Samuel L. Jackson Becomes A Meme Thanks To Hilarious Tony Awards Reaction
Samuel L. Jackson's disappointed look after losing a Tony Award has gone viral.
At the Tony Awards, Samuel L. Jackson had a distinctly nonplussed reaction to watching someone else win the award for which he was nominated and the Internet has already begun turning the moment into a meme. The film and stage star was nominated for the Best Performance by a Featured Actor in a Play award, which is the Tony version of the Best Supporting Actor Oscar. The award instead went to Brandon Uranowitz for his dual performance of the characters Ludwig and Nathan in Leopoldstadt. See the original moment below.
The role for which he was nominated meant a great deal to Samuel L. Jackson because he has a long history with and personal connection to the play and the production. His nomination was for his role in a revival of The Piano Lesson by August Wilson, a play in whose first production he also starred, originating the central role of Boy Willie at Yale Repertory Theatre at the age of 39. This time around, at 74, he was playing Doaker Charles, Boy Willie’s uncle, who was originally written to be 47.
This production was special to Samuel L. Jackson, not just because it returned him to a play he loves, but because it was directed by his wife, LaTanya Richardson Jackson. So if he was let down by not winning the Tony for his performance, it’s understandable. Of course, no one knows what he was feeling for certain, but his apparently sullen face and slight eyeroll have spoken volumes to those who have replayed the clip repeatedly and turned it into an animated GIF.
People online have had a wide array of takes on Samuel L. Jackson’s meme-worthy reaction, with some saying he was a sore loser and should have shown more enthusiasm for the winner. Others defended him, saying he looked less than happy before the winner was announced and did applaud. Some have felt that Jackson gets passed over for acting awards too often, though he has won several, including an honorary Oscar in 2021 recognizing him as a cultural icon.
That he is, as he currently stands as the second-highest-grossing actor of all time behind Stan Lee, who has the top spot thanks to his numerous Marvel cameos.
While he has a great deal of success, though, we can understand Samuel L. Jackson’s disappointment at his loss, and his demeanor ahead of the announcement might indicate that he saw it coming. It would have been poetic and beautiful indeed for him to win the Tony for his performance in a play that has meant so much to him. As Playbill shared, he enjoyed the role so much that he worried he would slip up on his lines.
The enthusiasm Samuel L. Jackson shows for the role and the play is also understandable. The Piano Lesson is the fourth entry in August Wilson’s Century Cycle, a series of plays spanning the entirety of the 20th century, exploring the Black experience in each century. The cycle also includes such renowned works as Jitney, Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom, and Fences, for which Denzel Washington won a Tony for Best Actor in a Play in 2010.
