This will be a controversial pick. Don’t get me wrong, I really like Florence Pugh but she’s NOT one of the greatest actors of all-time. Not even close. That hasn’t stopped Empire from inserting her into their list of the 50 greatest.
Simply one of the very best of her generation. At just 26, she already has a number of mesmerising performances under her belt. From sun-bleached horror to period drama, familial wrestling sagas to dystopian nightmares, the endlessly-compelling Pugh never fails to bring a grounded empathy to her characters. She has decades ahead of her – but has already solidified her place in the pantheon.
Pugh has basically had three well-reviewed performances since her career really jump-started around 7 years ago: “Lady Macbeth,” “Midsommar,” “The Wonder.” She’s shown great promise, but it’s such an odd choice to include her as part of the 50 best of all-time.
Another odd inclusion is that of Michelle Yeoh. It’s clear she wouldn’t have made it without “Everything Everywhere All At Once” getting released this year. Her other marquee role was in “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon.” For some reason Empire also lists “Crazy Rich Asians” and “Memoirs of a Geisha” as her other highlights. Yikes.
The rest of the list has all of the obvious greats such as Daniel Day-Lewis, Anthony Hopkins, Robert De Niro, Gene Hackman and Al Pacino.