By Ashley Oldham
Over the past century, our screens have been graced with Elizabeth Bennets of all kinds — and while many have come and gone, our love for them has not. Whether in big-screen movies, TV miniseries, or even a modern-day web show, we’ve all seen our fair share of Lizzy Bennets.
Below, we’ve ranked our top 10 versions of Elizabeth. How does your favorite fare?
10. Amanda Price/Elizabeth Bennet in 2008’s “Lost in Austen”: In this variation of “Pride and Prejudice,” a 21st-century Jane Austen fan named Amanda Price (Jemima Rooper) accidentally trades places with Lizzy, leaving Amanda falling for Darcy and the real Elizabeth becoming a nanny in modern-day society. Neither “Elizabeth” is particularly my favorite.
9. Bridget Jones in 2001’s “Bridget Jones’s Diary”: This is definitely a very loose adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice,” but Bridget (Renee Zellweger) is a nice variation of Elizabeth — even though they might not actually have that much in common.
8. Elizabeth Bennet in 2003’s “Pride and Prejudice: A Latter-Day Comedy”: In this adaptation, Lizzie (Kam Heskin) is a Mormon attending college at Brigham Young University. Though the setting and situation may be wildly different from the novel, we still get a glimpse of Mr. Darcy and the smart, strong-willed Elizabeth we know and love.
7. Lalita Bakshi in 2004’s “Bride and Prejudice”: This Bollywood-esque adaptation includes lots of music and dancing — need I say more? Lalita (Aishwarya Rai) is headstrong and smart, and brings Lizzy Bennet to us in a fresh, diverse way. Still, there’s a little something lacking for me in the chemistry between her and Darcy.
6. Elizabeth Bennet in 1980’s “Pride and Prejudice”: This BBC television adaptation gives us another kind-hearted, lively Lizzy Bennet (Elizabeth Garvie). But it’s just not my favorite.
5. Elizabeth Bennet in 2016’s “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies”: Honestly, did you ever really think you would find Lizzy (Lily James) slaying zombies and wooing Mr. Darcy all at the same time? Neither did I, but here she is, and, surprisingly enough, her new character traits work really well (knife-wielding skills included).
4. Elizabeth Bennet in 1995’s “Pride and Prejudice”: Brought to us by BBC, this miniseries presents a classic take on “Pride and Prejudice” — and Miss Elizabeth Bennet (Jennifer Ehle) — that Austen fans are sure to love. That said, this Lizzy comes in at No. 4 on my list only because I’m extremely partial to my top three picks.
3. Elizabeth Bennet in 1940’s “Pride and Prejudice”: Greer Garson gives us a beautiful rendition of our beloved Bennet sister. She’s kind, witty, and just about everything else you could expect from a near-picture-perfect Elizabeth Bennet in this black-and-white rendition of “Pride and Prejudice.”
2. Lizzie Bennet in 2012-13’s “The Lizzie Bennet Diaries”: How could you NOT adore Lizzie in this modern-day, vlog-style YouTube adaptation of “Pride and Prejudice.” This Miss Bennet (Ashley Clements) meets all of the qualifications for a 21st-century go-getter. Going to graduate school for mass communications, she’s intelligent, hilarious, and oddly great at impersonating Mr. Darcy.
1. Elizabeth Bennet in 2005’s “Pride and Prejudice”: Maybe I’m just blindsided by my love for Keira Knightley (and because this version of “Pride and Prejudice” is filmed so beautifully), but I can’t help but put this variation of Lizzy at the top of my list. Smart, witty, and absolutely stunning — this is an Elizabeth for the ages.
If you’re looking for more rankings of your favorite “Pride and Prejudice” characters, check out how your favorite Mr. Darcys stacked up here!
Agree with our list? Let us know! Think that we’re way off? Tell us how you would rank your favorite Elizabeths in the comments below!
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Jennifer Ehle is easily the best Elizabeth. Yes, her emotions don't visibly show, but her eyes (her most striking feature) sparkled, showing her love. She suited the period and was totally believable. Kiera Knightly was good, but not my idea of Elizabeth Bennett.
Jennifer Ehle was an incredible Elizabeth Bennett. Her performance when she refused D’arcy / was breathtaking She is without a doubt the best / such an intelligent, timeless performance. She also fitted the period. Keira Knightley grew on me after watching the film a few times but Jennifer Ehle got Lizzie totally.
Devoted Jane Austen fan here. This will be an unpopular opinion, but while I find Jennifer Ehle's performance good I also find it lacking in emotional expression. Her portrayal particularly falls flat once Lizzy is supposed to be in love. The acting hardly changes from beginning to end.
I feel strongly that Keira Knightley did a much better job even though I like Jennifer; Keira portrays the change in Lizzy's feelings much more effectively, sincerely seems to feel the awkward unpleasantness of the meetings between herself and the other characters, and has genuine chemistry with her Mr. Darcy. By the end you can really feel that she's in love.
Thr emotion is is unfortunately lacking in Ehle's performance and I…
This is so clearly NOT a good list that it's almost funny. Keira is just bizarre in this role (and I hate the 2005 adaptation so much). Jennifer's Lizzie is miles above anyone else's. Greer Garson is lovely but that version is a joke. Elizabeth Garvie is missing completely from your list and she was excellent. It seems you place style over substance, to a fault.
Jennifer Ehle is easily the best and most definitive version of Lizzie. Any and all other versions are merely shadowy echoes at best. Her interpretation of Miss Elisabeth Bennet is the measure against which all pretenders are measured and found wanting.