Cate Blanchett has had a long and successful career in Hollywood, but today, the actor revealed that she’s “serious about giving up acting” as there are “lots of things I want to do with my life”. Speaking to Radio Times, she explained how she’s not that comfortable with being a celebrity: “When you go on a talk show, or even here now, and then you see soundbites of things you’ve said – pulled out and italicised – they sound really loud. I’m not that person.”

The actor hasn’t set an official date for her retirement from film and TV, but it sounds like we might be seeing a lot less of Blanchett on our screens in the near future. And what a career it has been: Blanchett has many brilliant roles under her belt and won the Oscar for best supporting actress in 2005 for The Aviator and best actress in 2014 for Blue Jasmine.

We’ve taken a look back and highlighted 10 of Blanchett’s best roles in film.

Elizabeth (1998)

In one of her most celebrated roles and the one that cemented her status as an actor in Hollywood, Blanchett plays Elizabeth I as she becomes queen of a divided and dangerous England in 1558. As a woman ruling alone, she is widely seen as weak by enemies and allies alike and is advised by her counsel to marry William Cecil (Richard Attenborough). But she will be married only to her country. So, she has to choose where to place her trust: with her secretary Walsingham (Geoffrey Rush), a master of espionage, or her secret lover, Sir Robert Dudley (Joseph Fiennes).

The Lord Of The Rings trilogy (2001–2003)

Playing the mighty Galadriel, a regal elf from Middle-earth, in The Lord Of The Rings trilogy, Blanchett delivers the now-famous prologue that explains the creation of the One Ring. She later reprised the character in the Hobbit films and Galadriel remains one of her most recognisable roles in her filmography.

The Aviator (2004)

The Aviator is an American biographical film directed by Martin Scorsese and stars Leonardo DiCaprio as the aviation billionaire and director Howard Hughes and Blanchett as the legendary actor Katharine Hepburn. Hughes is an aviation pioneer who helps to build TWA into a major airline, but in private, he remains tormented and has to navigate his paralysing phobias and depression.

Notes On A Scandal (2006)

In this psychological thriller, Barbara Covett (Judi Dench), a long-standing teacher at St. George’s, senses a kindred spirit in Sheba Hart (Blanchett), the school’s new art teacher. The younger woman’s charisma intensely draws in the older and the two become friends. But then Barbara learns of Sheba’s affair with a teenage student, and she suddenly becomes the keeper of this very explosive secret.

Blue Jasmine (2013)

After her marriage to a wealthy businessman (Alec Baldwin) collapses, New York socialite Jasmine (Blanchett) escapes to San Francisco and the modest apartment of her sister, Ginger (Sally Hawkins). Although she’s in a fragile emotional state and lacks job skills, Jasmine still manages to voice her disapproval of Ginger’s boyfriend, Chili (Bobby Cannavale). Jasmine begrudgingly takes a job in a dentist’s office, while Ginger begins dating a man (Louis CK) who’s a step up from Chili.

Carol (2015)

Starring Cate Blanchett and Rooney Mara as lesbian lovers, and set against the irresistibly glamorous backdrop of 1950s New York, Carol was one of 2015’s biggest films. The film stars Blanchett as Carol, an elegant Manhattan socialite who crosses paths with young store worker, Therese, played by Rooney Mara. The two fall quickly in love and embark on an impassioned affair that changes both of their lives forever.

Thor: Ragnarok (2017)

Imprisoned on the planet Sakaar, Thor (Chris Hemsworth) must race against time to return to Asgard and stop Ragnarök, the destruction of his world, at the hands of the powerful and ruthless villain Hela (Blanchett), who also happens to be his long-lost sister. 

Nightmare Alley (2021)

Based on William Lindsay Gresham’s 1946 novel of the same name, with a screenplay co-written by Kim Morgan and Guillermo del Toro, Nightmare Alley follows an ambitious carny (Bradley Cooper) with a talent for manipulating people with a few well-chosen words who hooks up with a female psychiatrist (Blanchett) who’s even more dangerous than he is.

Tár (2022)

Directed by Todd Field and starring Blanchett as Lydia Tár, the groundbreaking conductor of a major German orchestra, we first meet Tár at the height of her career, as she’s preparing both a book launch and a much-anticipated live performance of Mahler’s Fifth Symphony. However, over the following weeks, her life begins to unravel, and the result is an examination of power and its impact in today’s society.

Black Bag (2025)

This recent film is a gripping spy drama about intelligence agents George Woodhouse (Michael Fassbender) and his beloved wife Kathryn (Blanchett). When Kathryn is suspected of betraying the nation, George is forced to face the ultimate test: loyalty to his marriage or to his country.

Images: Getty