The 2011 character William H Macy called “the role of the century”
When it comes to character actors, there aren’t many living performers who are as versatile as William H Macy, and his favourite part once took him on a decade-long journey.
He famously went to extravagant means in order to convince Joel and Ethan Coen to cast him as Jerry in Fargo, and it ended up earning him an Academy Award nomination for ‘Best Supporting Actor’. He was also a recurring collaborator of the great playwright David Mamet, who cast him in several films, including State and Main; it was an opportunity for Macy to share the screen with Philip Seymour Hoffman, an actor with whom he had a lot in common.
Sadly, the roles he has been offered have become less enticing as the 21st century trudged forward, failing to reunite with past collaborators, such as Paul Thomas Anderson. Macy also faced the dilemma that many character actors do, once they have worked in the industry for decades: he wanted a lead role. Even if he was constantly praised for his ability to transform into any number of parts, not ever getting to play the protagonist can be frustrating, and one of his only chances to play the hero was in the crime drama The Cooler, which ironically got more attention for the Oscar-nominated supporting performance from Alec Baldwin.
The leading role that Macy seemed to be waiting for was eventually offered to him when he was approached to head the cast of an American remake of Shameless, a popular series in the United Kingdom since 2004, which was developed for Showtime and created by John Wells, a television veteran who had worked on ER.
Macy was cast as Frank Gallagher, a single father and alcoholic living in Chicago, who tries to connect with his five children, and he admitted that the part went beyond his wildest imagination. “I’ve never had such fun,” Macy recalled, “I’ve got the role of the century. He’s inebriated most of the time, which means that there is no wrong. For the first time in my life, I’ll hold a line so I have time to make more faces.”
It’s been debated among television critics whether Shameless should be considered a drama or a comedy, as it was recognised in both categories at different awards shows. Macy certainly felt a personal connection to the material because it allowed him to draw upon his childhood.
“My mom used to drink, and she would make the funniest faces,” Macy said, “When she was drinking, her subconscious would come out; she couldn’t stop it. She’d be trying to be nice, but you’d see her do these awful grimaces.”
Shameless ran for ten seasons before being wrapped up in April 2011, serving as the embodiment of a decade’s work on Macy’s part. Although his performance had been singled out by critics as being the standout, the show included an impressive ensemble cast that featured many future stars, such as Emmy Rossum and Jeremy Allen White, who both had prominent roles as the children of Macy’s character, and have gone on to find great success in the aftermath.
As for Macy, he’s begun a new era for himself on the big screen, where he’s scored major roles in popular blockbusters, including The Running Man and Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes. He also recently appeared in Train Dreams and gave one of the best performances of his entire career.
