[For more of Collider's Best of 2016 lists, click here]
With the rise of Peak TV, so too comes an expansion of excellent performances on television. This year, I decided to just do one list instead of splitting up men and women, comedy and drama (and miniseries), to try and give everyone their due regardless of category. I capped it at 25 just to force myself to make some hard choices (and they were exceptionally hard), and I didn't allow for any repeats within the same show (which was extraordinarily hard, because so many of these series are great ensemble pieces). I cheated a little bit and split out the best breakout performances, since so many in this list are established actors, but there still wasn't enough room to talk about everyone who was outstanding this year. And that is actually a really, really great thing.
There is definitely some bias in my list towards dramatic acting, and I didn't realize until after I had written up all of these blurbs that more than half of the actors I picked are women, showing that there are (finally) a bevy of great roles that aren't defined by gender. And of the 450 or so TV series this year, I "only" watched about 160 of the scripted ones, so there is bound to be some oversight. But this list (which is unranked) is all about love and appreciation, so in that spirit, consider this a reminder of how much great television we had in 2016:
Amanda Peet - ‘Togetherness’
There may not be a better tragicomic performance on television this year than Amanda Peet as Togetherness's Tina Morris, who is a person best described as having no chill. Peet’s character could easily have been cartoonish or even plain irritating, but instead she played her with an incredible amount of pathos. Tina tries very hard to make the right decisions and to get her life together, yet is rarely successful. But she’s an excellent motivator and a fiercely loyal sister, and the sincerity in which Peet expressed Tina’s hopes and disappointments was truly unmatched this year. I direct anyone who says otherwise to the scene where Tina presents her bizarre last-minute birthday gift to Alex. I’m still cringing over that one.
Bob Odenkirk - ‘Better Call Saul’
Better Call Saul is a series created around Bob Odenkirk’s talents, and though Season 2 expanded more of the supporting cast (particularly Rhea Seehorn’s Kim Wexler), the show is still heavily on his shoulders. That’s a good thing, though, because it allows Odenkirk to give a tour de force performance every week, and he never disappoints. Jimmy / Saul is the rare character that could go from being supporting comic relief in one series to anchoring his own drama precisely because of Odenkirk. Jimmy is glib but also exceptionally loyal, he will break the rules but he has his own code, and though he is an expert con man, he also — in his private moments — deeply reflective and vulnerable. As has been true for a long time, Odenkirk is one of TV's best actors, bar none.
Michael K. Williams - ‘Hap and Leonard’
SundanceTV’s adaptation of the Joe R. Lansdale quirky novels, Hap and Leonard, was largely overlooked in the crush of Peak TV. But it was indeed a fine, Southern-fried jaunt that took some weird swerves, but ultimately was a delight. This was especially true of Michael K. Williams’ Leonard, a snarky Vietnam vet who was also openly gay, something a little unexpected for a black man in Texas in the 1980s. The no-nonsense but drily hilarious Leonard was the perfect foil for the optimistic dreamer Hap, who had his own sarcastic sense of humor. Williams is a stand-out in every role he plays, but he was particularly magnetic here as a man whose depth is hinted at but never fully explored. Hopefully Season 2 will let us see more of Leonard, as well as Williams’ humorous but affecting performance.
Grant Gustin - ‘The Flash’
The most impressive thing about Grant Gustin goes beyond his charisma and easy charm, or how he can play both a superhero and an Everyman with aplomb. No, the most impressive thing is how he makes you believe The Flash makes any sense. The Flash may be TV’s most enjoyable superhero show (though Supergirl made a hard push for that title in Season 2), but its time travel and logical leaps can be headache-inducing. However they are far, far less so with Gustin at the helm. He plays Barry Allen not only with an incredible sincerity, but he sells the show’s trickiest material with genuine heart. Gustin is asked to do so much, from the perils of being the Fastest Man Alive to dealing with deeply emotional storylines that involve profound loss, often all within the same hour. Because of that, it’s impossible to imagine anyone else as The Flash, which is why reactions to Ezra Miller taking over the film version (even though he is also a great actor) have been somewhat hostile. Gustin deserves that kind of a stage for what he does with Barry, and he heroically elevates The Flash from just another superhero show to something truly exceptional.
Gael Garcia Bernal - ‘Mozart in the Jungle’
Every single character on Mozart in the Jungle is easy to love, thanks to the strength of its ensemble cast. But even still, Gael Garcia Bernal has found a way to become a character we haven’t seen on TV before, and one that is so unique and charming that it leaves a lasting impression on the viewer. As Rodrigo, Bernal is both whimsical and deeply driven. His emotions can change on a dime, but they are always rooted in truth. Rodrigo is not the hero of Mozart or even its main character, but he is the glue that holds the show together. Perhaps the best part of Bernal’s performance is Rodrigo’s childlike joy at simple and pure things. Despite what other characters have thought about him in the past, Rodrigo is not an enfant terrible, but someone who understands what it means to “play music with the blood.” And it's a delight.
Sarah Lancashire - ‘Happy Valley’
There aren’t many female characters on television who are written to stand toe-to-toe with those familiar male antihero types — the morally grey ones who go off-book and live by their own code to put things to right, usually to protect their family. But that is absolutely Sarah Lancashire’s Catherine Cawood in Happy Valley, the very definition of a “tough broad.” The unglamorous role is complicated and a unrelentingly emotional, as we watch Catherine make devastatingly difficult choices and almost never get thanked for any of it. Yet her obsession with punishing a criminal who destroyed her family clouds her judgment, though she's never distracted fully from using all of her strength to keep everyone afloat. It’s an extraordinary performance, one that plays up strong maternal instincts of love and fierce protection. Lancashire is once again outstanding.
Donald Glover - ‘Atlanta’
In Atlanta, Donald Glover (who created, wrote, sometimes directs, and stars in the series) plays a down-and-out young man just looking to catch a break. He hitches his cart to his cousin’s star as a up and coming rapper, but that struggle and relationship isn’t what defines the ambitious series. Glover’s Earn is both the show’s protagonist and its greatest sideline observer, getting caught up in situations that he often doesn’t want to be in, handles badly, and then can’t easily get out of. He’s smart and has a certain charm, but he’s also often an aimless cynic (though his reactions to the absurdities around him are priceless) He’s not necessarily an easy character to love, and yet, in those last moments in the finale when he counts the money he’s been looking for all season in his current abode — a cot in a storage unit — few scenes on TV this year carried more weight or had more pathos.
Sharon Horgan - ‘Catastrophe’
Though Sharon Horgan and her writing partner Rob Delaney co-star in Catastrophe and are both responsible for the show’s exceptional humor, I’ve always found the stakes of Horgan’s performance to be just a little bit higher. She’s completely fearless in this role, in a show that approaches dating, marriage, and raising children in a refreshingly frank and honest way. In Season 2 in particular, TV-Sharon’s new position as a mother gives her new dimension, and gives the relationship with Rob a new focus. Awkwardly real scenes like when she lactates through her blouse are played with such incredible emotional resonance, but so are funny moments like when she realizes she’s running off a new friend by being too clingy. Her relationship with Rob has always been one that is brutally real for better or worse, and Season 2 explored this in new ways. But it’s always Horgan that I come back to, and the way she puts TV-Sharon’s heart on her sleeve, flying into the unknown with a big, toothy grin that hides a slight but very real sense of trepidation.
Claire Foy - ‘The Crown’
In Wolf Hall, Claire Foy also played a Queen of England — the ill-fated Anne Boleyn. Though her role as Elizabeth Windsor in The Crown is vastly different, there are a few things that are similar. Firstly, she is exceptional in both. But more specifically, both women are calculating and reserved, keeping their cards close to the chest while also betraying deep longing. Foy can reveal more with the twitch of a facial muscle than some actresses can in their entire careers. Every close-up in The Crown hints at Elizabeth’s thoughts and her constant struggle between being a woman and being a sovereign, as well as her responsibilities to family versus duty to country. As such, she is positively mesmerizing, and I would watch endless hours of her just going about mundane tasks. For a public figure who is defined by being unknowable, Foy gives us just enough to feel like we do know Elizabeth. She also nails that very particular posh accent in a way that feels surprisingly natural. Long live Queen Foy.
Tom Hiddleston - ‘The Night Manager’
This was a tough call, because every member of The Night Manager’s cast was exceptional, but Tom Hiddleston’s low-key hotel-worker-turned-spy performance required an exceptional amount of finesse in order to work. While Olivia Colman got to be a shining heroine and Hugh Laurie a charmingly growling baddie, Hiddleston’s Jonathan Pine was a loner we had to root for while also questioning his motivations. Pine volunteered easily to avenge the death of his brief lover, but as he became introduced to a world of endless riches and unimaginable power, one wondered if he was also becoming seduced by it (as easily as he was by Elizabeth Debicki’s waif). Hiddleston was essentially born to play this role, which require a Vogue physique and unreadable poise. Him being so convincingly suave here and in so many other roles is what made the Taylor Swift tabloid debacle so unbelievable, and yet, secured his position on this list even more — it was all just an act.
Keri Russell - ‘The Americans’
Two words: forehead vein. The Americans Season 3 belonged to Matthew Rhys, but Season 4 was all Keri Russell. Never have we seen Elizabeth open up in this way with her children or her husband before, and for the first time, begin to question everything about her training and her family’s future. The Americans remains one of TV’s best series, but Russell’s performance kept it a cut above this year by giving Elizabeth a restrained passion and an unbelievable strength. Yes there was the fabled forehead vein scene, but there was also that moment when Elizabeth asks Philip if he would prefer to be with Martha. If that didn’t pierce your heart then you don’t have one. Exceptional work by Russell once again.
Melanie Scrofano - ‘Wynonna Earp’
One of the most unique things about Melanie Scrofano’s casting and performance in Wynonna Earp is that she is more than the title character, she is in fact the show. Her snarky, wounded portrayal of Wynonna sets the tone for the series itself, and she holds together what could very easily have turned into an unhinged supernatural series. Instead, Wynonna herself is sharp and smart while also being a little goofy and very fallible. Scrofano also plays her with a cool and easy countenance, but she carries a chip on her shoulder. She’s a badass, and deeply broken. In many ways it’s reminiscent to Krysten Ritter’s excellent portrayal of Jessica Jones, though Earp tends to, on the whole, be much lighter and funnier than Netflix’s dark Marvel series. Scrofano walks that line between drama and humor exceptionally well, and provides a modern heroine who perfectly embodies a "nasty woman."
Benedict Cumberbatch - ‘The Hollow Crown’
Benedict Cumberbatch, William Shakespeare, one of the English language's best dramas … yes, it all comes together just as well as you imagined. Sure, Cumberbatch gets a little hammy as Richard III in the second part of this Hollow Crown trilogy, but once he gets into his character’s title play he is perfect. Richard must be sinister yet still charming, and Cumberbatch nails the performance in the final installment with an exceptional amount of moxie. Yet in each scene before that as well, he clearly defines Richard and helps make the plays (with the help of a truly great cast) accessible and able to be understood, even though Shakespeare’s language and cadences have never felt more foreign to a modern ear. It’s clear Cumberbatch relishes the role, and even appears to have some fun with it, which is exactly how I imagine Shakespeare would have wanted it.
Thandie Newton - ‘Westworld’
From the outset, the most impressive element of Westworld was how good most of the cast were at being robotic humans. It takes a special mastery of the Uncanny Valley to be both human and other, but no one was quite as perfect at it as Thandie Newton. One would never have assumed that her sardonic madame Maeve would become one of the Westworld’s most important players, giving us a specific insight into what happens behind-the-scenes at the park. Her awakening and eventual takeover was fantastic to watch, particularly because she was so controlled at each new stage. But it was in her uncontrolled moments of emotion, when the Man in Black killed her daughter, that set her consciousness free. Her final moments in Season 1 were also, seemingly, another real choice, not one that was already orchestrated. To convey all of that, Newton provided a wonderfully nuanced performance where every look, every tick, every cognitive moment mattered. Maeve came out of Westworld’s first season as its most unexpected heroine, thanks largely to Newton’s talent.
Vera Farmiga - ‘Bates Motel’
It had to happen eventually, we knew, but losing Norma Bates on this season of Bates Motel was never going to be easy or come at the right time. Even though Vera Farmiga seems like she will still be a part of the series moving forward, Norma is now Norman’s conception of the person, not the one Farmiga created. And that, really, is the biggest loss, because there is no other performer who gave such a hypnotic, fascinating, fragile and tough performance year after year as Farmiga did in this role. This last season saw her almost happy, because she tried (briefly) to choose a love for herself outside of her relationship with Norman. It ended tragically, as it had to, but it’s also because we had been made to feel so invested in who Norma was. When Romero picked up her lifeless body and howled, his pain was easily felt. Norma was special because Farmiga made her so; it was a grand gift.
Sarah Paulson - ‘The People v O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story’
The public’s relationship with Marcia Clark was and is complicated, but the way Sarah Paulson portrayed the real-life prosecutor in The People v O.J. Simpson: American Crime Story put her in a whole new light. The FX series put Clark at the forefront of its O.J. story, with one of its most affecting episodes focusing solely on her (“Marcia, Marcia, Marcia”) and examining her home life — or rather, the life she sacrificed to be a kickass attorney. Paulson’s Clark was strong but also very vulnerable, with one of the best (and most agonizing) moments of the year coming when she entered the courthouse after getting a makeover. She thought she looked fantastic, but no one else agreed. The look on her face as she walked confidently inside was transformed into embarrassment and pain by the time she sat down, and it was absolutely devastating. The trial of the century was a circus, but through Paulson’s nuanced performance, even the smallest victories (and defeats) felt life-changing.
Phoebe Waller-Coates - ‘Fleabag’
Phoebe Waller-Coates created a fantastic series with Fleabag, because she found a way to make it very funny while still allowing a dark undercurrent to run through it. Fleabag herself speaks frankly to us as viewers, commenting on moments in her life in a snarky and conspiratorial way that brings us close in. And yet, not too close; because as honest and raw as Fleabag is, she still hides things from us and from herself. Her sadness comes out slowly, and is most beautifully illustrated in the season’s fourth episode when she has the heart-to-heart with the loan officer as they both escape a silent retreat. But later we find out what Fleabag has been running from, and it is devastating, especially as she is forced to confront it and the fallout all at once. Waller-Coates is fantastic here, with Fleabag still wanting to be glib and yet allowing herself to be sad and honest. And then she leaves us, until Season 2, and it feels like a friend who has gone off the grid. We’ll be here when you return, Fleabag.
Mike Colter - ‘Luke Cage’
Though Luke Cage becomes an increasingly flawed series the deeper into its first season one gets, it’s impossible not to like Mike Colter as the hero for hire. We got to know him a little in Jessica Jones, but he (unsurprisingly) comes into his own in this series. Colter’s Cage is suave and staid, but also brave and strong, even when he’s feeling conflicted about using his powers. With so many crazy, comic book-y things happening around him, it’s nice to have such a grounded character holding it all down, and Colter’s performance is exactly what Luke Cage needs to be. Marvel does a very good job of keeping humor in its TV shows and movies, and that levity is appreciated in what (especially in Netflix’s corner of the Marvel universe) can be exceptionally dark storytelling. As such, Colter gives Luke an easy countenance and a cool humor that makes him both knowable and aspirational. He smiles as easily as he growls, and both are very effective. Though the writing and the pacing in the back-half of Luke Cage let Colter down, he remains beyond reproach.
Ruth Wilson - ‘The Affair’
Though I have cooled some on my initial love of The Affair, one thing it can never be faulted for is the calibre of its acting. Yet of all of the principle players, each of whom bring something essential to the story, it’s Ruth Wilson who really shines. Her character, Alison, is so many different things to different people, and changes more than anyone as the show shifts perspectives throughout the story. Instead of revealing more about her, though, it makes her increasingly unknowable. And yet, she exudes a magnetism and pathos that continually makes her the most fascinating character on the show. Alison keeps screwing up everything in her life with a cascade of bad decisions, and even though she’s hard to like she’s easy to root for. She's often on the cusp of happiness, if she would just allow it for herself. Wilson gives Alison so many layers that go beyond what’s written, and manages to keep a kernel of truth in her personality even as she takes on different traits in Noah, Cole, and Helen's stories.
Caitriona Balfe - ‘Outlander’
Outlander’s second season had some major departures from what fans of the TV show were used to — it went to Paris, back to Scotland, and then spent a goodly amount of time in America, and then catapulted to the future. But in each setting, Caitriona Balfe was unflappable as Claire, which made her deep grief over losing her child all the more devastating. Her performance in that episode, “Faith,” solidified that she would be on this list as soon as it happened, but she was outstanding for the entire season. Playing so many different versions of Claire through time is surely no easy task, but Balfe keeps her (and us) grounded thanks to her consistently wonderful performance. Claire is a character who has been through (and continues to go through) extraordinary circumstances, but with Balfe playing her, her considerable poise and fierce, fiery spirit always shine through.