# What is the best Frances McDormand movie of all time?

> Three Oscars, countless unforgettable characters, and a career defined by refusal to play it safe. From quiet midwestern determination to scorched-earth rage — where does she peak for you?

*By YPB Team · Published April 10, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-is-the-best-frances-mcdormand-movie-of-all-time*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **Blood Simple**
   A 1984 Coen Brothers neo-noir debut where McDormand plays Abby, a woman whose affair triggers a deadly chain of events.
2. **Raising Arizona**
   A 1987 Coen Brothers comedy where McDormand plays Dot, the sister-in-law of a couple who kidnap a baby to start a family.
3. **Mississippi Burning**
   A 1988 drama where McDormand plays Mrs. Pell, the sheriff's wife whose testimony is key to solving civil rights murders.
4. **Short Cuts**
   A 1993 Robert Altman ensemble drama where McDormand plays Betty Weathers, a woman navigating marital tensions in Los Angeles.
5. **Fargo**
   A 1996 Coen Brothers crime thriller where McDormand plays Marge Gunderson, a pregnant Minnesota police chief investigating a triple murder, winning the Academy Award for Best Actress.
6. **Almost Famous**
   A 2000 Cameron Crowe film where McDormand plays Elaine Miller, the overprotective mother of a teenage rock journalist touring with a band.
7. **The Man Who Wasnt There**
   A 2001 Coen Brothers noir where McDormand plays Doris Crane, an unfaithful wife caught in a web of blackmail.
8. **North Country**
   A 2005 drama where McDormand plays Glory Dodge, a friend who becomes a crucial ally in a landmark sexual harassment lawsuit.
9. **Burn After Reading**
   A 2008 Coen Brothers dark comedy where McDormand plays Linda Litzke, a gym employee who stumbles upon what she thinks is a CIA disc.
10. **Moonrise Kingdom**
   A 2012 Wes Anderson film where McDormand plays Laura Bishop, the mother of a runaway girl in a whimsical 1960s summer camp story.
11. **Three Billboards Outside Ebbing Missouri**
   A 2017 dark comedy where McDormand plays Mildred Hayes, a grieving mother who takes on the local police department, winning her second Academy Award for Best Actress.
12. **Nomadland**
   A 2020 Chloe Zhao drama where McDormand plays Fern, a widow who travels the American West as a modern-day nomad, winning her third Academy Award for Best Actress.
13. **The Tragedy of Macbeth**
   A 2021 Joel Coen adaptation where McDormand plays Lady Macbeth in a stark, stylized black-and-white version of Shakespeare's tragedy.

Tags: movies, actors, frances mcdormand