Florence Pugh is undoubtedly the breakout star of this year’s awards circuit.
Thanks to her standout turn as Amy March in Greta Gerwig’s Little Women adaptation, the 24-year-old has earned her first Oscar nomination - along with a Critics’ Choice nod and her second Bafta nomination (she was on the organisation’s Rising Star shortlist in 2018).
2020 has plenty more on the cards for Pugh, too. Once awards season is over, she’ll join the Marvel universe in the new Black Widow spin-off film, playing fellow Oscar nominee Scarlett Johansson’s younger sister.
But though her ascent to mainstream stardom might seem meteoric, Pugh has in fact put in the work in a series of stellar performances since she was just a teenager - you just might have missed them.
To catch up on Pugh's impressive filmography ahead of her Oscars debut, consider this a cheat sheet on her standout roles to date - and how you can watch them from your sofa...
The Falling
Pugh made her screen debut in this haunting psycho-drama from director Carol Morley, which was released in 2015 and is set in an all-girls school in the late '60s.
The actress proved herself an exciting new talent as Abbie, the rebellious best friend of Maisie Williams’ Lydia, whose unexplained fainting fits seem to trigger an outbreak of hysteria among the pupils.
Available to rent on BFI Player
Lady Macbeth
After watching Lady Macbeth, Little Women director Gerwig just knew she had to cast Pugh as Amy March - as her performance proved that she would be able to “punch in the same weight class” as Saoirse Ronan.
In this 2017 indie period drama, based not on Shakespeare’s tragedy but on Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk, a Russian novella inspired by the play, Pugh is compelling (and often frightening) as Katherine, a young woman trapped in a loveless marriage with an older, abusive husband.
Available to rent on BFI Player
The Little Drummer Girl
The star landed her first lead TV role in The Little Drummer Girl, the BBC miniseries based on John Le Carre’s 1983 novel.
Billed as a spiritual sequel to the broadcaster’s hit adaptation of The Night Manager, the six-part show was directed by Park Chan-wook and saw Pugh play aspiring actress Charlie, who gets caught up in the world of international espionage when she meets an Israeli intelligence officer (Alexander Skarsgard). Le Carre was so impressed, he named the heroine of his next novel Florence.
Available to download on Amazon
Fighting With My Family
Proving that she’s nothing if not versatile, Pugh followed The Little Drummer Girl with Fighting With My Family, a comedy written and directed by Stephen Merchant set in the world of WWE … via Norwich.
She played Saraya, an aspiring wrestler (based on former champion Paige) who is offered the chance of a lifetime to fly out to the States and join WWE. Also boasting Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson on exec producing duties, the film also starred British comedy stalwarts including Nick Frost and Julia Davis.
Available to stream on Netflix
Outlaw King
Netflix’s re-imagining of Robert the Bruce’s rebellion didn’t exactly earn rave reviews, but critics agreed that Pugh’s turn as Elizabeth de Burgh, the young wife of Chris Pine’s Bruce, was one of the best bits. The two-hour historical epic also stars Aaron Taylor-Johnson and Billy Howle.
Available to stream on Netflix
King Lear
Pugh holds her own against a cast stacked with British acting heavyweights in this abridged screen version of Shakespeare’s tragedy, set in modern London.
She is Cordelia to Anthony Hopkins’ Lear, with Emma Thompson and Emily Watson as her scheming sisters Goneril and Regan. In a neat twist of fate, she and on-screen father Hopkins are up for Best Supporting Actress and Actor respectively at the Oscars next month.
Available to stream on Amazon Video
Marcella
This Scandi-inspired ITV thriller (the makers even gave lead star Anna Friel a trademark jumper in a nod to The Killing’s Sarah Lund) marked Pugh’s TV debut back in 2016.
She has a three-episode arc as Cara, a webcam model caught up in the cold case Friel’s DCI Marcella Backland is re-investigating.
Available to stream on Netflix
