Michael Shannon, ‘Shape of Water’ villain, watches Oscars at Chicago dive bar
Michael Shannon didn’t dress up for the Oscars. He wore a puffy coat and sat on a barstool at the Old Town Ale House, one of his favorite Chicago hangouts.
From this angle — and with the juke box blaring and sub-titles flashing across the television screen behind the bar — he watched his colleagues from the film “The Shape of Water” win best picture. In the film, Shannon plays Richard Strickland, the villain who captures and tortures the amphibian man.
It’s a major role, but he elected to skip Hollywood’s biggest awards show to attend the closing night of “Traitor” — a play he directed at A Red Orchid Theatre — which is located around the corner for the Old Town Ale House.
Shannon, who cut his acting teeth in Chicago, co-founded the theatre. “It was great to have Mike here for closing performance of “Traitor” and an extra bonus to be with him when “Shape of Water” won,” Red Orchid Artistic Director Kirsten Fitzgerald told the Sun-Times.
Reaching Shannon for a first-hand account of the magical moment in one of Chicago’s most legendary dive bars might be challenging, Fitzgerald said. “He is shooting outside the country right now,” she said.
Ale House owner Bruce Elliot posted a picture and a note about the Oscar moment on Twitter. “Michael Shannon watching the film he starred in, “Shape of Water,” win best picture while sitting in the Old Town Ale House. No sound on the TV, just sub-titles. Of course the juke box was rocking, and the beer flowing. Where else would you want to spend Oscar night?”
| by Anonymous | reply 31 | April 6, 2018 1:57 AM
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I’ve been in love with him since boardwalk empire
| by Anonymous | reply 1 | March 9, 2018 8:21 PM
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He played a truly one-dimensional villain. I was surprised, because he is a very good actor.
| by Anonymous | reply 2 | March 9, 2018 8:28 PM
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It's a fairytale, R2. Fairytale villains are one-dimensional by design.
| by Anonymous | reply 3 | March 9, 2018 8:32 PM
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He's very dedicated to skip the Oscars in order to stay behind for the closing night of a play that he is directing. Very professional.
| by Anonymous | reply 4 | March 9, 2018 8:39 PM
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With bloody hand in The Shape Of Water.
| by Anonymous | reply 7 | March 9, 2018 8:48 PM
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I haven't seen everything he's done, but several, and I think he's one of the best.
| by Anonymous | reply 8 | March 9, 2018 9:07 PM
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I love this guy too, R1, since I saw him in BOARDWALK EMPIRE. I hope he gets that breakthrough role someday. He's an actor's actor, and it's good to see him spurning the Oscar shitfest. He didn't miss much!
| by Anonymous | reply 9 | March 9, 2018 9:16 PM
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I fantasize about fucking him until we are both dried out husks of men.
| by Anonymous | reply 10 | March 9, 2018 9:18 PM
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Guillermo Del Toro sure does have a thing for cruel, domineering, hot daddies.
The villain of Pan's Labyrinth, also one-dimensional, was similar to MS's character.
| by Anonymous | reply 11 | March 9, 2018 9:21 PM
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I thought he might be one of those humorless method actor types, until I saw his dramatic reading of the Delta Gamma sorority letter. Try getting Daniel Day-Lewis to do this:
| by Anonymous | reply 12 | March 9, 2018 9:23 PM
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He had the co-lead role (and was a co-producer of) the recent "Waco" miniseries.
| by Anonymous | reply 14 | March 9, 2018 9:35 PM
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He wasn't even nominated, but he should have won Best Actor for "Take Shelter" the year that Jean Dujardin won for "The Artist."
| by Anonymous | reply 15 | March 9, 2018 9:38 PM
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Hmmm. Watching the Oscars with subtitles only and sound turned off.
Sounds good to us.
| by Anonymous | reply 16 | March 9, 2018 9:51 PM
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Very hot @R6 I think a cell phone and flask
| by Anonymous | reply 18 | March 10, 2018 12:48 AM
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[quote] It's a fairytale, [R2]. Fairytale villains are one-dimensional by design.
Let me rephrase that. He played the villain in a very one-dimensional way. And he was the only actor in the film, aside form Viola, to play a caricature rather than a character.
I would agree with you if everyone else around him played their characters as one-dimensional. This was simply not the film where it happened.
| by Anonymous | reply 19 | March 10, 2018 12:57 AM
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I quite like him. I wish he was given some recognition. Hopedully, while he is playing good, interesting roles. Not for an umderwhelming performance in 20 years from now when they give him a prize to reward his whole career.
That clip at R12 is insane. Thanks for posting it.
| by Anonymous | reply 20 | March 10, 2018 1:11 AM
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Sorry, it was Octavia Spencer, not Viola.
| by Anonymous | reply 21 | March 10, 2018 1:13 AM
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I like Richard Jenkins a lot, and was glad to see him get an Oscar nom, however I really think Shannon's performance drove the whole film. It's kind of a shame he is always typecast as a psycho villain.
| by Anonymous | reply 22 | March 12, 2018 7:58 PM
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I like how the guy who can't tell the difference between Octavia Spencer and Viola Davis wants to tell us what to think about Michael Shannon's performance.
| by Anonymous | reply 23 | March 12, 2018 8:08 PM
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Shannon is a fucking FANTASTIC actor. Has he won an AA yet? I remember he was nominated. If he hasn’t, he will. He’s one of the best ones out there at the moment.
| by Anonymous | reply 24 | March 12, 2018 8:26 PM
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His nominations are always random and usually the only thing nominated from the film. He's very stealth that way.
I saw him on stage in "Long Day's Journey into Night" with Jessica Lange and Gabriel Byrne and he was superb.
| by Anonymous | reply 25 | March 12, 2018 8:44 PM
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You’re a moron if you think his turn in SoW was a one-dimensional mustache-twirler.
The character was deeply disturbed and Shannon portrayed this in multiple, nuanced ways.
His early obsession with the mute girl as he fucked his own, unrestrained wife, which then later culminated in his seducing/terrorizing the poor girl.
The daddy issues spilling out as he struggled with his own insubordination while faced with the disappointment of his superior officer at losing “the asset”.
| by Anonymous | reply 26 | March 12, 2018 8:51 PM
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Shannon should just play bad guys...he has the face for it. He is a good actor but not easy to like.
| by Anonymous | reply 27 | March 12, 2018 9:04 PM
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I just watched Shape of Water. I can see why it won the Oscar. Another movie obsessed with other movies. The Academy is nothing if not narcissistic.
But it was crap. Shannon's a good actor but if he just keeps taking on cartoon villain roles like this one, his career's over.
| by Anonymous | reply 29 | April 6, 2018 1:48 AM
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He played a good guy in the recent miniseries "Waco."
| by Anonymous | reply 30 | April 6, 2018 1:54 AM
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I'm with R26 about the villain's other facets. Another I would add is his purchase of the car. There's this whole standardized, upwardly mobile, Norman Rockwellian image he's attempting to uphold, but he's got fucked up sex with his wife and his fingers are literally rotting away. It's pretty cool stuff.
| by Anonymous | reply 31 | April 6, 2018 1:57 AM
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