The 8 Katharine Hepburn Movies That Defined Her Career

By the end of her career, Katharine Hepburn was considered one of the finest actresses Hollywood had ever seen, but this wasn’t the case her entire life. For many years, Hepburn had to fight to be taken seriously at the box office and be recognized for her significant contributions to film. However, as soon as producers and studios began to realize that she was a star, Hepburn was cast in some of the best movies of the 20th century. In a career spanning decades and involving many amazing creative collaborators, Hepburn has a filmography that will never be forgotten.

Whether these movies were singled out during the awards season or made a significant cultural impact, they’re the projects that propelled Hepburn forward in her career and are remembered to this day. Many of Katharine Hepburn’s best movies were instrumental in making her the performer she became. However, there are also underrated classics that informed the roles she was cast in and changed the public’s perception of her. Today, Hepburn retains an iconic legacy and is regarded as an influential part of cinematic history.

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8 Little Women (1933)

As Jo March

There have been many adaptations of Louisa May Alcott’s novel Little Women, and one of the earliest stars Hepburn as the iconic protagonist, Jo March. While recent iterations of the story have leaned into Jo’s tomboy nature more fully, the 1933 Little Women is of its time in many ways. It’s a more romantic take on the story than the latest film version, Greta Gerwig’s 2019 project starting Saoirse Ronan. However, Hepburn’s portrayal of Jo still has recognizable modern elements.

Starring in a movie like
Little Women
was a wise move for Hepburn, as the novel was universally beloved and connected with many audiences.

The director, George Cukor, would be a frequent collaborator with Hepburn and cast her in many of the movies that would advance her career considerably. Starring in a movie like Little Women was a wise move for Hepburn, as the novel was universally beloved and connected with many audiences. Additionally, the film premiered only a year after Hepburn’s onscreen debut in A Bill of Divorcement, following her success in the theater. This made Little Women one of Hepburn’s significant early works.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
Little Women (1933)	89%	78%

7 Bringing Up Baby (1938)

As Susan Vance

Bringing Up Baby Comedy

David Huxley, needing a bone for his museum, meets Susan Vance, and they embark on a series of misadventures involving a leopard named Baby.

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*Availability in US Director Howard Hawks Release Date February 18, 1938 Cast Katharine Hepburn , Cary Grant , Walter Catlett , Barry Fitzgerald

Though underrated at the time of its release, Bringing Up Baby has gone on to be hailed as one of the best screwball romantic comedies of all time, in large part thanks to Hepburn and Cary Grant. While Hepburn was a force of nature on her own, her chemistry with costars was something that set her apart from other performers, and her dynamic with Grant was incredible. The slapstick humor and outlandish premise made the perfect backdrop for the witty banter that sparked between Grant and Hepburn.

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In terms of career advancement, Bringing Up Baby didn’t help Hepburn at all since the movie was such a box office bomb. However, its legacy is what makes it important in Hepburn’s works. It’s always gratifying when a movie is reevaluated and comes to be viewed as influential, and Bringing Up Baby deserved this more than any of Hepburn’s other works. When watching Bringing Up Baby today, it rivals most modern rom-coms, as these projects attempt to capture the spirit of the 1938 film.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
Bringing Up Baby (1938)	97%	89%

6 The Philadelphia Story (1940)

As Tracy Lord

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8/10 The Philadelphia Story Not RatedComedyRomance

A wealthy woman learns the truth about herself when her ex-husband and a tabloid reporter show up just before her planned remarriage.

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*Availability in US Director George Cukor Release Date January 17, 1941 Writers Donald Ogden Stewart , Philip Barry , Waldo Salt Cast Cary Grant , Katharine Hepburn , James Stewart , Ruth Hussey , John Howard , Roland Young , John Halliday , Mary Nash Runtime 112 Minutes

Hepburn, Grant, and Jimmy Stewart make up the mixed-up trio in The Philadelphia Story, the most successful film of Hepburn’s career until that point. At first, a Broadway play, Hepburn originated the role of Tracy on the stage in The Philadelphia Story, and the screen version of the story proved to be just as engaging for audiences. The film proved to be so popular that it would later be remade into the movie musical High Society in 1956, starring Grace Kelly, Bing Crosby, and Frank Sinatra.

Garnering Hepburn a nomination for Best Actress at the Oscars and winning Stewart Best Actor,
The Philadelphia Story
was a turning point for Hepburn.

There was a period during her early years when Hepburn was considered box office poison, and she wasn’t being taken seriously as an actress (via BFI). While this slowly began to wear off as she took on better projects throughout the late 1930s, The Philadelphia Story was such a smash hit that no one would ever question Hepburn’s draw at the box office again. Garnering Hepburn a nomination for Best Actress at the Oscars and winning Stewart Best Actor, The Philadelphia Story was a turning point for Hepburn.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
The Philadelphia Story (1940)	100%	93%

5 Woman Of The Year (1942)

As Tess Harding

Hepburn and Spencer Tracy were one of the best movie actor duos from the Hollywood Golden Age, and their first collaboration in the 1942 rom-com Woman of the Year cemented them as a remarkable pair. Since Hepburn was committed to voicing her social and political views throughout her career, she typically chose roles that allowed her to play strong and independent women. Woman of the Year is remarkably ahead of its time in terms of gender politics and sees its clashing leads come to the conclusion that they must have an equal partnership rather than fulfill traditional gender roles.

Though the off-screen relationship between Hepburn and Tracy sparked many rumors, their onscreen chemistry and undeniable dynamic couldn’t be denied. This is what captured the audience’s attention in Woman of the Year and is part of why it’s so fondly remembered today. Once again nominated for Best Actress, Hepburn is at her wittiest and delivers her dialogue at a mile a minute, but is matched by Tracy at every turn. Woman of the Year marks the beginning of their amazing partnership in film.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
Woman of the Year (1942)	83%	80%

4 The African Queen (1951)

As Rose Sayer

The African Queen PGAdventureRomanceDrama

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*Availability in US Director John Huston Release Date January 7, 1952 Writers C.S. Forester , James Agee , John Huston , Peter Viertel , John Collier Cast Humphrey Bogart , Katharine Hepburn , Robert Morley , Peter Bull , Theodore Bikel , Walter Gotell Runtime 105 minutes

Based on the novel by C.S. Foster, The African Queen brought together two of the best actors of their generation, Hepburn and Humphrey Bogart. Though Bogart was best known for his film noir movies, he’s excellent in the film. Their characters make an unexpected pair, but their chemistry and budding romance are believable, thanks to the work of the veteran performers. They are the only two characters for the majority of the film, and while other actors might have buckled under this pressure, especially considering the action and adventure elements of the project, the pair never do.

Though Bogart and Hepburn weren’t at the end of their careers by any means, witnessing a love story between two slightly older characters in the early 1950s was ahead of its time. It’s a fondly remembered project and was instrumental in bridging the gap between the different phases of Hepburn’s career. Though she was no longer playing the ingénue, Hepburn would remain in the spotlight and prove how many great roles there are for women in middle age and beyond, beginning with The African Queen.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
The African Queen (1951)	96%	86%

3 Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)

As Violet “Vi” Venable

Suddenly, Last Summer ApprovedDramaMysteryThriller

Suddenly, Last Summer is a 1959 drama directed by Joseph L. Mankiewicz. The film stars Elizabeth Taylor as Catherine Holly, who is institutionalized after witnessing a traumatic event, and Katharine Hepburn as her aunt, Violet Venable, who seeks to protect her deceased son’s reputation. Montgomery Clift plays Dr. Cukrowicz, a psychiatrist persuaded to perform a lobotomy on Catherine to extract the truth about what she saw. The screenplay is based on Tennessee Williams’ one-act play.

Director Joseph L. Mankiewicz Release Date December 22, 1959 Writers Tennessee Williams , Gore Vidal Cast Elizabeth Taylor , Katharine Hepburn , Montgomery Clift , Albert Dekker , Mercedes McCambridge , Gary Raymond , Mavis Villiers , Patricia Marmont Runtime 114 Minutes

An Elizabeth Taylor, fresh off her career-making performance in Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, proves herself to be a worthy scene partner for Hepburn in Suddenly, Last Summer, the tragic film based on the Tennessee Williams play of the same name. Though the movie received mixed reviews, it was almost universally agreed that Hepburn and Taylor were the best parts of the project. It stands to reason that they would be cast in the project, as Hepburn had roots in the theater, and Taylor starred in another adaptation of Williams’ work.

Hepburn was nominated for an Oscar for her role as Vi, as was Taylor for playing Cathy.

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Hepburn was nominated for an Oscar for her role as Vi, as was Taylor for playing Cathy. Despite the lukewarm critical reception, Suddenly, Last Summer was a success in theaters and demonstrated how Hepburn’s star was far from fading. Additionally, the role of Vi was a new type of character for Hepburn, who rarely played villains. Her portrayal of Vi was both terrifying and sad. Though the plot of Suddenly, Last Summer doesn’t provide a happy ending, it gives Hepburn and Taylor a lot to work with.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
Suddenly, Last Summer (1959)	68%	83%

2 Guess Who’s Coming To Dinner (1967)

As Christina Drayton

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967) ApprovedComedyDrama

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner is a seminal film directed by Stanley Kramer, starring Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn, and Sidney Poitier. It confronts the complex social dynamics of interracial marriage during the 1960s. The plot centers around a young interracial couple who face the challenge of gaining acceptance from their families. The film is recognized for its bold thematic exploration and performances amidst the civil rights movement.

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*Availability in US Director Stanley Kramer Release Date December 12, 1967 Writers William Rose Cast Spencer Tracy , Sidney Poitier , Katharine Hepburn , Katharine Houghton , Cecil Kellaway , Beah Richards , Roy Glenn , Isabel Sanford Runtime 108 Minutes

Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner is a far from perfect film, as though it was boundary-pushing at the time; the movie’s depiction of racial politics is well-meaning but dated by today’s standards. However, one part of the film that can’t be faulted is the cast, as Hepburn, Spencer Tracy, and Sidney Poitier make up the ensemble, and their performances are all spell-binding. Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner doesn’t always speak on the complex issue of interracial relationships during this period with perfect eloquence. However, it was a high-profile project to tackle such important topics.

Another reason Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner was impactful for Hepburn was because it was the last film she and Tracy would collaborate on, as he passed away a few weeks after the movie wrapped. Hepburn won Best Actress at the Oscars for Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, one of the four total Academy Awards she would receive in her lifetime. Though this wasn’t the first time Hepburn starred in a project with a political message, it was one of the most important.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner (1967)	71%	85%

1 On Golden Pond (1981)

As Ethel Thayer

On Golden Pond PGDramaRomance

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*Availability in US Director Mark Rydell Release Date December 4, 1981 Writers Ernest Thompson , Donald E. Stewart Cast Katharine Hepburn , Henry Fonda , Jane Fonda , Doug McKeon , Dabney Coleman , William Lanteau , Christopher Rydell , Troy Garity Runtime 109 minutes

Hepburn’s love of the stage followed her through the later parts of her career, as she would star in many film adaptations of classic plays, like On Golden Pond. Co-starring with Henry Fonda and Jane Fonda, playing father and daughter in the movie, mirroring their relationship in real life. A sentimental tale about growing old and coming to terms with the fleeting but beautiful nature of life, On Golden Pond shows the two aging stars, Fonda and Hepburn, just as skilled and full of vigor as they were at the beginning of their careers.

A success both at the box office and with critics,
On Golden Pond
was nominated for several Academy Awards.

However, they’re also seasoned by age and wisdom, making their performances all the more believable. A success both at the box office and with critics, On Golden Pond was nominated for several Academy Awards. On Golden Pond saw Hepburn awarded her final Oscar, though Hepburn tied with Barbra Streisand at the Oscars for The Lion in Winter prior to this. Hepburn’s turn in On Golden Pond was one of the last few films of her career and is an excellent way to remember her irreplaceable talent.

Title	Rotten Tomatoes Critic Score	Rotten Tomatoes Audience Score
On Golden Pond (1981)	91%	87%

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