While the leading roles of a film get most of the spotlight, the supporting performances, more often than not, hold the movie together. Whether a smaller part for a former star or a new face bursting onto the screen, side parts in movies are often some of the most memorable.
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The Academy Awards rewards these scene-stealing performances with the Best Supporting Actor and Actress categories. However, over the years, there have been numerous exemplary supporting performances that are not even given a nomination. For one reason or another, these supporting performances haven’t been given the recognition they deserve.
Benicio del Toro — ‘Sicario’ (2015)
It’s strange that for a movie that was so well-acted,Sicarioreceived no acting Oscar nominations. A first-class thriller from top to bottom,Benicio del Toroproves to be the film’s enigmatic force. Nominated for three Oscars, Sicario follows an FBI Agent as she is exposed to some harsh truths while on a dangerous mission in Mexico.
Del Toro, who is already a two-time Best Supporting Actor nominee and one-time winner, isSicario’selusive trump card, withThe Ringer’sChris Ryancomparing his role toMarlon Brando’sColonel Kurtz fromApocalypse Now. While that year did possess a loaded category, it is a great surprise Del Toro’s masterful performance did not get a nomination.
Robert Blake — ‘Lost Highway’ (1997)
Starting his career at only 6 years old,Robert Blakesuccessfully transitioned into adult roles through films likeElectra Glide in Blueand the TV hitBaretta. One of the most gifted actors of his generation, the minute but intense actor’s last role was over 25 years ago withLost Highway. ADavid Lynchodyssey, the film concerns a musician whose life alters after he and his wife receive an ominous VHS tape.
Receiving mixed reviews at the time, including anomination for Worst Pictureat the 1997 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards, Lost Highway has garnered significant praise and scholarly attention in the years, with many considering itone of Lynch’s best works. Blake is frightening and special in the film, a memorable final role if it does end up being his last.
Alexis Smith — ‘The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane’ (1976)
While many sightTaxi Driveras the brilliantly disturbing 1976 thriller that broughtJodie Fosteracclaim, a small minority will citeThe Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane.A genre blendof horror, thriller, and mystery, the film concerns an intelligent 13-year-old girl whose secretive behavior invites suspicion among neighbors.
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Foster is excellent, and so isMartin Sheenas her heinous neighbor, but veteran actorAlexis Smithtruly steals the show in parts. A notable actor in the 1940s, Smith would gain acclaim on stage, winning a Tony Award in 1972. Her performance as Foster’s unrelenting neighbor is flawless, perhaps a role that would influenceMartin Scorseseto later cast her inThe Age of Innocenceshortly before her death.
Sydney Lassick — ‘One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest’ (1975)
Based on the novel of the same name byKen Kesey,One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nestiswidely considered one of the greatest American films of all time, having been selected for preservation in the National Film Registry in 1993. Only the second movie to win all five major Academy Awards, the film is about a prisoner who is transferred to a ward for the mentally unstable.
The film did receive a Nomination for Best Supporting Actor at the Oscars. However, it should have received two. While the eventual nominee,Brad Dourif, is great in the film,Sydney Lassick’s turn as one of the patients is far more emotionally jarring. A character actor throughout his career, Lassick’s role in the film remains one of cinema’s most arresting.
Philip Seymour Hoffman —‘The Talented Mr. Ripley’ (1999)
In 1999,Philip Seymour Hoffmanwas a star character actor, but still yet to cement his legacy as one of the finest actors of his generation. In 1999 alone, Hoffman acted alongsideRobert De NiroinFlawless, appeared as part of the legendary ensemble inMagnolia, and had a meaty role inThe Talented Mr. Ripley, based on the novel by Patricia Highsmith.
Hoffman joined one of the most talented young casts of the 1990s that includedMatt Damon,Gwyneth Paltrow,Cate Blanchett, andJude Law, who was nominated for Best Supporting Actor. Hoffman is a joy to watch, playing the role with his usual gusto. A three-time Best Supporting Actor nominee,The Talented Mr. Ripleyshould have given Hoffman a fourth.
Candice Bergen — ‘Carnal Knowledge’ (1971)
While it brought her great success on the small screen,Candice Bergen’slongtime roles onMurphy BrownandBoston Legalovershadow how phenomenal of a screen actor she is. One of the finest young actors of her time, Bergen, showed off her skill alongsideJack NicholsonandArt GarfunkelinCarnal Knowledgeabout the exploits of two college roommates over many years.
Written by satiristJules Feifferand directed by the legendaryMike Nichols,Carnal Knowledgeis sharp and cruelly amusing. Bergen proves to be a very smart and sensitive actor at the start of the film in which she appears. The film did receive a Best Supporting Actress nod forAnne-Margret, and while she is good in the film, Bergen was slightly more deserving.
Samuel L Jackson — ‘Django Unchained’ (2012)
One of the most delightful actor-director collaborations,Quentin TarantinoandSamuel L Jacksonhave worked together since 1994 withPulp Fiction. Since then, both would grow to become one of the most accomplished people working in Hollywood. They would later join forces again inDjango Unchained, about a freed slave who teams up with a bounty hunter in the pre-Civil War American south.
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Jackson is terrific as the mastermind behindLeonardo DiCaprio’s sadistic Calvin Candie, showcasing a side of himself as an actor he rarely gets to utilize. The film received widespread acclaim, appearing onmany critics' top ten of the year lists. While fellow actorChristoph Waltzwould win that year’s Best Supporting Actor award, Jackson deserved a look in what would have only been his second Oscar nomination ever.
Steve Martin — ‘The Spanish Prisoner’ (1997)
Like many comedic geniuses,Steve Martinhas also proven to be a perceptive dramatic actor. Once one of the biggest movie stars in the world, Martin’s star would wane into the latter part of the ’90s. Still headlining movies, Martin would take a side role inDavid Mamet’sThe Spanish Prisoner:the film is about a businessman who gets brought into an elaborate game by a mysterious entrepreneur.
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Martin is incredibly suave, a skill he often utilized in his former roles for comedic effects, either through slapstick or deprecation. InThe Spanish Prisoner, Martin plays it straight, and it works brilliantly. Seemingly a master of Mamet-speak in his first attempt,The Spanish Prisonershowcases a side of Martin fans yearn to see more of.
Jason Patric — ‘Your Friends and Neighbors’ (1998)
Known for misanthropic themes and battles between genders,Your Friends and Neighborsis perhapsNeil LaBute’s most brutal film to date. The film, which features an ensemble cast that includesAaron Eckhart,Catherine Keener, andBen Stiller, follows a selection of unhappy couples who go on to sleep with other people.
Not a member of one of the couples,Jason Patricshines as the narcissistic sexual predator Cary. With his gleaming eyes and striking features, Patric delivers a breathtaking monologue that is up there with his highest career achievements. Nominated for a Satellite and Sierra Award for his performance, Patric should have gone all the way by being nominated for an Oscar.
Dennis Hopper — ‘Elegy’ (2008)
During his long and illustrious career,Dennis Hopperbecame one of cinema’s finest actors. Known for commanding and eccentric characters, Hopper tapped into a new side of himself inElegy. Adapted from the novelThe Dying CowbyPhilip Roth, the film concerns an aging professor and his changing relationship with a young and beautiful graduate student.
Unlike his most famous roles, inElegy, Hopper plays it straight. As the “Horatio” toBen Kingsley’s"third-rate Hamlet," Hopper is astute and captivating. One of his final film roles before his death, Hopper plays a dying man, a poet, who suffers a stroke. There is a fiery passion to Hopper as a performer, and seeing that burning evaporate from his body inElegyis staggeringly devastating.
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