June Squibb, a long-time admirer of Akira Kurosawa’s cinematic masterpieces, was captivated by the Japanese director’s work in the 1960s during a retrospective in New York. Her favourite is the Oscar-nominated ‘Yojimbo’, watched along with her late husband, Charles Kakatsakis. The thought of being part of a samurai-like film amuses the 94-year-old actor.
This summer, Squibb took on her first-ever lead role in a hilarious comedy titled ‘Thelma’. She portrays a grandmother strayed by a phone scam, losing $10,000. Ignoring the concerns of her family, brought to life by Parker Posey, Clark Gregg, and Fred Hechinger, Thelma embarks on a daring journey across Los Angeles to recover her lost money.
Josh Margolin, the writer and director of Thelma, crafted the role specifically for Squibb, drawing inspiration from his own 104-year-old grandmother. Squibb was instantly taken by the script, stating, “It was a beautiful script,” she comments. “I knew immediately that I wanted to do it. I have a friend who reviews all my scripts and she read it and instantly called me stating, ‘Well, you must do this one’.”
In the film, Thelma’s courage kindles from watching Tom Cruise in Mission: Impossible series. In reality, Squibb mirrors Cruise by executing her own stunts alongside Richard Roundtree, famed for his roles in ‘Shaft’ and ‘Roots’. Roundtree, Thelma’s reluctunt companion in the film, succumbed to pancreatic cancer in October after finishing his scenes in the film.
Squibb recalls how initially, the stunt co-ordinator would saunter beside her to ensure her safety. She quickly gained his respect due to her ability to ride the scooter adeptly, even managing to control its bucking during braking. The director and co-star, Richard, were left stunned when she decided to perform her own acting stunt of colliding with Richard in the passage, ignoring the suggestion to bring in actual stunt performers. Richard’s shocked expression was completely genuine as he was unaware of her bold plan. Squibb enjoyed working not only with Richard, whom she recognised from “Shaft” but also with Malcolm McDowell who she remembered from “A Clockwork Orange.”
Her movie, Thelma, turned out to be a hot property at Sundance, sparking a competitive bid. It made its powerful debut in the US top 10 the previous month, raking in $3.8 million in the opening week and gaining a great reception with a 99% approval on Rotten Tomatoes. Squibb emphasised on the importance of depicting the place of age in society, having been part of several films involving ageing characters, including her recent New York project with a 90-year-old protagonist.
Adding up to her spectacular acting journey, Squibb recently finished working on “Eleanor the Great”, her second leading role and Scarlett Johansson’s directorial debut. In addition, she also starred in “Lost and Found in Cleveland”, a comedy featuring Martin Sheen, Dennis Haysbert, and Stacy Keach. Her striking co-star list includes Larry David’s mother, Lena Dunham’s grandma and Jack Nicholson’s spouse, missing a few unavoidable names. For her next grand adventure, she expressed her keen interest to share the screen with Robert De Niro, whose work she has highly admired for a long time.
Squibb has always been surrounded by the arts, born into a family where her mother, JoyBelle, was a famed silent film pianist and her husband of four decades was an acting coach. Her son, Harry Kakatsakis, has made his mark in the industry as a director and actor. Prior to making a name in the film industry in her late 50s, Squibb experienced a prolific career as a theatre actor, model for catalogues, and even played the role of Santa’s assistant at a local department store.
She recalls her time working on cruise ships with amusement, noting the unique ‘pirate nights’ that involved surprising people with swords – a fun experience loved by all. Squibb’s acting journey began in New York, starting with the off-Broadway performance of The Boyfriend. This role propelled her career, establishing her as an actor to watch out for. With successful stints in shows like Gypsy, A Happy Time, and Gorey’s Stories, she never anticipated the switch to films; instead, she envisioned spending her life in theatre. However, upon her return to Broadway in 2019 for the show Waitress, she was seen as a film actress transitioning to stage.
Her journey into films began in 1990 when she starred in Woody Allen’s Alice. She rapidly gained popularity and became a beloved presence in American cinema, having worked with renowned directors including Todd Haynes in Far From Heaven, Alexander Payne in About Schmidt, and Martin Scorsese in The Age of Innocence. She holds the film Nebraska in high regard, considering it one of Payne’s finest works and lauds the unique experience of the crew’s appreciation, a rare occurrence in her career.
Squibb recalls her minor part in “The Age of Innocence” where she performed as a maid. The scene was originally set in a room where Martin Scorsese disliked the background painting. He suggested moving the shoot to a studio with a different painting and personally directed the scene. Squibb was deeply impressed by this, stating it speaks volumes about Scorsese’s character.
At the age of 84, Squibb made her first appearance as an Academy Award nominee for her role in “Nebraska”, directed by Alexander Payne. She considers this film quite exceptional and believes it’s one of Payne’s finest works. She states that even the film crew appreciated the quality of the film, which is quite unusual. The significance of the film only truly dawned on her during the awards season when it gained significant attention. Without this film, Squibb believes her career trajectory would have differed greatly.
Speculations are abuzz that Squibb may clinch an Oscar for her role in the upcoming film “Thelma”. If she does win, she would set a record as the oldest individual to win the Oscar for Best Actress, surpassing Jessica Tandy who won the award at 80 for her part in “Driving Miss Daisy”. Squibb expressed her pleasure at these speculations and especially praised her co-star Richard. The role he plays in “Thelma” distinguishes itself from his other roles in the past. Thelma will premiere on the 19th of July.