Jennifer Aniston became America’s sweetheart thanks to her performance as the spoiled and charming Rachel Green in Friends. She stayed with the show for ten years, during which she slowly transitioned into movies with roles in romantic comedies like Picture Perfect and dramas like The Good Girl.
Since Friends ended in 2004, Aniston has become a bonafide movie star. She plays leading roles mostly in comedies like We’re the Millers and Murder Mystery, although she sometimes plays critically acclaimed roles in dramas like Friends with Money and Cake. And while she’ll always be Rachel Green to some people, her filmography shows that she’s a versatile actress, unafraid to take risks with her career.
Before Friends, Aniston had only a few credits to her name. She starred in two quickly canceled TV shows, Molloy and Ferris Bueller, and had a leading role in the now infamous and critically panned horror movie Leprechaun, a project she now seemingly regrets.
Olivia Is Best: A New Side To This Friend
In 2006, Aniston starred in the independent drama Friends with Money. She plays Olivia, a young woman who has a hard time finding love and earning money. She’s friends with three older and wealthier women, with whom she shares a meaningful but occasionally troubled relationship.
Rachel Is Best: Queen Of Hearts
Rachel’s evolution from spoiled Long Island queen to top NYC fashion executive often ranks as one of the best character journeys on television. Her romance with Ross Geller also endeared her to millions of members in the audience, who spent ten years rooting for them to get together for good.
Justine Last Is Best: A Good Girl Indeed
In 2002, during the height of Friends’ fame, Aniston starred in Miguel Arteta’s independent drama The Good Girl. She played Justine Last, a reserved woman with depression who was dissatisfied with her life as a wife and big-box store worker.
Rachel Is Best: Fashion Icon
It’s no secret that Rachel Green is one of television’s most fashionable characters. She had a profound influence on ’90s fashion, with Vogue writer Edward Barsamian crediting her with inspiring the “cool New York look.” The character revived interest in plaid skirts, denim shirts, and dungarees during the decade, continuing to shape fashion well into the 2000s.
Julia Harris Is Best: Wickedly Hilarious
Aniston’s first villainous role came in 2011 when she starred as one of the тιтular bosses from hell in Seth Gordon’s Horrible Bosses. The actress plays Julia Harris, a Sєxually promiscuous and aggressive dentist who harᴀsses her employee, played by Charlie Day.
Rachel Is Best: Critical & Commercial Acclaim
The show was a mᴀssive success with audiences. All ten seasons ended among the Top 10 of the final television season ratings, reaching the coveted first spot in its eighth season.
Claire Bennett Is Best: Going Against Type
In 2014, Aniston received some of her best reviews thanks to the drama film Cake. She plays Claire Bennett, a woman who lives in chronic pain after surviving a car accident that killed her son. Heavily scarred, hostile, and addicted to pain medication, she becomes entangled with the widower of a woman in her support group who recently took her own life.
Rachel Is Best: Modern-Day Icon
Rachel Green is a beloved television icon. Many consider her one of the best characters in the history of sitcoms, right next to Samantha Stephens, Lucy Ricardo, and Mary Richards. In 2010, Entertainment Weekly ranked her the sixth greatest character of the past 20 years. In 2016, The Hollywood Reporter named her Hollywood’s 29th favorite female character.
Alex Levy Is Better: Tough As Nails
Aniston’s latest television role might very well be the best performance of her career. As Alex levy, the long-time female anchor of the fictional Morning Show, Aniston is almost a revelation. Fierce, commanding, vulnerable, and flawed, Aniston gives a tour-de-force performance in a role that’s not always easy to root for.