The thing about my taste in movies is that I’m generally too much of a scaredy cat to watch full-on horror movies. Which means it took me months to work up the nerve to watch Weapons, and even then, I had to take several breaks, basically watching it over a 48 hour period. I did enjoy it, and I’m getting a kick out of Weapons making its way onto so many “best films of the year” lists. I’m absolutely thrilled that Amy Madigan – who plays Aunt Gladys – is getting singled out for awards recognition too. Madigan is 75 years old and still married to GOAT Ed Harris. They’ve been married for 42 years! Madigan has already won the New York Film Critics Circle Award for Best Supporting Actress, and she was just nominated for a Critics Choice and Golden Globe award. Well, after the Globe noms came out, Madigan chatted about her nomination and how she’s thrilled that so many people loved Weapons. Some highlights from Variety:
Whether she thought she would get awards for Aunt Gladys: “No, I did not.”
Her reaction to all of the recognition: “It’s kind of overwhelming to me. That’s been a word I’ve been repeating through this process because I wasn’t expecting it, quite honestly. I thought people would really like the film and get the film, and I thought people would like Gladys, but I wasn’t expecting it to kind of explode like that. But it just reflects Zach Cregger, who wrote it and directed it all.
Why Gladys resonates: “People actually like Aunt Gladys. They kind of want to hang out with her. I’m very, very happy and grateful that the gay community and the drag community have really accepted Gladys. The people that I’ve talked to have said, “We’re the other. We’re the outsider, and we’re not supposed to fit in, and Gladys does in a weird way.” And now they have really helped her spread her magic around. I just loved [seeing the Gladys drag queens on Halloween]. It was really fun — and it was kind of all over the place! I just sat back and looked at all that stuff. It was cool.”
If you got drag queens doing you, you’ve made it. “Don’t tell the [Trump] administration that. We’ll all get canceled.”
What she thought of her Gladys look: “It took us a lot of trial and error with all the different departments, hair and makeup and effects and costumes. When we finally felt that we liked it, they were doing camera tests with the cast and I walked in. Everybody didn’t know, really, how to react seeing Glady like this.
Whether she kept anything from Gladys’ wardrobe: “I did not, and that was so stupid. I should have, definitely. Maybe one of her brooches. But I did not. Maybe I’ll have to circle back to [costume designer] Trish Summerville and see if she’s got something for me.
How it feels to be so iconic at 75: “It feels unusual. I just knew that this was a great part, and I really wanted to play Gladys. I understood her just from reading her, and how her back was against the wall, and what she needed to do to survive. So I understand that as a woman my age, and a woman in this business.
Whether horror movies deserve more awards recognition: “Absolutely. It’s the same amount of work, same amount of craft, the same amount of operation. It’s the same amount of collaboration, and I think that’s proven by the films this year. Just look back at a film like “Get Out” that tackles social issues but also has a lot of scary moments. Those kinds of films have always done that, going back to the silent films and the black-and-white films. Their time has come, I think, and I’m very happy about that.
These stories are the amazing side of the awards season. Don’t get me wrong, I love the ingenue stories and the stories about hard-working actors getting their due. But I love it when an older actor suddenly finds themself on the awards circuit, like when Isabella Rossellini was everywhere for Conclave. Older actors tend to enjoy it a lot more than their younger colleagues. And it’s just great to see Amy Madigan in a big movie, honestly. She’s been around forever and she’s very egoless about her work.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, Cover Images.
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- The Last Full Measure Premiere – Arrivals at the ArcLight Hollywood on January 16, 2020 in Los Angeles, CA,Image: 996578111, License: Rights-managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: no, Pictured: Amy Madigan, Credit line: Nicky Nelson/Wenn/Avalon
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- Los Angeles premiere of ‘Weapons’ at United Theatre Featuring: Amy Madigan Where: Los Angeles, California, United States When: 31 Jul 2025 Credit: Dave Starbuck/Future Image/Cover Images **NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN GERMANY**
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- Los Angeles premiere of ‘Weapons’ at United Theatre Featuring: Amy Madigan Where: Los Angeles, California, United States When: 31 Jul 2025 Credit: Dave Starbuck/Future Image/Cover Images **NOT FOR PUBLICATION IN GERMANY**
I am LIVING for the Best Supporting Actress category this season, particularly the Amy Madigan renaissance! Madigan blew me away in Weapons, she was campy and terrifying all at once. The scene at the table with Gladys, Alex, and his parents… Absolutely chilling!!! One Battle After Another was great too. I had some issues with Teyana Taylor but Regina Hall was beautifully emotional in such a departure from the comedy roles she usually slays. And while I didn’t love Wicked: For Good as much as the first one (the second act of the musical is just weaker IMO), Ariana Grande was absolutely spectacular, particularly in the last thirty minutes; I didn’t expect much when I heard Grande was cast in Wicked but now that it’s over, I have been so impressed by her and her commitment to the material and the sheer talent she has displayed over those two films.
It’s between Madigan and Grande for me!
Yay, give Amy Madigan her flowers! She will always hold a special place in my heart for her role in Field of Dreams, a film very dear to my heart.
I thought Madigan was amazing in Places in the Heart, a 1984 film in which she plays a schoolteacher having an affair with a man played by her husband, Ed Harris. She barely has any dialogue, but manages to convey passion, vulnerability and guilt with a single glance. Fantastic actress.
Madigan was great in Weapons and I’m so glad she’s being celebrated. I hope she wins everything.
I had to look up gladys in weapons and it is 1,000,000% no surprise that her look appealed to the gay community! Love it