Uma Thurman Reveals Her Favorite Movie of All Time

Uma Thurman is an actress whose career has been defined by high-stakes drama and bone-crunching action, most famously through her collaboration with Quentin Tarantino as the lead in the Kill Bill series.

Beyond her time as the vengeful Bride, her filmography includes a sprawling range of projects, from her turn as Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin to her work in the harrowing Nymphomaniac. Despite this diverse portfolio, the star opened up about the performers she has spent her own life admiring from afar.

In the book You Gotta See This, which explores the cinematic preferences of various Hollywood icons, Thurman shared a deep-seated appreciation for the legendary Meryl Streep.

She noted that she had spent much of her life hoping for the opportunity to work alongside Streep, a dream that finally became a reality in 2005. The two appeared together in the romantic comedy-drama Prime, a project that Thurman viewed as a major personal milestone.

However, Streep isn’t the only star who captured her imagination during her formative years. Thurman also expressed a long-standing fascination with Doris Day, the prolific actress and singer who dominated the silver screen throughout the 1950s and 60s. While Thurman joked that she could never actually be Doris Day, she finds endless joy in revisiting the star’s extensive catalog of films.

When asked to name a particular favorite, Thurman pointed directly to the 1959 classic Pillow Talk. She described the film as a delightful and effortless experience that remains a joy to revisit, specifically highlighting the famous bathtub scene as a pinnacle of classic Hollywood cinema. The movie features Day alongside Rock Hudson in a story centered on a shared telephone party line and a series of comedic misunderstandings.

In the film, Day portrays Jan Morrow, an interior designer who finds herself constantly annoyed by her neighbor, Brad Allen, a composer who hogs their shared line to talk to various women.

The plot takes a romantic turn when Brad begins courting Jan under the guise of being a charming Texas rancher. This lighthearted romp stands in stark contrast to the often gritty and intense roles that Thurman is known for, perhaps explaining its enduring appeal to her as a viewer.

As of this year, Thurman is experiencing a significant professional resurgence. She recently made waves in the action genre once again by joining Charlize Theron in the Netflix hit The Old Guard 2, playing a formidable immortal villain named Discord. This role marked her major return to the sword-swinging genre for the first time in over two decades, much to the delight of fans who have missed her physical screen presence.

Additionally, Thurman is lending her voice to the animated feature The King of Kings, where she portrays Catherine Dickens in a star-studded cast that includes Kenneth Branagh and Oscar Isaac.

Television fans can also look forward to seeing her in a major recurring role in Dexter: Resurrection, where she plays the head of security for a tech billionaire. From period dramas to gritty thrillers, Thurman continues to prove that her versatility is her greatest strength.

Following in the footsteps of the legendary women she grew up idolizing. Even with a career spanning decades, she remains a vital force in the industry, balancing high-concept blockbusters with intimate character studies.

Do you have a favorite Doris Day classic that you think rivals the “light and breezy” fun of Pillow Talk? Share your thoughts in the comments!