10 best McKenna Grace movies and TV shows, ranked

McKenna Grace has been acting for most of her life and she has never come off like she is performing just to impress. She always feels natural no matter what kind of role she takes on. She played a math prodigy in Gifted and made that character feel like a real kid and not just someone spouting smart lines.

In Annabelle Comes Home she carried the weight of the story without needing over-the-top scares to get your attention. She has played younger versions of big characters like Tonya Harding and Carol Danvers and made those scenes matter.

She is also great in comedy and showed that in Young Sheldon where she plays a kid who is just as smart as Sheldon but a lot more layered. She can do horror she can do superhero movies and she can lead a film without making it feel forced. She is not flashy but she is sharp and always knows what the scene needs.

Her work in Ghostbusters: Afterlife proved she can handle big franchises. She is not slowing down and she keeps picking roles that let her show more of what she can do. This list ranks her best ten performances so far.

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Best McKenna Grace movies and TV shows, ranked

1. Frankenstein (2015)

The film tells the story of a man-made creature trying to survive in a world that sees him as a threat. It moves the classic Frankenstein story into a modern-day lab where the monster escapes and faces violent rejection at every turn.

McKenna Grace plays Molly who is blind and one of the few people to treat the creature with empathy. She does not play the role for sympathy. She holds each moment with quiet weight. Her calm makes the monster seem human. The stillness she brings gives the film its only real softness which makes those scenes unforgettable.

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2. I Tonya (2017)

This biopic looks at figure skater Tonya Harding and the chaos that shaped her career. The film shows her rough childhood and abusive relationships long before the scandal that made her name national news.

McKenna Grace plays Tonya as a child and does not try to copy the adult version. She makes young Tonya feel tough but still very much a kid. You see her crave attention and fight for control at the same time. Her scenes with Allison Janney do not hold back. Grace brings defiance and fear together in a way that sets up everything that follows.

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3. Captain Marvel (2019)

The film tells how Carol Danvers became Captain Marvel and how her past shaped her strength. It flashes back to her childhood to show how much she had to fight to even be heard.

McKenna Grace plays young Carol in those flashbacks and shows the early signs of someone who refuses to stay down. She does not get much time on screen but what she does with it matters. She falls she fails she gets told no but she never gives up. You understand who Carol is because Grace shows who she was before she became anything else.

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4. Gifted (2017)

The film follows Mary Adler who is a math genius raised by her uncle in Florida. A custody battle begins when her grandmother tries to take her and put her in a school for gifted kids.

McKenna Grace plays Mary with no trace of overacting. She makes her feel like a real child who just happens to be brilliant. She does not play cute and does not try to charm. Her arguments feel raw and her breakdowns feel earned. She pushes back without being bratty. Every scene she’s in feels grounded because she plays it with total clarity.

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5. Troop Zero (2019)

Set in rural Georgia in the late 1970s the film follows Christmas Flint who wants her voice sent to outer space. To do that she joins a talent competition through a local scout troop.

McKenna Grace plays Christmas like someone who already lives in her own universe. She does not act quirky for laughs. She is weird and brave and full of hope without turning it into a joke. Her belief in herself pulls the others in. Grace makes her stubborn but not annoying. The entire story rests on her energy, and she never lets it slip.

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6. Annabelle Comes Home (2019)

The story takes place in the Warren family’s home where their collection of haunted objects is kept behind locked doors. When a friend unknowingly releases Annabelle the dark energy inside the room begins to spread.

McKenna Grace plays Judy Warren who ends up facing the evil without her parents. She never plays scared just to get attention. Her fear feels heavy and real but she keeps moving. She holds scenes where everything could have slipped into chaos. The way she holds eye contact the way she breathes through the silence makes her the calm in a room full of terror.

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7. Ghostbusters: Afterlife (2021)

A family moves to a small town and discovers their link to the original Ghostbusters. As earthquakes begin and ghosts reappear the kids take on a threat they do not fully understand.

McKenna Grace plays Phoebe Spengler and she leads the film with a kind of focus that never feels forced. She plays her as someone who asks questions because she needs real answers. She gets jokes right but never turns the role into a comedy act. She makes the tech feel real and the danger feel personal. The whole story leans on her and she never loses grip.

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8. Spirit Untamed (2021)

The film follows Lucky Prescott who moves to a small western town and bonds with a wild mustang named Spirit. When Spirit is taken Lucky and her friends chase the men who plan to sell him.

McKenna Grace voices Abigail Stone who is part of Lucky’s circle. Her voice adds a kind of calm that makes the louder moments work better. She gives Abigail confidence without making her loud. She does not just support the story from the side. She grounds it by making friendship feel like something steady. That voice adds real texture to a world full of motion.

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9. Scoob! (2020)

This animated reboot tracks how the Mystery Inc. gang met as kids and how they grew into ghost hunters. It flips between flashbacks and a present-day plot to stop a supernatural villain.

McKenna Grace voices young Daphne and gets very little screen time but makes it count. She brings an early sense of poise to Daphne that fits the grown-up version. Her voice feels clear and steady. She shows that Daphne was always part leader even as a kid. You can feel that this is someone who would stay calm when things fall apart. That setup makes the flashbacks click.

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10. Young Sheldon (2018–2023)

The series looks at Sheldon Cooper as a young boy in East Texas where he skips grades and struggles to relate to his peers. It shows how hard it is to be gifted when no one else is.

McKenna Grace plays Paige who is also a prodigy but her life looks different. She brings quiet frustration and doesn’t need big speeches to show how much she carries. Her role is not about rivalry. It’s about what loneliness does over time. She gives Paige moments that shift how we see Sheldon. After she shows up the show gains a new layer.

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