What Was Jennifer Aniston’s 1st Acting Role? A Complete Guide to Her Incredible Hollywood Career 

‘Mac and Me’ (1988)

In what has been dismissed as a rip-off of Steven Spielberg’s E.T. from six years earlier, a young extraterrestrial, separated from his family and stranded on Earth, finds friendship with a handicapped youth. This was Jennifer’s first film, though she is only an uncredited extra in it. Hey, everyone’s gotta start somewhere.

‘Molloy’ (1990)

Airing from July 25 to August 15, 1990, the series stars Mayim Bialik (pre-Blossom and, of course, The Big Bang Theory) as 11-year-old Molloy Martin, who finds her life changed when her father, who is divorced, moves her to Los Angeles when he remarries. Jennifer plays her self-absorbed step sister, Courtney Walker.

‘Ferris Bueller’s Day Off’ (1990 TV Series)

There are a lot of amazing things about the Matthew Broderick film Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, but this TV series that came from it isn’t one of them. Rather than a reboot or a sequel, the show is essentially played out as these are the real-life exploits of Ferris Bueller that inspired the movie. Charlie Schlatter plays Ferris, Jennifer is his sister, Jeannie; Richard Riehle is Principal Ed Rooney, Brandon Douglas is Cameron Frye and Ami Dolenz (daughter of Monkee Micky Dolenz) is Sloan Peterson. Thirteen episodes in all were produced.

‘Quantum Leap’ (1992, Guest Star)

NCIS: New Orleans star Scott Bakula first came to people’s attention with this 1989-93 series that cast him as Dr. Sam Beckett, whose experiments in time travel results in his “leaping’ into the bodies of lives he is destined to impact, dating as far back to the day he was born. Jennifer appeared the fifth season episode “Nowhere to Run,” playing the character Kiki Wilson.

‘The Edge’ (1992-93 TV Series)

A sketch comedy series that, in addition to Jennifer, featured Julie Brown, Tom Kenny, Wayne Knight (Seinfeld), Carol Rosenthal, James Stephens III and Jill Talley.

‘Herman’s Head’ (1991-94, Guest Star Two Episodes)

William Ragsdale (Fright Night) is research assistant Herman Brooks, who, every time he has to make a decision, finds his mind barraged by the arguments of various aspects of the decision-making process, played by different actors. Jennifer appeared in a pair of episodes as Suzie Brooks.

‘Leprechaun’ (1993)

Describes Google, “Dan O’Grady (Shay Duffin) steals 100 gold coins from a leprechaun (Warwick Davis) while on vacation in Ireland. The leprechaun follows him home, but Dan locks the murderous midget in a crate, held at bay by a four-leaf clover. Ten years later, J.D. Redding (John Sanderford) and his daughter, Tory (Jennifer Aniston), rent O’Grady’s property for the summer. When their new neighbors accidentally release the leprechaun, he goes on a murderous rampage to reclaim his gold.” 

In the same year, Jennifer appeared in the TV movie Sunday Funnies, playing a number of different characters.

‘Muddling Through’ (1994, TV Series Regular)

Jennifer is Madeline Drego Cooper, daughter of Connie Drego, an ex-con just out of prison for having shot her cheating husband in the butt. Madeline is married to the cop who arrested her mother.

In 1994, Jennifer also made a guest starring appearance on the TV series Burke’s Law.

‘Friends’ (1994-2004, TV Series)

Oh, we’re not even going to bore you with a description of this series. Needless to say, it’s the one with Jennifer, David Schwimmer, Courteney Cox, Matthew Perry, Lisa Kudrow and Matt LeBlanc. “It was awesome,” Jennifer recently enthused to NPR. “It was the greatest 10 years. The greatest people to work with every day, the greatest crew, killer writers. Funny. Beloved by people. Not only were we having so much fun ourselves, but the amount of love that people felt for that show, still feel for that show, we tapped into something. I don’t know what the hell it was, but it was something; really kind of struck a nerve that continues to sort of be hit. And I think that’s so special to be a part of something like that.”

‘She’s the One’ (1996)

A tale of two brothers — one a cab driver and the other a Wall Street trader — and their relationships with women. One of those women is Jennifer’s Renee Fitzpatrick, and this would be the first of many romcoms she would be a part of.

‘Dream for An Insomniac’ (1996)

An aspiring actress (Ione Skye) toils in her uncle’s San Francisco cafe and finally meets her ideal man (Mackenzie Astin). Jennifer is in more of a supporting role as Allison. That same year Jennifer appeared in an episode of the series Partners.

‘Til There Was You’ (1997)

Two strangers (played by Jeanne Triplehorn and Dylan McDermott), whose paths are always crossing, finally meet when fate steps in. Jennifer is in a supporting role as Debbie.

‘Picture Perfect’ (1997)

And Jennifer finally takes center stage as Kate Mosley, a career-driven single woman who, to get ahead at her advertising agency, pretends to be engaged to impress her boss, but then has to produce a fiancee.

‘The Object of My Affection’ (1998)

Nina Borowski (Jennifer) is a New York City social worker who invites her gay friend, George (Paul Rudd), to move into her apartment after he breaks up with his longtime lover, Robert (Tim Daly). Meanwhile, Nina gets pregnant and decides to keep the baby — but end her relationship with the child’s father, boyfriend Vince (John Pankow). As Nina and George live and raise the baby together, the two grow close — and Nina realizes she’s beginning to fall in love with her friend. “Why does she fall in love with him?” Jennifer asks rhetorically. “Because George is everything that Nina has never had in a partner or even in a friend. He loves her. He respects her space, her thoughts, her decisions. George is her best friend.”

In 1998, Jennifer also played the character of Clove in The Thin Pink Line, a parody of the documentary The Thin Blue Line; and voiced the character of Galatea in Disney’s Hercules animated series.

‘Office Space’ (1999)

Low budget but oh-so-funny satire of a group of people working at a software company in the 1990s which was written and directed by Mike Judge (creator of Beavis and Butthead among others). Jennifer is just one of a number of people who have had enough of office politics. Gary Cole plays her boss, while Stephen Root is the put-upon Milton Waddams.

More voice work for Jennifer in the same year, as Mrs. Stevens on the South Park episode, “Rainforest Shmainforest.”

‘The Iron Giant’ (1999)

Brilliant animated film from Brad Bird (The Incredibles films, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol) set in the 1950s and telling the relationship between a young boy, Hogarth; and a giant robot that lands on Earth with no memory, but is fighting against its impulses to be a weapon. Jennifer voices Hogarth’s mother.

‘Rock Star’ (2001)

Mark Wahlberg is Chris “Izzy” Cole, a tribute band singer who manages to become the lead vocalist of his favorite band. Jennifer plays his manager, Emily Poule. In terms of researching the role, she explains, “I just threw myself into it. There wasn’t much to do except remember back to the ’80s, which was our childhood.”

‘The Good Girl’ (2002)

Discount store clerk Justine Last strikes up an affair with a stock boy who considers himself the incarnation of Holden Caulfield, played by Jake Gyllenhaal. Says Jennifer, “Justine is obviously at a crossroads. She’s in a place where she’s 30 years old, she feels like she’s all washed up and done with. She’s lost her passion. Everything’s become very stagnant and very stale and she wants to find that thing again.”

‘Bruce Almighty’ (2003)

After complaining about the way the world is “run,” God (Morgan Freeman) imbues TV reporter Bruce Nolan with his abilities so Bruce has the chance to run things differently. Jennifer plays his girlfriend, Grace Connelly. Says director Tom Shadyac, “I hate to use the cliche, but Jennifer Aniston is one of the hottest people in show business. You can count on one hand the number of people, male or female, who can give you beauty, strength, intelligence, vulnerability and a sense of humor in one package. Jen’s character, Grace, is not passive. She’s strong, and that’s why we wanted Jennifer.”

Adds producer Michael Bostick, “Jennifer has been in America’s living rooms for nine years as Rachel on Friends, and I think that people will be thrilled to see her on the big screen with Jim. Jennifer’s comic timing is impeccable, and she also brings an emotional weight to her characters.”

For her part, Jennifer had no doubts about wanting to play Grace when Tom Shadyac first approached her with the idea. “Tom pitched a fantastic story which I found very moving. I just thought it was great. It’s hard to infuse spirituality into a bold commercial movie, and that’s what Tom and the writers have done without hitting you over the head with it.”

In the “Queasy Rider” episode of the animated King of the Hill, Jennifer voiced the character Pepperoni Sue/Stephanie.

‘Along Came Polly’ (2004)

An uptight newlywed (Ben Stiller) realizes that his oh-so-organized life is falling apart, until he meets and falls in love with an old classmate who is more of a free spirit.  For Jennifer Aniston as Polly Prince — the classmate — working with writer/director John Hamburg was a first time and very welcome experience. She says, “John’s an incredible writer and such a good director. When I read the script, I laughed — I mean, bent over laughing sometimes — throughout the whole thing, and that just doesn’t happen that often. He doesn’t shy away from a really embarrassing or outrageous situation, because we get into those just being human. But it’s also smart and moving, and he is very specific and knows exactly what he wants on the page and in the scene. What’s really great is it’s character driven, it’s not one of those romantic comedies with some device like ‘the lie’ or ‘the letter’ or ‘the false boyfriend to con each other.’ Getting romantic comedy right is hard, and John does it — and makes it hilarious as well.”

As to her character, she says, “Reuben [Ben’s character] has love and that’s one thing Polly doesn’t have. She’s got everything else, but probably the only thing she’s done really well is to protect herself from ever being hurt. Polly needs structure — let’s face it, she is a little flaky and could use a little slapping around like, ‘C’mon young lady!’”

‘Derailed’ (2005)

As described by Google,  in Derailed temptation and a difficult home life leave Charles (Clive Owen) open to an affair with Lucinda (Jennifer Aniston), whom he meets during his commute. Both are married with children, and it isn’t long before they are together in a sleazy motel. However, a thug named LaRoche (Vincent Cassel) bursts into the room and attacks them, and they can’t report it without their families discovering the affair. As if the violation wasn’t enough, LaRoche then calls Charles to blackmail him.” 

Of Lucinda, Jennifer says, “She’s an ordinary woman who’s stuck in a sort of mundane period in her life. She meets this man on a train and they are unfortunately intrigued by each other and they make kind of a bad decision to go to a hotel. It definitely has an old style feel to it, more of a throwback to seventies type movies or Hitchcock. It’s a hard one to pull off, but I think they did a good job.”

‘Rumor Has It’ (2005)

Traveling from New York to Los Angeles to attend her sister’s wedding, Sarah Huttinger (Jennifer) discovers that the book and the film The Graduate may be based on her family. And that millionaire Beau Burroughs (Kevin Costner) could be her father. “Sarah is confused and unsure of where she’s going and who she is,” says Jennifer. “I think this stems from the fact that she feels there’s a big piece of herself missing, because she has always felt disconnected from her family, especially after her mother’s death.”

Sarah’s been living in New York, pursuing a journalism career that seems to have peaked at writing wedding announcements and obituaries for The New York Times. The ambivalence she feels toward her job and family is echoed in her relationship with her fiancee, whom she is terrified of actually marrying.

“Sarah is frightened of being sucked into her family’s staid way of life,”  comments director Rob Reiner. “She not only wants more adventure, she feels like she might be settling for something that isn’t a true extension of who she is. Her fear is that she will lose herself in a middle class lifestyle.”

‘Friends With Money’ (2006)

Hitting her mid-thirties and unsatisfied, Olivia quits her job and finds herself lost in life, not seeing a future for herself and wondering about her relationship with her wealthy friends. Says Jennifer, “Olivia just can’t figure it out. She’s surrounded by her friends who she loves, but she’s just a little bit oblivious to everything. She’s just lost, and that’s what I think is great. It touches on so many things that women, and men, too, will connect with because it’s not a chick flick.”

‘The Break-Up’ (2006)

While each are attempting to keep their luxurious condo from the other, the break-up of a couple (Vince Vaughn and Jennifer) gets uglier and more desperate with each passing day. “It sort of feels like a throwback to the ’70s movies, where it was more just characters behaving and living in situations as opposed to some sort of high concept,” she notes. “Our relationship is in and of itself kind of difficult and hard, so why not just explore that? It doesn’t have to be so sort of out there.”

In 2007, Jennifer played the character of Tina Harrod on the “Ita Missa Est” episode of the TV series Dirt.

‘Marley and Me’ (2008)

A family is brought closer together over the years thanks to their dog, Marley. So cute in so many ways, but an ending that is decidedly … not. Jennifer stars with Owen Wilson. “Marley & Me is about marriage, and balancing family and career,” she says. “It’s about all of the things that affect so many people in relationships. You think it’s a story about a mischievous dog — and it is — but it’s so much more than that. There’s something about the Grogans and about Marley that connects in a universal way.”

For director David Frankel, much of what made the production special for him was the on-screen chemistry between Owen and Jennifer. “That kind of magic is the luck of the draw,” says Frankel. “You put two brilliant movie stars together and they spark in a thrilling way.”

This magic was also apparent to the two stars. “Owen Wilson is just great,” says Jennifer. “He’s so good at his job, so professional, and such a generous actor. We had a lot of fun playing off of each other, and he has some moments in the film that are just really special.”

Owen, in turn, says he had much to admire in Jennifer’s performance. “Her instincts were incredible,” says the actor. “She does the work in ways better than I ever imagined.”

‘Management’ (2008)

A traveling art saleswoman (Jennifer) tries to shake off a flaky motel manager (Steve Zahn) who falls for her and won’t leave her alone. “With Steve, it was a mutual admiration society,” says Jennifer. “We just loved each other, and we knew each other. we did a movie a long time ago together.”

’30 Rock’ (2008, Guest Star)

In the third episode of the third season of 30 Rock, “The One with the Cast of Night Court,’ Jack (Alec Baldwin) ignores Liz’s (Tina Fey) warnings and hooks up with her psycho ex-roommate from college (Jennifer, who was nominated for an Emmy Award in the category of Outstanding Guest Actress in a Comedy Series).

‘He’s Just Not That Into You’ (2009)

If Mary and Anna represent those still looking for love, Beth (Jennifer) and Neil (Ben Affleck) stand for those who have found it … but aren’t sure if it’s enough. Ben Affleck plays Neil, a photographer who has been involved with Jennifer Aniston’s character, Beth, for several years.

“Neil is a really interesting character,” says producer Nancy Juvonen, “because you assume one thing about him, and it turns out to be something completely different. Neil doesn’t believe in marriage. He’s a photographer; he’s been with his girlfriend for over seven years and he really digs her, but he thinks things change once marriage occurs. Ben is so charming and funny and easygoing; he’s sort of all guy. And that’s what we wanted Neil to be, as well as artsy and a thinker-a very smart, smart fellow.

“Beth and Neil have been together for seven years,” says Jennifer of the couple, “and he is very content not being married and doesn’t believe in it or understand why it has to happen. But she wants to be married and starts to sort of feel like, `Wow, am I being duped?’”

“Beth has been dealing with this conceit for a long time and swallowing it because she’s in a fabulous relationship,” Nancy details. “But she wants more, and it turns out her littlest sister is tying the knot, and she’s doing it very quickly, and it sort of pushes Beth over the edge.”

‘Love Happens’ (2009)

Burke (Aaron Eckhart), a widower whose book about coping with loss turns him into a best-selling self-help guru, falls for the hotel florist (Eloise) where his seminar is given, only to learn that he hasn’t yet truly confronted his wife’s passing. Jennifer was cast as the free-spirited florist who sets in motion a profound change for Burke just as he helps her to move on. “Jennifer is radiant on screen and she’s so watchable,” says writer/director Brandon Camp. “Eloise is a character with whom you never know what you’re going to get. She writes on walls, pretends to be deaf, is quirky and eccentric, and has this girl-next-door quality about her. It doesn’t feel forced with Jennifer … that human notion of being just a little left of center, being a little bit different. As much as she’s a movie star, she’s also so relatable and accessible.”

When she read Love Happens, Jennifer was interested in the dynamic between two lost people in a screenplay that was, as she puts it, “not your typical love story. It’s about two people who are starting a scary, new beginning.” Describing Eloise’s world before Burke, the actress offers: “So far in life, she’s content in the choices that she’s made.” But when she meets the self-help guru, “Eloise sees an opportunity to fix something, and Burke is looking to be healed. For him, it’s the first time he’s allowed his heart to feel. When you do that, you have to clean out the skeletons, whether you want to or not.”

‘The Bounty Hunter’ (2010)

A bounty hunter (Gerard Butler) learns that his next target is his ex-wife (Jennifer), a reporter working on a murder cover-up. Soon after their reunion, the always-at-odds duo find themselves on a run-for-their-lives adventure.

‘The Switch’ (2010)

Upset that his best friend Kassie Larson (Jennifer) won’t allow him to provide the sperm for artificial insemination, a drunken Wally Mars (Jason Bateman) substitutes his own for the true donor’s and completely forgets … until he meets her son seven years later and finds there’s is something very familiar about him. Explains Jennifer, “When we meet Kassie, she’s at a time in her life where she’s just ready to have a child and not in a place where she feels she needs a man to do it. She basically alerts her best friend she’s going to do this on her own.” Jason Bateman, she adds, “is just one of the sweetest guys. I’ve known him for so many years; I met him when I was 25 years old.”

‘Cougar Town’ (2010, Guest Star)

Jennifer appeared in the first episode of Season 2 of Courtney Cox’s series Cougar Town, “All Mixed Up.” In it, Courtney’s Jules decides to see a therapist named Glenn, played by Jennifer. In the end, the episode was the third highest rated sow in the series’ run. No surprise there.

‘Just Go With It’ (2011)

On a weekend trip to Hawaii, a plastic surgeon (Adam Sandler) convinces his loyal assistant (Jennifer) to pose as his soon-to-be-divorced wife in order to cover up a careless lie he told to his much-younger girlfriend (Brooklyn Decker). The critics hated this movie, but the audience didn’t as it grossed $214 million worldwide.

‘Horrible Bosses’ (2011)

Three friends conspire to murder their awful bosses when they realize they are standing in the way of their happiness. One of those bosses is Jennifer’s sexually aggressive dentist, Dr. Julia Harris.  Says co-star Jason Bateman, “As everyone knows, no means no and this is one woman who never got that memo. When her daily routine of grabbing, flashing and talking trash isn’t enough, she adds blackmail to the list.”

“I’ve never played a character so inexcusably raunchy and there was no way I could resist it — the dialogue and the situations are so outrageous and fun. I jumped at it immediately,” says Jennifer, who calls the movie “a guilty pleasure for people unhappy in their jobs, to maybe go and get it out of their system by rooting for these guys. It really stretches the limits and crosses boundaries and Dr. Harris is way out in front on all counts: guilty as charged.”

‘Wanderlust’ (2012)

Unable to cope with sudden unemployment, a Manhattan couple (Paul Rudd and Jennifer) surveys alternative living options, ultimately deciding to experiment with living on a rural commune where free love rules. After Paul came on board, the filmmakers took the project to actress Jennifer, who offers that she instantly realized a kinship with her character of Linda. “I felt parallel to her and what she was going through. It was like coming out of your shell and letting your guard down.”

Jennifer notes that she hasn’t had this level of professional camaraderie since her days as Rachel Green on Friends. “There was this ensemble of people that I felt so connected to,” she notes. “We shot for three months, but I wanted this to go on for 10 years. We had an incredible amount of fun, and it just kept getting better.”

The duo have a working relationship that dates back 13 years to the groundbreaking independent film in which they co-starred, The Object of My Affection. “Working with Jen is great,” says Paul. “She’s a talented actress, very funny, and just plain cool. We’ve also been friends for many years. Because of that, I hope people inherently feel as if there’s some history with the characters, because there is with is us in real life. I think it comes across.”

Jennifer adds, “I just love Paul dearly. We’ve known each other for such a long time, and I have to say he’s a darn good actor.”

‘Burning Love’ (2012, Webseries)

Produced by Ben Stiller, this webseries is a spoof of The Bachelor and The Bachelorette. It ran for three seasons and a total of 42 episodes. Jennifer played a contestant named Dana, who keeps her identity secret.

‘We’re the Millers’ (2013)

A veteran pot dealer (Jason Sudeikis) creates a fake family as part of his plan to move a huge shipment of weed into the U.S. from Mexico. Jennifer plays his “wife,” Rose O’Reilly, who works as a stripper. Of that stripper scene, she related to ShowbizCafe.com, “It was really just an amazing choreographer, a wonderful trainer, and a beautiful cinematographer, but I did work out a lot. There was a lot of celery sticks, salads, cucumbers. They did let me eat ice chips. I just had to do it. They rolled the cameras and I just had to bite the bullet. It was a little bit uncomfortable at first, but then you get used to it. At first you’re doing all the rehearsals alone and then all of the sudden you’re on set with three cameras and a bunch of crew [members]. It’s a little intimidating at first.”

‘Life of Crime’ (2013)

Two common criminals get more than they bargained for after kidnapping the wife of a corrupt real estate developer who shows no interest in paying the $1 million ransom for her safe return. The film is set in 1978, which led collider to ask what it was like for Jennifer to be in that era. “It’s a tough look,” she says. “I mean, it was awesome for the time and a lot of fun to wear all of that polyester and the handkerchiefs around the neck.  My favorite piece of my wardrobe was the sunglasses.  Basically, I looked like my mom.  I pulled out a lot of her old pictures and just tried to rock the old Nancy Aniston 1970’s look.”

‘Horrible Bosses 2’ (2014)

Dale, Kurt and Nick decide to start their own business, but things don’t go as planned because of a slick investor, prompting the trio to pull off a harebrained and misguided kidnapping scheme. Needless to say, Jennifer’s Dr. Julia Harris is very much in the mix. The hot dentist with an overactive libido and a yen for Dale, who once made him so miserable that he was ready to kill her, seems to be making strides toward conquering her demons. She’s in rehab now, even offering up her office, the site of so much unspeakable debauchery, as an after-hours meeting place for her therapy group.

“She’s trying to better herself. She’s in a sex-addiction group and we’re thinking that she’s doing pretty well this time,” Jennifer says, while acknowledging that the jury is still out on how committed Julia is to her new lifestyle. “I think she knows that everyone at those meetings is pretty vulnerable and on the verge of falling off the wagon, so for her it’s sort of another avenue for flirtation. She’s not well. She’s just not.”

‘She’s Funny That Way’ (2014)

The cast and crew of a Broadway play are thrown into a romantic roundelay when a lecherous director (Owen Wilson) hires a hooker-turned-actress (Imogen Poots) to star alongside his wife (Kathryn Hahn) and his wife’s ex-lover (Rhys Ifans). When Jennifer Aniston was approached to do the film it was with the idea of her playing the role of Delta, Arnold’s actress wife. But as director Peter Bogdanovich relates, “She just had no interest in playing the wife, but said she’d love to play Jane, the therapist. I tried to convince her that maybe the part of Delta was more central to the story, but she had her heart set on playing Jane. So finally I said, ‘Okay, play Jane.’

“And she’s very good at it, she’s excellent in the part,” he continues. “She wears a wig which she insisted upon for the role and which I liked. And everything she did was fine with me. I think she did a great job. It was very much a stretch for her with the performance. She never played anything quite like that. She basically played a complete bitch. And audiences laughed when they saw her in the part, because they know she’s not like that. That’s one of the reasons the dynamic works. So she’s playing it like that whereas, if she actually was known to be a bitch it wouldn’t be funny.”

‘Cake’ (2014)

After having visions of a member of her support group who killed herself, a woman (Jennifer) who also suffers with chronic pain, seeks out the widower (Sam Worthington) of the suicide. On playing a character in such severe plain, Jennifer related to NPR, “It was a lot of studying the back, the leg, the neck. Pretty much every single part of her body was hurt, injured. And you really do start to manifest odd little, you know, cricks and … pinches in your neck and lower back pain. … Every week I would have some form of body work, just to make sure, you know, my body didn’t kind of lock into any of that permanently. … Talking to women, or men, who are suffering from chronic pain on a daily basis — it is so unimaginable. I mean, I was so grateful for my body at the end of the day.”

‘Mother’s Day’ (2016)

From director Garry Marshall, Sandy (Jennifer Aniston) is a stressed-out, single mom who learns that her ex-husband is marrying a younger woman. Her friend Jesse (Kate Hudson) is a fitness freak who doesn’t tell her parents that she has a family. Bradley  (Jason Sudeikis) is a widower who’s trying to raise two daughters on his own, while Miranda (Julia Roberts) is too busy with her career to worry about having children. When their respective problems start coming to a head, the Mother’s Day holiday takes on a special meaning.

‘Office Christmas Party’ (2016)

When the CEO (Jennifer) tries to close her hard-partying brother’s (T.J. Miller) branch of the business, he and his chief technical officer (frequent Jennifer collaborator Jason Bateman) must rally their co-workers and host an epic office Christmas party in an effort to impress a potential client and close a sale that will save their jobs.

‘The Yellow Birds’ (2017)

Two young soldiers, Bartle (21) and Murph (18), navigate the terrors of the Iraq war under the command of the older, troubled Sergeant Sterling. All the while, Bartle is tortured by a promise he made to Murph’s mother — Jennifer’s Maureen Murphy — before their deployment. Jennifer admitted to Entertainment Weekly, “War movies aren’t usually my thing; I find them very hard to watch. But the way this script read, and the vision that Alex [director Alexandre Moors] had — it was really connecting into the humanity of the soldiers, the parents that are left behind waiting, counting the minutes; the loss of innocence. I already had an extreme amount of respect and gratitude and awe for anyone who would go and fight war; the men and women that are the heroes, but then to actually have immersed ourselves in this story and to really have to connect to some reality of what these innocent men and women are faced with — it’s unfathomable. It really is.”

‘Dumplin” (2018)

Willowdean (‘Dumplin’), the plus-size teenage daughter of a former beauty queen (Jennifer), signs up for her mom’s Miss Teen Bluebonnet pageant as a protest that escalates when other contestants follow her footsteps, revolutionizing the pageant and their small Texas town. Dolly Parton is an element of the film and Jennifer got the chance to work with her, telling  Glamour, “When you’re a kid, you just have those little fantasies of singing into your hairbrushes and all that sort of stuff, so it was a pinch-me moment for sure.” As to the film’s message on body confidence she added, “I think it’s a nice time for girls to try to deconstruct the messaging that’s been put into young girls’ heads about how they’re supposed to look, what filters they’re supposed to put on and just not living an authentic self.”

‘The Morning Show’

Jennifer began portraying Alex Levy on The Morning Show in 2019. The Apple TV series also stars Reese Witherspoon, Steve Carell and Billy Crudup. She earned Golden Globe nominations for Best Actress in the show’s first two seasons. It was renewed for a third season in January 2022. 

‘Murder Mystery’ (2019)

In the Adam Sandler-produced film Murder Mystery, the Echo Films founder stole the show as the character Audrey Spitz. The Netflix comedy mystery film was a smash hit with viewers, leading to a sequel due out in 2023.