Want to know the best Norma Shearer movies? How about the worst Norma Shearer movies? Curious about Norma Shearer’s box office grosses or which Norma Shearer movie picked up the most Oscar® nominations? Need to know which Norma Shearer movie got the best reviews from critics and audiences? Well you have come to the right place.
Norma Shearer (1902-1983) was one of the most popular actresses from the mid-1920s through the 1930s. From 1929 to 1938 she picked up an incredible 6 Best Actress Oscar® nominations. She was the third woman ever to win a Best Actress Oscar®. She won for 1930’s The Divorcee. By 1942 she had appeared in her last movie and spent the rest of her life shunning the limelight. Her IMDb page shows 62 acting credits from 1919-1942. This page ranks Norma Shearer movies in 6 different columns of sortable information. Sadly some of her silent movies did not make the table due to lack of box office grosses.
Norma Shearer Movies Ranked In Chronological Order With Ultimate Movie Rankings Score (1 to 5 UMR Tickets) *Best combo of box office, reviews and awards.
Year
Movie (Year)
Rating
S
Year Movie (Year) Rating S
1939
The Women (1939)
1938
Marie Antoinette (1938)
AA Best Actress Nom
1934
The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Actress Nom
1936
Romeo and Juliet (1936)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Actress Nom
1930
The Divorcee (1930)
AA Best Picture Nom
AA Best Actress Win
1931
A Free Soul (1931)
AA Best Actress Nom
1932
Smilin' Through (1932)
AA Best Picture Nom
1940
Escape (1940)
1929
The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929)
AA Best Picture Nom
1927
The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927)
1939
Idiot's Delight (1939)
1930
Let Us Be Gay (1930)
1934
Riptide (1934)
1931
Private Lives (1931)
1931
Strangers May Kiss (1931)
1929
The Trial of Mary Dugan (1929)
1924
He Who Gets Slapped (1924)
1929
The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1929)
1929
Their Own Desire (1929)
AA Best Actress Nom
1925
The Tower of Lies (1925)
1926
The Devil's Circus (1926)
1927
After Midnight (1927)
1932
Strange Interlude (1932)
1926
Upstage (1926)
1942
We Were Dancing (1942)
1926
The Waning Sex (1926)
1942
Her Cardboard Lover (1942)
1927
The Demi-Bride (1927)
1928
A Lady of Chance (1928)
1928
The Latest From Paris (1928)
1924
Broadway After Dark (1924)
1925
His Secretary (1925)
1925
Lady Of The Night (1925)
1923
Lucretia Lombard (1923)
1925
Excuse Me (1925)
1924
The Snob (1924)
1928
The Actress (1928)
1924
Broken Barriers (1924)
1924
Empty Hands (1924)
1923
The Wanters (1923)
1923
Pleasure Mad (1923)
1925
Pretty Ladies (1925)
1925
A Slave of Fashion (1925)
Norma Shearer Movies Can Be Ranked 6 Ways In This Table
The really cool thing about this table is that it is “user-sortable”. Rank the movies anyway you want.
- Sort Norma Shearer movies by co-stars or in some cases directors
- Sort Norma Shearer movies by adjusted box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Norma Shearer movies by adjusted worldwide box office grosses using current movie ticket cost (in millions)
- Sort Norma Shearer movies by how the movie was received by critics and audiences. 60% rating or higher should indicate a good movie.
- Sort by how many Oscar® nominations and how many Oscar® wins each Norma Shearer movie received.
- Sort Norma Shearer movies by Ultimate Movie Rankings (UMR) Score. UMR Score puts box office, reviews and awards into a mathematical equation and gives each movie a score.
| CreditRank | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Review % | Oscar Nom / Win | S | UMR Score | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CreditRank | Movie (Year) | UMR Co-Star Links | Actual B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Domestic (mil) | Adj. B.O. Worldwide (mil) | B.O. Rank by Year | Review % | Oscar Nom / Win | S | UMR Score |
| 1 | The Women (1939) | Joan Crawford & Joan Fontaine |
6.80 | 260.4 | 362.1 | 13 | 83 | 00 / 00 | 98.0 | |
| 2 | Marie Antoinette (1938) AA Best Actress Nom |
Tyrone Power | 6.50 | 260.8 | 472.1 | 15 | 76 | 04 / 00 | 97.3 | |
| 3 | The Barretts of Wimpole Street (1934) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
Charles Laughton | 3.60 | 168.5 | 313.8 | 7 | 71 | 02 / 00 | 94.8 | |
| 4 | Romeo and Juliet (1936) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Nom |
Leslie Howard & Directed by George Cukor |
3.20 | 138.3 | 304.9 | 50 | 71 | 04 / 00 | 92.7 | |
| 5 | The Divorcee (1930) AA Best Picture Nom AA Best Actress Win |
Robert Montgomery | 2.60 | 139.6 | 139.6 | 35 | 69 | 04 / 01 | 92.6 | |
| 8 | A Free Soul (1931) AA Best Actress Nom |
Clark Gable & Lionel Barrymore |
2.60 | 135.0 | 216.0 | 32 | 75 | 03 / 01 | 91.7 | |
| 6 | Smilin' Through (1932) AA Best Picture Nom |
Leslie Howard & Fredric March |
2.90 | 140.6 | 284.6 | 15 | 70 | 01 / 00 | 91.7 | |
| 9 | Escape (1940) | Robert Taylor | 3.90 | 149.3 | 260.0 | 33 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 89.9 | |
| 10 | The Hollywood Revue of 1929 (1929) AA Best Picture Nom |
Joan Crawford & Buster Keaton |
4.90 | 150.3 | 238.2 | 12 | 59 | 01 / 00 | 89.0 | |
| 10 | The Student Prince in Old Heidelberg (1927) | Ramon Novarro | 3.10 | 104.8 | 182.2 | 13 | 79 | 00 / 00 | 88.7 | |
| 11 | Idiot's Delight (1939) | Clark Gable | 4.70 | 179.7 | 263.6 | 40 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 88.1 | |
| 12 | Let Us Be Gay (1930) | Marie Dressler | 2.60 | 137.5 | 198.8 | 38 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 86.6 | |
| 13 | Riptide (1934) | Robert Montgomery | 3.10 | 144.5 | 144.5 | 17 | 59 | 00 / 00 | 85.7 | |
| 14 | Private Lives (1931) | Robert Montgomery | 2.40 | 123.6 | 170.9 | 39 | 64 | 00 / 00 | 85.2 | |
| 16 | Strangers May Kiss (1931) | Robert Montgomery | 2.90 | 148.8 | 193.2 | 25 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 84.8 | |
| 16 | The Trial of Mary Dugan (1929) | Lewis Stone | 3.50 | 107.0 | 141.1 | 22 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 84.0 | |
| 15 | He Who Gets Slapped (1924) | Lon Chaney | 1.50 | 63.6 | 63.6 | 17 | 80 | 00 / 00 | 83.8 | |
| 18 | The Last of Mrs. Cheyney (1929) | Basil Rathbone | 3.60 | 109.6 | 109.6 | 20 | 60 | 01 / 00 | 81.3 | |
| 19 | Their Own Desire (1929) AA Best Actress Nom |
Robert Montgomery | 3.20 | 98.4 | 98.4 | 28 | 61 | 01 / 00 | 79.5 | |
| 20 | The Tower of Lies (1925) | Lon Chaney | 0.80 | 32.7 | 32.7 | 33 | 77 | 00 / 00 | 75.7 | |
| 21 | The Devil's Circus (1926) | Carmel Meyers | 1.00 | 37.4 | 37.4 | 38 | 71 | 00 / 00 | 70.5 | |
| 22 | After Midnight (1927) | Lawrence Gray | 1.50 | 49.8 | 49.8 | 41 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 70.3 | |
| 23 | Strange Interlude (1932) | Clark Gable | 2.70 | 134.0 | 173.2 | 19 | 39 | 00 / 00 | 69.3 | |
| 23 | Upstage (1926) | Oscar Shaw | 0.60 | 22.9 | 22.9 | 66 | 73 | 00 / 00 | 67.7 | |
| 24 | We Were Dancing (1942) | Melvyn Douglas & Gail Patrick |
1.70 | 61.7 | 61.7 | 143 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 67.5 | |
| 24 | The Waning Sex (1926) | Conrad Nagel | 0.90 | 33.4 | 33.4 | 47 | 69 | 00 / 00 | 66.1 | |
| 27 | Her Cardboard Lover (1942) | Robert Taylor & Directed by George Cukor |
1.80 | 67.7 | 103.3 | 133 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 65.9 | |
| 28 | The Demi-Bride (1927) | Lew Cody | 1.50 | 49.1 | 49.1 | 44 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 64.1 | |
| 29 | A Lady of Chance (1928) | Johnny Mack Brown | 1.00 | 30.3 | 30.3 | 85 | 67 | 00 / 00 | 61.9 | |
| 30 | The Latest From Paris (1928) | George Sidney | 1.30 | 42.8 | 42.8 | 68 | 62 | 00 / 00 | 61.1 | |
| 31 | Broadway After Dark (1924) | Adolphe Menjou | 1.30 | 55.2 | 62.1 | 19 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 60.2 | |
| 32 | His Secretary (1925) | Lew Cody | 1.30 | 53.5 | 53.5 | 22 | 58 | 00 / 00 | 59.3 | |
| 33 | Lady Of The Night (1925) | Malcolm McGregor | 0.60 | 23.8 | 23.8 | 40 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 52.3 | |
| 34 | Lucretia Lombard (1923) | Irene Rich | 0.40 | 19.4 | 19.4 | 34 | 63 | 00 / 00 | 49.5 | |
| 35 | Excuse Me (1925) | Conrad Nagel | 1.10 | 42.4 | 42.4 | 28 | 56 | 00 / 00 | 49.1 | |
| 36 | The Snob (1924) | John Gilbert | 0.50 | 22.1 | 22.1 | 48 | 61 | 00 / 00 | 46.3 | |
| 37 | The Actress (1928) | Owen Moore | 1.10 | 33.3 | 33.3 | 80 | 55 | 00 / 00 | 41.5 | |
| 38 | Broken Barriers (1924) | Adolphe Menjou | 0.60 | 24.5 | 24.5 | 42 | 54 | 00 / 00 | 33.5 | |
| 41 | Empty Hands (1924) | Jack Holt | 0.80 | 35.6 | 35.6 | 27 | 47 | 00 / 00 | 26.9 | |
| 39 | The Wanters (1923) | Marie Prevost | 0.40 | 18.4 | 18.4 | 35 | 52 | 00 / 00 | 25.9 | |
| 40 | Pleasure Mad (1923) | Huntley Gordon | 0.30 | 13.9 | 13.9 | 36 | 51 | 00 / 00 | 21.0 | |
| 42 | Pretty Ladies (1925) | Joan Crawford | 1.20 | 48.6 | 59.2 | 24 | 32 | 00 / 00 | 9.8 | |
| 43 | A Slave of Fashion (1925) | Lew Cody | 0.70 | 29.8 | 29.8 | 35 | 31 | 00 / 00 | 4.1 |
Possibly Interesting Facts About Norma Shearer
1. Norma Shearer’s childhood was spent in Montreal, Canada. After winning a beauty contest at age 14, Shearer’s mother took Norma and her sister to New York City in 1920 to audition for Ziegfeld’s Follies.
2. Although Shearer was rejected as a Ziegfeld Follie…she found roles as an extra in movies. By 1923 she had secured a 5-year contract with MGM.
3. Due to muscle weakness in her eyes…Norma Shearer had a cross-eyed stare.
4. Norma Shearer’s sister, Athole, married legendary director, Howard Hawks. So for 12 years, Howard Hawks was Norma’s brother-in-law.
5. Norma Shearer’s brother, Douglas Shearer, was a 12 time Oscar® winner. He won his Oscars® for sound recording. Norma and Douglas were the first brother and sister to be Oscar® winners.
6. Norma Shearer was married twice. Her first marriage was to a movie studio executive, Irving Thalberg. They were married from 1927 until his death in 1936. They had two children a boy and a girl. Irving Thalberg was the subject of F. Scott Fitzgerald’s last novel…The Last Tycoon. Robert DeNiro played the Thalberg character in the movie…The Last Tycoon. Shearer’s second marriage was to Martin Arrouge. She was married to Arrouge from 1942 until her death.
7. Norma Shearer was offered the part of Scarlett O’Hara in Gone With The Wind. Due to negative fan feedback…she decided to not accept the offer to play the part.
8. While staying at a ski lodge, Norma Shearer noticed a photo of the receptionist’s daughter and recommended her to MGM. The receptionist’s daughter was Jamie Lee Curtis’ mom….Janet Leigh.
9. Norma Shearer always refused to take her wedding ring off while making her movies. She preferred to cover it up with flesh-colored tape.
10. Check out Norma Shearer’s career compared to current and classic actors. Most 100 Million Dollar Movies of All-Time.
If you do a comment….please ignore the email address and website section.
Great work. What about some numbers on Frank Sinatra?
@Me….thanks. I have been thinking about doing a Frank Sinatra page for a very long time…I have all of his movies researched…so I guess it is time to finally do his Cogerson Movie Score page. I like to do a classic star and then a current star….right now I am working on a current star…but after I finish that one…I will finally do my Frank Sinatra page.
Very well done! Nice going 🙂
Thank you I appreciate the kind words.
She was a great one. 6 Oscar nominations is pretty good for a career much less in 8 years.
@Jackson…..I agree with you. 6 noms in 8 years is even better than Streep…..I think.
Interesting stuff. Thanks for the hard work you obviously did on this website.
Hey R.C…..thanks for the compliment
I have heard of Norma Shearer but not sure if I have seen any of her movies – a couple of the titles sound fsmiliar. I found it interesting thst she spent her childhood in Montreal as I was born in Montreal and got married there but then moved to Virginia where I had two sons, Bobby and Bruce. ANOTHER GOOD ONE SON.
Hey BERN1960…..thanks for stopping by. Shearer was probably the Julia Roberts of her time..it is kind of sad that not many people seem to remember her. Thanks for the visit and the comment. I know you Montreal people have to stick together.