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How this ranking weighs Field’s career
The list balances dramatic performance and lead-role recognition with award-winning television, cultural familiarity and the importance of each title to a different phase of Field’s career. Films, a television movie and series roles appear together because her screen career spans all three. Institutional career summaries support the credits and award context; they do not establish these exact positions.
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The 15 best Sally Field movies and TV shows
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Norma Rae (1979)
Field’s title role anchors this ranking. The American Academy of Arts and Sciences names the film among her defining credits and records her Best Actress Academy Award for the performance. It is the clearest meeting point between a major dramatic lead and career recognition.
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Places in the Heart (1984)
Field’s other Best Actress Oscar-winning film belongs beside Norma Rae at the top. Its place here reflects the strength of a leading dramatic role and the Academy recognition documented by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
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Sybil (1976)
This television film shows Field in a demanding dramatic showcase well before her later series work. The Television Academy identifies her performance as Emmy-winning, and the Academy of Arts and Sciences also includes Sybil among her defining credits.
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Steel Magnolias (1989)
Field’s place in this ensemble film gives the list a different register from its leading dramas. It is a prominent credit in the Television Academy’s career summary, and its multi-generational ensemble makes it one of her most recognizable group performances.
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Forrest Gump (1994)
As Forrest’s mother, Field plays a key part in a widely recognized popular film. Both institutional career summaries name it among her credits, making it an essential entry for viewers whose idea of Field’s film career begins with familiar Hollywood favorites.
Rank #2
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Brothers & Sisters (2006–2011)
Field’s Nora Walker is a defining later television role. The Television Academy associates the performance with an Emmy win, while the Academy of Arts and Sciences also lists the series among her major credits.
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Field’s guest role on the medical drama represents a notable return to television drama. The Television Academy and the Academy of Arts and Sciences both identify the performance as Emmy-winning. The cited career summaries do not specify the episode count.
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Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
This popular comedy showcases another side of Field’s screen career. It appears in both the Television Academy’s and the Academy of Arts and Sciences’ career summaries, and offers a lighter counterpoint to the dramas near the top of the ranking.
Rank #3
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Smokey and the Bandit (1977)
A major early feature credit, this film helps represent Field’s transition from television recognition to wider film visibility. The Academy of Arts and Sciences includes it in its account of her career.
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Absence of Malice (1981)
This serious dramatic feature belongs among Field’s notable film work. Both institutional summaries name it, giving the ranking a substantial dramatic role outside her two Best Actress Oscar-winning films.
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Gidget (1965–1966)
Field’s early starring television work is an important starting point for a career-spanning list. The series illustrates how long before her award-winning dramas she had established herself on screen.
Rank #4
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The Flying Nun (1967–1970)
Following Gidget, this series represents another of Field’s defining early television roles. It is named in both institutional career summaries and helps show the sitcom stage of her career.
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Lincoln (2012)
Field’s later-career filmography includes this supporting role, which the Academy of Arts and Sciences lists among her notable credits. It broadens the ranking beyond leading performances and familiar 1970s–1990s hits.
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Hello, My Name Is Doris (2015)
This later lead performance keeps the list from ending with Field’s best-known work of earlier decades. The Television Academy’s biography includes the film among her credits.
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The Amazing Spider-Man (2012)
Field’s appearance in this franchise film is a popular-cinema counterpoint to her dramas and television work. It is listed in the Television Academy’s film credits and rounds out a ranking designed to represent more than one kind of screen role.
Field’s awards, and what the counts mean
The Academy of Arts and Sciences’ biography, accessed in 2026, records two Best Actress Academy Awards for Norma Rae and Places in the Heart, and describes three Emmy wins for Sybil, ER and Brothers & Sisters. The Television Academy page identifies those three Emmy-winning performances, but its current awards display also surfaces a 2026 win for Field as Tova Sullivan in Remarkably Bright Creatures. The page’s visible tally is four Emmys; its prose and displayed tally do not align in scope. These counts are not a ranking of the performances, and the awards-page display should be read with that distinction in mind.
Quick Recap
Sources
- Television Academy: Sally Field — career credits and awards display.
- American Academy of Arts and Sciences: Sally M. Field — career summary and historical award description.
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
