6 Best BAFTA Best Actress Winning Movies

By Vlad Zakh · June 13, 2026

The BAFTA for Best Actress tends to reward performances you can’t look away from. Three Billboards has Frances McDormand’s grieving mother renting billboards, The Queen has Helen Mirren as Elizabeth II after Diana’s death, Vera Drake follows Imelda Staunton as a mother with a secret, and Iris has Judi Dench as the novelist facing Alzheimer’s. Elizabeth and Secrets & Lies complete the six.

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

IMDb ★ 8.1 RT 90% Metacritic 88

A grieving mother rents three billboards to pressure police into solving her daughter's murder.

Directed by Martin McDonagh · 1h 55m · Rated R

Won 2 Oscars132 wins & 233 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Cinemax Amazon Channel, HBO Max, Cinemax Apple TV channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Queen (2006)

TMDB ★ 7.2

Queen Elizabeth II struggles to respond to public grief following the death of Princess Diana.

Directed by Stephen Frears · 1h 43m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Vera Drake (2004)

TMDB ★ 7.4

A devoted working-class mother's secret life performing illegal abortions is exposed in 1950s London.

Directed by Mike Leigh · 2h 05m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: BFI Player Amazon Channel

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Iris (2001)

TMDB ★ 7.1

A devoted husband cares for his brilliant novelist wife as Alzheimer's gradually erodes her extraordinary mind.

Directed by Richard Eyre · 1h 31m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Elizabeth (1998)

TMDB ★ 7.3

A young queen navigates court intrigue, religious conflict and threats to her throne in Tudor England.

Directed by Shekhar Kapur · 2h 03m · Rated R

Where to watch

Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Secrets & Lies (1996)

TMDB ★ 7.6

A successful Black optometrist tracks down the white woman who gave her up for adoption decades earlier.

Directed by Mike Leigh · 2h 22m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Criterion Channel, HBO Max · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.

6 Best BAFTA Best Actress Winning Movies

Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri (2017)

The Queen (2006)

Vera Drake (2004)

Iris (2001)

Elizabeth (1998)

Secrets & Lies (1996)

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