I voted Ralph Fiennes in “28 years later”. I will always vote for Fiennes. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this actor when he wasn’t the best one on the screen. And he’s so convincing in every persona—cruel (schindlers list ), crazy (in bruges, the menu), evil (Harry Potter, red dragon) and charmingly funny (hail Caesar). In 28 years later he is the wise man.
All films where he is not the main player but viewers wait for him to return to the screen. IMO he’s kind of the GOAT of supporting actors.
Kyle Krische - 2 weeks ago
I have to go with Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas after just seeing Sentimental Value. Skarsgard with another powerhouse performance, Reinsve showing she may have fully arrived as a big screen talent yet all the while I found myself completely drawn in and enamoured by Lilleaas. What a delicate balancing act she's pulling off the entire film, and arguably the entire narrative falls apart without us believing in what she's doing. Engulfed by the broken but mega talents around her, she's the one that makes us believe that there is something more behind the drive of both of these main characters artists. Her unending ability to love them both unconditionally is what allows them to not only reconnect, but to finally create the great work they've both been striving for their entire lives. She carries the emotion, she is the anchor of the story and she's the conduit by which both characters find what they've been yearning for. I've been waiting for Trier to get a little deeper on his last few films, it felt like he always walked up to the door but never went through it, that is until I saw Lilleaas, who helps make sure that door gets thrown wide open.
Darren - 3 weeks ago
I answered Del Toro but was tempted to go with “other,” as Michael Stuhlbarg stole each of his scenes in Luca Guadagnino’s After the Hunt.
Unfortunately, the movie was the year’s biggest disappointment, so I might have just been so desperate to find something worth praising, I latched onto the one performance that represented what the movie might have been.
Jill Adamson - 3 weeks ago
I didn’t love Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing, but some fantastic cat acting by Tonic the cat, who completely overshadows Austin Butler. Tonic shows great range from an adoring companion to a cantankerous biter and even delivers a great performance after Tonic’s character Bud breaks his leg and Tonic must perform limping with a bandage. There’s a reason Tonic showed up at the red carpet premiere in a convertible. Sorry Austin, this is Tonic’s movie.
Devan Suber - 3 weeks ago
A lot of very good options this year, even going by my own standard of "cameo performances or similar". While I considered John Carroll Lynch in SORRY, BABY, ultimately I want to throw my weight behind Bridgett Everett in WAKE UP DEAD MAN! I was on board with the movie before but she instantly grabs attention and reveals its beating heart; it's a small demonstration of what she does on SOMEBODY, SOMEWHERE, pivoting from broad comedy to heart wrenching drama without breaking a sweat. Honestly? It's miraculous.
Ken Lonck - 3 weeks ago
I looked at this not just as the scenes or movie being stolen, but the actors from whom it's being stolen. By that metric,Marisa Abela takes every scene that she is in out from under actors who have commanded the screen while concealed beneath crime scene scrubs in the case of Blanchett, and a papier-mache head for Fassbender. Taking focus away from these two attention magnets is like taking gold out of Fort Knox. Not even Goldfinger succeeded at that.
Holly Boyd - 3 weeks ago
The correct answer is probably Del Toro but I have to mention Patrick Kennedy’s wonderful turn as E.B White in Blue Moon. Maybe more the perfect scene partner to Hawke than a “scene stealer” but his warmth and presence is crucial to what makes the film work.
Andrew Cochran, Milwaukee WI - 3 weeks ago
As Trent Robb said, my vote has to go to Teyana Taylor. Given OBAA’s runtime, she is not in it for very long but her presence is felt in every scene. I think the films loses quite a bit without her. That said, I am not at all sad to see our sensei take this one. We owe him his small beers.
Eleanor Dodson - 3 weeks ago
I feel like the answer is always Benicio del Toro.
John - 3 weeks ago
I loved the interrogation scene in black bag with Marisa Abela but that scene stuck out more for how great she was in it as much as how boring her character was in the rest of the movie. Benecio Del Torro was the only good part of One battle.....which is why I chose him. however i Can't wait to see more of Marisa
Jeremy Kennis - 3 weeks ago
Cera is born to be in Wes films!
Trent Robb - 3 weeks ago
I voted other for Teyana Taylor in One Battle After Another. I thought her section of the film was the best. And the film suffers when she is no longer in it
Del Toro is going to win, rightfully so. I gotta add Sora Wong to the discussion from Bring Her Back. For a, legitimately blind, child actor to steal scenes in a body horror film was truly impressive.
Sam - 4 weeks ago
Switched my "Other" vote from Ice Spice to Princess Nokia in Highest 2 Lowest, I had confused them.
Keith - 4 weeks ago
Sorrentino’s upcoming La Grazia is a relatively staid and respectable film by his standards, with a respectable old lawyer/president dealing with issues of infidelity, assisted suicide and who deserves forgiveness.
Except in every scene with Milvia Marigliano’s art critic Coco Balori, when the film itself seems to have done several lines of cocaine.
Melodie Marie - 4 weeks ago
For me, this is very close between Benicio del Toro and Amy Madigan. I chose Madigan.
I feel like del Toro is the Filmspotters' choice, but Madigan would be the choice if the General Population were voting. It's more than just more people watched Weapons, rather that Madigan's character and performance have a life outside of those that watched the movie.
Both great, but I think Madigan is the Screen Stealer of the year.
Once again, I'm having an anxiety attack over this poll. [Deep breath.] Ocean waves, ocean waves.
Much as I love Michael Cera in THE PHOENICIAN SCHEME, I have to cast my vote for Del Toro in ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER. Just as Josh O'Connor immediately became my favorite big-screen priest of all time in WAKE UP DEAD MAN, Del Toro became my favorite action hero with his Harriet Tubman rescue operation: "All legit. From the heart. No cash."
I'm also cheering for the way Rian Johnson deploys both Jeffrey Wright and Bridget Everett in WAKE UP DEAD MAN. While the packed theater at The Crest in Seattle laughed from beginning to end, Wright's last line destroyed us. And Everett's big scene, where it's mostly just her voice over the phone, is the most affecting moment in that movie.
If this were a poll where I had to choose based on just one scene — I'd call out John Carroll Lynch in SORRY, BABY. Somehow, with the gift of a sandwich and some tender attention to a soul in crisis, he became the highlight of that difficult but ultimately heart-warming film. How talented is this actor who can convince me he's the Zodiac killer in one role, and then, in another, give me hope for the world through a flourish of kindness? He may think he looks like "a yam with a mouth on it," but he deserves some kind of award for this appearance.
Jonathan Anderson, Denver CO - 4 weeks ago
While all of these are great performances, none of the rest truly stole the scene the way Madigan did every time she appeared in Weapons. I totally would understand if someone would say that as a negative, too, as someone who struggled with Weapons' mixture of tones more than a lot of us seemed to.
Adam Grossman - 4 weeks ago
It’s obviously Sensei del Toro… but there was a moment I hovered over ‘Other’ due to wanting to highlight two more minor, but just as powerful performances, which elevated their own respective movies to another level.
John Carroll Lynch’s few minutes of screen time in the wonderful ‘Sorry, Baby’ is a masterclass in empathy. It was wonderful to see such a veteran, skilled actor getting the chance to play against type in that way.
Just as notable is William H. Macy’s wise soul in the majestically beautiful ‘Train Dreams’. Another example of limited screen time leading to anything but a limited performance.
By the way, sign me up as extremely positive on ‘Train Dreams’ or, to borrow from another Letterboxd reviewer (Quinn Glasnapp), ‘The Deforestation of the Pacific Northwest by the Sawyer Robert Grainier’ … Ha!
Rory Dunn - 5 weeks ago
While del Toro is (rightfully) running away with this, I still want to give Michael Cera his flowers. He was the best part of The Phonecian Scheme, standing out amongst greats like Tom Hanks and del Toro, and made us all realize that he should have been in every Wes Anderson film since The Royal Tenenbaums. To avoid spoilers I'll just say that the scene in which he reveals a truth about him may be his best moment of acting in his career.
Dave Allen - 5 weeks ago
Benecio was my vote, but shout out to Pamela Anderson in The Naked Gun. She was way better in that film than I expected her to be and had some of the funniest moments including a hilariously committed lounge singing scene.
I voted Ralph Fiennes in “28 years later”. I will always vote for Fiennes. I don’t think I’ve ever seen this actor when he wasn’t the best one on the screen. And he’s so convincing in every persona—cruel (schindlers list ), crazy (in bruges, the menu), evil (Harry Potter, red dragon) and charmingly funny (hail Caesar). In 28 years later he is the wise man.
All films where he is not the main player but viewers wait for him to return to the screen. IMO he’s kind of the GOAT of supporting actors.
I have to go with Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas after just seeing Sentimental Value. Skarsgard with another powerhouse performance, Reinsve showing she may have fully arrived as a big screen talent yet all the while I found myself completely drawn in and enamoured by Lilleaas. What a delicate balancing act she's pulling off the entire film, and arguably the entire narrative falls apart without us believing in what she's doing. Engulfed by the broken but mega talents around her, she's the one that makes us believe that there is something more behind the drive of both of these main characters artists. Her unending ability to love them both unconditionally is what allows them to not only reconnect, but to finally create the great work they've both been striving for their entire lives. She carries the emotion, she is the anchor of the story and she's the conduit by which both characters find what they've been yearning for. I've been waiting for Trier to get a little deeper on his last few films, it felt like he always walked up to the door but never went through it, that is until I saw Lilleaas, who helps make sure that door gets thrown wide open.
I answered Del Toro but was tempted to go with “other,” as Michael Stuhlbarg stole each of his scenes in Luca Guadagnino’s After the Hunt.
Unfortunately, the movie was the year’s biggest disappointment, so I might have just been so desperate to find something worth praising, I latched onto the one performance that represented what the movie might have been.
I didn’t love Aronofsky’s Caught Stealing, but some fantastic cat acting by Tonic the cat, who completely overshadows Austin Butler. Tonic shows great range from an adoring companion to a cantankerous biter and even delivers a great performance after Tonic’s character Bud breaks his leg and Tonic must perform limping with a bandage. There’s a reason Tonic showed up at the red carpet premiere in a convertible. Sorry Austin, this is Tonic’s movie.
A lot of very good options this year, even going by my own standard of "cameo performances or similar". While I considered John Carroll Lynch in SORRY, BABY, ultimately I want to throw my weight behind Bridgett Everett in WAKE UP DEAD MAN! I was on board with the movie before but she instantly grabs attention and reveals its beating heart; it's a small demonstration of what she does on SOMEBODY, SOMEWHERE, pivoting from broad comedy to heart wrenching drama without breaking a sweat. Honestly? It's miraculous.
I looked at this not just as the scenes or movie being stolen, but the actors from whom it's being stolen. By that metric,Marisa Abela takes every scene that she is in out from under actors who have commanded the screen while concealed beneath crime scene scrubs in the case of Blanchett, and a papier-mache head for Fassbender. Taking focus away from these two attention magnets is like taking gold out of Fort Knox. Not even Goldfinger succeeded at that.
The correct answer is probably Del Toro but I have to mention Patrick Kennedy’s wonderful turn as E.B White in Blue Moon. Maybe more the perfect scene partner to Hawke than a “scene stealer” but his warmth and presence is crucial to what makes the film work.
As Trent Robb said, my vote has to go to Teyana Taylor. Given OBAA’s runtime, she is not in it for very long but her presence is felt in every scene. I think the films loses quite a bit without her. That said, I am not at all sad to see our sensei take this one. We owe him his small beers.
I feel like the answer is always Benicio del Toro.
I loved the interrogation scene in black bag with Marisa Abela but that scene stuck out more for how great she was in it as much as how boring her character was in the rest of the movie. Benecio Del Torro was the only good part of One battle.....which is why I chose him. however i Can't wait to see more of Marisa
Cera is born to be in Wes films!
I voted other for Teyana Taylor in One Battle After Another. I thought her section of the film was the best. And the film suffers when she is no longer in it
Del Toro is going to win, rightfully so. I gotta add Sora Wong to the discussion from Bring Her Back. For a, legitimately blind, child actor to steal scenes in a body horror film was truly impressive.
Switched my "Other" vote from Ice Spice to Princess Nokia in Highest 2 Lowest, I had confused them.
Sorrentino’s upcoming La Grazia is a relatively staid and respectable film by his standards, with a respectable old lawyer/president dealing with issues of infidelity, assisted suicide and who deserves forgiveness.
Except in every scene with Milvia Marigliano’s art critic Coco Balori, when the film itself seems to have done several lines of cocaine.
For me, this is very close between Benicio del Toro and Amy Madigan. I chose Madigan.
I feel like del Toro is the Filmspotters' choice, but Madigan would be the choice if the General Population were voting. It's more than just more people watched Weapons, rather that Madigan's character and performance have a life outside of those that watched the movie.
Both great, but I think Madigan is the Screen Stealer of the year.
Once again, I'm having an anxiety attack over this poll. [Deep breath.] Ocean waves, ocean waves.
Much as I love Michael Cera in THE PHOENICIAN SCHEME, I have to cast my vote for Del Toro in ONE BATTLE AFTER ANOTHER. Just as Josh O'Connor immediately became my favorite big-screen priest of all time in WAKE UP DEAD MAN, Del Toro became my favorite action hero with his Harriet Tubman rescue operation: "All legit. From the heart. No cash."
I'm also cheering for the way Rian Johnson deploys both Jeffrey Wright and Bridget Everett in WAKE UP DEAD MAN. While the packed theater at The Crest in Seattle laughed from beginning to end, Wright's last line destroyed us. And Everett's big scene, where it's mostly just her voice over the phone, is the most affecting moment in that movie.
If this were a poll where I had to choose based on just one scene — I'd call out John Carroll Lynch in SORRY, BABY. Somehow, with the gift of a sandwich and some tender attention to a soul in crisis, he became the highlight of that difficult but ultimately heart-warming film. How talented is this actor who can convince me he's the Zodiac killer in one role, and then, in another, give me hope for the world through a flourish of kindness? He may think he looks like "a yam with a mouth on it," but he deserves some kind of award for this appearance.
While all of these are great performances, none of the rest truly stole the scene the way Madigan did every time she appeared in Weapons. I totally would understand if someone would say that as a negative, too, as someone who struggled with Weapons' mixture of tones more than a lot of us seemed to.
It’s obviously Sensei del Toro… but there was a moment I hovered over ‘Other’ due to wanting to highlight two more minor, but just as powerful performances, which elevated their own respective movies to another level.
John Carroll Lynch’s few minutes of screen time in the wonderful ‘Sorry, Baby’ is a masterclass in empathy. It was wonderful to see such a veteran, skilled actor getting the chance to play against type in that way.
Just as notable is William H. Macy’s wise soul in the majestically beautiful ‘Train Dreams’. Another example of limited screen time leading to anything but a limited performance.
By the way, sign me up as extremely positive on ‘Train Dreams’ or, to borrow from another Letterboxd reviewer (Quinn Glasnapp), ‘The Deforestation of the Pacific Northwest by the Sawyer Robert Grainier’ … Ha!
While del Toro is (rightfully) running away with this, I still want to give Michael Cera his flowers. He was the best part of The Phonecian Scheme, standing out amongst greats like Tom Hanks and del Toro, and made us all realize that he should have been in every Wes Anderson film since The Royal Tenenbaums. To avoid spoilers I'll just say that the scene in which he reveals a truth about him may be his best moment of acting in his career.
Benecio was my vote, but shout out to Pamela Anderson in The Naked Gun. She was way better in that film than I expected her to be and had some of the funniest moments including a hilariously committed lounge singing scene.