The “greatest screen actor by far”, according to Brian Cox: “He was extraordinary”
There’s an argument to be made that Brian Cox is one of the greatest actors of his generation.
The imposing Scotsman has lent his booming voice and substantial presence to a number of highly acclaimed films, TV series, plays, video games, audio dramas, you name it. At every stage of his career, he has adapted to be the best possible version of himself and is now enjoying the fruits of a long and star-studded journey to the pinnacle of acting.
Across said journey, Cox has worked with just about everyone there is to work with. He appeared opposite Laurence Olivier in a production of King Lear in his youth, and his early film work put him on the same call sheet as Tom Baker, Fiona Fullerton, and Ian Holm. At the other end of things, he played a key part in elevating the cast of Succession to their current status, meaning that Kieran Culkin, Jeremy Strong, Sarah Snook, and the rest all have a lot to thank the reel-time problematic patriarch for, and with no signs of slowing, his list of great performers yet to collaborate with is an ongoing venture.
However, regarding the pinnacle of the list of bests, Cox believes that title belongs to a man he sadly never got the chance to work with. Speaking to The Freethinker, he shared his deep affection for one of the greatest actors of the Golden Era, musing, “Spencer Tracy, for me, was the greatest screen actor ever, by far. He was extraordinary. He was very tormented, very Catholic, very guilt-ridden, but a great artist. The ease and the flawlessness and the way he negotiates stuff, tremendous! And he and [Katharine] Hepburn were extraordinary together. So, I think Hepburn is another of my favourite actors.”
Cox is far from the only modern performer to admire Tracy or his partnership with Hepburn; the man was a star of Hollywood’s studio era, particularly for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), becoming the first to win two back-to-back ‘Best Actor’ Oscars for 1938’s Captain Courageous and 1939’s Boys Town. Moreover, his onscreen chemistry with Katharine Hepburn in rom-coms like Woman of the Year, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, and the slightly more dramatic Adam’s Rib, captivated an entirely new audience and tabloids with a lengthy real-life affair with her.
Like many of his contemporaries, Tracy’s life was far from aspirational as he struggled with reconciling his staunch religious upbringing with his lifestyle in the spotlight. His son from his first marriage was born deaf, and the resulting spiral of guilt and mental struggles turned him to the bottle for hope. In 1967, after decades of mistreating his body, he was snuffed by a heart attack, serving an ignoble end for one of Hollywood’s brightest stars.
Even though fame took a massive toll to the point where his personal misfires often overshadowed his professional accomplishments, Tracy’s films are his true legacy and will never fade away his charm.
