If you have seen Naomi Ackie in Mickey 17, Blink Twice, or Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, you may have noticed something unusual about her career: she rarely stays in one type of role for long. One performance can be quiet and restrained, while the next is physically expressive, funny, frightening, or emotionally explosive.
That makes finding the right Naomi Ackie movies and TV shows slightly more complicated than simply following her biggest films. Her filmography moves between British independent dramas, major franchises, prestige television, biographical drama, science fiction, psychological thrillers, and comedy. She has also worked with filmmakers including Bong Joon Ho, Boots Riley, and Steven Soderbergh, giving her career an unusually broad range for an actor who rose to wider international attention relatively recently.
This guide breaks down her most important screen roles, explains what she actually does in each one, and separates movies worth seeking out from TV appearances that are easier to miss.
Who Is Naomi Ackie?
Naomi Ackie is a British actor whose career began with smaller screen roles before she moved into increasingly substantial film and television parts.
Her early work included Doctor Who, The Five, Lady Macbeth, and Yardie. The 2016 period drama Lady Macbeth became an important early film credit, with Ackie playing Anna alongside Florence Pugh. She subsequently appeared in projects such as The Bisexual, The End of the F**ing World*, and Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
What makes her filmography particularly interesting is the speed with which the scale of her roles changed.
She went from supporting parts in British productions to playing Whitney Houston in a major music biopic, then moved into leading roles in films from internationally recognized directors.
That progression is useful when watching her movies in chronological order because you can see her range developing rather than treating every performance as an isolated appearance.
Naomi Ackie Movies in Order
Here are the major Naomi Ackie movies and selected film credits, arranged chronologically.
| Year | Movie | Naomi Ackie’s Role | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | I Used to Be Famous | Amber | Early short-film appearance |
| 2016 | Lady Macbeth | Anna | Important early dramatic role |
| 2018 | Yardie | Mona | Idris Elba’s directorial debut |
| 2019 | The Corrupted | Grace | Crime drama |
| 2019 | Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker | Jannah | Major franchise role |
| 2021 | The Score | Gloria | Music-centered crime drama |
| 2022 | Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody | Whitney Houston | First major biographical lead |
| 2024 | Blink Twice | Frida | Psychological thriller lead |
| 2024 | 2073 | Professor | Dystopian science-fiction project |
| 2025 | Mickey 17 | Nasha | Bong Joon Ho science-fiction comedy |
| 2025 | Sorry, Baby | Lydie | Independent dramatic comedy |
| 2025 | The Thursday Murder Club | Donna de Freitas | Mystery comedy |
| 2026 | I Love Boosters | Sade | Boots Riley ensemble film |
| 2026 | Shelter | Roberta | Action thriller |
| 2026 | Clayface | Caitlyn Corr | DC Studios horror thriller |
Current filmography listings identify these credits and roles, although databases can differ in how they classify shorts, documentary appearances, and projects that are still in production or release.
Lady Macbeth
Lady Macbeth is one of the best places to start if you want to understand where Ackie came from as an actor.
The film is a dark period drama centered on Katherine, played by Florence Pugh. Ackie plays Anna, a servant whose position in the household places her close to the increasingly disturbing events around Katherine.
It is not a large showcase role in terms of screen time, but it demonstrates why Ackie attracted attention early in her career. Her performance works through observation and restraint rather than constant dialogue.
Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker
Ackie entered the Star Wars universe as Jannah in The Rise of Skywalker.
The role represented a major jump in scale. Instead of an intimate British drama, she was now performing inside one of the world’s largest cinematic franchises.
For viewers searching for Naomi Ackie movies because they recognize her from recent work, this is an important connection: Jannah was one of the roles that introduced her to a much larger international audience.
Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody
This is arguably the most demanding transformation in her filmography.
Ackie plays music superstar Whitney Houston across different periods of Houston’s life. The performance required her to handle the character’s public confidence while also portraying the complicated private life behind the celebrity image.
Ackie has spoken about the pressure involved in taking the role, including concerns about exposure and whether she physically resembled Houston. She ultimately approached the challenge as an acting transformation rather than simply trying to reproduce Houston’s appearance.
A less obvious detail is that Ackie was also credited as an executive producer on the film, making this more than a conventional acting credit.
Blink Twice
In Zoë Kravitz’s Blink Twice, Ackie plays Frida, a young woman whose seemingly glamorous invitation to a private island gradually becomes much darker.
The movie is particularly useful for understanding Ackie’s ability to carry a story rather than simply support another performer.
Frida begins as someone who appears relatively ordinary within an extraordinary environment. As the situation changes, Ackie has to communicate fear, confusion, determination, and anger without turning the character into a simple thriller protagonist.
If you prefer contemporary psychological thrillers, this is one of the most relevant Naomi Ackie movies to watch.
Mickey 17
Mickey 17 introduced Ackie to the world of Bong Joon Ho, the filmmaker behind Parasite.
She plays Nasha, a security officer and Mickey’s romantic partner in a futuristic colonization mission. Robert Pattinson plays Mickey, while the film also features Mark Ruffalo, Toni Collette, and Steven Yeun.
Ackie described Nasha as a deliberate departure from characters she had previously played. She wanted someone less controlled and more instinctive, a character who did not constantly monitor how other people perceived her.
That detail is particularly revealing when looking at her career as a whole.
Her quieter performances can make it easy to assume her strength lies mainly in controlled dramatic acting. Nasha demonstrates the opposite. Ackie uses physical energy, comedy, anger, and spontaneity to create a character who can dominate a scene.
She also spent months preparing one of Nasha’s major confrontational scenes, according to her interview with W.
Naomi Ackie TV Shows You Should Know
Her television work is smaller than her movie filmography, but several projects are important to understanding her development.
Doctor Who
One of Ackie’s earliest television credits was an appearance in Doctor Who.
It was a relatively small role, but early television work matters because it shows the stage of her career before the larger film opportunities arrived. Her later credits demonstrate how quickly those early appearances developed into recurring and substantial roles.
The Five
Ackie appeared as Gemma Morgan in the British mystery miniseries The Five.
The series comes from writer Harlan Coben and follows a mystery surrounding a missing child and the consequences that emerge years later.
It belongs to the period of Ackie’s career when she was building experience across British television while also moving toward more significant film work.
The Bisexual
In The Bisexual, Ackie plays Ruby.
The Channel 4 comedy-drama focuses on a woman navigating relationships and identity after separating from her long-term girlfriend. Ackie’s role places her within an ensemble rather than making her the sole narrative focus.
This is a useful choice if you want to see Ackie outside the intense dramatic roles for which she later became better known.
The End of the F***ing World
Ackie plays Bonnie in the second season of The End of the F**ing World*.
This is one of her more memorable television roles because Bonnie enters the story with a very different emotional energy from the main characters. She is searching for revenge against Professor Clive Koch, creating a storyline that becomes increasingly unsettling. Ackie appears in seven episodes of the second season.
For viewers who discovered her through Blink Twice or Mickey 17, this series offers an interesting look at her earlier ability to play emotionally complicated characters.
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Master of None Presents: Moments in Love
Ackie plays Alicia in the third season of Master of None, titled Master of None Presents: Moments in Love.
The season shifts the focus toward Denise, played by Lena Waithe, and her relationship with Alicia. Ackie’s performance is considerably more intimate than her large-scale movie roles.
Netflix lists Ackie among the starring cast, and the third season centers on Denise and Alicia’s relationship, domestic life, and attempts to build a family.
This is one of the most useful projects to watch if you want to see Ackie working with subtle dialogue and everyday emotional situations rather than action or spectacle.
What Makes Naomi Ackie’s Acting Range Stand Out?
There is a pattern across her roles that becomes clearer when you watch several projects rather than only her biggest movies.
She moves between restraint and release
In Lady Macbeth, her performance is contained.
In Mickey 17, Nasha is almost the opposite: loud, physical, impulsive, and openly confrontational.
Ackie herself has explained that this contrast was intentional. She had played several characters who were highly controlled and wanted Nasha to feel liberated from that kind of self-monitoring.
She does not rely on one genre
Her credits cover:
- Historical drama
- Crime
- Science fiction
- Psychological thriller
- Comedy-drama
- Biography
- Franchise action
- Mystery
- Dystopian cinema
That variety is one reason searching only for her “best” or “most famous” movie can give an incomplete picture of her career.
Her biggest roles often require transformation
Playing Whitney Houston required a very different approach from playing Frida in Blink Twice.
Likewise, Nasha in Mickey 17 required a different physical and emotional vocabulary from Alicia in Master of None.
This makes her filmography especially useful for viewers interested in acting rather than simply following a celebrity.
Three Less-Obvious Things About Naomi Ackie’s Career
1. Her career is not built entirely around blockbuster roles
It can look that way after Star Wars, Whitney Houston, and Mickey 17, but many of the roles surrounding those films are independent or television projects.
That pattern matters because her career has not followed a simple blockbuster-to-blockbuster path.
2. Nasha was intentionally different from her previous characters
Ackie has explained that she wanted Nasha to be less controlled and less concerned with how she appeared to others. That makes Mickey 17 particularly interesting when watched alongside her earlier restrained performances.
3. Her Whitney Houston experience changed how she thought about working
After the demanding experience of the biopic, Ackie said she learned more about resilience, self-advocacy, and protecting her own energy. She described learning how to look after herself while sustaining a demanding level of creative work.
That perspective gives additional context to the very different projects she chose afterward.
Which Naomi Ackie Movie Should You Watch First?
The answer depends on what kind of movie you normally enjoy.
For serious drama: Start with Lady Macbeth.
For a major Hollywood franchise: Watch Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker.
For a biographical performance: Choose Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody.
For psychological thriller: Try Blink Twice.
For science fiction: Watch Mickey 17.
For independent cinema: Sorry, Baby offers another side of her recent work.
For mystery and comedy: The Thursday Murder Club is a different tonal direction from her darker roles.
If you want to understand her career rather than simply watch her biggest title, a chronological approach is even more revealing.
Common Mistakes When Exploring Her Filmography
One common mistake is assuming that Star Wars was her first significant role. Ackie had already built a substantial body of British television and independent film work before joining the franchise.
Another is treating Mickey 17 and Blink Twice as interchangeable examples of her recent career. They are actually quite different performances. Frida is defined by psychological uncertainty and survival, while Nasha is deliberately more instinctive and outwardly expressive.
It is also easy to overlook television. Master of None and The End of the F**ing World* show sides of Ackie’s acting that are harder to see in large-scale studio productions.
Frequently Asked Questions
What are Naomi Ackie’s most famous movies?
Her best-known international movie credits include Star Wars: The Rise of Skywalker, Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, Blink Twice, and Mickey 17. Her filmography also includes Lady Macbeth, Yardie, The Score, Sorry, Baby, and The Thursday Murder Club.
What TV shows has Naomi Ackie been in?
Naomi Ackie’s television credits include Doctor Who, The Five, Vera, The Bisexual, The End of the F**ing World*, Cleaning Up, Small Axe, and Master of None. She has also provided the voice of Jannah in LEGO Star Wars: Rebuild the Galaxy.
Did Naomi Ackie play Whitney Houston?
Yes. Ackie played Whitney Houston in Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, released in 2022. The role required her to portray Houston across different stages of her life and career, making it one of the most demanding performances in Ackie’s filmography.
Who does Naomi Ackie play in Mickey 17?
Naomi Ackie plays Nasha in Mickey 17. Nasha is a security officer who becomes closely connected to Robert Pattinson’s Mickey as the story develops. Ackie has described the character as unusually free, impulsive, and unfiltered compared with some of her earlier roles.
Is Naomi Ackie in The End of the F***ing World?
Yes. Ackie plays Bonnie in the second season of The End of the F**ing World*. Bonnie is a significant part of the season’s darker storyline and appears in seven episodes.
What is Naomi Ackie’s next movie?
As of September 2026, Ackie is appearing in or associated with several recent projects, including I Love Boosters and Shelter. She is also starring as Caitlyn Corr in DC Studios’ Clayface, which is scheduled for a North American theatrical release on October 23, 2026.
Conclusion
Naomi Ackie’s filmography is more varied than her biggest credits might suggest. Star Wars, Whitney Houston, Blink Twice, and Mickey 17 brought her to increasingly large audiences, but her earlier British television and independent-film work explains much of the range visible in those performances.
The most useful way to explore Naomi Ackie movies and TV shows is therefore not to focus only on the biggest title. Pair a restrained performance such as Lady Macbeth with the emotional demands of Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody, then compare them with the very different energy she brings to Mickey 17.
That progression makes one thing particularly clear: Ackie’s career has been defined less by a single signature character than by her willingness to keep changing what audiences expect from her.
