Scarlett Johansson's 2013 Sci-Fi Movie Bomb Was An Undeniable Critical Success
Before being knocked off the top spot in 2025 by Zoe Saldaña (thanks a lot, "Avatar: Fire and Ash"), Scarlett Johansson was the highest-grossing actress of all time (via Variety). That's not a surprise given her lengthy stint in the MCU, even if it led to a brief legal battle with Disney. However, after appearing in multiple corners of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, there have been occasional bumps in the box-office road, with one housing perhaps one of the greatest performances in her career.
"Under the Skin" was released in 2013 and directed by Jonathan Glazer, and it stands as a project so far removed from other movies Johansson was appearing in at the time. Based on the book of the same name by Michel Faber, the story is set in Glasgow, Scotland, and follows a character known only as The Female (Johansson), who spends her evenings seducing men and trapping them in a mysterious void. As the story progresses, The Female, who is clearly not of this world, continues to understand herself and the men who fall under her spell until the film's final act reveals her true nature.
After appearing in her fair share of science fiction movies that don't all involve comic book characters, it really isn't anything new for Johansson. But it's her unsettling performance and the movie's unforgiving bleakness, applied by Glazer, that made "Under the Skin" the favored and feared sci-fi movie among critics, even though it earned a disappointing $7 million against a budget of $13.3 million (via Box Office Mojo).
Critics were hypnotized by the strangeness of Under the Skin
Standing at 83% on Rotten Tomatoes, the critics' consensus for "Under the Skin" was that "Its message may prove elusive for some, but with absorbing imagery and a mesmerizing performance from Scarlett Johansson, 'Under the Skin' is a haunting viewing experience." "Haunting" is putting it lightly.
Glazer's tricks to leave the audience uneasy, besides some of the visualizations of The Female's antics, are the people she ensnares. The director purposely hired actors with no experience, leading to Johansson sharing scenes riddled with awkward encounters, which only builds on the mystery surrounding her character. Conversations are stilted and uncomfortable to watch, as The Female's intentions gradually present themselves. She's not talking to locals, but hunting prey in a way that puts the likes of the alien femme fatale from "Species" to shame.
Ask any fan of the movie, though, and what stays with you after watching "Under the Skin" is a sequence involving The Female witnessing a couple attempt and fail to rescue a dog being pulled out to sea. Her reaction is anything but human as she sticks to her objective, with not even those left to suffer from the ordeal taking her focus. It's this and so much more in Glazer's film that make it one of the most disturbing sci-fi movies in recent years, with a lot of thanks going to Johansson, who strips away all of her humanity. In doing so, all that's left for the viewer is to reflect on their own and try not to feel emotionally drained by the end of it all.