Set to play Silver Surfer in Marvel’s Fantastic Four, The Focus breaks down seven must-watch Julia Garner movies and shows.
The upcoming Marvel blockbuster Fantastic Four is perhaps the studio’s second most anticipated movie, tailing close behind this summer’s Deadpool & Wolverine. In the main superhero roles are Pedro Pascal as Reed Richards (Mr. Fantastic), Vanessa Kirby as Sue Storm (the Invisible Woman), Joseph Quinn as Johnny Storm (the Human Torch), and Ebon Moss-Bachrach as Ben Grimm (the Thing). Deadline reports sources have confirmed that 30-year-old American actress Julia Garner will play villain Silver Surfer, so before the epic arrives on Friday, July 25th 2025, there are some TV shows and movies to enjoy…
The Assistant
The first collaboration between Julia and director Kitty Green on this list is 2019’s The Assistant, an American drama film in which the actress plays central character Jane, a young woman who begins working at a film production company.
Navigating an increasingly toxic environment, the abuse going on behind closed doors gradually becomes less and less disguised. When Jane suspects a new victim has been lined up, she speaks out even in the face of jeopardizing her career.
Tense, timely, and masterfully performed by Julia, Kitty’s directorial debut feature was one of the best films of that year. Find it streaming on Max.
- FANTASTIC FOUR: Must-see movies from the cast
Dirty John: Season 1
Shifting over to the TV side of things, Dirty John is a true crime anthology series, each season taking on a new story.
Season 1 focuses on the relationship between successful interior designer Debra Newell and her relationship with a man named John Meehan. As things escalate out of control, the romance descends into horror for her and the family.
Of that family, Julia plays Terra, Debra’s youngest daughter—a fantastic job she does too. It’s a gripping season, coming after the small-screen role she’s best known for, but we’ll get to that soon.
Electrick Children
Serving as the actress’ second-ever screen role, the 2012 indie coming-of-age movie Electrick Children cast her as Rachel, a teenage girl from a fundamentalist Mormon community.
Upon the shock of discovering she’s pregnant, she believes the conception was a miracle that came about after listening to a song.
Well worth checking out, the film won awards and boasts a towering 88% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes. Even in the earliest days of her career, she had major star potential.
Inventing Anna
Flitting back to TV, the 2022 Netflix mini-series Inventing Anna was created by Grey’s Anatomy‘s Shonda Rhimes and was inspired by the story of Anna Sorokin, a Russian-born woman who integrated herself into high society in New York under the name Anna Delvey.
Posting as a German socialite and heiress, her plot to rake in millions of dollars is chronicled in this hugely entertaining drama, made all the better for Julia’s pitch-perfect and elaborate central performance.
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Julia’s debut screen role came in 2011’s Martha Marcy May Marlene, a captivating psychological thriller and drama directed by Sean Durkin, the filmmaker behind the recent critical hit The Iron Claw starring Zac Efron as a pro-wrestler.
This was Sean’s directorial feature debut, and this film which marks the arrival of two great talents tells the tale of a young woman tormented by severe paranoia after she leaves an abusive cult and reunited with her family.
Julia plays the supporting role of Sarah and it’s interesting to see how her career got its start. Additionally, there’s a Marvel connection here, and the main role is played by Elizabeth Olsen, now best known as the MCU’s Wanda Maximoff, aka Scarlet Witch.
Ozark
One of my favorite shows, Netflix’s Ozark is an incredible crime drama with Jason Bateman and Laura Linney as Marty and Wendy Byrde, parents who relocate the family to the Ozarks while laundering money for a Mexican drug cartel.
It ran for four seasons between 2017 and 2022, the clear cast stand-out being Julia as the hardened Ruth Langmore, one of the most unforgettable characters in recent TV history. The role earned her three Emmys and also a Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actress.
It’s an amazing show, and Ruth is its beating heart. After that, I was certain I’d see her in anything that came out after.
The Royal Hotel
Kitty and Julia’s next movie after The Assistant came last year with The Royal Hotel, one of 2023’s lesser-known gems that you can find on Hulu.
It follows two American backpackers and close friends, Hanna and Liv, who run out of money during their travels in Australia and opt to work the bar at a remote hotel in the outback.
Hounded by demeaning and sexist regulars, issues with their temporary situation begin to mount, arriving at a suffocating climax that had me wishing the tension would slow. I was hooked from start to finish, reminded of an old Australian film that’s one of my favorites, Wake In Fright. See both.
- JUST ADDED: New on Netflix this week
