The 15 Greatest Bette Davis Roles

Acid-tongued divas, doomed romantics, ruthless schemers and faded stars from the studio era's heights to its gothic twilight. Where do you stand?

1

Margo Channing (All About Eve)

Davis's acid-tongued aging Broadway star in the 1950 classic, widely cited as the finest performance of her career.

1000pts

2

Baby Jane Hudson (Baby Jane?)

The grotesque faded child star tormenting her sister in the 1962 thriller What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?.

929pts

3

Julie Marsden (Jezebel)

The headstrong Southern belle whose defiance earned Davis her second Academy Award in 1938.

817pts

4

Mildred Rogers (Of Human Bondage)

The cruel, callous waitress in the 1934 film that first made Davis a major star.

566pts

5

Judith Traherne (Dark Victory)

The doomed socialite facing a terminal illness in the earnest 1939 melodrama.

565pts

6

Charlotte Hollis (Sweet Charlotte)

The tormented Southern recluse of the 1964 gothic thriller Hush...Hush, Sweet Charlotte.

440pts

7

Kit Marlowe (Old Acquaintance)

The poised novelist navigating a lifelong rivalry with a friend in the 1943 drama.

264pts

8

Queen Elizabeth I (Elizabeth and Essex)

Davis's regal, imperious Virgin Queen in the 1939 Technicolor historical epic.

264pts

9

Margaret Elliot (The Star)

The fading Hollywood actress clinging to past glory in the 1952 drama that earned an Oscar nod.

264pts

10

Fanny Skeffington (Mr. Skeffington)

The vain society beauty confronting aging across decades in the 1944 drama.

264pts

11

Rosa Moline (Beyond the Forest)

The discontented small-town wife whose line 'What a dump!' became legend in the 1949 melodrama.

264pts

12

Charlotte Vale (Now, Voyager)

The repressed spinster who blossoms into elegance in the beloved 1942 romantic drama.

1pts

13

Regina Giddens (The Little Foxes)

The ruthless, scheming Southern matriarch of the 1941 drama, among Davis's most callous roles.

1pts

14

Leslie Crosbie (The Letter)

The cool, calculating wife who kills her lover in the gripping 1940 noir melodrama.

1pts

15

Joyce Heath (Dangerous)

The self-destructive actress role that won Davis her first Academy Award in 1935.

1pts