Once upon a time, Saoirse Ronan’s primary concern may have been that people from outside Ireland would not be able to pronounce her name. These days, she is a household name not only on home turf, but internationally, too (every US late night TV host now knows it’s 'Seer-sha’ without having to be corrected.)
Still only 30 years old, the Irish actress has marked herself out amongst the finest of her generation with a multitude of roles that testify to her versatility. Period drama? Futuristic sci-fi? Memoir adaptation? She’s covered them all with panache.
With her new film The Outrun set for release this month, we run down the talented actress’s finest roles so far...
Atonement (2007)
Unless you’d seen her early incursions into TV on RTÉ shows like The Clinic, Atonement may have been your first introduction to the acting talents of Saoirse Ronan. Looking back on the role now, it’s clear that even at the tender age of 12, she possessed charisma in abundance; that can’t-take-your-eyes-off-her quality that has made her so watchable in everything she does. In Joe Wright’s adaptation of Ian McEwan’s novel, she played Briony Tallis, a young girl from the English upper classes whose ambiguous recollection of events within her family has last-lasting consequences.
The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)
Working with a director like Wes Anderson is a badge of honour for many actors, but Ronan had already ticked that box by the time she was 19. The Irishwoman held her own amongst a cast of heavyweights that included Anderson regulars like Bill Murray, Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton and more, as she played Agatha - a young baker who becomes embroiled in an elaborate madcap adventure with hotel concierge Gustave (Ralph Fiennes) and her love interest bellhop Zero (Tony Revolori). What’s more, she even kept her Irish accent intact for the role. No better woman.
Brooklyn (2015)
Ronan is often drawn to literary-leaning roles and Brooklyn, based on Colm Toibin’s much-loved novel, is one of several book adaptation projects that she has taken on. It earned her a Best Actress nomination at the Oscars. In it, she plays Eilis, a young woman who leaves her hometown of Enniscorthy for Brooklyn in the 1950s - only to be drawn back home, just as she is on the precipice of laying down long-term foundations in her new life. In Eilis, Ronan struck a delicate balance between a sense of duty and a longing for independence with an experience well beyond her years - and firmly established herself as a leading lady to be reckoned with, too.
Lady Bird (2017)
She had been a star for many years before featuring in Greta Gerwig’s directorial debut, but Ronan’s portrayal of the titular Lady Bird gave her a slingshot into the upper echelons of Hollywood (and also won her a second nomination for Best Actress - her third overall.) She plays Christine, a young woman dreaming of leaving her oppressive Catholic High School in California behind for the bright lights of college in NYC in Gerwig’s acerbic, darky funny coming-of-age drama. You certainly wouldn’t have thought she spent her school years in Carlow, anyway.
Mary, Queen of Scots (2018)
Josie Rourke’s 2018 biopic of the iconic 16th century queen proved life-changing for Ronan; she met her husband Jack Lowden on set, when the Scottish actor played her second husband Henry Stuart. Romantic liaisons aside, although the film received a lukewarm reception from critics, Ronan proved her mettle as the steely titular queen who goes toe-to-toe with her cousin Elizabeth I (Margot Robbie).
Little Women (2019)
The character of Jo March is one of the most beloved and most iconic women in the American literary canon - so finding the right actress to portray the fiercely independent member of the March family from Louisa May Alcott’s 1868 novel brought a degree of pressure. Ronan absolutely nailed it, though, reuniting with director Gerwig again, and staying true to the essence of Jo, the proto-feminist, while simultaneously bringing something new to the character. It was simply impossible not to root for her at every turn.
Ammonite (2020)
There’s an obvious reason why you may not have seen this film yet - it was released in the middle of a pandemic - but it’s worth seeking out for Ronan’s performance alone. She starred as real-life 19th century geologist Charlotte Murchison, who was rumoured to have had a love affair with palaeontologist Mary Anning (Kate Winslet), and the leads’ smouldering chemistry is undeniable. As far as romantic period dramas go, it’s a low-key gem.
See How They Run (2022)
She hasn’t taken on a huge number of comedic roles to date, but Ronan brilliantly displayed her comedy chops in this enjoyably camp pastiche of an Agatha Christie story. In fact, Christie’s famed West End play The Mousetrap forms the backdrop of Tom George’s film, with Ronan playing Constable Stalker - an over-enthusiastic police officer tasked with assisting Sam Rockwell’s Inspector Stoppard in assailing the murderer of a theatre director. Not only is it a lot of fun, but Ronan’s timing and bumbling charm is a highlight. She really ought to do more comedy.
Foe (2023)
Foe was perhaps overlooked for several reasons; a niche genre like indie sci-fi generally finds itself waylaid at the expense of big blockbusters, and the storyline of Garth Davis’s film was admittedly a little perplexing at times. Yet two of the biggest Irish acting talents of their generation, Saoirse Ronan and Paul Mescal, were electric in this understated yet powerful exploration of relationship dynamics, set against a very strange post-apocalyptic backdrop. Ronan plays Hen, whose partner Junior (Mescal) has been chosen to partake in a space programme that will see him leaving Earth for two years. Despite the complexity of the story, it is their performances - and particularly Ronan’s conflicted Hen - that make Foe worth watching.
The Outrun (2024)
There is no doubt that in twenty years’ time, The Outrun will still be spoken about as one of Ronan’s most impressive roles. The 2024 film, which is released in cinemas this month, marks something of a watershed moment for Ronan in many ways; a passion project for her and her new husband Jack Lowden, they formed a production company (Arcade Pictures) with the sole intention of getting their adaptation of Amy Liptrot’s memoir to the big screen. Ronan plays Rona, a lost, troubled young woman who returns home to the Orkney Islands from London following a stint in rehab for her alcoholism. She portrays Rona with an incredible sense of empathy and sensitivity, yet does not shy away from the havoc that addiction can wreak in peoples’ lives. Possibly her most powerful role to date.
The Outrun is released on September 27th
