Marianne Jean-Baptiste is in the news for playing a ‘difficult’ woman at the Oscars

Nearly three decades after being nominated for an Oscar, British actress Marianne Jean-Baptiste is back in the awards race thanks to a breakout performance in director Mike Leigh’s new drama, Hard Truths.

The 57-year-old jokes she seems “older and broader” (rather than wiser) this time around – a line she credits to co-star Michelle Austin, who plays her on-screen sister.

But waist lines aside, her reunion with Leigh, with whom she first worked in 1996’s Secrets and Lies, has inspired some of the most positive reviews of her career.

Hard Truths focuses on Pansy, a woman who is constantly angry and unhappy, and the effect her unspoken depression has on those around her.

It would be unfair to call this film a comeback for Jean-Baptiste, as she has been working tirelessly in the intervening years. But his second collaboration with Leigh has garnered renewed attention on the film awards circuit.

“It’s a moment of a full circle rather than a return,” she tells BBC News.

“It’s very interesting, because for the first time, I had no idea at all that we were on par In An Oscar race. You may recall, in 1996, there was still a large independent film presence in the United States.

“At the time, we weren’t so aware of the whole Oscar thing. It was something that happened out there,” she says, gesturing from a distance, “with really big stars. So it was really on our radar.” Wasn’t.”

It was only when Secrets and Lies played at the New York Film Festival four months later, after winning the top prize at Cannes, that Jean-Baptiste learned more about the awards buzz. “I hadn’t even heard of the Golden Globes at that time,” she recalls.

“We were just talking about the film, doing a lot of interviews, we were tired from all the plane trips, so there was an innocence to it at first.

“Now we have the Internet and it’s become an aggressive pursuit of those awards. The promotion process has changed substantially. Or maybe it hasn’t and we just didn’t know about it then.”

Leigh and Jean-Baptiste “kept in touch over the years”, she explains, which eventually resulted in their second project together.

The harsh truth has been praised For its harsh but nuanced portrayal of depression and complex family dynamics.

There is humor in many scenes as Pansy starts arguing with almost everyone, from her closest relatives to her dentist. The man in the car park who asks if she’s leaving gets both barrels.

But there is something deeper going on. Although the word “depression” is not mentioned in the film, it is clear that Pansy is struggling.

“Yes, it is not spoken,” says Jean-Baptiste. “And the interesting thing about it is that the whole family, apart from her sister, everyone she comes in contact with, everyone gets along well with each other.

“It’s beneath the surface. ‘Oh, it’s just pansy.’ And a lot of people live like that, where you have someone who’s really difficult, and no one says to them, ‘Dude, what’s really going on?’ You just avoid them.”

On paper, it might seem like fun for an actor to play such a juicy, bad-tempered character. But Jean-Baptiste’s performance highlights something more complex.

“People have asked if it was cathartic, a chance to vent. But no, it wasn’t,” she says. “I felt very real pain, anxiety and fear. There wasn’t much joy in it.

“And also, Pansy comes from a generation where you’re taught to get on with things. It’s like the pre-Oprah generation, self-help — it’s before all that. You just said, ‘I feel like crap. But I’ve got laundry to do.’ You get up and move forward.”

In his review of The Hard Truth, Carla Hay of Culture Mix said Jean-Baptiste “delivers a fiery and complex performance”, describing it as “a raw and realistic portrayal of how toxic anger and untreated mental illness can affect a family”.

“Even at her funniest, Hard Truths shows Marianne Jean-Baptiste with an anger that feels very real,” Slant’s Cole Kronman wrote.

John Frosh of The Hollywood Reporter noted She Lei “pushes the limits of our empathy and asks us to look, really look, at someone from whom we would surely avert our eyes if we had the misfortune to cross her path in real life.” “.

Leigh famously rehearses for several months, and develops his scripts based on improvisation sessions with the actors.

“Basically, the process is to create a character from scratch,” explains Jean-Baptiste. “Their first memory, their education, the house they grew up in, family members, neighbors, where the local park was. The minute details.”

The actors are then introduced to each other to create relationships between their characters. “We do all kinds of exercises to establish family routines and traditions. We do things like ‘How’s Sunday dinner?’ Let’s make improvements based on that.”

By the time shooting begins, the script is firmly in place. “Nothing is ever improvised on camera,” she explains, “so we practice it and rehearse it.”

Jean-Baptiste speaking to BBC News the morning after the British Independent Film Awards, where he won the Best Lead Performance AwardOne of the many early accolades he received.

If she is ultimately shortlisted by Hollywood’s Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on January 17, Jean-Baptiste could become the first black British woman to receive two Oscar nominations for acting.

Coincidentally, Wicked’s Cynthia Erivo is also a Best Actress contender — meaning she could tie that record once she’s nominated in 2020.

“I think it’s a sign of progress, and I think it’s all very good,” Jean-Baptiste reflects. “I think it’s recognition for a job well done.”

Four black American actresses have previously received two Academy nominations – Whoopi Goldberg, Angela Bassett, Viola Davis, and Octavia Spencer.

Jean-Baptiste agrees that progress has been made on diversity The Oskarsowhite movement has been around for a decadeBut note that the real issue is whether the work is available in the first place.

“I think (awards organizations) are trying. However, it’s always going to come back to opportunity,” she says.

“If films aren’t being made that have black women (or) Asian women in lead roles, they don’t even have a chance to be nominated.

“So we always have to come back first to the opportunities, the work being done, the stories being told.”

Notably, Jean-Baptiste now lives in Los Angeles – a place where many British actors have moved for their careers.

“Well, I was being offered work there, so it actually made sense, because I ended up taking a job that would have required me to be there for a long time,” he says of his 2000s TV career. Referring to this, she tells. Police drama without a trace.

“Because that show ran for seven years. I was flying back and forth for the first year or two of the show, and then it was like, you know what, it’s too much. It’s just a long flight on the weekend.”

When she returns to the UK, she takes the opportunity to see British theater and read books on the London Underground (“You have to drive to LA, so it’s books on tape”).

However, for now his focus is on Hard Truths, which will be released in the UK on January 31. Jean-Baptiste hopes audiences will ultimately leave the film with “a little more compassion toward people, tough people.”

“Don’t necessarily avoid them, but just ask your aunt what’s going on, and if there’s anything you can do to help. Don’t assume you’ll be scolded for doing so.”

Older and wider, we are all grateful. But Marianne Jean-Baptiste is apparently also quite intelligent.