Top 10 Movie Cougars

#10: Nora Baker
“White Palace” (1990)

If you wanted to make a movie in the early nineties about a beautiful older lady and her younger lover, there was nobody better to cast than Susan Sarandon fresh off of another romantic film, “Bull Durham.” In “White Palace,” when her character and a younger man played by James Spader bond over their departed loved ones, they become lovers soon after. Enthralling and overtly sexual, it’s not hard to see how and why Sarandon would get a man at any age.

#9: Stella Payne
“How Stella Got Her Groove Back” (1998)

A woman at war with herself over her feelings for a man who is young enough to be her son is at the center of this film. Despite facing condemnation from all but one of the people in her life, and especially from the mother of her lover 20 years her junior, Stella eventually embraces her feelings as her dying best friend wanted her to. Played by one of the most dynamic and strong actresses of all time, we’d jump through hoops for Angela Bassett too.

#8: Ellen Burroughs
“Class” (1983)

This is the story of a prep school student who can’t find a girl so he ends up going to nearby Chicago and finding a woman instead. Portrayed by the gorgeous Jacqueline Bisset to perfection, Ellen Burroughs takes the boy to class, and teaches him to be a good lover. Only interested in him for his body and with zero intentions of developing any feelings for him, Ellen is a great example of a cougar so we knew she had to make our list.

#7: Lil
“Adore” (2013)

The story of two women who become sexually and romantically involved with each other’s children, “Adore” brought us two excellent cougars - but it was Lil that had to make the cut. An alluring woman shot beautifully in this drama, it’s no wonder she seduced a younger man and audiences alike. While it’s a complicated movie about love and family, one thing is completely simple: Lil is one of the best movie cougars of all time.

#6: Eve Grubman
“Tadpole” (2002)

Eve is a woman in a marriage that is missing something, and so she develops feelings for her fifteen-year-old stepson when she finds out he’s slept with an older woman. The fact that the woman happens to be her best friend Diane, who reveals that the teen was a good lover, makes things that much worse. Unlike the other entries on our list, the budding relationship between Eve and Oscar only goes so far as a kiss, but the tension between the two is palpable. We definitely see what makes her captivating enough to ruin a young man for every other woman around him.

#5: Betty Carver
“What’s Eating Gilbert Grape” (1993)

A film largely remembered for providing Leonardo DiCaprio with his first Oscar nomination and his character’s overweight mother, but what is often forgotten is that Mary Steenburgen also plays one hell of a cougar in it. Having an affair with heartthrob Johnny Depp, she is a woman who knows what she wants and goes after it. She even tries to have sex with her young lover when he is on the phone with her husband. If that doesn’t make you a cougar, we don’t know what does.

#4: Luisa Cortés
“Y Tu Mamá También” (2001)

If you get double credit for bedding two youthful men, then Luisa from this Mexican drama would have taken first place for sure. When she discovers her husband has cheated on her, she accepts the invite of two teenaged boys to take a road trip. After having sex with both of them separately, things escalate and before long they have a threesome. Revealed later to be riddled with cancer, Luisa spends her last days captivating her new lovers and moviegoers alike.

#3: Stifler’s Mom
“American Pie” franchise (1999-)

Oozing sex from the first second she appears on screen, Stifler’s mom taught most of America what a MILF was – and with good reason. When a young man in a suit walks into the recreation room, she seems to be a throwback to the sex symbols of the ‘50s that has finally had a suitable man walk into her trap. Not holding back for a second, she lets Finch think he seduced her when, in fact, he is just what she likes.

#2: Dame Marjorie ‘Maude’ Chardin
“Harold and Maude” (1971)

Some might argue that Maude is a strange choice for our list due to the fact she is older than the typical image of a cougar. We’d argue the opposite. It is exactly her feeling that she is nearing death that makes her the only one who can get through to the death-obsessed Harold, who is at least 50 years her junior. During their short romance, the 79-year-old teaches him how to truly live and ushers him into manhood. Shocking to some, they may just have the most beautiful relationship of any of these entries.

Before we reveal our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
- Honey Horneé
“Wayne’s World 2” (1993)
- Loretta Castorini
“Moonstruck” (1987)
- Marion Wormer
“National Lampoon’s Animal House” (1978)
- Kathleen ‘Kitty Kat’ Cleary
“Wedding Crashers” (2005)

#1: Mrs. Robinson
“The Graduate” (1967)

Mrs. Robinson is such a legendary film cougar that her name alone has become short hand for an older woman who seduces a younger man. Matter of fact, she never minces words and is completely blunt, especially when it comes to giving her fledgling lover instructions. Undoubtedly the most important movie cougar of all time, there was no way “The Graduate”’s older woman wasn’t going to be at the top of our list.

Do you agree with our list? Who is your favorite movie cougar? For more entertaining Top 10s published daily, be sure to subscribe to WatchMojo.com.