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Pamela Rabe

Pamela Rabe

Actor · Born April 30, 1959 (67) · Oakville, Ontario, Canada

Pamela Rabe was born in Ontario, Canada. Pamela is an actress who is best known for many of her roles on TV and has devoted most of her career to the stage. Pamela's most known roles are Mercury (1996), The Secret Life of Us (2001), F*%#Ing Adelaide (2017) and as one of TVs most famous characters, joining the TV series Wentworth (2013) as Joan 'The Freak' Ferguson in season 2 of the award winning drama which earned Rabe a Logie Award in 2018. Rabe is a long standing contributor to both the Sydney and Melbourne Theatre Companies, serving as director and actor in many plays. Rabe once spent 8 hours in a sole performance of Woman-Bomb. Rabe has also won numerous Helpmann Awards during her time in theatre.

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Biography from IMDb.

Born
April 30, 1959 (67)
From
Oakville, Ontario, Canada
Works as
Actor
Titles
8 on Motif · 25 credits in all
Links
IMDb (opens in a new tab)TMDB (opens in a new tab)Wikidata (opens in a new tab)

Known for

TMDB popularity, last 39 days to Oct 28Down 19% in 30 days

What are Pamela Rabe's films like?

Across their 7 Motif titles with a thematic analysis, their films lean Ideas and Bonds.

Genres

Comedy2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 55th percentile
: browse their Comedy movies
Drama2 titlesTypical Midcredits score: 58th percentile, at or above their average across these genres
: browse their Drama movies

Their Motif films by primary genre. The badge is the typical Midcredits score of the genre's films, the median percentile; an up arrow marks a genre at or above their average across these genres.

Themes

share of theme weight
Ideas
27%
Bonds
23%
Self
18%
Survival
11%
Society
11%
Power
8%
Morality
3%
Hope3 titles, browse their movies with this themeIdentity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeCommunity2 titles, browse their movies with this themeFriendship2 titles, browse their movies with this theme

What they feel like to watch

their average across 5 films
ToneFeelDemandtheir average · filled zone: the category
Serious: How heavy the subject matter and outlook get. Browse their serious movies.
Tone · Weight
lightdark

A split, not a type: Light 3 · Serious 0 · Dark 2

Stylized: How far its world departs from everyday reality. Browse their stylized movies.
Tone · Style
naturalisticheightened

Grounded 2 · Stylized 2 · Heightened 1

Charged: How hard the emotional peaks hit while you watch. Browse their charged movies.
Feel · Intensity
gentleintense

A split, not a type: Gentle 3 · Charged 1 · Intense 1

Steady: How much it swings between very different feelings. Browse their steady movies.
Feel · Swings
steadyswings

Steady 4 · Shifting 1 · Whiplash 0

Some laughs: How much of the runtime is played for laughs. Browse their some laughs movies.
Feel · Humor
noneconstant

Straight-faced 2 · Some laughs 3 · Funny 0

Slow burn: How fast it moves from scene to scene. Browse their slow burn movies.
Demand · Pace
slowrelentless

Slow burn 5 · Even-paced 0 · Relentless 0

Casual: How much focus it asks of you — look away and lose the thread? Browse their casual movies.
Demand · Attention
casualfull focus

Casual 4 · Engaged 1 · Full focus 0

Affecting: How much it costs you emotionally; whether you need recovery time. Browse their affecting movies.
Demand · Emotional cost
easyheavy

A split, not a type: Easy watch 2 · Affecting 1 · Heavy 2

Resolved: How much is left for you to interpret. Browse their resolved movies.
Demand · Resolution
resolvedambiguous

Resolved 4 · Open-ended 0 · Ambiguous 1

Roles they play

2 analyzed roles

Moods and endings

endings are an aggregate; no title is named

Dominant moods · mentions across their titles

Joyful
4
Tense
3
Contemplative
4
Hopeful
2
Dread
1
Other
7

How their films linger

Hopeful4 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteThought-provoking3 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteHaunting2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertasteBittersweet2 titles, browse their movies with this aftertaste

How their films end

  • Happy2
  • Bittersweet5

AI-generated from each title's plot synopsis and cast list, with extra plot summaries, reviews and Parents Guide notes for titles the model may not know, and the model's own knowledge of the ones it recognizes. Only analyzed titles count, so this covers part of the filmography; the feel axes count films only for now.

Where can I watch Pamela Rabe's films?

As of October 24, 2026, 5 of their 8 Motif titles stream on a subscription or free service.

Also on these channels

Subscription and free streaming for Pamela Rabe's titles on Motif; rent and buy are not counted. Titles are listed by Midcredits score, highest first, at most 12 per service; a dashed chip is a producer credit or a minor one, such as a thanks. A service opens the browse page, which counts movies only, so its number can differ.

Filmography

25 credits, 8 with a Motif page; 2 appearances as themselves are hidden until asked for.

  • Bay of Fires (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2023)

    Show 16 episodes · as Magda

  • Deadloch(2023)

    Show 8 episodes · as Margaret Carruthers

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all shows

  • Wentworth: Unlocked (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2021)

    Actor

  • Wentworth Behind the Bars 3: A Look at the Final Season (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2020)

    Actor

  • Wentworth: Behind the Bars (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2020)

    as Joan Ferguson

  • The Hunting(2019)

    Show 4 episodes · as Principal De Rossi

    Midcredits score: 55th percentile of all shows

  • The Beehive (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2018)

    as The Beekeeper

  • F*%#Ing Adelaide(2017)

    Show 6 episodes · as Maude

    Midcredits score: 39th percentile of all shows

  • Fucking Adelaide (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2017)

    as Maude

  • For Those Who Can Tell No Tales(2013)

    as Mum

    Midcredits score: 47th percentile of all films

  • Wentworth(2013)

    Show 80 episodes · as Joan Ferguson

    Midcredits score: 97th percentile of all shows

  • Holly's Heroes (not in the Motif catalog yet)(2005)

    Show 3 episodes · as Mrs. Rocacelli

  • The Well (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1997)

    as Hester

  • Paradise Road(1997)

    as Mrs. Tippler

    Midcredits score: 68th percentile of all films

  • Lust and Revenge (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1996)

    as Obnoxious Woman

  • Mercury (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1996)

    Show 13 episodes · Actor

  • The Bite (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1996)

    Show 2 episodes · as Samira Nazib

  • Cosi(1996)

    as Ruth

    Midcredits score: 69th percentile of all films

  • Vacant Possession (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1995)

    as Tessa

  • Ocean Girl (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1994)

    Show 78 episodes · Actor

  • Sirens(1994)

    as Rose Lindsay

    Midcredits score: 40th percentile of all films

  • The Leaving of Liverpool (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1992)

    as Mrs. Lang

  • The Leaving of Liverpool (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1992)

    Show 2 episodes · Actor

  • Against the Innocent (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1989)

    as American

  • Nancy Wake (not in the Motif catalog yet)(1987)

    Show 2 episodes · as Madeleine

Career shape

Star power in the 79th percentile of 239,109 people with a billed film role, over a full career of 25 titles from 1987 to 2023.

Biggest box office

Sirens (1994)

$7.8M worldwide

Highest rated

Wentworth (2013)

Midcredits 97th

Film career

By role

only this rolewith another role
Acting25 of 25: 25 only acting, 0 with another role · typical Midcredits score62nd

By decade

1980s2 · acting1990s11 · acting2000s1 · acting2010s6 · acting2020s5 · acting

Counts from TMDB across their full career, self appearances out; a title counts in every role they held on it. The ring is the typical Midcredits score (the median percentile) of the role's titles that are on Motif, shown from 5 scored.

How do Pamela Rabe's films land?

Their typical Motif film has a Midcredits score in the 58th percentile, the median of all 4; across their 5 films with reception data, the typical film sits in the 49th percentile for acclaim.

Acclaim · how much people like their films

49thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 5

Approval · how many liked their films

55thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 5

Reach · how many have seen their films

64thpercentile
Typical film, the median of 5

Midcredits score across 8 titles, by percentile

  • 75th and up1
  • 50th to 74th4
  • 25th to 49th3

Shape of the crowd

3 of their 8 titles are Crowd Pleasers.

  • Universally Loved1
  • Cult Classic1
  • Crowd Pleaser3
  • Broadly Agreed1
  • Mixed2

Most divisive · actor

For Those Who Can Tell No Tales (2013)

79th percentile spread · 23% rated it 4 or lower

Most loved · actor

Wentworth (2013)

Midcredits 97th · 92% liked

Reviewers score the acting 68/100 in their films, across 4 reviewed titles; fans 81, detractors 45. The element that speaks to their work as an actor.

Percentiles are each film's standing among all films on Motif; the typical film is the median, so one outlier cannot drag it. Percentiles and reviewer scores count the films IMDb credits them on, for now; the Midcredits score bands, the shape of the crowd and the two cards count their Motif titles, shows included (a show ranked among shows), appearances as themselves left out. A descriptor is the shape of a title's IMDb rating distribution against the catalog; "most divisive" needs a spread wider than half of all titles, and a card names only a principal credit: a craft role, and on a show a crew role or a run of episodes, never a courtesy credit or a one-off guest spot.

Who does Pamela Rabe work with?

People who share at least 2 of Pamela Rabe's Motif titles; Ben Mendelsohn shares the most, 2.