First appearing in an episode of the hit Disney Channel seriesHannah Montanna,Alison Briehas broken out to become one of the most recognizable performers currently working and has become part of Hollywood royalty, being married to star Dave Franco, with whom she often collaborates. A talented actress who has shown a great ability for comedy and drama alike, Brie is a performer like no other, one who is so incredibly specific that her name can be used as a descriptive word for a type of performance. When Marvel Studios was looking to cast the role of She-Hulk, it was reported they were looking for an’Alison Brie type'.
Update August 09, 2025: With the release of Brie’s newest film, Freelance, this article has been updated with more great performances by her and where you can stream each entry.
While that can mean many things, over the course of her career, Brie has played a number of roles that tend to be very sweet and compassionate people, as well as strong go-getters who are very determined to accomplish a goal. The performer also is ideal for casting directors, as she has proven she can work with any genre and even any medium, having a steady career in voice work. From roles in Academy Award-nominated films to cult television series and working with some of the most talented filmmakers, storytellers, and performers. Brie has a career filled with great roles. These are the best Alison Brie performances across film and television.
12Somebody I Used to Know (2023)
Somebody I Used to Know
Prime Video romcomSomebody I Used to Knowsees Brie playing a workaholic showrunner of a reality TV show called Ally, who returns to her hometown and bumps into her ex-flame, Sean (played by Jay Ellis). As they reminisce about their old life together, Ally begins to question the person she has become, especially when she meets Sean’s new fiancé Cassidy, whom Ally recognizes as essentially a younger version of herself.
Co-written by Brie with her husband Dave Franco, who also directs,Somebody I Used to Knowis a romantic comedy with more nuance than your typical rom-com. Character-driven and expertly observed, it not only acts as a solid sophomore outing for Franco but as a decent showcase of Brie’s acting and writing talents, even if she is ultimately playing to type here.
Stream on Prime Video
11The Little Hours (2017)
The Little Hours
Set in the 14th Century,The Little Hourstells the story of threenuns behaving badlyat a convent in the countryside, seducing a young gardener, who himself is posing as a deaf-mute (played by Brie’s real-life husband Dave Franco) and on the run for committing adultery with a lord’s wife. Brie stars as Sister Alessandra alongside Aubrey Plaza (whose husband, Jeff Baena, writes and directs) and Kate Micucci (The Big Bang Theory).
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A black comedy,The Little Hoursmakes use of contemporary dialogue and humor to create a clash of setting and subject with language to make a classic sex comedy, but with nuns at the center. It’s vulgar, raucous, and laugh-out-loud hilarious and is a truly original film filled with great comedic talent. As Sister Alessandra, Brie holds the whole thing together, and her chemistry with her co-stars proves to be a winning formula.
Stream on Hulu
10The Post (2017)
Throughout her ever-expanding career, Brie has been fortunate to work alongside many great talents. Undoubtedly, the one she can boast about the most is none other than Steven Spielberg himself. In the director’s Oscar-nominated 2017 filmThe Post,Brie plays real-life journalist Lally Graham, aWashington Postemployee around the time of the publishing of thePentagon Papers.Based on true events, the film also stars Meryl Streep, Tom Hanks, and Bob Odenkirk, among others, and garnered critical acclaim for its writing, themes, and the performances of the cast.
Tense, revealing, and poignant,The Postis a triumph of a film that’sup there among the best political thrillers. The master he is, Spielberg manages to make what should be mundane scenes about the mundane world of the printing press seem dramatic and engaging. And, though Brie’s role may be smaller here than in other films, she still manages to stand out from the crowd and do great work with the material she’s given.
Stream on Fubo
9The Disaster Artist (2017)
The Disaster Artist
Telling the real-life story of the making ofThe Room, widely considered to be one of the worst films ever made, 2017’sThe Disaster Artistfollows aspiring actor Greg (Dave Franco) as he befriends the mysterious and quirky Tommy Wiseau (James Franco), who has big plans to make a movie like no other. Her second of four collaborations with husband, Dave Franco, Brie takes on the role of Amber, the girlfriend of Greg.
Made with care and appreciation for its source material, rather than disdain or mockery,The Disaster Artistis a clever and surprisingly touching film that gives a real insight into the challenges of making a movie. Filled with great performances by a cast who are all game, the film received critical acclaim upon its release and earned multiple award nominations. As the voice of reason and the subject of Tommy’s jealousy, who inadvertently serves as a catalyst for him to make his movie, Brie is a solid and vital cog in a gloriously well-made machine.
Stream on Paramount+
Though she had appeared in a handful of roles prior to her work on AMC’sMad Men, Brie’s portrayal of naive and dutiful housewife Trudy Campbell is arguably where she first found success. Set primarily in the 1960s, the show follows the professional and personal lives of the staff at a fictional advertising company. The wife of one of the main characters, Pete Campbell, Trudy spends much of the show’s seven seasons dealing with her husband’s multiple infidelities and coming up against the patriarchal power systems that ruled society at the time.
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Throughout its run,Mad Menwas a critical darling and ratings hit and is regarded as one of the best TV shows of the 21st century. While Brie would later go make a name for herself as a comedic performer, it was her role onMad Menthat showed early signs of the actress’s versatility and her ability to craft a compelling character.
Stream on AMC+
7BoJack Horseman (2014-2020)
BoJack Horseman
For six seasons, Brie voiced the character of Diane Nguyen on the hit Netflix seriesBojack Horseman, a ghostwriter who has a complicated relationship with the show’s lead character. Diane is a great character who is richly defined as being both troubled in her own way, like many of the characters on thisextremely depressing show; Diane is also one who wants to be better and wants others around her to be better.
Bojack Horsemanis an incredible series that deals with dark, complex issues of loneliness, depression, and self-destructive personalities. While a great performance, one of the reasons the role isn’t higher is that there certainly were issues with having Brie voice a character who is half-Vietnamese, somethingBrie herself apologized for, later on.
Stream on Netflix
6Happiest Season (2020)
Happiest Season
While movie theaters were shut down in 2020 due to COVID-19, Brie had an incredibly solid year, with four films being released across various platforms. One of which was Christman-themed romcomHappiest Season. The film focuses on Abby (Kirsten Stewart) and her girlfriend of one year, Harper (Mackenzie Davis), who are invited to spend the holidays with Harper’s family. However, Harper has yet to come out to her conservative family. The film’s central focus is on the relationship between Abby and Harper, but the couple can’t work if Harper won’t be upfront with her family, which includes older sister Sloane, played by Brie.
Sloan is extremely competitive in nature, and Brie does here what she does best; brings an uptight type-A personality perfectly to life with the perfect mix of charm and neurosis. It may not be much of a step outside of her comfort zone but nevertheless, it’s a performance that helps balance out the film’s comedic ensemble and makesHappiest Seasona new holiday classic.
5Promising Young Woman (2020)
Promising Young Woman
Brie’s role in 2020’s Academy Award-winning filmPromising Young Womanis a minor but vital one in the film. She plays Madison McPhee, a former classmate of the main character Cassie Thomas (Carey Mulligan) who, after refusing to acknowledge that a classmate of theirs was sexually assaulted, is manipulated by Cassie to think she was taken advantage of while under the influence.
While Cassie eventually reveals to Madison that nothing happened, the psychological warfare waged on the character asks the audience adark ethical question: while Madison may be complicit in covering up something awful does that justify making her think she was assaulted? The film never gives an answer, but Brie’s performance as distant and materialistic at the start but broken and saddened in her final scene shows her dramatic range.
Stream on Freevee
4Sleeping With Other People (2015)
Sleeping With Other People
Sleeping With Other Peopletells the story of Lainey (Alison Brie) and Jake (Jason Sudeikis), two individuals who, after losing their virginity to each other in a one-night stand, reunite and vow to form a friendship with one another despite their past history with relationships only being sexual in nature. The film is very much a romantic comedy in the vein ofWhen Harry Met Sally, just with a more modern sense of humor and a sexual dynamic put front and center.
Brie steps into the role of Lainey with ease, and being her big starring vehicle afterCommunityhad officially wrapped up, showed both her ability to carry a leading role and that she was not just Annie Eddison. Another smart romantic comedy filled with witty dialogue, interesting characters, and more than the one raunchy moment,Sleeping With Other Peopleis a delightful tale and just the thing Brie needed to take her into the next phase of her career.
3The Lego Movie (2014)
Lego Movie
In the second animated performance of Brie on this list, inThe Lego Movie, Brie voices Princess Unikitty, a master builder who lives in Cloud Cuckoo Land. After seeing her home be destroyed, the character must reckon with feeling an emotion other than happiness for the first time in her life: anger/sadness. The character’s outward persona is a sweet kind individual, but one of the funniest elements of the character is the violent rage she gets when overwhelmed.
The Lego Movieis a clever send-up of media tropes as seen through the lens of a child playing with toys, and Princess Unikitty is a great example of how a child makes up a characterization for a character that’s primary defining features are being a hybrid between a cat and a unicorn. The character was successful enough thatUnikitty got a TV spin-off show.
