Norma Shearer

The first production to begin filming at the newly formed MGM, directed by the Swedish filmmaker Victor Sjostrom from Leonid Andreyev's play. Lon Chaney plays a scientist humiliated when his patron steals his wife and his work; he flees to a circus and reinvents himself as a clown whose act consists of being slapped by the audience, turning private shame into public spectacle. Chaney's performance is a study in dignified suffering, and the film gave early prominent roles to Norma Shearer and John Gilbert, both soon to be MGM stars. It was also the first film to feature Leo the Lion as the MGM logo. The Library of Congress added it to the National Film Registry in 2017. The film entered the public domain in the United States in 2020.

Drama · Silent

A 1930 American pre-Code romantic comedy-drama directed by Robert Z. Leonard, starring Norma Shearer and Marie Dressler. Dowdy housewife Kitty Brown (Shearer) dotes on her self-centered husband Bob (Rod La Rocque), but divorces him when his mistress shows up at their home. Bob had become bored with her lackluster appearance. Kitty re-invents herself and becomes a Continental favorite, dressing like a fashion model and behaving gaily. Three years later, a wealthy socialite (Dressler) enlists Kitty's help to break up her granddaughter's infatuation with Bob — unaware that Kitty is his ex-wife. Based on the 1929 play by Rachel Crothers, which starred Tallulah Bankhead on Broadway.

Comedy · Drama · Romance

A landmark pre-Code drama about marriage and infidelity, based on Ursula Parrott's 1929 novel Ex-Wife. Norma Shearer plays Jerry, a Manhattan advertising writer who, after learning of her husband Ted's (Chester Morris) affair, decides to even the score with a one-night stand of her own. When Ted cannot forgive her for what he himself committed, the marriage breaks apart and Jerry embarks on a series of affairs, taking what the film calls "a man's point of view." The film's frank treatment of the sexual double standard was controversial at the time, and Shearer won the Academy Award for Best Actress for the role. Published in 1930, the film entered the public domain in the United States on January 1, 2026.

Drama · Romance

A cloistered young prince is sent to the university town of Heidelberg for his education, where he falls in love with a warm, down-to-earth barmaid named Kathi. When duty calls him back to the throne, he must leave her behind. Ernst Lubitsch directed this MGM silent for an enormous budget, and the film is an early showcase of what critics would later call "the Lubitsch Touch": the love story is built from small, specific gestures rather than grand declarations. Ramon Novarro plays the prince and Norma Shearer the barmaid, with Jean Hersholt as the tutor whose own attachment to Heidelberg is the film's quietest heartbreak. The film's copyright was renewed but it fell into the public domain in the United States on January 1, 2023.

Romance · Drama · Silent

A 1929 American pre-Code romantic drama directed by E. Mason Hopper, starring Norma Shearer, Belle Bennett, Lewis Stone, and Robert Montgomery. Lally Marlett (Shearer) is devastated when her father divorces her mother to marry another woman. While on vacation, she falls in love with Jack Cheever (Montgomery) — only to discover he is the son of her father's new wife. The film was adapted by Frances Marion from the novel by Sarita Fuller. Norma Shearer was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for this performance, but lost to herself for The Divorcee. It was the last MGM film released in the 1920s.

Drama · Romance