What Is It With Ruth Madoff and Actresses?
Monday, August 31, 2015 at 7:31PM You've already heard that Michelle Pfeiffer is finally planning to work again for an HBO movie called Wizard of Lies. So let's give the story its proper due.
Pfeiffer in The Family / Ruth Madoff
(I included the Pfeiff News in the last link roundup but the Pfans among you didn't deem that sufficient. (I heard from a pflummoxed pfew by e-mail). Look, stop demanding my bonafides! I have been devoted to La Pfeiff since 1985 in. real. time. I've followed her long enough to take each new probject with a full brick of salt until I see footage. She is so skittish about working.)
For the moment at least she is planning to play Ruth Madoff in Wizard of Lies with Robert De Niro in the leading role of fraudulent financier Bernie Madoff. Aside from cameos and voice work this will be her first TV role since just before superstardom hit in 87/88. In her last film The Family, DeNiro (who is 72) and she had teenage children but they're aging up this time around and delicious/undervalued Alessandro Nivola (who is 43) will play their son. Frankly I'd rather see Alessandro romantically paired with Pfeiffer than playing her biological! She's closer to his age than De Niros (by one year - hee - as she's 14 years older than Nivola and 15 years younger than De Niro - but it counts! Especially since she's so foxy. And especially because Nivola is even hotter (it sounds impossible but it's totally true) when paired with actresses that are older than he is - think Frances McDormand in Laurel Canyon, Embeth Davidtz in Junebug and Emily Mortimer in real life (his wife is just one year older - but for this argument it counts ;)
But back to the Madoffs.
It's worth noting here that Ruth Madoff has already been played by Cate Blanchett (kinda) in Blue Jasmine, and BEFORE Pfeiffer she'll be played by Blythe Danner in the ABC miniseries Madoff (currently filming) so the disgraced rich lady is really getting around among the actresses. It is kind of an instant classic dream role in the Women Who Lie To Themselves™ subgenre.
Blythe Danner and Richard Dreyfuss in Madoff, coming to ABC in 2016.
If Pfeiffer actually goes through with it, we can hope for an Emmy but won't hold our breath. Despite her fame and acclaim, she has never been an awards magnet only picking up an odd trophy here and there (the BAFTA for Dangerous Liaisons, the Silver Bear for Love Field, and several coveted prizes for Fabulous Baker Boys including the Globe, the NBR, and the holy trinity of critics prizes -- NYFCC, LAFCA, NSFC -- before losing the Oscar for that role. ARGH x ∞).
But after both Blue Jasmine (2013) and ABC's Madoff (2016) will audiences and showbiz voters still be into this story for a third round in late 2016 or 2017?
Reader Comments (15)
Stop being pessimistic. Since Julianne Moore defied conventional wisdom by becoming a Best Actress Oscar winner in her 50's I have hope for many veteran actresses to see second winds in the third act of their careers. Maybe this project will motivate her to pursue parts instead of being presented with great roles just to say no to them.
Let's not forget that Lily Tomlin also played a (VERY) fictionalized version of Mrs. Madoff in the third season of Damages. And she was GREAT.
Filming has begun today in NYC with filming notices posted on Twitter, and Michelle is indeed listed with De Niro...IT'S HAPPENING!
Yes, denny, YES!
Denny beat me to the Tomlin/Damages trivia!
Also of note, Susan Sarandon played this stock character in Arbitrage...one of the best and most underrated adult dramas of the last several years (for which Richard Gere deserved an Oscar).
Let's hope what happened to Moore 3 years ago happens to Pfeiffer when this series is released. What I mean by the Moore comparison is with an emmy for your first major television project in years and then continue to ride the glory and with the Oscar (one can dream right). I'll be glad to see Pfeiffer working because she's so good and whether she chooses not work or something I'll be happy to see her acting again.
I ardently wish she worked more and am happy to see her name attached to new projects even when I have no interest in them aside from her involvement. It's rare that a respected actress of "advanced" age doesn't get renewed career traction by starring in an HBO original film, so I wouldn't be surprised if she were to win the holy trinity of awards (Golden Globe, SAG, and Emmy) if she knocks the role out of the park. And why wouldn't she? :-)
I 2nd the Arbitrage love and what Susan did with her Madoff type role.
Yup! Arbitrage is such a great movie. And Brit Marling was SOOO beautiful
It can't be worse than Malavita!
I used to believe that being picky was the right thing to do for actresses, but I'm not so sure anymore. They need to see you all the time or they forget you in a heartbeat.
Ugh, so she will be the fifth or so actress to play Madoff by the time this airs? Not feeling any excitement for this on HBO with creaky DeNiro, but maybe some magic will happen. I still think Michelle should do a crime or terrorism show, playing a detective or some kind of lady boss. She has talent but so infrequently works that I don't know that she registers anymore. Good luck.
Madoff lived in my town during his arrest. Actually he raised his family there. Both his kids went to my high school. And lets put it this way he wasn't the only one in our town guilty of these crimes. Our superattendent stole a ton of money from us. Its really sick, but i like Michelle Pfeiffer as Ruth
Meg Ryan should take a shot at playing Ruth...they both have that once-cute, now-altered look.
I actually like Malavita (and that's a far better title than The Family)
And already prefer HBO version now, that pic of Dreyfus and Danner weirdly strikes as a comedy.
Can't believe this is her first TV role since 88, considering who she's married to.
Anyway, can't wait for her Emmy speech, lol.
I also enjoyed Malavita a lot. Of course, the film has problems, specially at the end and some of the actors lack any expressiveness. However, the self-conscious dark comedy and Pfeiffer's presence and performance, mixing sadism and deisre, is quite remarkable. She takes a flat character and turns it into something outstanding in some scenes. This is the true job of any great actress.