Entertainment
The Best Movies About Queens
List Rules
Vote up your favorite queen movies.
Us common folk love discussing and learning about the lives of royalty. That is why there are so many movies about English queens. Our fascination with royalty varies from the roles a king or queen has played in history, to what their palace is like, what love interests they had, and what political differences they made during their reign. The news is constantly full of stories about the Royal Family and it’s no wonder that so many great movies have been made the life of royalty! What are the best movies about queens? Vote up the best below and see where your favorite queen films rank.
The movies on this list discuss the life of queens in one way or another. Most of the flicks featured here are more literal and biographical in nature, though some are completely fictional stories about fictional queens. Perhaps the most famous queen featured in several of these movies is Queen Elizabeth of England. Cate Blanchett has played the queen multiple times.
This list features the best queen movies, including: Elizabeth, One Night with the King, The Princess Diaries, Anastasia, The Other Boleyn Girl, Mad Love, and The Young Victoria. Vote up the best films below or add a film about a queen that you love if it isn't already on the list. Then check out these other royal movies.
Ranked by
- 1Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush, Christopher Eccleston
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Shekhar Kapur
Elizabeth Tudor (Cate Blanchett) becomes queen of a divided and dangerous England in 1558. She is roundly perceived as weak by threats from within and abroad, and she is strongly advised to marry by ...more - 2Cate Blanchett, Geoffrey Rush, Clive Owen
- Released: 2007
- Directed by: Shekhar Kapur
Queen Elizabeth I (Cate Blanchett) faces threats to her rule from abroad and at home. Determined to restore England to Roman Catholicism, Spain's King Philip II dispatches his armada. Sworn to her ...more - 3Emily Blunt, Rupert Friend, Paul Bettany
- Released: 2009
- Directed by: Jean-Marc Vallée
As the only legitimate heir of England's King William, teenage Victoria (Emily Blunt) gets caught up in the political machinations of her own family. Victoria's mother (Miranda Richardson) wants her ...more - 4Helen Mirren, Michael Sheen, James Cromwell
- Released: 2006
- Directed by: Stephen Frears
Following the death of Princess Diana in an auto accident, Great Britain's Queen Elizabeth II (Helen Mirren) and Prime Minister Tony Blair (Michael Sheen) struggle to reach a compromise in how the ...more - 5Judi Dench, Ali Fazal, Michael Gambon
- Released: 2017
- Directed by: Stephen Frears
Abdul Karim arrives from India to participate in Queen Victoria's golden jubilee. The young clerk is surprised to find favor with the queen herself. As Victoria questions the constrictions of her ...more - 6Saoirse Ronan, Margot Robbie, Jack Lowden
- Released: 2018
- Directed by: Josie Rourke
Queen of France at 16 and widowed at 18, Mary Stuart defies pressure to remarry. Instead, she returns to her native Scotland to reclaim her rightful throne. But Scotland and England fall under the ...more - 7Olivia Colman, Rachel Weisz, Emma Stone
- Released: 2018
- Directed by: Yorgos Lanthimos
In the early 18th century, England is at war with the French. Nevertheless, duck racing and pineapple eating are thriving. A frail Queen Anne occupies the throne, and her close friend Lady Sarah ...more - 8Drew Barrymore, Anjelica Huston, Dougray Scott
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: Andy Tennant
This updated adaptation of the classic fairytale tells the story of Danielle (Drew Barrymore), a vibrant young woman who is forced into servitude after the death of her father. Danielle's stepmother ...more - 9Peter O'Toole, Katharine Hepburn, Jane Merrow
- Released: 1968
- Directed by: Anthony Harvey
It's Christmas 1183, and King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) is planning to announce his successor to the throne. The jockeying for the crown, though, is complex. Henry has three sons and wants his boy ...more - 10Natalie Portman, Scarlett Johansson, Eric Bana
- Released: 2008
- Directed by: Justin Chadwick
King Henry VIII (Eric Bana) lacks an heir. Seeing this as an opportunity for personal gain, the Duke of Norfolk (David Morrissey) and Sir Thomas Boleyn (Mark Rylance) persuade Thomas' daughter Anne ...more - 11Vanessa Redgrave, Glenda Jackson, Patrick McGoohan
- Released: 1971
- Directed by: Charles Jarrott
Mary, Queen of Scots (Vanessa Redgrave), teenage wife to the king of France, returns to Scotland after her husband's death. Elizabeth Tudor (Glenda Jackson), believing her cousin Mary and her Roman ...more - 12Meg Ryan, John Cusack, Kelsey Grammer
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: Don Bluth, Gary Goldman
The evil wizard Rasputin (Christopher Lloyd) puts a hex on the royal Romanovs and young Anastasia (Meg Ryan) disappears when their palace is overrun. Years later, the Grand Duchess (Angela Lansbury)Â ...more - 13Helena Bonham Carter, Cary Elwes, John Wood
- Released: 1986
- Directed by: Trevor Nunn
King Henry VIII has died, and his only heir, a young Edward VI (Warren Saire), is dying too. Minister John Dudley (John Wood) doesn't want the Roman Catholic Princess Mary (Jane Lapotaire) to become ...more - 14Kirsten Dunst, Jason Schwartzman, Judy Davis
- Released: 2006
- Directed by: Sofia Coppola
An Austrian teenager (Kirsten Dunst) marries the Dauphin (Jason Schwartzman) of France and becomes that country's queen following the death of King Louis XV (Judy Davis) in 1774. Years later, after a ...more - 15Richard Burton, Geneviève Bujold, Irene Papas
- Released: 1969
- Directed by: Charles Jarrott
This film adaption of a Broadway play is based on the historical events surrounding the founding of the Church of England. Catherine of Aragon (Irene Papas), empowered wife of King Henry VIIIÂ ...more - 16Bette Davis, Richard Todd, Joan Collins
- Released: 1955
- Directed by: Henry Koster
English explorer Sir Walter Raleigh (Richard Todd) wants to lead a seafaring expedition to the New World. But, in order to finance the trip, Raleigh needs to win over the formidable Queen Elizabeth I ...more - 17Julie Andrews, Anne Hathaway, Héctor Elizondo
- Released: 2001
- Directed by: Garry Marshall
Shy San Francisco teenager Mia Thermopolis (Anne Hathaway) is thrown for a loop when, from out of the blue, she learns the astonishing news that she's a real-life princess! As the heir apparent to ...more - 18Hugh Bonneville, Jim Carter, Michelle Dockery
- Released: 2019
- Directed by: Michael Engler
The beloved Crawleys and their intrepid staff prepare for the most important moment of their lives. A royal visit from the king and queen of England soon unleashes scandal, romance and intrigue --Â ...more - 19Joseph Fiennes, Gwyneth Paltrow, Geoffrey Rush
- Released: 1998
- Directed by: John Madden
"Shakespeare in Love" is a romantic comedy for the 1990s set in the 1590s. It imaginatively unfolds the witty, sexy and timeless tale behind the creation of the greatest love story ever told. A young ...more - 20Jeremy Irons, Helen Mirren, Ian McDiarmid
- Released: 2005
- Directed by: Tom Hooper
The queen has affairs with earls. - 21Keira Knightley, Ralph Fiennes, Charlotte Rampling
- Released: 2008
- Directed by: Saul Dibb
Though adored by the people, the Duchess of Devonshire (Keira Knightley) is not content to sit as a pretty figurehead. Determined to be a major player in affairs of state, she rises to the forefront ...more - 22Katharine Hepburn, Fredric March, Florence Eldridge
- Released: 1936
- Directed by: John Ford
Mary Stuart (Katharine Hepburn), the Queen of Scotland, returns to her native highlands upon the death of her husband, the King of France -- which is one of the rival nations of English queen ...more - 23Bette Davis, Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland
- Released: 1939
- Directed by: Michael Curtiz
Queen Elizabeth (Bette Davis) secretly loves the ambitious and courageous Earl of Essex (Errol Flynn), but at the same time she distrusts his desire for power, fearing he will exploit his political ...more - 24Isabelle Adjani, Asia Argento, Virna Lisi
- Released: 1994
- Directed by: Patrice Chéreau
La Reine Margot is a 1994 French period film directed by Patrice Chéreau, based on the 1845 historical novel La Reine Margot by Alexandre Dumas. It stars Isabelle Adjani, Daniel Auteuil, Virna Lisi ...more - 25Gerard Butler, Judi Dench, Billy Connolly
- Released: 1997
- Directed by: John Madden
Mrs Brown, also theatrically released as Her Majesty, Mrs Brown, is a 1997 British drama film starring Judi Dench, Billy Connolly, Geoffrey Palmer, Antony Sher and Gerard Butler. It was written by ...more
