Amy Schumer became a star this year. While she had been making the word-of-mouth rounds for a while now, things kicked into high gear when she began to address the massive patriarchy that continually keeps women in show business in a tiny little box. That box says you can’t get a starring role on TV or in films unless the vast majority of males from age 13 up to age 55 find you “hot.” It also says you can’t really get much work after the age of 40 unless you have work done to try to look 30 again, at which point you’re roundly criticized for bad plastic surgery. Schumer decided she was going to poke at the very tender spots most of us just accept but never talk about. With a few video clip segments from her series Inside Amy Schumer that made the rounds online she changed the conversation.
Melissa McCarthy has been defying the odds since she first broke through in Bridesmaids. She is now landing lead roles in her films and making money hand over fist. Since Bridesmaids, McCarthy has starred in five films that grossed over $100 million. Her name alone can now “open” a movie. It’s one thing to say Julia Roberts did it back in the 80s and 90s or that Jennifer Lawrence does it now. It’s a whole other thing to say a woman who is not traditionally “hot” can “open” a movie. Hot damn, Clarisse.
McCarthy’s unlikely spy in Spy and the variety of Schumer’s incarnations have given women out there some much needed relief. We mostly have to see ourselves onscreen as long suffering wives or patient mothers to our ambitious young boys. We’re seen as the hot girlfriends. Occasionally we get to be bitches. But now we have Melissa McCarthy dismantling the notion of her being a “type.” Each time the FBI assigns her a new identity it represents another stereotype of the only way Hollywood or male audiences might ordinarily see a woman like McCarthy. And each time her character turns the tired expectation on its head. Schumer does much the same thing with Trainwreck — she presents herself against type – the woman who can’t commit who is not a manic pixie dream girl. In both films, these women appeal to male and female ticket buyers alike – maybe because they are so hard on themselves.
When Jeff Wells at Hollywood-Elsewhere saw Amy Schumer in Trainwreck he immediately thought that she deserves a Best Actress nomination. Both Melissa McCarthy and Amy Schumer turned in brilliant lead performances in Spy and Trainwreck. That they both come from improvisational comedy backgrounds will greatly hurt their chances with awards groups. There would have be a rule-buster at play to make it happen. This is not unheard of. Oscar rules are meant to be broken. Looking back through their history, however, it doesn’t look good for the women who have changed the game for women this year.
Women (and men as well) who come from comedy roots have far less chance getting awards traction Even in a serious role, women (and men as well) who come from comedy roots find it far harder to get awards traction than the usual to-do made over so-called “legitimate” actresses and actors who sign on for a funny film. Meryl Streep in the Devil Wears Prada, Julia Roberts in Pretty Woman, Diane Keaton in Annie Hall, Melanie Griffith in Working Girl, Shirley MacLaine in Terms of Endearment, and of course, Jennifer Lawrence in Silver Linings Playbook. Things get a bit more flexible in the supporting actress category but even there, actors identify with other actors who rise through traditional channels and they’re tougher on those who come from standup. In fact, you’d be hard pressed to find any in all of Oscar history.
One of the biggest reasons there are so few Oscar contenders in the Best Actress category is the limitations the acting branch puts on itself. Part of it is just plain old tradition that is difficult to break. Part of it is the perception of “respectability.” Actors think of acting as a serious craft. The reality is that it’s much harder to do standup or comedy at all than it is to simply act in a part. Acting these days is often more about charisma and how well extremely good-looking people can “act normal” than it is any sort of true talent or ability. We know this is true, even in the Oscar race, whether it’s pretty people doing the minimum to get a nomination or kids who are really too young to exhibit any real skill. The bottom line remains – they have their stigmas and they stick to them.
What are their stigmas? The horror genre is one of them. You have to reach farther back to find your Ellen Burstyns or Sigourney Weavers. Tiny indies can be overlooked for not being “big” enough, except when they feature a well-known star working a showcase. One of the biggest stigmas by far is comedy.
While the Hollywood Foreign Press makes it much easier to reward the different types of performances – drama and comedy/musical, the performances that do well in the comedy/musical category tend to be those placed there for the wrong reasons — like Meryl Streep in August: Osage County (REALLY?), or even Amy Adams for American Hustle. Both were nominated for Oscars though they could have easily been placed in the drama category at the Golden Globes. The category fraud at the Globes is getting a little ridiculous lately – they really should just have ten slots for Best Actress and ten for Best Actor and dispense with the arbitrary subsets. But the Globes comedy category is likely the only place where Amy Schumer and Melissa McCarthy can get any sort of major recognition. The chances of their getting bumped for a “respectable” actress in a “dramedy” is fairly high. For instance, Jennifer Lawrence will be in that category for Joy. Meryl Streep will likely get in for Ricki and the Flash. There will be Lily Tomlin for Grandma, Greta Gerwig for Mistress America. As you can see, it fills up fast. The comedy/musical category now being used as spillover for the drama category all in the name of finding alternative Oscar contenders.
Thus, Amy Schumer and Melissa McCarthy do face an uphill climb towards getting even a Globe nod for their superior work in changing the game this year. Schumer gets added points for being in a Judd Apatow movie, though they are kind of prejudiced against him as well for being from comedy. She also gets points for having written the screenplay which is, to my mind, is at least as good as Silver Linings Playbook.