Jessica Chastain wins best actress Oscar for ‘Tammy Faye’

Mar 27, 2022, 9:11 PM | Updated: Mar 28, 2022, 9:40 pm

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Oscars looked kindly on Jessica Chastain.

She won the Academy Award for best actress Sunday night for “The Eyes of Tammy Faye” in which she portrays the rise, fall and redemption of televangelist Tammy Faye Bakker.

Chastain emerged as the Oscar favorite late in the season, earning an upset victory at the SAG Awards before adding a Critics’ Choice trophy for a movie that was released six months ago.

Still, she was awed by the moment.

“I still can’t understand I’m holding an Oscar,” Chastain said backstage.

Besides acting, Chastain is one of the film’s producers. She shepherded the project for years after first acquiring the rights to Bakker’s life in 2012, when she saw the documentary the film is based on. Bakker died of cancer at age 65 in 2007.

“It’s very special to be part of a film that means something to me in that it rights a misjustice. It re-examines a life,” she said backstage. “It’s so important to give each other our flowers when we’re still alive, and I feel like we missed that opportunity with Tammy Faye.”

Chastain said she was texting with Bakker’s children during the telecast.

In accepting the trophy from Anthony Hopkins, Chastain noted violence against minorities and that suicide was a leading cause of death for the LGBTQ community, saying she was inspired by Bakker’s compassion.

“I’m inspired by her radical acts of love,” Chastain said. “I’m inspired by her compassion and I see it as a guiding principle that leads us forward.”

Chastain joins a long list of actors who won for portraying a famous person, including Meryl Streep as Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady” in 2011.

Chastain is nearly unrecognizable in the film due to the physical transformation she underwent to portray Bakker over the course of 30 years. She wore prosthetics on her face, false teeth for certain scenes and changed hair colors and styles.

The film also won the Oscar for makeup and hairstyling.

Chastain sings several songs in the film. It received mixed reviews from critics, who praised the acting but not the screenplay. The film grossed a paltry $2.7 million during its run in theaters before being made available via streaming.

Chastain was nominated for Oscars twice in the past but didn’t win — in 2012 for supporting actress in “The Help” and in 2013 for best actress in “Zero Dark Thirty.”

Chastain, who turned 45 on Thursday, was raised by a single mother in Sacramento, California. She pursued her love of acting at the city’s junior college and later attended Julliard on a scholarship funded by alumni Robin Williams.

Chastain won over Olivia Colman of “The Lost Daughter,” Penélope Cruz of “Parallel Mothers,” Nicole Kidman of “Being the Ricardos,” and Kristen Stewart of “Spencer.”

___

For more of AP’s Oscar coverage visit: https://apnews.com/hub/academy-awards

Copyright © The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

AP

This photo provided by Robert Wilkes, owner of a house boat management company, shows smoke rising ...

Associated Press

Houseboats catch fire while docked at Wahweap Marina on Lake Powell

More than half a dozen house boats momentarily caught fire at a popular boating destination on the Utah-Arizona line on Friday.

1 day ago

File - Women work in a restaurant kitchen in Chicago, Thursday, March 23, 2023. On Friday, the U.S....

Associated Press

US hiring, unemployment jump in May and what that says about the economy

The nation’s employers stepped up their hiring in May, adding a robust 339,000 jobs, well above expectations.

1 day ago

(Pixabay Photo)...

Associated Press

Oath Keeper from Arizona sentenced for role in Jan. 6 riot at US Capitol

Edward Vallejo, a U.S. Army veteran from Phoenix, oversaw a “Quick Reaction Force” at a Virginia hotel that was prepared to deploy an arsenal of weapons into Washington if needed, authorities say.

2 days ago

FILE - U.S. Border Patrol Chief Raul Ortiz listens during a news conference, Jan. 5, 2023, in Washi...

Associated Press

US Border Patrol chief is retiring after seeing through end of Title 42 immigration restrictions

The head of the U.S. Border Patrol announced Tuesday that he was retiring, after seeing through a major policy shift that seeks to clamp down on illegal crossings at the U.S.-Mexico border following the end of Title 42 pandemic restrictions.

3 days ago

FILE - President Joe Biden talks with House Speaker Kevin McCarthy of Calif., on the House steps as...

Associated Press

House OKs debt ceiling bill to avoid default, sends Biden-McCarthy deal to Senate

The House approved a debt ceiling and budget cuts package late Wednesday, as President Joe Biden and Speaker Kevin McCarthy assembled a bipartisan coalition of centrist Democrats and Republicans against fierce conservative blowback and progressive dissent.

3 days ago

Sean Bickings (Family Photo via city of Tempe)...

Associated Press

Family of man who drowned last year in Tempe Town Lake files wrongful death lawsuit

The family of a man who drowned in Tempe Town Lake a year ago filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the city Wednesday, noting that its police department doesn't have a policy requiring officers to go into the water to save someone.

3 days ago

Sponsored Articles

...

OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center

5 mental health myths you didn’t know were made up

Helping individuals understand mental health diagnoses like obsessive compulsive spectrum disorder or generalized anxiety disorder isn’t always an easy undertaking. After all, our society tends to spread misconceptions about mental health like wildfire. This is why being mindful about how we talk about mental health is so important. We can either perpetuate misinformation about already […]

(Photo: OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center)...

OCD & Anxiety Treatment Center

Here’s what you need to know about OCD and where to find help

It's fair to say that most people know what obsessive-compulsive spectrum disorders generally are, but there's a lot more information than meets the eye about a mental health diagnosis that affects about one in every 100 adults in the United States.

...

Day & Night Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing

Company looking for oldest air conditioner and wants to reward homeowner with new one

Does your air conditioner make weird noises or a burning smell when it starts? If so, you may be due for an AC unit replacement.

Jessica Chastain wins best actress Oscar for ‘Tammy Faye’