Emmys 2017: 15 movie stars who stole the small screen this year

Susan Sarandon as Bette Davis in Feud: Bette and Joan. Photo credit: FX Networks.

4. Susan Sarandon

The project: FX’s Feud: Bette and Joan

The character: Bette Davis, a movie star in her own right and frenemy of Joan Crawford (Jessica Lange). As the name of the show suggests, this installment of Feud follows the historical rivalry between Davis and Crawford.

How she stole the small screen: Sarandon’s much-lauded performance goes beyond her physical resemblance to Bette Davis — though the large eyes and brassy voice do help. No, the buzz surrounding Sarandon has to do with the way she portrays Davis as someone who is both a willing participant and victim of the way Hollywood treats women. The showdown between Davis and Crawford is almost mythological — and was the result of factors like the studios, the press, genuine, mutual dislike, and run-of-the-mill sexism.

“I choose to believe that maybe they could have worked it out if everybody hadn’t benefited so much,” Sarandon said of Davis and Crawford in a conversation with Variety. “They were like the early Real Housewives of wherever. They needed them to be fighting. They really fueled the flames of that to get more drama going.”

Sarandon plays the nuance of that multi-faceted conflict with aplomb.

Her past TV experience: Sarandon’s TV résumé is pretty impressive. In the past few years alone she’s guest starred on series like Ray Donovan, Rick and Morty, Mike & Molly, and Doll & Em. Sarandon has also appeared in several TV movies, including Emmy-nominated turns in HBO flicks You Don’t Know Jack and Bernard and Doris.

Awards recognition: Sarandon is up for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or Movie at the Emmys, as is Lange. The feud lives on! In addition, Sarandon’s work in Feud was nominated for Individual Achievement in Drama at the TCA Awards.