Amy Madigan won the Best Supporting Actress award at the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday for her portrayal of flesh-eating witch Aunt Gladys in Zach Cregger's horror film Weapons, setting a new record for the longest gap between a first Oscar nomination and a first win for any actress.
The 75-year-old veteran triumphed 40 years and one month after her first nomination for 1985's Twice in a Lifetime in 1986. The previous record holder was Geraldine Page, who won for The Trip to Bountiful at the 1986 Oscars, 32 years after her first nomination for Hondo in 1954.
'This is great!' Madigan exclaimed after letting out what observers described as a witch-like cackle. 'Everybody is asking me in the press, 'Well, it's been 40 years, and, you know, what's different about this time? What's different is this little gold guy.'
A Historic Win for Horror
Madigan's victory marks only the second time an actress has won Best Supporting Actress for portraying a horror villain. The first was Ruth Gordon, who claimed the award in 1969 for playing satanic cult member Minnie Castevet in Rosemary's Baby.
What makes the win even more striking is Madigan's limited screen time. She appears in Weapons for fewer than 15 minutes, yet her performance as the heavily made-up, wig-wearing antagonist who terrorises a small town became a pop culture phenomenon. Her image inspired Halloween costumes, viral memes, and merchandise throughout the past year.
The role demanded physical commitment. Director Cregger has said Madigan insisted on performing almost all her own stunts, including an over-the-top chase sequence that involved running and crashing through walls and windows.
The Actress Hollywood Overlooked
Behind Aunt Gladys is an actress whose career spans more than four decades, yet she openly acknowledged feeling sidelined by the industry for years.
Madigan's film credits include playing Kevin Costner's wife in the beloved baseball classic Field of Dreams, John Candy's girlfriend Chanice in John Hughes' Uncle Buck, and Beatrice McCready in Ben Affleck's directorial debut Gone Baby Gone.
She won a Golden Globe and earned an Emmy nomination for her portrayal of attorney Sarah Weddington in the 1989 television film Roe vs. Wade. Her work in the HBO series Carnivàle and recurring roles on Grey's Anatomy and Fringe demonstrated her range across genres.
However, meaningful roles became scarce. 'My husband works a lot more than I do,' Madigan said in a 2010 interview with The Los Angeles Times. 'You know what the situation is. The reality is you have to make your peace with it sometimes even when you have a depressive day.'
A Couple With Four Nominations and One Win
Madigan attended the ceremony with husband Ed Harris, to whom she has been married for 42 years, after they met during a 1980 rehearsal for the play Cowboy Mouth. While they later starred together in 1984's Places in the Heart, their off-screen partnership began years earlier. Harris himself has earned four Oscar nominations but has never won. He received nods for Apollo 13, The Truman Show, Pollock, and The Hours.
'The most important is my beloved Ed,' Madigan said during her acceptance speech, 'who's been with me forever, and that's a long ass time.'
Her victory capped a dominant awards season. She had already collected the Screen Actors Guild Actor Award and the Critics Choice Award for Supporting Actress. The win came in one of the tightest races in recent memory, with the major precursor awards split three ways between Madigan, Golden Globe winner Teyana Taylor for One Battle After Another, and BAFTA champion Wunmi Mosaku for Sinners.
What Comes Next
The success of Aunt Gladys has reportedly sparked plans for a prequel exploring the character's origins. 'Zach has a map of what he would like to do,' Madigan told The Hollywood Reporter. 'But as we know about this business, until it's real, it's not real. It would be such a blast, and it would be really great if we could revisit her in some way. I'm excited about that possibility.'
For an actress who spent years waiting for the phone to ring, Oscar night delivered more than a golden statuette. It offered proof that the best performance of a career can arrive at any age.
