Olivia Colman was drawn to acting from an early age and attended the Open University, where she studied drama. In the early years of career, two decades ago, she appeared in a number of stage productions and television shows, and almost immediately began to garner acclaim and honors.
As often happens for British actors, Colman had time to develop her craft, and the mastery shows. She didn’t burst onto the scene as the latest “it” girl. Rather, she sought plum roles and made the most of them until people started noticing what a versatile actress she is.
Most American audiences first became aware of Colman’s extraordinary talent when the BBC crime drama “Broadchurch” crossed the pond. The show was an outstanding critical and commercial success. Portraying an offbeat detective investigating the murder of a young boy, Colman’s performance earned her a BAFTA Award for Best Supporting Actress. The first of many BAFTAs she would soon receive.
Colman’s big break in film came with the hard-hitting Tyrannosaur. In it, she plays a woman who suffers accelerating abuse at the hands of a monster. Then she played the hotel manager in Yorgos Lanthimos’ The Lobster, a role so different from Tyrannosaur that anyone paying attention could see the onscreen magic she was capable of conjuring. It was quickly becoming clear that Olivia Colman had that rare ability to imprint her unmistakable signature on any role, playing anyone in almost anything and making it her own. She’s an old school nuts-and-bolts actor who can play funny, serious, grotesque, angelic, tragic and bawdy — and carry it all off with spritely aplomb.
In recent years, Colman has gained even more recognition for her work on “The Crown.” Her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II has been praised for its depth and nuance, and she has received numerous awards for her performance.
Four years ago, Colman paired once again with Lanthimos in The Favourite and won the Oscar for Best Actress. The film was nominated for 10 Oscars, with Colman being the sole winner.
Her speech was one for the ages – funny, disarming, humble. For those of us who had admired her television work for years, this leap to Oscar triumph was no surprise. She seemed to have come out of nowhere for many who saw her brilliant work as Queen Anne but by then, Colman had decades of acting work behind her, which likely explains why she is so assured, so exacting in her work.
She followed her Oscar win with her scene-stealing role in Fleabag as an overbearing, fake-nice stepmother, and in the same year astonished movie-goers once again, playing opposite Anthony Hopkins, in The Father, as the daughter of a strong-willed man swept up in the bewildering throes of Alzheimer’s. She followed that with The Lost Daughter, pulling off the impossible by making our hearts break for an unsympathetic character — an unstable narcissist who is ill-equipped for the pressures of motherhood.
Topping all these pinnacles, Colman this year has delivered her career best performance, as Hilary in Empire of Light. In Sam Mendes exquisite tale of the stains and bonds between disaffected people in 1980s South Coast town, she plays a lonely yet determined woman, damaged by family strife, misunderstood by co-workers, sexually abused by her boss, and struggling with mental illness that requires the harsh medication of the era to flatten her tendency toward extremes.
Colman’s Hilary works at a movie theater but never watched the movies. She is as breakable and fragile as glass. At last the opportunity for a love affair reminds her of the fleeting joy she once felt when she was young.
Each of the conflicting facets of her character pull her in every direction except the right one. Like most of us, all she seeks is stability of love, fulfillment, and happiness. But circumstances align against her desires. preventing her from attaining or holding onto any of these things. Ultimately she manages to find the one thing that can bring her peace without judgement or consequences: movies. The cinematic experience.
When we see her fall apart we see what Colman can really do, what a powerhouse she is. There is no one working in film today that has her level of range, talent, ability and above all, the courage to confront the hardest roles.
Olivia Colman is an extraordinarily talented and versatile actress who has made a significant impact in the world of entertainment. Her performances have captivated audiences around the world, and her dedication to social issues has made her a respected and admired figure in the industry.
By now, it’s hard to even recognize Colman beneath all the diverse, electrifying, memorable characters she plays. We only see Hilary. We only see Queen Elizabeth. We only see Queen Anne. With Hilary, she has given us her best work, uncompromising and unequivocal. It is one of the best performances of the year.
