Our guide to Oscar Isaac’s best performances
]
He starred in a fan-favorite Sci-fi epic, an indie critical darling, and is already set to reprise his role as Miguel O’Hara, aka Spider-Man 2099 in Sony/Marvel’s Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (Part One), as well as starring in and producing his own Marvel/Disney Plus streaming series, Moon Knight this March.
It is safe to say that Oscar Isaac has been having a good couple of years. Decade, really. Here are some of his best performances.
Inside Lewyn Davis
Isaac already had a fair amount of minor and supporting roles before turning in his titular performance as Davis in this Cohen Bros. helmed dramatic comedy, but this was inarguably the movie that brought him his first real critical notice as a leading man. For his portrayal of Davis, a talented yet unknown folksinger struggling in Greenwich Village’s early 1960s music scene, Isaac received his first Golden Globe nod. The film won the Grand Prix at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival.
Ex Machina
Isaac’s performance as Ex Machina‘s charismatic and manipulative CEO, Nathan Hamlet Bateman, won him critical accolades and more indie cred. A great example of cinematic hard sci-fi, the film presaged a lot of the work Isaac would be associated with over the next few years. Plus, those dance moves.
Star Wars: The Force Awakens
Although one could certainly make the argument that Isaac’s Poe Dameron was underutilized in the latest installment of trilogies, that didn’t keep Isaac from throwing himself into the role every time he was onscreen. He certainly makes the most of it in The Force Awakens during his escape sequence with John Boyega’s Finn. While the series didn’t go on to mine the chemistry, they established it certainly exposed Isaac to the biggest audience of his career yet.
Annihilation
Isaac would pivot back to harder sci-fi fare with 2018’s Annihilation, reuniting with Ex Machina director Alex Garland. Isaac adds high-intensity emotional stakes to the movie as the husband of star Natalie Portman. Or is he? Annihilation is a massive brain teaser of a movie switching between extremes of body horror to Arthur C. Clarke level questioning of the very meaning of humanity and our relationship with our planet.
Scenes From a Marriage
In 2021, Oscar Isaac and his A Most Violent Year co-star and former Julliard classmate Jessica Chastain re-teamed to star in Scenes From a Marriage, a remake of famed director Ingmar Bergman’s acclaimed 1973 Swedish miniseries. Made for HBO, the story follows the dissolution of a marriage over the course of its five episodes with an unflinching gaze. Though often grueling, Isaac’s performance was lauded by critics, and his chemistry with Chastain is undeniably electric.
The Card Counter
The Card Counter may be the best movie you never saw last year. The Paul Schrader helmed indie film was released to little fanfare last year, but many are touting it, and Isaac’s performance in particular as Oscar-worthy. In his Hollywood Reporter review of the film, critic David Rooney calls Isaac a “remarkably compelling force” and describes his portrayal of William Tell, the titular card counter, “an intense performance with the dangerous magnetism of Al Pacino in his early Michael Corleone days.”
Dune
It goes without saying that Isaac’s performance as Duke Leto Atreides in Dune was one of the major selling points of the movie. He’s ended up in promotional shots of the film almost as often or more as his co-stars Timothee Chalamet, Zendaya, and Jason Momoa. Isaac himself lobbied Director Denis Villeneuve for a role in the film as he was a fan of the books. Isaac slid into the role after Jürgen Prochnow and William Hurt’s turns as the character, but in his own inimitable way, Isaac makes the Duke as much his character as any of the other performances on this list.
Fans can see Oscar Isaac in Disney Plus’s Moon Knight beginning March 30.
Oscar Isaac Brings Gomez to Life in New THE ADDAMS FAMILY 2 Featurette
]
The Addams Family has inspired generations of weirdos since the 1930s. That is quite the staying power. But it isn’t a surprise. No one can remain in fashion quite as well as a wonderfully wacky family that relishes most in what makes them unique. Of course, the Addams wouldn’t have survived this long without the wonderful talent that breathes life into them over and over again. Most recently, The Addams Family 2 delighted fans, but no one more so than Gomez Addams’ voice actor, Oscar Isaac. We’re pleased to reveal just how much fun Oscar Isaac had in creating the character with an exclusive look at a new The Addams Family 2 behind-the-scenes featurette.
In the featurette, we get to see a little bit of Oscar Isaac recording for Gomez. Isaac’s energy leaps off the screen and practically scorches us—even in what ostensibly was just one of many takes for any given line or scene. We can’t help but wonder, what came first? The chicken or the egg? Because often Oscar Isaac’s expression and Gomez Addams’ animated ones are practically twins. We could honestly watch Isaac perform his Gomez for hours. His whole body falls into the vocal performance. And his smile? Infectious.
Even in a scene where Gomez is doing little more than snoring and rolling around in bed, Isaac gives his all behind the scenes. He closes his eyes and mimics his counterpart standing up. Call us incredibly impressed.
Danielle Sterling, a producer on The Addams Family 2, sums it up incredibly well. She shares, “Oscar Isaac is fantastic. He has so much energy. He’s just very natural at what he does.”
Isaac also speaks a bit about the role in the featurette. He shares, “Gomez is a character that I’ve loved for such a long time just as a fan. Even reading Charles Addams’ comic strip. And Raul Julia being one of my biggest inspirations and seeing what he did with that character. And so then getting my chance to put my spin on it.”
You can now enjoy Isaac’s entire performance and a plethora of other behind-the-scenes and bonus features because The Addams Family 2 has just been released on Blu-ray and DVD. For those who haven’t watched yet, the official description of the film reads:
Morticia (Charlize Theron) and Gomez (Oscar Isaac) are distraught that their children are growing up, skipping family dinners, and totally consumed with “scream time.” To reclaim their bond, they decide to cram Wednesday (Chloë Grace Moretz), Pugsley (Javon ‘Wanna’ Walton), Uncle Fester (Nick Kroll) and the crew into their haunted camper and hit the road for one last miserable family vacation. What could possibly go wrong?
This movie, which is “creepier and kookier than the first,” is sure to delight every Addams family fan out there. And don’t forget to imagine Oscar Isaac wildly gesticulating behind the scenes while you watch.
X-Men: Apocalypse’s Oscar Isaac Opens Up About His Nightmare On-Set Experience
]
Cookies help us deliver our Services. By using our Services, you agree to our use of cookies. Learn More
X-Men: Apocalypse’s Oscar Isaac Opens Up About His Nightmare On-Set Experience
In 2016, the “X-Men” franchise film “X-Men: Apocalypse” premiered, following up 2014’s time-traveling adventure “X-Men: Days of Future Past.” While the earlier film wowed critics and audiences, earning a 90% critics rating on Rotten Tomatoes, the 2016 movie didn’t live up to expectations, even with a cast that includes James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Jennifer Lawrence, Evan Peters, and Oscar Isaac as the main antagonist, Apocalypse.
Directly inspired by the popular character from the Marvel comics, Apocalypse, also known as En Sabah Nur, is one of the first mutants and has a variety of powerful abilities, both superhuman and not. In “X-Men: Apocalypse,” the character believes in continual evolution and sees mutants as better than humans. As a result, he wants to destroy all humans to allow mutants to take over.
Along with his powers and strong beliefs, Apocalypse also has an intense physical appearance. Alongside the blue skin covered with gray lines, the character wears heavy silver armor and has an imposing size. But in order to look this way, Isaac had to go through a torturous experience everyday on set.
Moon Knight actors Oscar Isaac and Ethan Hawke react to MCU series trailer, and it’s hilarious. Watch
]
Ethan Hawke and Oscar Isaac have reacted to the Moon Knight trailer. (Photo: Marvel Entertainment)
Hollywood actors Ethan Hawke and Oscar Isaac are known for essaying largely serious roles on screen so far in their illustrious careers. In a change of pace, the actors will be seen playing off each other in upcoming MCU series Moon Knight, releasing on Disney Plus Hotstar. In a recent video uploaded by Marvel Entertainment’s YouTube channel, we see a fun side of the talented stars as they react to their newly released Moon Knight trailer.
As soon as the video begins, Oscar comments on his character playing with Rubik’s Cube, claiming he can actually solve it in real life — “I can really do Rubik’s Cube by the way.” This was followed by Hawke’s appreciation of his co-star’s ‘genius’ — “Man, you are kinda like a genius.” As the clip progressed, Hawke continued to pop dry, amusing one-liners like “This is creepy so far, I am liking it,” and looking at Isaac’s state in the trailer, “You gotta get more rest.”
Hyping the show and lightly pulling each other’s legs in the video, both Hawke and Isaac seem to share a real fondness for each other, a chemistry that will hopefully translate well on screen where they take on each other. Hawke plays the antagonist in the show, while Isaac plays the titular role, a man who is grappling with his identity. The show is the first of its kind for MCU, dealing with thriller and psychological drama elements with generous dose of comedy thrown in.
So far, not much has been revealed about the show, and considering this is MCU we are talking about, the audience likely won’t get a better taste of Moon Knight until the actual launch of the show.
Moon Knight will premiere on Disney Plus Hotstar on March 30.
Trailer Watch: Oscar Isaac Goes From X-Men Villain To MCU’s Latest Badass In Moon Knight
]
The six-part series also stars Ethan Hawke as resident villain, a David Koresh-inspired cult leader with a crazy wig, and May Calamawy. Mohamed Diab, and the team of Justin Benson & Aaron Moorhead are the directors, while Umbrella Academy’s Jeremy Slater is the head writer
Isaac is no stranger to Marvel: he was in 2016’s X-Men: Apocalypse as the eponymous baddie and in 2018’s Spider-Man: Into the Spider-verse where he’s the voice of Spider-Man 2099. Created by Doug Moench and Don Perlin, Moon Knight first appeared in Marvel comics in 1975.
Unlike the earlier Disney Plus series released last year (starting with WandaVision and ending with Hawkeye), Moon Knight isn’t based on existing characters from the pre-2019 (Phase 1-3) movies. Marvel boss Kevin Feige has said before Moon Knight will pop up in future MCU movies. (Fanboys are already speculating that he will show up in the upcoming Blade, starring Mahershala Ali.)
After the Moon Knight trailer unveil, fans can’t stop talking about how gritty and spooky the show is. Well, that, and Isaac’s funny British accent. (The MCU has been down this road before: Whatever happened to Elizabeth Olsen’s Eastern European accent for Wanda Maximoff?)