Despite recent controversy with certain advertisements, Sydney Sweeney is one of the biggest actors in Hollywood right now. She’s garnered a ton of attention from both her big hits and her massive flops (who could forget Madame Web?), and has led to her getting a ton of work in the last few years. She’s not just confined to one genre, though, either. She’s delved into horror, superhero, drama, and even romantic comedies, making her a very versitile actor. She’s made a lot of film appearances in big movies, before she blew up, too, like Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and Under the Silver Lake—but those were so small they can’t really be considered “Sydney Sweeney movies”.Which of her movies are the best of the best, though? For an easy ranking, most look to the most popular movie review site, Rotten Tomatoes, which ranks films based on both critic and audience reviews. Sometimes critics can be totally off base compared to what the audience thinks of a film, which makes checking out Rotten Tomatoes scores even more fun. So, where do Sydney’s films rank against each other, according to the critics?
10
‘Echo Valley’ (2025): 52%
Sydney takes up the role of a “troubled daughter” in Echo Valley, rebelling against her mother, Kate (Julianne Moore). Things take a massive turn for the worse, though, when her character, Claire, shows up at her mom’s door with another person’s blood all over her. This leads to an incredibly thrilling mystery as Kate attempts to discover what on Earth happened to her daughter.Everyone loves a good mystery. Despite this not performing well among critics and audiences alike (audiences gave it a score of 51%), it’s a serviceable enough movie. Most reviews on Rotten Tomatoes agree, though, that Sydney is the clear highlight of the movie. Like most of her movies—regardless of how bad they may be (Madame Web aside)—this young actor gives her all and tries to do the best with what she’s given, making her a highlight alongside Julianne Moore.
9
‘Anyone But You’ (2023): 53%
Anyone But You is an odd case of the critics not enjoying something that the audience did, with the audience score for this project being a whopping 87%. This is mainly because, at the end of the day, this film is fun and doesn’t care too much about being an Oscar-winning masterpiece. It knows exactly what it is and leans into it with comedic prowess. Sure, it’s predictable at times, but the journey to said predictable events is enjoyable.
But, this doesn’t make the films flaws any less valid. As stated, it is predictable and can definitely turn some people off as they trek through Act One. Performances can also be rough at times—even Sydney’s. It can feel very generic, with the two leads being the main draw-ins for people keeping them there. There are jokes that work, but there are also some that can be incredibly cringey at times. So, at the end of the day, someone watching the movie is either going to love it or absolutely hate it.
8
‘Eden’ (2024): 57%
Much like Anyone But You, the critic and audience consensuses are contrasting for Eden. Based on the thrilling true story of a group of people who abandoned the modern world and fled to an island to live in isolation, Eden is a story about desperation and the struggle for power among societies—quite similar to stories like William Golding‘s Lord of the Flies. Regardless of what critics thought of the movie, though, it had a pretty great cast featuring Sydney, Jude Law, Ana De Armas, Vanessa Kirby, Daniel Brühl, and more.
It’s the talent of the this cast that really keeps audiences committed to Eden‘s runtime. The chemistry between everyone is pretty good, making character dynamics interesting to watch unfold. Sydney’s attempt at a German accent is rough at times, but she does a pretty good job standing among such titans of the acting world. Ron Howard has always been a great director—with movies under his belt like Jim Henson Idea Man and Solo: A Star Wars Story—so there was no doubt this movie was going to, at the least, be enjoyable.
7
‘Clementine’ (2019): 62%
Kind of like how Anyone But You and Eden have higher audience scores than critic scores, the opposite is true for 2019’s Clementine. Critics seemed to enjoy this Lara Gallagher movie, but audiences just couldn’t get behind the hype. The movie surrounds Karen (Otmara Marrero), who just went through a very rough breakup and has gone on the run to get away from everything. When she comes across a stranger named Lana (Sydney’s character) and develops a relationship with her.
Clementine is supposed to be an “erotic thriller,” but it unfortunately doesn’t deliver as much as it could. The thrills don’t work as effectively as they should have, which makes the experience watching it fall a bit flat. It takes a bit to get started, but it does eventually find a little bit of footing as it reaches Act Two. It’s different from most movies like this that people are used to seeing. It’s less focused on narrative and more on vibe and selling the message of power dynamics in love through the vibes of the project.
6
‘Nocturne’ (2020): 62%
Another example of a horror film Sydney was in that didn’t deliver as well as it could have, but was still enjoyed by critics, is Nocturne (with a rough audience score of 41%). When two twin sisters, Juliet and Vivian (Madison Iseman), are moving closer to their future as music students and pianists, a psychological thriller unfolds as their sibling rivalry grows more and more severe… to a deadly point.
In total bluntness, Nocturne just isn’t scary. It doesn’t deliver on the “horror” part of psychological horror. A not scary horror film can truly be the death of it. There is still good in this, though. Sydney and Madison Iseman have a good dynamic that sells the relationship between the sisters and its eventual deterioration. So, at the very least, the core relationship works very well and keeps things compelling.
5
‘Americana’ (2025): 66%
The third Sydney Sweeney movie to release in 2025, Americana is quite good and both critics and audiences agree. Acting as the directing debut of director Tony Tost, Americana is a great 1 hour and 47 minutes. When an extremely rare Native American artifact hits the black market, Penny Jo Poplin (a young waitress) and Lefty Ledbetter (Paul Walter Hauser) seek it out, but it puts them in the sights of a terrible criminal, Dillon MacIntosh (Eric Dane).
Americana feels like a true Western in the modern age, and that helps it works extremely well. The setting and vibe support the story greatly, which makes the thrilling journey of Penny and Lefty feel vastly entertaining. While it is a tad forgettable, Paul Walter Hauser and Sydney Sweeney hold the movie up on their shoulders for the whole runtime and keep audiences engaged.
4
‘Dead Ant’ (2017): 69%
While audiences did not get down with Dead Ant, critics really enjoyed it, and they have some pretty good reasons for feeling so. When a down on their luck metal band is invited to perform at the legendary music festival, Coachella, they get stranded in the desert… and have to fight against giant ants. It’s a pretty ridiculous premise and feels more like a movie where the opposite would be true with ratings, as critics don’t typically love crazy stuff like that, while audiences usually do.
Exactly like Anyone But You, Dead Ant knows exactly what it is and isn’t afraid to be exactly that. It’s giant ants. How high art can it really get? With actors like Sean Astin, who thrive in ridiculousness, there are some pretty funny bits in the film. This makes it an enjoyable film to watch despite all of its flaws. Sometimes the way a movie makes someone feel can be more important than the logistics of the filmmaking behind it.
3
‘Immaculate’ (2024): 72%
Another horror flick on Sydney Sweeney’s resume is last year’s Immaculate by director Michael Mohan. The scares and terror here are pretty good, but the highlight of the movie is Sweeney’s ability to adapt to circumstances as an actor. She’s able to pull off an innocent character, who quickly must change thanks to her horrific surroundings. She sells it very well and draws audiences into the conflict like no other.
Also, like many horror movies struggle to, Immaculate pulls off a magnificent ending, leaving viewers satisfied and genuinely shocked. Horror films can often fight to find an ending that wraps up the story and leaves people feeling complete, but also leaves people with that scared feeling that they want audiences to feel coming out of a horror movie. This is a huge thing that Immaculate pulls off above the rest.
2
‘Big Time Adolescence’ (2020): 86%
Despite how things turned out for his newest film, The Pickup, Pete Davidson has been in some great projects and one of, if not his best, is Big Time Adolescence. It’s all about growing up and becoming the person you’re meant to be, and it delivers that message incredibly well. Sydney takes up the role of Holly, Zeke’s girlfriend, who is a huge vehicle to drive the themes forward as Zeke continuously messes up in their relationship in front of Mo (Griffin Gluck).
Big Time Adolescence is most likely the best proof that Sydney can take up a supporting role and be a perfect actor to do so. She doesn’t overshine anyone from the core cast, but doesn’t fall short, either. She serves the exact purpose she needs to and does it extremely well. The way she plays her role perfectly contrasts how Davidson takes on his role, making them a super efficacious pair that would be great to see on screen again.
1
‘Reality’ (2023): 94%
Sydney Sweeney’s top-rated movie on Rotten Tomatoes is above Big Time Adolescence by an almost entire 10%, and for very good reason. The actor has taken up a lot of roles over the years, but none as complex and dramatic as the one she plays in the 2023 biopic, Reality. This Tina Satter movie is one of the best dramas of 2023 and, by far, Sydney’s best performance she’s ever given (so far).
The story follows the true tale of whistleblower Reality Winner, a former NSA agent who leaked a report about Russian interference in the 2016 United States of America Presidential election. This movie, which primarily takes place in one single location—Reality’s home as government agents raid it for evidence—is gripping in so many ways, and one of them is watching Sydney’s performance. It’s subtle but bombastic in all the right ways and is borderline Oscar-worthy.
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