Melissa Leo has made the surprising admission that she had a “much better career” before she won an Oscar for the sports biopic The Fighter.
The 65-year-old actor earned the Academy Award in 2011 for her supporting performance in David O. Russell’s movie as Alice Ward, the mother of real-life boxers Micky Ward and his half-brother Dicky Eckland, portrayed in the film by Mark Wahlberg and Christian Bale, respectively. Bale also won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for his role.