Amy Madigan bursts into a witch-like cackle as she accepted the Oscar for best supporting actress on Sunday night, winning for her eerie performance as the parasitic witch Aunt Gladys in Weapons from director Zach Cregger.
The victory marked a major moment for Madigan, who returned to the Oscars stage four decades after her first nomination in 1986 for Twice in a Lifetime. This year’s nod set a record for the longest gap between supporting actress nominations.
“This is great! I mean, everybody is asking me in the press, well, it’s been 40 years, and what’s different about this time? What’s different is this little gold guy,” Madigan joked on stage while holding the statuette. She then admitted she had spent the previous night in the shower trying to come up with something to say for the moment.
Madigan’s win also stood out for the horror genre. Weapons earned only a single Oscar nomination, yet her chilling turn as the child-devouring Aunt Gladys left a strong impression despite appearing on screen for less than 15 minutes.
Her competition in the category included Teyana Taylor for One Battle After Another, Wunmi Mosaku for Sinners, and Elle Fanning and Inga Ibsdotter Lilleaas for Sentimental Value.
According to Cregger, Madigan was determined to perform many of her own stunts in the film’s climactic chase sequence, even at age 74. The scene involved crashing through doors and windows as her chaotic witch terrorizes the town.
“Gladys is rather eccentric. She wears loud colors, and her makeup is blatantly out there,” Madigan previously said, explaining that the goal was to create a character so strange that anyone would stop and stare if they saw her walking down the street.
The win came during the 98th Academy Awards, held Sunday night at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood and hosted for the second consecutive year by Conan O’Brien. This year’s nominations were led by Sinners with a record-breaking 16 nods, followed by One Battle After Another with 13.
