Angelina Jolie's Best 2021 Role Was Not Eternals: Rediscovering Action Star Jolie in Those Who Wish Me Dead

Reawakening of Angelina Jolie

One movie starring Angelina Jolie from 2021 showcases why she should continue to take on more action roles, and it is not Eternals. After starring in just three live-action movies from 2016 to 2020, Jolie jumped back into the limelight with two movies in 2021 and was able to revisit some of the strengths that made her one of Hollywood's most celebrated actresses of this century. Jolie, the daughter of famous actor Jon Voight, has been acting professionally since the early 1980s, and has played some of the most iconic roles of the 2000s. More recently, she has drawn headlines for marrying Brad Pitt, serving as an ambassador for international refugees, and promoting women's rights across a variety of industries. After Angelina Jolie had a hiatus to focus on things important to her, 2021 was a reawakening of sorts for Jolie and that years included one of her best action performances in years.

Angelina Jolie with tears in her eyes in Those Who Wish Me Dead.

In 2021, Angelina Jolie starred in both the Marvel Cinematic Universe's Eternals and Those Who Wish Me Dead. Obviously, Eternals was the bigger release and made more money than Those Who Wish Me Dead since it was an MCU movie and the other title was caught up in Warner Bros' HBO Max streaming release strategy. However, Those Who Wish Me Dead has a better critical and audience score. The movie also was much better at showcasing Jolie as a bona fide action star. Those Who Wish Me Dead is being rediscovered now that it is on Netflix and is trending three years after it released.

Those Who Wish Me Dead is streaming now on Netflix. Those Who Wish Me Dead is an edge-of-your-seat thriller about a young boy who witnesses the murder of his father but manages to escape those who also want to kill him with some help from Angelina Jolie's character who is a 'smokejumper' or someone trained to put out remote forest fires through the air. The movie features Jolie and the young boy constantly on the run from assassins who are trying to kill the boy to tie up any loose ends from the initial murder. Much like some of the strongest films from Jolie's movie history, this underviewed film focuses on Jolie as an action star, and she is able to deliver a compelling performance.

Rediscovering Angelina Jolie's Action Star Prowess

Before 2021, Angelina Jolie was going through a period in her career where she was doing more voice roles and movies that didn't require her to play action roles. Between 2006 and 2020, Jolie starred in six voice-over roles and two Disney properties centered around the Maleficient character. Only on rare occasions, like with Wanted in 2008 and Salt in 2010 did she choose roles that highlight one of the best parts of Angelina Jolie's acting abilities: her strong action performances. It was not until 2021 that Jolie jumped back into action with both feet, starring in Eternals and Those Who Wish Me Dead which is directed by Taylor Sheridan, in the same year. Angelina Jolie rose to fame playing emotionally deep characters in movies like Girl, Interrupted, Playing By Heart, and Foxfire, but her career exploded with roles in the early 2000s in films such as Gone in 60 Seconds, the Lara Croft: Tomb Raider franchise, and Mr. and Mrs. Smith. In those movies, Jolie was able to expand her repertoire and add layers of dynamism to traditional action star tropes. Jolie herself has said she enjoys making action movies, saying they are 'like therapy.' Those Who Wish Me Dead is the next in a long line of strong action performances for Jolie who is at her best in this genre and should take as many of those roles as she can.

Custom image of Angelina Jolie in Salt

The Case for More Action Movies

Those Who Wish Me Dead was Angelina Jolie's better movie in 2021, showcasing her action star prowess and proving that she should focus on more action movies. The movie, an edge-of-your-seat thriller about a young boy who witnesses the murder of his father and must escape assassins with help from Jolie's character, highlights Jolie's ability to deliver compelling action performances. This rediscovery of Jolie's action star prowess in Those Who Wish Me Dead emphasizes the need for her to take on more action roles, as she excels in this genre and brings a unique depth to traditional action star tropes. As Jolie continues to make her mark in the action genre, audiences can look forward to more captivating performances that showcase her strength as an action star.