Zawe Ashton Movies And TV Shows You Need To Watch Right Now

Zawe Ashton started out her career as a reliable player in British series and films, but she's been slowly but surely building up her American credits. With a prodigious resume of theatrical credits under her belt, she's a well-rounded figure — good at comedy, good at drama, and with an impish sense of self that shines through in every single role she picks. The lady is much more than Tom Hiddleston's fiancée, and her every career move proves it. From romantic, historical costume epics to realistic procedurals, she's taken on all sorts of roles during her time in the spotlight. It's that bravery and determination to avoid being pigeonholed that makes her such an interesting actor and someone whose career continues to fascinate.

But which parts showcase her wit and wisdom the best? Here's a list of shows and films Ashton has done which deserve to be streamed immediately, as well as where you can watch them.

A solid BBC crime serial, "Case Histories" has a surprisingly warm atmosphere for a procedural that examines some pretty nasty goings-on. The leads take a personal point of view on solving the crimes. It's more about those who live, and how the private investigator at the center of the series helps them come to terms with the loss of their relatives and the survivor's guilt they have.

The crime drama centers on Jackson Brodie (Jason Isaacs), a P.I. who has military experience but absolutely no cash and is running his detective agency on a shoestring budget. As tough as Brodie is, he has an enormous soft spot and is willing to take on any case he comes across and get them solved. Zawe Ashton plays Deborah Arnold during Series 1 of the drama. Stylish and well-organized, she's one of Brodie's assistants at the detective agency and is often called into action when he needs help putting each intricate puzzle together. For those curious about how things turn out for Deborah, Series 1 and 2 of "Case Histories" are on Peacock.

This one's only ranked so low because Zawe Ashton's role in it is brief. Hulu's version of "The Handmaid's Tale" — adapted from Margaret Atwood's seminal feminist novel — tracks a post-war America — now known as Gilead — where fertile women are pressed into service of the state to deliver babies into the arms of the rich and infertile. The center of the drama is June (Elisabeth Moss), who is separated from her daughter and husband and pressed into service by the state. In defiance of the constant humiliation she is subjected to, June rebels and seeks a way to reunite with her family. The sixth and final season of "The Handmaid's Tale" will debut in 2025.

Ashton's Oona is a Canadian human rights advocate who works with Moira Strand (Samira Wiley) to spirit refugees out of Chicago and get them to safety in Toronto. Along the way, they develop a romantic relationship, but when Moira chooses to try to sneak June out of Gilead on their transports, they argue about whether or not taking June will endanger the other refugees. It's a three-episode-long role, but it's a powerful one that Ashton invests with a stately grace.

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Zawe Ashton made her Marvel Cinematic Universe debut in "The Marvels," where, as Dar-Benn, she proves to be quite a fun thorn in the side of Kamala Khan/Ms. Marvel (Iman Vellani), Carol Danvers/Captain Marvel (Brie Larson), and Monica Rambeau (Teyonah Parris). Dar-Benn is a Kree leader who's trying her hardest to heal the atmosphere of the dead planet. Unfortunately, she does so by creating jump points, punching holes in reality to siphon resources away from other places to her homeworld, Hala.

Danvers, of course, had destroyed the Supreme Intelligence on Hala, leaving them to founder for years in blighted darkness; Dar-Benn and her acolytes blame her for its destruction, in turn claiming Earth's sunlight to power Hala will be her final revenge on Captain Marvel. Unfortunately for Dar-Benn, Danvers has the might of Ms. Marvel and Rambeau behind her. Ashton is a fun, credible villain, and her performance as Dar-Benn helps bring to life the underrated, fast-paced film. For the curious who missed out on the movie during its 2023 theatrical run, you can catch up with "The Marvels" on Disney+.

This one's a heartbreaker, but an important melding of fiction and documentary. "Dreams of Life" is an exploration of the tragic passing of Joyce Carol Vincent, whose body was found in January 2006, more than two years after her death in December 2003. "Dreams of Life" intersperses reenactments of Vincent's life with interviews and other materials with the people who knew the real woman. Zawe Ashton portrays Vincent in reenactments. The film in total wonders aloud how someone could live in this world and then fail to be discovered.

"Dreams of Life" proved to be somewhat controversial, as all of Vincent's siblings declined to be interviewed for the project. They also encouraged its director, Carol Morley, not to make the film. But the powerful end result is a boon for Ashton's talents. She stands out, giving a powerful performance as a woman who seeks connection before withdrawing deeply into permanent privacy where no one can reach her. Viewers can judge for themselves by checking out the movie on Prime Video.

This is the role that rightfully launched Zawe Ashton's career in the U.K. "Fresh Meat" is a unique, funny, richly-wrought series about growing up. A group of six Manchester college students share a house together and as their lives intertwine, it becomes one part drama, one part comedy, and plenty of fun. The group ends up stuck in a house away from campus due to their mutual late registration. This seeming social disaster turns into a moment of kismet, as they find that they're all strongly suited for each other.

Ashton plays Vod, a party girl who has a tendency to make bad choices when it comes to having a good time. Vod does outrageous things like getting so high she ends up in the wrong country post-graduation, hiring drug dealers to provide security for a rager, and subsequently getting the entire house cleaned out by robbers. But her story arc also helps show how hard collegiate life can be for working-class people who must scrimp and save to survive. If you want to find out where Vod ends up, all four series of Fresh Meat are available to stream on Tubi.

An audacious horror film with a packed cast and a sense of humor about the modern art world, "Velvet Buzzsaw" serves as Zawe Ashton's American breakthrough, and she makes a delicious meal of the arty bloodfest. 

Ashton plays Josephina, who works at an art gallery after years in a punk rock band. She falls into an ill-advised affair with art critic Morf Vandewalt (Jake Gyllenhaal). Josephina stumbles upon the body of artist Vetril Dease (Alan Mandell) in an apartment in her building and also discovers his unique and bloody works. She soon decides that the art is remarkable and worth selling in the gallery, and manages to convince the demanding owner, Rhodora Haze (Rene Russo) to place works there. While Dease's art spreads around various museums and galleries around town, death begins stalking those working with Josephina — as well as Morf and Josephina themselves. "Velvet Buzzsaw" has an ending that's not to be missed, and definitely deserves points for its audacious critique of the art world and Ashton's wonderful, darkly arch performance.

Are you at all fond of "Bridgerton"? If so, this movie is bound to delight you. "Mr. Malcolm's List" transports the viewer effortlessly to a regency-era romantic tangle. While Looper simply found it to be a pleasant romantic comedy, "Mr. Malcolm's List" contains one of Zawe Ashton's most delightful performances and is a lovely diversion that deserves to top our list of her best acting roles.

Julia Thistlewaite (Ashton) is haunted by public humiliation after a failed outing with Mr. Jeremy Malcolm (Sope Dirisu), London's most eligible bachelor. Her cousin, Lord Cassidy (Oliver Jackson-Cohen) is employed to ferret out the reason, and it turns out that it's because Mr. Malcolm has a list ... of qualities he requires in a prospective bride. Fit to be tied, Julia brings in her friend, Selina Dalton (Freida Pinto) to act as the perfect bride and dump Malcolm to get revenge on him. Unfortunately for Julia, Selina and Malcolm fall for one another, leaving her to choose between getting revenge or letting Selina find her own bliss.

A fun romantic romp that's lightweight but pleasant, "Mr. Malcolm's List" allows Ashton to put on a complex performance that's anything but purely villainous, making it the cream of the crop.