In the midst of this season’s Hollywood Awards, Richard Jenkins presents two very different films.
This week we see the masterful actor star in “The Humans,” Stephen Karam’s critically acclaimed portrayal of his 2016 Tony Award-winning play for the troubled Thanksgiving family of a dysfunctional family.
She stars in theaters and on Showtime with a cast complemented by Amy Schumer, Steve Yeun (Oscar nominee for “Minari”) and Beanie Feldstein (Broadway’s future “Funny Girl”).
In December, Jenkins reunites with “The Shape of Water” conductor Guillermo Del Toro on the starry “Nightmare Alley” with Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett and Toni Collette.
A two-time Oscar nominee, 74-year-old Jenkins has just completed six months of filming for Ryan Murphy’s “Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story,” which plays Damer’s troubled, terrified father.
His illustrious career began decades ago on the Rhode Island Trinity Rep stage. When did he know that a career in film and television was possible?
“At Silverado when I said, ‘Hello,’ and seven weeks later I said, ‘You can’t do this,’ and I was shot. That was the moment, “he said of Kevin Costner’s 1985 western.
“I was grateful for the job. But you know the truth is that I still do not know when the next job will come “.
Jenkins scored early as a gay FBI agent in love with Josh Brolin in 1996’s “Flirting with Disaster” and as Charlize Theron’s dad in “North Country” (2005). She won an Emmy for Best Supporting Actor for her limited-edition “Olive Kitteridge” role alongside Francis McDormand and an Oscar for “The Visitor” (2007) and “The Shape of Water” (2017).
“You never feel you have arrived,” he thought, “you always feel you have a long way to go.”
“The Humans” laughs out loud as the Blake Irish Catholic family sits for Thanksgiving dinner in the gloomy, unfurnished Chinatown apartment of their youngest daughter Brigid (Feldstein) and her boyfriend (Yeun).
Can “Humans” be considered a dark comedy or just a depressing one?
“I understand the reactions,” Jenkins said. “But it’s not far from the many Thanksgiving days people would have – that’s the wonderful thing about it.
“It always was me, I knew they loved each other. And it’s funny. “
It’s hard to imagine laughter in the Dahmer series. “It was really exciting. It was difficult but it was interesting. For me, the question is: If your son is Jeffrey Damer, do you stop loving him?
“And the answer is no. Because of the answer that makes it even more difficult. “
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