Jennifer Hudson is one of the most talented dual-threat performers to grace Hollywood over the past two decades. After becoming a household name as a finalist in the third season of American Idol in 2004, Hudson immediately transitioned into a career as both recording-artist and mainstream Hollywood actress.
In 2007, Hudson won an Oscar and Golden Globe Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role following her performance in the hit musical Dreamgirls, which marked her acting debut. Since then, Hudson has tallied more than 30 big and small screen credits, with critical results ranging across the board. For a clearer idea, here are Jennifer Hudson's 10 Best Movies, According to IMDb.
Sex And The City (2008) 5.6/10
Following her breakout Oscar-winning turn in Dreamgirls, Hudson joined the cast of Sex and the City via the big-screen adaptation of the HBO hit series.
In continuing the main arc of the series, the film follows sex columnist Carrie Bradshaw (Sarah Jessica Parker) in the lead-up to finally marrying Mr. Big (Chris Noth). However, once Carrie is rejected at the last minute, it's up to her closest pals Samantha, Charlotte, and Miranda to help pick up the pieces of her shattered heart. Hudson plays Louise in the film, Carrie's office assistant.
Fragments (2008) 5.7/10
Originally titled Winged Creatures, Fragments explores the post-traumatic stress of a group of survivors following a mass shooting inside a Los Angeles restaurant. The film costars Forest Whitaker, Kate Beckinsale, Dakota Fanning, Guy Pearce, and Josh Hutcherson.
Once the life-changing shooting occurs, the film follows the lives of a cashier (Beckinsale), driving instructor (Whitaker), ER physician (Pearce), a young woman (Fanning), and her father as they struggle to adjust to the horrific aftermath. Hudson plays Kathy Archenault, the daughter of Whitaker's character who helps him cope with the tragedy.
Chi-Raq (2015) 5.7/10
Along with Angela Bassett, Samuel L. Jackson, and John Cusack, Hudson leads a large ensemble in Spike Lee's Chi-Raq, a modern-day adaptation of Aristophanes' Lysistrata.
Set in Chicago, Illinois, the film features a widespread community uprising in the wake of an innocent child dying from a drive-by shooting. The film likens the gang-violence in the city as akin to a warzone in Iraq, leading to a movement among black locals to ignite sweeping change among police and gang members in Chicago.
Winnie Mandela (2011) 6.0/10
As Winnie Mandela in the eponymous biopic, Hudson portrays the larger-than-life humanitarian figure and wife of Nelson Mandela, South Africa's iconic revolutionary leader.
The film tells of Winnie's life before and after meeting her husband, including her rocky childhood and tumultuous time adjusting to Nelson Mandela's (Terrence Howard) long-term imprisonment. With her husband locked away, Winnie is subjected to harassment, bullying, and threats on her life. After released from a year of solitary confinement, Winnie forges ahead with her husband's message and movement of anti-apartheid.
Lullaby (2014) 6.2/10
In Lullaby, euthanasia and the right to die are explored when estranged patriarch Robert (Richard Jenkins) is suddenly diagnosed with terminal cancer and given 36 hours to live. Hudson plays Robert's main orderly, Nurse Carrie.
Upon learning of the tragic news, Robert's family convenes in the hospital to offer their love and support. However, old family wounds are inadvertently reopened when Jonathan (Garret Hedlund) contacts the rest of his family members. Amy Adams, Terrence Howard, and Ann Archer costar in the film.
Dreamgirls (2006) 6.5/10
Although it ranks in the middle of her 10 best movies so far, according to IMDB, Dreamgirls was a dream project of a film debut for Hudson. For her performance as Effie White, Hudson won an Oscar and Golden Globe Award.
Written and directed by Bill Condon, the film charts the unlikely rise of a trio of black female singers in the early 1960s during a time of civil rights unrest. As the singers contend with societal prejudices, they also face their own personal struggles en route to becoming famous. When Effie gets demoted for Deena Jones (Beyonce), she hits bottom before finding ultimate redemption.
Confirmation (2016) 6.8/10
The HBO original film Confirmation focuses on the real-life sexual abuse case involving Supreme Court Justice nominee Clarence Thomas and his political colleague Anita Hill during the 1990s.
Ahead of his confirmation hearing for the Supreme Court, Thomas (Wendell Pierce) is leveled with allegations of sexual misconduct by Anita Hill (Kerry Washington). In response, Thomas calls the televised event a "high-tech lynching." Hudson plays Angela Wright in the film, a witness who was never afforded the chance to testify in court.
Sing (2016) 7.1/10
Garth Jennings' animated crooning competition movie Sing gives Hudson the chance to showcase her world-class voice. She plays Young Nana in the film, an anthropomorphized sheep who used to be a famous singer in her day.
The larger plot concerns Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey), a theater owner desperate to stave off bankruptcy. In a plan to save his livelihood, Moon holds a singing competition in the theater as a way to drum up business. The older version of Nana is played by Jennifer Saunders, grandmother of Eddie (John C. Reilly).
The Secret Life Of Bees (2008) 7.3/10
Based on the Sue Monk Kidd novel, The Secret Life of Bees is a coming-of-age period piece in which a troubled young girl escapes her harsh environment and finds refuge in an unlikely place.
Lily Owens (Dakota Fanning) is a 14-year-old in 1964 South Carolina grieving the death of her mother and fearing her abusive father. When she escapes with her black caregiver Rosaleen (Hudson), they two make their way to the Boatwright property, owned by a family of independent black women who forged their own successful beekeeping business.
The Inevitable Defeat Of Mister & Pete (2013) 7.5/10
In George Tillman Jr.'s The Inevitable Defeat of Mister & Pete, two impoverished youths are forced to grow up in a hurry when their mothers are taken away one summer.
During a hot summer day in NYC, 13-year-old Mister (Skylan Brooks) witnesses his negligent mother Gloria (Hudson) get taken away by the authorities. Along with his best friend Pete (Ethan Dizon), the two boys fend for themselves, scrounge for food, and wait for a child casting call in the hopes of rising out of their innercity tumult.