Scarlett Johansson's Underseen 2025 Movie Is A Hidden Gem On Netflix

The world knows Scarlett Johansson as a movie star, but the Academy Award-nominee is an equal force of nature behind the camera. In 2025, Johansson proved her talent as a director with her feature directorial debut "Eleanor the Great." While the comedy drama didn't light up the box office, it's now available for viewers to watch on Netflix.

June Squibb stars as Eleanor Morgenstein, a 94-year-old woman who moves from Florida to New York City to live with her daughter, Lisa (Jessica Hecht), after the death of her best friend, Bessie Stern (Rita Zohar). The lonely Eleanor stumbles into a Holocaust survivor group where she retells Bessie's life story as her own. A 19-year-old student Nina Davis (Erin Kellyman), who recently lost her mother, connects with Eleanor through this story, and they strike up a friendship. But what happens when Eleanor's secret is exposed?

"Eleanor the Great" received mostly positive reviews, holding a 67% critical approval and a 93% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, but only managed to make $3.74 million worldwide. However, films such as these tend to fare better as a home release or on streaming, and more are sure to discover it since it dropped on Netflix.

Scarlett Johansson had a busy 2025, re-teaming with Wes Anderson for "The Phoenician Scheme," starring in one of the biggest box office hits of the summer with "Jurassic World Rebirth," and releasing her directorial debut "Eleanor the Great." Even though stepping into the director's chair was a new experience for the performer, she discovered how naturally it came to her.

"One of the biggest revelations was realizing how much of the work felt like an extension of what I've already been doing for years," Johansson told The Curb. "You worry about the technical parts — where do I put the camera, how do I shot list this, am I going to have the right answers? — but then you discover you actually know a lot more than you think you do."

There are a number of great actors who became directors, and Johansson's name can be added to this list. Yet, she isn't in the business of making films for the sake of it. According to Johansson, there's one non-negotiable when it comes to selecting projects. "I like the idea of doing all different scales of work," she told Deadline. "But I think the thing that I would have to be connected to would be this human element of characters that are complicated."