There are always the great leads of the great dramas – let’s call them the Jon Hamms – and the cemented kings and queens of comedy (Julia Louis-Dreyfus is never not one of them). This is not a list intended to ignore them – to claim the performances below were either better or worse, or altogether separate in consideration – even if they’re mostly absent. This group of 12 came together organically. In thinking about the acting that really hit me hardest this year, I landed on the dozen choices that blew me away, that stuck in my mind like nothing else – and they just happened to be the breakout stars, the scene-stealing supporting players, the overdue character actors. With due respect to the continued legacies of Don Draper, Selina Meyer and all the rest, these – for me – were the standout TV performances of 2015. Read on below…
Clayne Crawford | Rectify
Teddy Talbot wasn’t always Rectify’s secret weapon – early in the series’ run, the brutish step-brother of Daniel Holden functioned as a standard familial antagonist, suspicious and scheming and all-too-unkind. But thanks in large part to the multifaceted work of Clayne Crawford, yet another character came off the show’s deep bench for a chance to take hold of the limelight. Whether powering his way through revelatory monologues or sitting in silence through agonizing therapy sessions, Crawford stunned as he tore into Teddy’s tortured, complicated history – the arguable highlight of a stellar season.
Taraji P. Henson | Empire
While it may seem like a distant memory, the pop culture phenomenon Empire completed its entire debut season in 2015, and to far better creative success than its currently-airing second season. Taraji P. Henson tore into January's Empire pilot mid-episode as Cookie Lyon, and in the two-dozen episodes since, has managed to craft the small-screen’s most indelible character, equipped with limitless sets of outfits, hairstyles and wild comebacks. Without taking away from the heart and levity of her performance, Henson is having fun in this part, and it’s never less than ravishing to watch her do so.
Oscar Isaac | Show Me a Hero
I’ve written about Isaac’s work on the film side of things; between Inside Llewyn Davis and A Most Violent Year, the Juilliard graduate has proven himself to be the big-screen’s most exciting new leading man over the last few years. But in a sign of the burgeoning reputation of television, Isaac slid into the HBO prestige machine for his next project. And what a choice it was: as Mayor Nick Wasicsko, the young, cocky, in-over-his-head Yonkers captain of the mid-80s, Isaac was a marvel, authentic and genuine and slickly affecting. He lived up both to Show Me a Hero’s explicit request and to its implicit promise: in embodying the limits and pitfalls of heroism in American politics, the actor reached something cathartically tragic.
Regina King | American Crime & The Leftovers
After five years of tremendous work on the underrated cop drama Southland, Regina King finally reached a watershed moment in 2015, gaining substantial attention for two very different – but equally rich – roles. First, she stepped into ABC’s limited series American Crime a few episodes-in, and nearly stole the show as Aliyah Shadeed, a Nation of Islam convert and the sister of a controversially-incarcerated drug addict. But it was her raw, intense and thrillingly complicated performance in The Leftovers that really turned heads: as the secretive mother of a missing child, King provided an uncompromising and visceral expression of grief. Her two-hander with Carrie Coon in the episode “Lens” was among the finest moments of acting I witnessed – stage, film or television – this year.
Selenis Leyva | Orange Is the New Black
One great thing about Orange Is the New Black: it always has room for new actors to shine. As Gloria, Red’s temporary kitchen replacement in Litchfield Penitentiary, Selenis Leyva best took advantage this season. Between her ugly feud with Sophia (Laverne Cox) over their sons’ rivalry, and the quiet devastatation of struggling to parent her misbehaving son from the “inside,” Gloria's challenges resonated deeply. Leyva expertly found an angle to explore in Orange's humanistic panorama; she may only be one of dozens of talented actresses in Orange, but in a season that was at times a tad too frothy, here was the actress who dug in and conveyed something meaningful.
Rami Malek | Mr. Robot
The undisputed breakout of 2015, Rami Malek delivered with searing unpredictability in Mr. Robot, effortlessly situating himself within the show’s hyperrealistic aesthetic and successfully performing within its tight, unconventional parameters. Sam Esmail’s cyberpunk-hacker-allegory lived and died on Malek’s ability to convince and connect; the erratic mind of Elliot Alderson provided the show’s every twist and turn, and its every moment of laughter and poignancy. Luckily, between his character’s demonic drug episodes and fateful realizations, Malek was outwardly brilliant – and, beginning to end, fascinating.
Ben Mendelsohn | Bloodline
The joy of Bloodline, often, was the way it so theatrically played in the Florida Keys. With sand against their feet and the sun beating down, the best actors in the business were put to work, feeding off of each other’s energies to create electric drama. And with Kyle Chandler, Linda Cardellini and Sissy Spacek among the core cast, you’d be forgiven if you neglected to predict that relative unknown Ben Mendelsohn would all but walk off with the show as Danny, the outcast of the Rayburn family. But that he did. Wily and with a jittery physicality, Mendelsohn crafted one of the year’s most enigmatic characters, pulling off the delicate balance of menace and vulnerable with disarming aplomb.
Laurie Metcalf | Getting On
The HBO half-hour was never short on great talent: from its magnificent main cast (including Niecy Nash, whom I recognized in this space last year) to its top-notch lineup of guest stars, Getting On served a number of underused performers extremely well. Laurie Metcalf, its ostensible lead, has often described Dr. Jenna James, the self-involved and slightly desperate doctor left in charge of an underfunded geriatrics ward, as her dream gig – despite the many iconic turns in theater and television to precede it. And with this final season of Getting On in particular, it was pretty easy to understand why. This was a showcase, pure and simple: Metcalf was absurdly funny, uniquely profound and amazingly expressive within each and every episode, demonstrating more range than most any other actor in TV.
Maura Tierney | The Affair
The first season of Showtime’s The Affair was largely a duet between Ruth Wilson and Dominic West, but to the show’s benefit – and, in some cases, detriment – creator Sarah Treem shook things up for year two, bringing the main couple’s ex-spouses into the center of the action. Joshua Jackson was plenty wonderful as the aggrieved Cole Lockhart, but there wasn’t a performance that moved me more than Maura Tierney’s in 2015. Chronicling Helen’s post-separation life, and in turn her journey to self-discovery, the actress unveiled astonishing depth and complexity. In emoting with exquisite grace and feeling, conjuring up about a dozen compelling ideas within single takes and scenes, she was simply unforgettable.
Michaela Watkins | Casual
There’s a good amount of intimate, realistic storytelling happening right now on TV – look no further than my Top 20 for evidence of that. And that’s precisely why Michaela Watkins’ work in Casual, Hulu’s new half-hour series, floored me as it did. Watkins has made the rounds on the prestige TV circuit, becoming a sort of mainstay in the indie half-hour realm, and Casual was the starring vehicle she’d long proven herself worthy of. As Valerie Myers, a newly-divorced mother coming to terms with her sexual and romantic identity, Watkins gave a performance as natural, unassuming and unflinchingly honest as I’ve seen. She’s that understated – and that good.
Bokeem Woodbine | Fargo
The second season of Fargo introduced new, impressive sides to Patrick Wilson, Ted Danson, Jean Smart and especially Kirsten Dunst – but, without question, its greatest recreation was that of Bokeem Woodbine. The prolific character actor had a filmography years away from anything approaching Mike Milligan, the Coen-esque enforcer of a major crime syndicate. But with a blistering sense of humor, an undercurrent of danger and a surprising degree of melancholy, Woodbine embodied the character with enthralling personality and charm – and, ‘70s hair and all, reaffirmed the value of casting against type.
Constance Zimmer | UnREAL
This one was, admittedly, a toss-up between Constance Zimmer and her co-star, Shiri Appleby. UnREAL darkly revitalized the antihero drama through its infectious mix of soap, satire and sadism. Zimmer was the Patty Hewes to Appleby’s Ellen Parsons – any Damages fan hopefully understands and embraces this parallel – as the enabler, the black-hearted superior, the TV-maker too preoccupied and jaded to consider conscience or morals. Always a tart, witty performer, Zimmer took it a step further this time: in tipping the scales toward UnREAL’s standard, she located her character’s soul, her boundaries and her enclosed identity. Between the sharp one-liners and vicious power plays, Zimmer settled on a magnetic rhythm. It was challenging but oh-so-rewarding to keep up.
Transparent | The Cast
