The Oscar field is crammed with amazing actors this year, but not all of that skill is channeled only toward film. There are great TV shows made even better through the work of some of the nominees; here are five really good shows enhanced by Oscar-level talent.
Demián Bichir: ‘Weeds’
The corrupt mayor of a border town, Demián Bichir’s Esteban Reyes on “Weeds” is intense; believable; and, above all, pretty hot. A far cry from his Oscar-nominated performance as undocumented worker Carlos Galindo in “A Better Life,” Esteban Reyes is privileged, powerful, and entitled. Oh, and did I mention “hot?”
Bichir gave a dangerous yet cultured counterpoint to Mary-Louise Parker’s Nancy Botwin, portraying something akin to a male version of Nancy’s toxicity. The result? A character so lingering he drove episodes in which he didn’t even appear.
Glenn Close: ‘Damages’
Ah, Patty Hewes. When “Albert Nobbs” nominee Glenn Close brought her immense talent to “Damages,” co-starring with some then-unknown named Rose Byrne, it was as though someone ripped the façade from legal drama and exposed the real personalities and real motivating forces underneath. Patty is a complicated, tangled character, with pockets of good amid chunks of self-interest and a drive intrinsic to the people who reach her status through sheer willpower.
But Close herself is the reason I’m sure I’ve met Patty Hewes, sat in a courtroom with her, watched her be both inspiring and terrifying at the same time. The layers she’s given that character, the subtleties of interlacing narcissism with traces of self-doubt, could only be handled by an actor of her caliber.
Viola Davis: ‘United States of Tara’
“The Help” Best Actress nominee Viola Davis joined the oddball cast of the oddball “United States of Tara” and managed to create a character with the appropriate level of strangeness and insight. Her Lynda P. Frazier worked like a lens for the Gregson family, allowing them a filter to view themselves, even when the viewing was uncomfortable.
She also marked the only real friend protagonist Tara had, the one person who saw her for her illness and instability and accepted her regardless. She helped draw art from her, but with the self-centeredness that often surfaces and resurfaces in Tara, her own crises supplanted a budding true friendship. Regardless, Davis, in six short episodes, created a person I half-believe is still making art, somewhere.
Melissa McCarthy: ‘Samantha Who?’
Sure, you know her from her fantastic, scene-stealing, makeup-eschewing, Oscar-nominated character in the hysterical “Bridesmaids,” and if you liked her there, you’ve probably seen her CBS comedy “Mike & Molly.” But you could be missing out on my favorite Melissa McCarthy character if you don’t go back a little bit.
McCarthy played a dog-loving, seriously kooky character on the short-lived series “Samantha Who?” starring Christina Applegate, and absolutely lit up the show. Earnestly believable, her Dena was both hilarious and utterly unaware of it, creating this fun little pocket where you’re laughing with her, not at her, and the character knows it. Besides being a great show you may not have seen, “Samantha Who?” offers a peek into McCarthy’s extensive talent. She hasn’t played a character who you can’t help thinking is the real her — considering the diversity of her roles, that’s something.
George Clooney: ‘Facts of Life’
A young George Clooney, long before his Oscar nod for “The Descendants,” graced “The Facts of Life” as handyman George. That is all that needs to be said.
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