Dame Maggie Smith has died, a statement from her family confirmed today (September 27), leaving behind an impressive 70-year career that spans both stage and screen.

From making her debut in London’s West End during the 1950s to stealing the spotlight in major Hollywood franchises like Harry Potter and Downton Abbey, she was a versatile actor who refused to be pigeonholed. And that’s reflected in her sprawling filmography.

Following her death, fans have taken to social media to share the best moments from Smith’s legendary career while others are planning movie marathons in her honour. But where’s the best place to start if you don’t know the legendary actor’s filmography so well?

What’s Maggie Smith’s best movie?

Dame Maggie Smith attends The Royal Film Performance and World Premiere of "The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel"
Dame Maggie Smith attends The Royal Film Performance and World Premiere of “The Second Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” at Odeon Leicester Square on February 17, 2015 in London, England. CREDIT: Dave M. Benett/WireImage

According to Rotten Tomatoes, 1985’s A Room With A View is the highest rated film in Smith’s career. Not only does it have a perfect score with reviewers, it also has a strong 85 per cent approval score with audiences.

Based on E. M. Forster’s 1908 novel of the same name, A Room With A View follows Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) as she struggles with the restrictive and repressed culture of Edwardian England and falls in love with the free-spirited George Emerson (Julian Sands) while visiting Italy with her chaperon, Charlotte Bartlett (Maggie Smith). Daniel Day-Lewis, Judi Dench and Simon Callow also star in the social comedy.

A box office success, A Room With A View picked up three Oscars, five BAFTAs and a Golden Globe and is still considered one of the most important British films of all time.

But that’s not the only beloved movie in Smith’s sprawling filmography…

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These are the best Maggie Smith movies

Actors Kelly MacDonald (L) and Maggie Smith appear in a scene from the film "Gosford Park."
Actors Kelly MacDonald (L) and Maggie Smith appear in a scene from the film ‘Gosford Park’. CREDIT: Chicagofilms/Getty Images

According to Rotten Tomatoes, these are the 15 top-rated Maggie Smith films, ranked by Rotten Tomatoes’ critics’ score, AKA the Tomatometer.

  1. A Room With A View (1985)
  2. The Lonely Passion of Judith Hearne (1987)
  3. The Missionary (1982)
  4. Nothing Like a Dame (2018)
  5. Harry Potter And The Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (2011)
  6. Richard III (1995)
  7. Evil Under The Sun (1982)
  8. A Private Function (1984)
  9. Harry Potter And The Prisoner Of Azkaban (2004)
  10. The Lady In The Van (2015)
  11. The Secret Garden (1993)
  12. Harry Potter And The Goblet Of Fire (2005)
  13. Downton Abbey: A New Era (2022)
  14. Gosford Park (2001)
  15. The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie (1969)



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