The best Jennifer Coolidge movies and TV shows include award-winning and box office dominating comedy movies and some fantastic television work along the way. Coolidge, unfortunately, spent much of her career simply known from one role where most people only knew her by the description of “Stiffler’s Mom.” That was, of course, from the R-rated sex comedy American Pie, but there is much more to the actress’ career than that one role.

While Coolidge aspired to be a dramatic actor while attending the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York City, she ended up earning more roles thanks to her comic timing. Coolidge made her first appearance in an episode of Seinfeld and then started appearing in comedy and spoof movies before she got her big break in American Pie. However, she moved on to work with Christopher Guest in his improv movies and has recently finally gotten her dramatic roles with the series The White Lotus.

10 A Cinderella Story (2004)

Fiona Montgomery

In 2004, Jennifer Coolidge appeared in the Hilary Duff romantic comedy A Cinderella Story. The film follows the fairy tale storyline of Cinderella but is set in modern day high school. Duff stars as Sam, a teen whose father died during an earthquake and now lives with her stepmom and stepsisters, where she is forced to wait on everyone hand and foot. Coolidge stars as the evil stepmother, Fiona.

Coolidge is brilliant in the role and she steals every scene she is in as she lies and manipulates her stepdaughter to maintain control of her dead husband’s fortune and home. Everything that Coolidge does as Fiona is over the top. She has no problem with the slapstick comedy needed to make her character look like a fool, which makes her eventual downfall much more satisfying.

9 2 Broke Girls (2012-2017)

Sophie Kaczynski

2 Broke Girls stars Kat Dennings and Beth Behrs as Max and Caroline, two young women who have no money and work at a Brooklyn diner, barely making ends meet. Jennifer Coolidge stars as their part-time boss and neighbor, Sophie, a Polish immigrant. The series ran for six seasons and 138 episodes, and while it was a success, it was also a very polarizing show with some loving it and others hating the comedy.

As for Coolidge, she was a recurring character in the first season and then ed the main cast in the second season.

However, most of the praise went to the acting, and specifically the chemistry between Dennings and Bahrs. As for Coolidge, she was a recurring character in the first season and then ed the main cast in the second season. She delivers much of the humor that makes the show so polarizing, as she often tells the girls stories of her sex life and growing up in Communist Poland.

8 The Watcher (2022)

Karen Calhoun

In 2022, Jennifer Coolidge signed on to something very different. This is a horror series created by Ryan Murphy (American Horror Story) with Coolidge set in one of the lead roles. Naomi Watts and Bobby Cannavale star in the series as a married couple (Nora and Dean) who move into their dream home in New Jersey. However, their neighbors are less than welcoming, and they start to get letters from a stalker who calls himself The Watcher.

Coolidge stars as Nora’s old friend and the realtor Karen, who sells them the home. The entire series is a mind-twisting tale, and it is unclear what is happening throughout most of the series. It received an average critical reception, with 56% on Rotten Tomatoes, with critics saying it is scary but spins in too many directions. However, it was an interesting turn for Coolidge, who got a chance to do something dark and disturbing for a change.

7 The Secret Life Of The American Teenager (2008-2012)

Betty

Debuting in 2008, The Secret Life of the American Teenager stars Shailene Woodley in her breakout role as a 15-year-old named Amy who learns she is pregnant. Amy chooses to keep the baby, finds a new boyfriend (Kenny Baumann), and keeps the birth father (Daren Kagasoff) in her life as well. Molly Ringwald, who was the queen of teen rom-coms when she was younger, takes on the role of Amy’s mother.

Jennifer Coolidge stars in the series as Betty Boykewich. She had a very interesting role in the series, as she was a prostitute that Grace’s adoptive brother hired and invited to his family’s house. She then ended up marrying the Sausage King (Steve Schirripa) and went down as one of the show’s better characters. In all, the series was mostly a guilty pleasure and was popular with the teens, receiving several Teen Choice Awards over its run.

6 For Your Consideration (2006)

Whitney Taylor Brown

While most fans knew Jennifer Coolidge from her roles in the American Pie movies, there were also fans who knew her from something very different. Christopher Guest made a career out of making improvisational comedy films, and he put together a comedy troupe that was able to bring laughs thanks to their quirky personalities and quick-witted sense of humor. This includes names like Fred Willard, Jane Lynch, Eugene Levy, and Jennifer Coolidge.

This was the fourth movie with most of this cast and Guest in control, and it proved to be just as funny as the originals.

One of these movies was For Your Consideration, and while it wasn’t the best of their collaboration, it was still a funny movie that poked fun at the entertainment industry, especially the filmmakers who set out to make “prestige” films, seeking awards recognition. This was the fourth movie with most of this cast and Guest in control, and it proved to be just as funny as the originals, but it was not as recognized at awards ceremonies.

5 A Mighty Wind (2003)

Amber Cole

A Mighty Wind was one of Christopher Guest’s improvised mockumentaries, this one following a folk concert where three bands reunite for the first time in decades. The movie features most of Guest’s regular acting contributors, including Eugene Levy, Fred Willard, Harry Shearer, Parker Posey, Michael McKean, Jane Lynch, and Jennifer Coolidge. When released, many critics compared it to This is Spinal Tap, but as a reunion later in musicians’ lives.

Coolidge stars as Amber Cole, the clueless PR maven who was helping promote the reunion show. Coolidge was able to steal every scene she was in, mostly thanks to her dialogue, which often seemed ridiculous and made very little sense. Possibly her best scene had her talking about model trains and throwing everyone off when she said if it wasn’t for model trains. They never would have gotten the idea for the big ones.

4 Legally Blonde (2001)

Paulette Bonafonte

While American Pie helped introduce Jennifer Coolidge to the world, it was her role in Legally Blonde that showed she was more than just “Stiffler’s mom.” Legally Blonde stars Reese Witherspoon as Elle Woods, a fashion modeling student whose boyfriend breaks up with her because he wants to be a senator and feels she is not serious enough about her future. To prove him wrong, she scores a 179 on the Law School ission Test and is itted to Harvard Law School.

However, the movie really shows how Elle proves herself and does so without needing any man on her side, a true inspirational story, but one with some great comedic beats. Many of those come from Jennifer Coolidge, who stars as Paulette Bonafonte, Elle’s manicurist and confidante. It was a nice change from her role in American Pie, as she proved here to be a loyal friend, but she also delivered some great lines and performed some great physical comedy along the way.

3 American Pie (1999)

Jeanine Stifler

The movie that made Jennifer Coolidge a star was American Pie. While the film was about some high school friends who were nearing graduation and their sex lives, Coolidge had a smaller, but memorable role as “Stiffler’s mom,” Jeanine Stifler. She was the mother of the one sexually experienced high school student and was also the eventual love interest of one of the high school students in a role that would never be shown today.

However, Jeanine was a standout in the movie and stole most of the scenes she was in as a seductress, even if it is a little controversial based on the age difference between her and Eddie Kaye Thomas’s Finch. The character had a chance to grow and develop as the franchise moved on, and she ended up in a more respectable relationship with Jim’s dad, played by Coolidge’s Christopher Guest movie co-star Eugene Levy.

2 The White Lotus (2021-2022)

Tanya McQuoid

Many fans today know Jennifer Coolidge best from her most recent television role in the Max series The White Lotus. This is an anthology series that aired for two seasons, and Coolidge appeared in both seasons as Tanya McQuoid. The first season focused on a murder mystery and the people staying at the infamous White Lotus resort who were the main suspects. The second season also had a crime-based storyline, but it dealt more with the characters' romantic relationships.

Coolidge earned 18 award nominations, winning 11 total, which included one Golden Globes win and two Primetime Emmy Awards.

Coolidge was a standout in both seasons and helped tie them together as much of the cast changed from the first to the second season. Critics praised her performance, and she received a lot of awards and recognition at the end of the season. In the first two seasons, Coolidge earned 18 award nominations, winning 11 total, which included one Golden Globes win and two Primetime Emmy Awards.

1 Best In Show (2000)

Sherri Ann Cabot

Jennifer Coolidge stars in one of Christopher Guest’s best mockumentaries as Sherri Ann Cabot in Best in Show. This mockumentary pokes fun at the prestigious dog show events and follows five entrants as they compete with their dogs to win the top prizes. Guest and co-writer Eugene Levy both star in the film along with Coolidge, Catherine O’Hara, Jane Lynch, Michael McKean, Parker Posey, and many more.

Jennifer Coolidge stars as Sherri Ann Cabot, a two-time winner of the show who is also an overly made-up trophy wife of an elderly wealthy man. While Sherri has a basic poodle, she hires an extremely competitive trainer named Christy (Jane Lynch) to help her whip the dog into shape. The chemistry between Coolidge and Lynch was fantastic, and the film itself holds a very high 93% Rotten Tomatoes rating score.