5 Vanessa Kirby TV shows that showcase the actress’s versatility

Vanessa Kirby doesn’t follow a pattern when it comes to picking roles. She goes from period drama to psychological thriller without repeating herself. One project puts her in a castle while another places her in a cold interview room. She doesn’t lean on one style or mood. She adjusts how she talks and moves based on the world around her. In one show, she carries herself like royalty, while in another, she breaks apart in silence.

She knows when to stand out and when to stay in the background. That’s what makes her choices so unpredictable. Her performance never feels stuck in one lane. These five shows give a clear picture of how far she can stretch. Each one belongs to a different world, and she fits into every one of them without forcing it. You can see the control she has even in small scenes. She doesn’t play characters the same way twice.

She keeps changing what she brings to the screen. For anyone who only knows her as Princess Margaret, this list shows there’s much more. These are the shows that prove she isn’t just good in one setting. She fits anywhere without losing herself in the process.

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5 Vanessa Kirby TV shows that showcase the actress’s versatility

1) The Crown (2016–2017, 2022)

Vanessa Kirby played Princess Margaret in the early years of The Crown and brought a mix of pride and resentment to every scene. She stepped into a role that often gets flattened into scandal and gave it shape through silence, frustration, and dry humor. Her Margaret wanted freedom but never found a way to claim it without consequence.

Kirby’s strongest scenes came when she was stuck between image and desire. The series covered the fallout from the Royal Marriages Act and her breakup with Peter Townsend. She let that loss settle into her posture and tone. When she returned in season two, her scenes with Matthew Goode’s Lord Snowdon showed a different kind of damage.

The character did not get a redemption arc, but Kirby never played her like she needed one. That choice made Margaret feel more real. It gave The Crown weight and made her episodes harder to ignore.

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2) The Frankenstein Chronicles (2015)

In The Frankenstein Chronicles, Vanessa Kirby played Lady Jemima Hervey, a woman of education and moral instinct who assisted in a grim murder case. The series followed Sean Bean’s character as he investigated illegal anatomy practices and child deaths in 19th-century London.

Kirby’s character moved through both privileged circles and poor quarters with the same calm focus. She never felt misplaced or underused. She didn’t exist to soften the show’s darker edges. Instead, she brought contrast and clarity. Her conversations with Sean Bean’s Marlott pushed the case forward without dragging it into cliché.

The show worked best when it stayed grounded, and Kirby’s performance helped hold that line. She didn’t dominate scenes or shrink in them. She stayed measured and alert. That balance made her presence feel necessary. It gave the show more texture and showed how much impact one well-used supporting role can actually have.

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3) Great Expectations (2011)

Vanessa Kirby played Estella in this BBC adaptation of Great Expectations, and she did it without turning the role into a one-note cold beauty. Her Estella had distance, but it felt learned, not natural. You could see the training behind every word she delivered to Pip.

Her scenes with Douglas Booth’s Pip carried a kind of tension that didn’t rely on raised voices or theatrics. She pushed him away, but never with malice. She just didn’t know how to be anything else. That made her more unsettling and more believable.

Kirby gave Estella a slow burn. She didn’t play her as someone who would break down or run off. She showed what it looks like to be taught control and never taught softness. In a version of the story that stayed close to Dickens’ original tone, her performance gave the character a sharper edge without breaking the adaptation’s rhythm.

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4) Labyrinth (2012)

In Labyrinth, Vanessa Kirby played Alice Tanner, an archaeologist who finds herself tied to a centuries-old mystery involving the Holy Grail. The series split time between the present and medieval France, and Alice’s side of the story carried the modern thread.

Kirby gave Alice focus without turning her into a standard adventure lead. She responded to danger with hesitation instead of immediate strength. Her visions linked to her past life didn’t feel like plot devices. They felt like things she didn’t want but couldn’t ignore.

The show itself leaned heavily into historical references, but Kirby helped hold the present-day material together. She made Alice feel like a real person caught in something too big and too strange to understand. That kept the balance steady between the two timelines. Even when the script moved fast, Kirby stayed locked in and gave the story a better anchor than it probably deserved.

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5) The Hour (2011)

Vanessa Kirby joined season two of The Hour as Ruth Elms, the daughter of a political insider. Her role was brief, but it shaped how the season dealt with press freedom and state pressure. Ruth had access to information but no protection from the people who wanted it hidden.

Kirby played Ruth as someone nervous but not weak. She didn’t scream or confess in dramatic waves. She looked over her shoulder. She chose her words carefully. She knew the walls were closing, but she didn’t fall apart.

Her scenes with Ben Whishaw and Peter Capaldi helped raise the tension without dragging the show into melodrama. Ruth’s death triggered a deeper look into government control and news censorship. Kirby gave the character just enough presence to haunt the story after she was gone. It wasn’t about screen time. It was about knowing exactly how long to hold the camera.

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