Performer of the Week: Zoe Saldaña
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THE PERFORMER | Zoe Saldaña
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THE SHOW | Paramount+’s Special Ops: Lioness
THE EPISODE | “Gone is the Illusion of Order” (Sept. 3, 2023)
THE PERFORMANCE | Saldaña’s Joe McNamara really went through it in the Taylor Sheridan drama’s freshman finale.
Yes, the CIA station chief was 100% dialed in as she and her QRF team made their way to Mallorca, Spain, where Lioness Cruz aimed to hit her target at Aaliyah’s wedding. But no sooner did the team set up shop on a rented yacht, Joe’s focus was shaken by daughter Kate calling amidst a night terror about missing a friend’s funeral.
Joe is far from a perfect human being. And she is not the World’s Greatest Mom, much as she may try. So here, Saldaña communicated just enough maternal concern — “You say goodbye in your heart,” she patly advised the kid, “it doesn’t matter where you are” — while making clear that Joe was definitley irked by the interruption.
If there was any doubt about Joe’s mindset, it was erased when husband Neal hopped on the phone. Tonally turning on a dime, she roared into the phone, “What the f–k was that, Neal?! How about a little heads-up before the f–king ambush??”
After that dollop of domestic drama, we saw Joe needing to compose self, breathing in and out deep, as Bobby ducked into her cabin with an update. And later, as the geared-up team awaited word from Cruz, Saldaña made clear that Joe’s head was a swirl of thoughts and emotions — to the point that Kaitlyn needed to take her phone, after a heart-tugging text from Neal.
Joe being on edge like this surely didn’t help the situation when Cruz, extracted from the shore after hitting the target, slugged her boss upon boarding the yacht.
As Joe pinned her Lioness against a railing, Saldaña was full of fire and fury, hissing, “If you ever lay a f–king hand on me again, we’re gonna figure this out until the sun comes up.” And when Cruz suggested that all she just did was kill an old man in his underwear and shake up the price of oil, Joe shot back, “What you did was eliminate one of the worst perpetrators of violence in the past 20 years.” “Says who?” said Cruz. “Says history,” Joe barked. “And you just changed it.”
That said, Joe was given much to think about after the completion of the op, and when she returned home to Neal, the strong, brave operative practically fell into his arms for an intent, needed embrace. “This one was hard,” she admitted, Saldaña first letting out just one tear… followed by many. “It was really hard.”
Scroll down to see who scored Honorable Mentions this week…
HONORABLE MENTION: Clark Backo
As a mother stricken by a supernatural… something, Clark Backo delivered a truly unhinged performance in The Changeling‘s second episode. And we ate it up. Not only did she have tremendous chemistry with lead actor LaKeith Stanfield, but once the lack of sleep from new parenthood hit Emma like a brick, Backo’s sullen, depressed energy felt real and relatable. Kim’s reveal about what really happened to their parents threw the character even further, leading Backo to masterfully juggle complex emotions while retaining a sinister edge that hinted at the horrors to come. Her precise control over her sunken facial expressions and zombie-like motions made us empathize for poor Emma, but it also sent a chill down our spines.
HONORABLE MENTION: John C. Reilly
HBO’s Winning Time vibrantly retells the saga of the L.A. Lakers’ rise to NBA dominance in the 1980s, and John C. Reilly showed off his versatility this week as team owner Jerry Buss had to mediate a bitter spat between his star player and his coach. Reilly embodied Buss’ cocky swagger as the owner declared he could mend the rift, and he sparred ferociously with Quincy Isaiah — also terrific — as Buss tried to get a disgruntled Magic Johnson back onboard, with Buss displaying real heart as well as business savvy. It was a losing battle, though, and Reilly got a chance to flex his comedic muscles as Buss stammered his way through a hilariously confusing press conference to name a new coach. (As an on-screen chyron told us: “Yep, this actually happened.”) Winning Time‘s all-star cast operates like a championship team, and Reilly proved once again this week that he’s the one running the show.
Which performance(s) knocked your socks off this week? Tell us in the comments!
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