Will Gary Oldman (‘Slow Horses’) be next Oscar champ to win an Emmy?
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Gary Oldman could be set for an Emmys return this year for season two of “Slow Horses,” 21 years after his first — and only — Emmy nomination.
The legendary English actor will be competing in Best Drama Actor for his Apple TV+ show “Slow Horses,” which follows a team of British intelligence agents who, as the title would suggest, are treated as something of a dumping ground in MI5 due to their past mistakes. Based on the book by Mick Herron, Oldman stars in the lead role of Jackson Lamb, the head of the department — named Slough House.
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Lamb is rude, abrasive, full of bad habits, and, a lot of the time, drunk. As the character, Oldman is a joy to watch as the crass and broken Lamb. But while he revels in the comedy of said crassness, Oldman sows in an undercurrent of intelligence and belied sharpness, which is what ties the whole thing together and makes it actually believable. Critics agree that Oldman is the clear MVP here.
Brian Tallerico (The Playlist) explained: “The second season maintains the spirit of the first while upping the intensity, which allows star Gary Oldman even more of a chance to shine in a role that feels like it’s going to be one of the most definitive of his career. The Oscar winner is perfect in the part of Jackson Lamb, a man who may have lost the spy game but is as loyal and brilliant as anyone who ever played it… One of the ways that a sense of urgency is conveyed this year is through the performance of Oldman, who is even better than he was last time around.”
James Dyer (Empire) observed: “Oldman is clearly the standout, making the most of a plum role… contributing to a standout ensemble and staging a labyrinthine yet captivating story about death, its after-effects, and how we feel responsible for it.”
Nina Metz (Chicago Tribune) proclaimed: “Rumpled, smelly and greasy-haired as ever, Gary Oldman’s performance elevates Lamb’s rancid presentation to high art. He’s a man of contradiction: Dissolute but shrewd. Convinced that something’s afoot, he decides to do some digging of his own into that death on the bus, and ropes in a few of his underlings for the job. Lamb has a hunch there is a Russian sleeper agent or two in their midst who may be responsible.”
Oldman will be hoping that this critical reception can boost him further up our odds chart for Best Drama Actor, where he is currently just outside of our predicted six nominees: Jeff Bridges (“The Old Man”), Brian Cox and Kieran Culkin (both “Succession”), Pedro Pascal (“The Last of Us”), Bob Odenkirk (“Better Call Saul”), and Jeremy Strong (“Succession”). However, don’t rule Oldman out just yet.
The actor earned a BAFTA TV nomination for Best Actor earlier this year (losing to Ben Whishaw for “This is Going to Hurt”), which was one of the show’s five bids (it didn’t win any, though). Oldman’s performance here is well-liked and respected, and the support is recent, so he’s shown he can gain the backing of a major awards group for this performance.
Plus, when a movie star changes from film to TV, Emmy voters can often be quick to reward that. In recent years, Cox (“Succession”), Ed Harris (“Westworld”), Kevin Spacey (“House of Cards”), Anthony Hopkins (“Westworld”), and Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson (both “True Detective”) have all earned nominations in this category.
Oldman could easily join that list of movie stars picking up an Emmy nomination for Best Drama Actor. Plus, Spacey, Hopkins, and McConaughey were all prior Oscar winners (Harris and Harrelson are both Oscar nominees) who then earned their Emmy nominations — Oldman, who won an Oscar in 2018 for Best Actor for “Darkest Hour,” could follow that pattern.
Oldman also has something of a status of an actors’ actor. Over the years, a slew of A-listers have touted Oldman as their acting hero and inspiration, including Daniel Radcliffe, Jessica Chastain, Jennifer Lawrence, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hiddleston, and Chris Pine.
The actors’ branch at the Emmys will likely take this chance to recognize a man who so many of them admire, respect, and look up to. He’s a legend and, with his last Emmy bid coming in 2001, he’s an overdue legend. That bid was for Comedy Guest Actor for “Friends” (he lost to Derek Jacobi for “Frasier”) — they’ll want him to take this chance to give him a meatier nomination here. So, Olman may not end up being such a slow horse, after all.
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