By Variety | Created at 2025-01-25 00:41:40 | Updated at 2025-01-26 07:50:04
1 day ago
John Lithgow joined the Variety Studio presented by Audible at Sundance and reacted to one of the biggest Oscar snubs of the year: “Conclave” filmmaker Edward Berger failing to land a nomination for best director. Lithgow has a key supporting role in the papal drama. “Conclave” received eight nominations, including best picture, and many prognosticators had Berger as a lock for a best director nod after earning nominations from the Golden Globes, BAFTAs and Directors Guild of America.
“Of course I was disappointed, but that is just the element of awards season,” Lithgow says. “The field is strong and Edward is a rare and wonderful director. We loved him so much. He was nominated for every single other award, and ‘Conclave’ got eight Oscar noms. That only happens when you have a great director. He can take it. He can take it in stride. We are all very proud of the film. My cup runneth over.”
Lithgow is at Sundance this year as the star of “Jimpa,” co-written and directed by Sophie Hyde. The film co-stars Olivia Colman, who joined Lithgow in the Variety Studio. “Jimpa” centers on Hannah (Colman) and her nonbinary teenager, Frances (Aud Mason-Hyde), as they travel to Amsterdam to visit their gay grandfather Jim (Lithgow). Hannah confronts her relationship to her child after they ask to stay and live with Jim for a year.
One of the most notable aspects of “Jimpa” is that it features full frontal nudity from Lithgow, who is 79 years old. The actor says that “nudity is an extraordinary tool in creating an impact. It’s the one thing all of us hide from the rest of the world. It’s the one thing we keep guarded and very much to ourselves. If you’re willing to expose that for a good reason in the telling of a story, then there’s nothing more powerful.”
“I was very self conscious about it,” Lithgow says about going nude. “You don’t do this blithely. I had many sleepless nights dreading the day I saw this movie. I didn’t even tell my wife I would be stark naked in this movie. We saw the movie alone together in a screening room and I was so nervous and she didn’t even mention it. She never mentioned the fact that she saw my dick. It’s just extraordinary. It’s so organically a part of this piece of moviemaking.”
“Sophie Hyde’s highly unorthodox family portrait pays tribute to her dad, who fought for gay rights but died before the filmmaker’s trans child could appreciate his pioneering personality,” reads Variety’s review. “It’s Lithgow’s richest role since ‘The World According to Garp’ and he emerges as the most fearless in an all-around daring ensemble, appearing fully naked in his late 70s.”
“Jimpa” is a sales title at Sundance this year.
