Performer of the Week: Ewan McGregor
THE PERFORMER | Ewan McGregor
THE EPISODE | “The Lord of No Mercy” (May 24, 2017)
THE PERFORMANCE | Oh, brother. All season long on Fargo, McGregor has been pulling double duty as feuding Minnesota brothers Ray and Emmit Stussy. But in this week’s riveting potboiler of an episode, that duet tragically became a solo act.
Like Tatiana Maslany on Orphan Black, McGregor has so skillfully differentiated his two characters here — Emmit is the polite, genial big-business tycoon; Ray is the scruffy, embittered black sheep — that it’s easy to forget they’re played by the same actor. This week, McGregor had to play both Ray’s macho fury in the wake of Nikki’s beating, as well as Emmit’s genuine hurt when he realized the depth of his brother’s grudge against him, and he pulled off both with remarkable dexterity.
Then the difficulty level ratcheted up yet another notch when Ray and Emmit stood toe to toe in a climactic showdown. Emmit tried to bury the hatchet with his brother by offering him the coveted family stamp, but Ray refused it… and the childish fight that ensued led to the frame shattering and a shard of glass piercing Ray’s neck, killing him. It’s incredible to think that every note in that shocking scene — Emmit’s kindhearted attempt to mend fences, Ray’s stubborn anger, Emmit’s panic and regret — was all the work of a single actor.
It’s a shame about Ray… but at least through Emmit, McGregor’s superb performance lives on.
HONORABLE MENTION | The divine Angela Bassett lent her formidable acting talents to Master of None‘s poignant “Thanksgiving” episode, guest-starring as Catherine, the mother of Dev’s lesbian friend Denise. The whole episode was a series of flashbacks that spanned decades, with Denise gradually becoming more open about her sexuality, and Catherine was a real firecracker: quick with a joke, but ferociously protective of her child. The pivotal scene where Denise came out to her mother was a mini acting clinic from Bassett: In lesser hands, the scene could’ve fallen into cliché, but Bassett made the very real pain and fear Catherine was feeling so vivid (“I don’t want life to be hard for you!”), we felt it along with her. “Thanksgiving” was Master of None‘s most touching episode yet, with Bassett serving as its fiercely proud, ultimately loving backbone.
HONORABLE MENTION | Perhaps stupidly, we didn’t realize that, when The Leftovers‘ Laurie said goodbye to ex-husband Kevin in “Certified,” she was doing so as much because she was planning to end her own life as expecting his suicide mission to succeed in killing him. Nonetheless, we were shattered by Amy Brenneman‘s performance, a master class in subtlety and restraint that only hinted at the emptiness that had for so long haunted her character. At the time we didn’t get the full meaning of her reply when he said he wasn’t scared of dying: “Then I’m not scared, either.” But looking back and seeing the weight of Laurie’s heartbreaking decision reflected from her portrayer’s eyes, we’re all the more bowled over by the depth of Brenneman’s performance.
HONORABLE MENTION | Say what you will about Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt‘s uneven third season, but there is no denying that Tituss Burgess delivered one comedic tour de force after another, with his most notable triumph occurring in the Lemonade-spoofing second installment. As Titus Andromedon spiraled out of control in the wake of his kerfuffle with boyfriend Mikey, Burgess flawlessly toggled between high camp (the baseball-bat tirade), subtle satire (his mortified reaction to Mikey’s Biz Markie’s homage), and, in the episode’s closing moments, heartbreak as he came to realize what was really going on. “It’s too much pressure being your first and your only,” he confessed to Mikey, before sassily adding, “Even for a gorgeous diva such as moi.” Gorgeous and incomparable.
Which performance knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in Comments!
Honorable Mention for Bob Odenkirk for this weeks Better Call Saul. (Although one could almost do that for every episode) Showing how Jimmy was breaking down & Saul being born. His desperation – every heartbreaking nuance and expression – incredible.
Great choices, but I would put Amy Brenneman as this week’s Performer of the Week–her performance was absolutely heartbreaking!
She’s always good. I should have saw the scuba twist coming but it caught me by surprise! Lots of tears.
No mention of Kyle MacLachlan playing three characters at once in the new Twin Peaks?
This comes as no surprise given the ridiculous lopsided reviews their “critics” gave the show. Good thing no one really cares about that.
As a side note, this site has been going downhill for some time now. Not only have the editors completely lost their credibility with the repetitive and irrational Twin Peaks hate they’ve been spewing but more importantly the site is getting more and more difficult to navigate with all those aggressive and heavy ads. My browser has already crashed a few times and it’s getting really irksome
I could be wrong but those episodes with “Dougie” don’t technically air until tonight right? Probably don’t “count” yet.
Not sure when Bloodline will be eligible, but Norbert Leo Butz was awesome in episode two!
I think Titus Burgess should have been PotW. The Lemonade episode was one of the most hilarious pieces of television I’ve ever seen. I’m so bummed I already finished the season.
Titus definitely secured his first Emmy for the Lemonade episode (hopefully)!
I was really expecting Stephen Ammel to at least have honorable mention
Considering the powerhouse performances given by the actors mentioned, I highly doubt Stephen Amell comes even remotely close.
Mr. Amell was already acknowledged this season (and just a few weeks back). –Mgmt.
What about Josh Segarra?
https://tvline.com/2017/03/18/aubrey-plaza-legion-performance-season-1-lenny/
That explains it 😀
Haven’t seen Fargo yet, but Ewan McGregor must have put in a phenomenal performance to beat Amy Brenneman on last week’s Leftovers.
Good Ewan McGregor got performer of the week. He’s been doing great playing the twin brothers on Fargo this season.
He is really good, but I don’t think the Stussy bros are supposed to be twins (fraternal maybe). They have different color eyes (Emmit-brown and Ray-Ewan’s natural green color), different color hair, and slightly different facial structure due to the prosthetics. I think I heard one of them refer to the other as “little brother” in the scene pictured above also. Great performance(s).
Sorry but where is the honourable mention for Emily Hampshire as Jennifer Goines in 12 Monkeys. Typical its a SyFy show so great acting goes un noticed yet again, just like the Guild for so long.
I´ll second that, she is terrrific.
Kudos to the anonymous author of this piece for cleverly slipping in the phrase, “It’s a shame about Ray.”
(For those who don’t get the reference, listen to The Lemonheads’ 1992 tune.)
Amy Brenneman was terrific. She should’ve been performer of the week easily. Tituss Burgess has been terrific in all seasons (even if seasons 2 & 3 have been really okay). Ewan McGregor on the other hand is to be honest, so mannered his performances scream “Acting!”. The comparison with Maslany is so unfair considering how good she is at portraying characters (he can’t even deal with two).
Kyle Maclachlan is the only acceptable recipient this week.
Very good choices.
But i´ve would nominate the cast of “Shots fired” as the best ensemble. Lathan, James, Moyer, Patton, Wilds, Hunt and so on did a fantastic and very emotional job.
Maybe TVLine could establish a best Ensemble Performance of the Week shoutout in the future.
Must be just me cos Ewan McGregor didn’t impress me much. The wigs and prosthetics are doing all the work, with voices and intensity about the same. Yes, Tatiana Maslany has wigs and props too, but her whole body language and voice is different for the different clones.
Amy Brenneman OTOH was absolutely brilliant!
Don’t understand why James Spader has been denied the credit he so richly deserves. The man has more talent in his left nostril than most actors have at their best moments.
As much as I like Ewan’s performance, I think David Thewlis was just towering in this episode. He is the ultimate adversary, always several steps ahead of everyone. He has been brilliant all season, but especially in this episode.