting when Domino reveals that she suffered from a miscarriage really touches your heart. Andrew, who works as a ‘party starter’ or a ‘jig conductor’, brings some much-needed relief to the lives of both Domino and her daughter Lola. Their connection seems natural and beautiful, and both actors did a really great job in the movie. The film received a lot of positive response from both critics and the audience due to its sweet story. Stream on Apple TV
3 The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)
In The Peanut Butter Falcon, we follow the story of Zak (Zack Gottsagen), a boy with Down Syndrome who runs away from his residence to pursue his dream of becoming a professional wrestler. Out of a series of circumstances, he meets Tyler (Shia LaBeouf), a criminal who is also on the run and subsequently becomes his trainer and ally. Their adventure leads them both to meet Eleanor (Johnson), a somewhat peculiar nurse who has been sent to find Zak, but decides to join them on their journey through Northern California.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
This film was written and directed by Tyler Nilson and Michael Schwartz. It was released in 2019 and garnered several nominations and awards, including the NBR award for Best Independent Film. The film tells a heart-touching story with incredible performances from all three of the main actors. Dakota Johnson’s character is a bit peculiar but sports a big heart as she decides to defy the wishes of her boss and help Zak on his journey. When Eleanor, Tyler, and Zak end up as a found family in the end, you cannot help but wipe away a few tears. Stream on Prime Video
2 Suspiria (2018)
Based on the 1977 Italian film of the same name, Suspiria tells the story of an American woman, Susie (Johnson), who goes to Berlin to join a prestigious dance academy. But it is soon revealed that the academy is a sinister institution run by a coven of witches, the main of which is the company’s lead Choreographer, Madame Blanc (Tilda Swinton). With this film, Johnson proved that she is capable of holding her ground in a great horror movie, and it is also great to see her in a new dynamic with Swinton after their appearance together in A Bigger Splash. The movie is a great treat for horror fans who do not mind a bit of blood and gore.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
The movie is a great treat for horror fans who do not mind a bit of blood and gore. It also marked a reunion with A Bigger Splash director Luca Guadagino. This has to be one of the greatest roles ever played by Johnson as she stands toe to toe with a cast full of great actresses. The last twist of the film is also something that people will always remember her for. Stream on Amazon Prime Videos
Suspiria Remake
- Release Date
- October 11, 2018
- Director
- Luca Guadagnino
- Runtime
- 145
1 The Lost Daughter (2021)
The Lost Daughter marks the directorial debut of Maggie Gyllenhaal. The film features a prominent cast including Olivia Colman, Dakota Johnson, Jessie Buckley, and Peter Sarsgaard and is based on Italian author Elena Ferrante’s novel of the same name. The film follows Leda (Colman), a divorced college professor and mother of two daughters. When they leave home to stay with their father in Canada, Leda feels both lonely and liberated, so she decides to take a seaside holiday in a small coastal town in southern Italy. During her stay, the woman becomes obsessed with a young mother named Nina (played by Johnson and her daughter, which will force her to confront issues from her past and maternity.
Why is Dakota Johnson Great in It?
The Lost Daughter is one of those movies where two women form a genuine and beautiful bond over something they find to be shameful. In this case, it is their lack of motherly love for their daughters and their wish to run away from the responsibilities of parenthood. Both Colman and Johnson are phenomenal in their roles, and Johnson’s performance as a tired mother of a three-year-old is raw and realistic. It certainly is one of Jonhson’s best films and one many believed she should have been nominated for an Oscar for. While films like Madame Web and Fifty Shades of Grey might make one dismissive of Johnson, all one needs to do is watch The Lost Daughter and realize how great she is. Stream on Netflix
Check out a behind-the-scenes look at Johnson’s latest film, Madame Web.
