Australian actress Margot Robbie hasn’t been in a lot of period films, but she’s starting to amass a good enough number of them that she warrants a Woman Crush Wednesday! I love her classic features coupled with impressive acting range, and yes, I will in fact be watching the Barbie movie when it comes out, thankyouverymuch.
Pan Am (2011-2012)
A miniseries that deals with the glamorous (and not so glamorous) side of being an air stewardess in the early 1960s. I haven’t watched it yet, but it’s been on my watch list for ages.
Suite Française (2014)
Margot Robbie plays a French woman who has an affair with a German soldier, in a subplot to the overall story.
The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
This film is allegedly set in “the 19th century” but the costumes are… not the main focus… if you know what I mean. Co-stars Alexander Sarsgaard as Tarzan.
I, Tanya (2017)
I really don’t care if this is set 20 years after our cut-off date, Robbie was FANTASTIC in this film. And as a young girl in the early-1990s, the Tonya Harding scandal has permanent residency in my brain. The costumes are fabulous too, capturing the homemade tackiness of the real Tonya’s skating outfits.
Goodbye Christopher Robin (2017)
Biopic of A.A. Milne, author of the Winnie-the-Pooh stories. Robbie plays Daphne Milne, his wife.
Mary, Queen of Scots (2018)
I thought Robbie’s performance as Queen Elizabeth I was one of the most compelling in the otherwise largely “meh” film. For the full scoop, you can listen to our podcast review here.
Dreamland (2019)
Margot Robbie plays a woman on the run from the law, set in the 1930s.
Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (2019)
This is a fictionalized re-imagining of the Tate-LaBianca Murders, perpetrated by the Manson Family in 1969, and directed by Quentin Tarantino. The movie is fantastic, even though it doesn’t adhere at all to historical accuracy, and Margot Robbie plays Sharon Tate (who is not pregnant, and doesn’t die horrifically in the film). Leonardo DiCaprio and Brad Pitt are in excellent form as the two main characters who foil Manson’s murderous plans in unexpected and ridiculously over-the-top violent ways.
Amsterdam (2022)
Set to be released this October, Amsterdam is a mystery-comedy film co-starring Robbie, John David Washington, and Christian Bale, as three friends who end up being framed for murder. It also features Chris Rock and Anya Taylor Joy. The costumes look solid and I will watch basically anything with this cast.
Margot Robbie is also slated to appear as silent film era actress Clara Bow in the upcoming film Babylon, which is slated for an early 2023 release. So, stay tuned because we will absolutely be covering the film when it gets released!
That little kid in the A.A. Milne movie reminds me of Danny Torrance from The Shining (must be the haircut). :)
I’ve read son Christopher’s memoir of his childhood. Daphne sounds like a horrible person.
I’ve only seen “I, Tanya” of the films listed. I remember the 1994 Olympic broadcasters (NBC?) used to show Nancy Kerrigan’s mom watching the competitions, and each time they’d remind us that “Nancy Kerrigan’s mother is legally blind.” It became a bit of a punchline. Margot Robbie was both sympathetic and frustrating as Tanya, which feels true to life. It was very funny film, and she was great in it.
It’s the only film on this list I’ve seen as well. Very much a compelling watch.
I’ve enjoyed Robbie in everything I’ve seen her in. I can’t believe it’s been a decade since Pan Am ended! I remember thinking it was fun, at the very least one of the few tolerable things on basic cable, though I’ve heard people(not here) snark it…I don’t remember much, but I hope you enjoy it when you see it!
Suite Francaise is one on my list to watch again. It helps that Matthias Schoenaerts is lovely to look at as well.
Daphne Milne was awful to her son!
Very excited to see Babylon! How many of Clara Bow’s classic looks will they recreate? Guess we’ll have to wait and see!
Let me see, that’s the Tarzan movie where the reviewers brain turned to mush after Tarzan/Sarsgaard took off his shirt?
She is an excellent actress and beautiful.
Very beautiful. Which is why I thought she was wrong for Elizabeth I who was not a beauty, though so fascinating and charismatic men found her extremely attractive, like her mother
Sharon Tate is shown to be pregnant, aligning with the actual time of Tate’s pregnancy, at the end of Once Upon a Time in Hollywood. Do watch it.