Love ‘Jessica Jones’? Check out Krysten Ritter’s other roles
Jessica Jones’s whiskey-soaked superhero comes back to our screens today, so we’re celebrating the eclectic career of the show’s star, Krysten Ritter. Having appeared in a set of teen shows, comedies, dramas, and even the occasional crime caper, Ritter has made a career out of enigmatic and even whimsical roles.
While no other character is as formidable as Jessica, Ritter certainly appears to have a habit for playing complex, unconventional, and forthright women who make unapologetic lifestyle choices. Here’s a ranking of the ten essential roles you should revisit in your post-Jessica Jones withdrawal.
10. Gravity (2010): Lily
Jill Franklyn and Eric Schaeffer’s short-lived Starz series starred Ritter in a lead role as a suicide survivor searching for purpose. The tragicomic show displayed Ritter’s flair for pathos-drenched comedy.
9. Confessions of a Shopaholic (2009): Suze
Okay. So nobody is gonna call Sophie Kinsella’s romantic comedy about a tortured love affair with consumerism a masterpiece anytime soon, but the movie offers heaps of fun thanks to performances from Ritter and costar Isla Fisher (Nocturnal Animals).
8. Big Eyes (2014): DeeAnn
Tim Burton’s art-world biopic boasted a stellar cast including Amy Adams (Arrival), Christoph Waltz (Downsizing), and Jason Schwartzman (Rushmore). However, despite playing a supporting role as the best friend of Adams’s put-upon artist Margaret Keane, Ritter remains a captivating part of the movie: fiercely supportive and quietly critical.
7. Vamps (2012): Stacy
Amy Heckerling (Clueless) reunited with Alicia Silverstone for this cutesy romantic comedy with a lot of bite to it, but adding Ritter to the mix was a touch of genius. Playing a pair of vampiric party girls faced with some bothersome romantic possibilities, Vamps exhibited how playful and incredibly charming Ritter can be as a lead.
6. Life Happens (2012): Kim
Ritter is utterly enthralling as a young woman tasked with becoming a single mom after a one-night stand. The story gives the actor plenty of comedic beats to play with, but ultimately Ritter shines as the dramatic lead – an immature twentysomething growing into a total boss while laying down some fury against unsupportive roommates.
5. Gossip Girl: “Valley Girls” (2009): Carol Rhodes
Let’s all shed a tear for the finest spinoff show that never happened: Valley Girls. Set to explore the early life of secretly rocking society mom Lily van der Woodsen (Kelly Rutherford) back when she was Lily Rhodes (portrayed by Brittany Snow), this single episode teased what could have been a wonderfully soapy exploration of 1980s New York.
Lily’s cousin Carol was portrayed by an on-form Ritter as a character who appeared as dirty as she was decadent, and as sweet as she was sardonic. Plus, just look at her wardrobe! Yowza.
4. Gilmore Girls (2006 – 2007): Lucy
As one of Rory Gilmore’s first major Yale buddies (beyond Paris Geller), Ritter proved she could more than capably keep up with the rapid dialogue of the average Gilmore Girls script.
While Ritter was an absolute delight as sweet-natured, quirky Lucy, she was even better once the character realized what a low-key monster her new BFF could be. The new-and-improved Lucy, who knew what a phony do-gooder Gilmore could be, was a sardonic, bitter treat.
3. Veronica Mars (2014): Gia Goodman
In the second season of Rob Thomas’s widely adored teenage-detective series, Gia (Ritter) was little more than a vacuous rich girl who existed merely to horrify Veronica (Kristen Bell). Following the bombshell twists of that season, Gia returned in the Veronica Mars movie much more developed and a lot more damaged. Kudos to Ritter, however, for managing to maintain Gia’s sunny disposition amid the darkness.
2. Don’t Trust The B—- in Apartment 23 (2012 – 2013): Chloe
Ritter was absolutely luminous as heavy-drinking, proudly promiscuous, manipulative hot mess Chloe in Nahnatchka Khan’s cult sitcom. Starring alongside Eric André (Rough Night), Dreama Walker (Compliance), and James van der Beek as himself, Ritter’s performance is one of the greatest, and funniest, of her career – she’s deliciously despicable.
1. Breaking Bad (2009 – 2010): Jane Margolis
Jane is arguably one of the most important characters in the entirety of Breaking Bad, representing a turning point in the lives of both Walter White (Bryan Cranston) and Jesse Pinkman (Aaron Paul) as they make ruinous life decisions. Ritter is light and enchanting as Jesse’s life-changing love interest, but she’s also utterly devastating as a young woman who ultimately caves to her addiction.
