Under the Spotlight: Steve Carell’s unsettling performance in ‘Foxcatcher’
Steve Carell was, up until 2014, a name utterly synonymous with comedic performances. In 2014, a fairly low-key drama called Foxcatcher hit the theatre screens and changed all of that, presenting us with an entirely unexpected and formidable performance from Carell that not only widened his horizons as an actor but also remains a career-best for the actor to this day. A role far removed from his usual comedic escapades, Carell’s portrayal of John du Pont, an eccentric millionaire with a sinister bent, proved his mettle as a dramatic actor and reflected a previously unknown depth and versatility of Carell’s acting ability.
Carell’s acting career had initially been punctuated by iconic comedic roles, from the endearingly clueless Michael Scott in The Office to the loveably simple-minded (that’s putting it nicely) Brick Tamland in Anchorman. His performances were marked by absurd humour, excellent comic timing, and a knack for finding the humanity in even the most ridiculous characters. Yet, with Foxcatcher, Carell demonstrated his ability to step outside of his comedic comfort zone, delivering a chilling and powerful performance that left audiences and critics alike both astounded and awed. In retrospect, looking back after nearly a decade, it’s somewhat strange that the film that unlocked the more ‘serious’ aspect of Carell’s career, post-2014, remains the showcase for the most ‘serious’ acting that he has ever done to date.
Directed by Bennett Miller, Foxcatcher is based on the real-life story of Olympic wrestling champion Mark Schultz (played, in another career-best, by Channing Tatum), his brother Dave (played adequately by Mark Ruffalo), and their relationship with the multimillionaire du Pont, who hires the two to help coach his own team, ‘Team Foxcatcher’, for national, world, and Olympic competition.
From his first appearance, Carell’s transformation into du Pont is evident. He is physically unrecognisable, thanks to his own dramatic instincts and the efforts of the film’s phenomenal makeup team. He sports cinema’s most iconic prosthetic nose, which, combined with his painstakingly slow, careful and laboured breathing and articulation, creates an unsettling aura around du Pont. Carell makes du Pont physically weak and unimposing, and yet infinitely more dangerous-feeling than any of the huge, muscular young men that are part of his wrestling team.
As if to make up for the heightened make-up and physicality of the character, it’s Carell’s masterful use of subtlety that makes his performance in Foxcatcher truly compelling. Through his sickly nose-breathing, heavy eyelids and blank shark-like stare, Du Pont is a character who often communicates more through what he doesn’t say than what he does. Carell’s ability to embody the character’s uncomfortable silences and awkward pauses reveals a layer of the character’s psyche that the script could surely only have hinted at, and because of this, an ostensibly pathetic man takes on enormous levels of menace and malevolence.
John du Pont: a sympathetic tyrant
Exemplifying the complexity and three dimensions of a character that Carell had previously never taken on, his interpretation of du Pont is a man desperate for recognition and respect, driven to the point of murderous, stomach-churning obsession. The actor’s performance gives depth to this complex character, exploring the paradox of a man who possesses extreme wealth and privilege yet is deeply unsatisfied and unfulfilled.
In Carell’s capable hands, du Pont becomes more than a mere antagonist; he is a deeply flawed individual whose pursuit of acceptance leads him down a dark and destructive path. Like an overly aggressive toddler, you give him a wide berth and are ever-conscious of where he is, yet at the same time, when he blushes or bursts into tears, you can’t help but feel extreme sympathy.
During one iconic moment, when morale between the team, du Pont and the coaches are at its highest, he engages in a little ‘playfight’, and when his wrestlers let him win, he has no inhibition; he lets himself bare his teeth, exposing his gums in a primal, Orangutan-style grimace of unbridled passion. ‘Surely he knows he’s not actually won,’ the audience thinks. ‘Right…right?’
One of the most commendable aspects of Carell’s performance in Foxcatcher is his restraint. His portrayal of du Pont is understated, allowing the character’s peculiarities and discomforting nature to subtly unsettle audiences rather than explicitly horrifying them. It’s not until near the end of the film that you realise the extent of the tyranny of fear that du Pont has established quietly, and calmly. This subtle approach makes the character’s eventual and tragic descent into violence all the more shocking and impactful. There’s a certain bravery in Carell’s decision to tackle such a challenging role, particularly given his reputation as a comedic actor and the fact that he’d rarely, if at all, ventured into this kind of artistic territory.
Ultimately, Carell’s performance in Foxcatcher is a masterclass in dramatic acting and the perfect example of how a comic actor can take the reigns of something deeper without falling into parody or melodrama. If it wasn’t for his role, for which director Miller must surely take some credit, then I have no doubt in my mind that it would have taken a lot longer for us to see Carell in the likes of The Big Short, Vice, Battle of the Sexes and Beautiful Boy. And what a shame that would have been.
Watch his chilling portrayal of du Pont below.
