Variety has published a list of the 100 best horror films of all time, among them “The Sixth Sense” and “Hereditary”. Thinking about, although Toni is best known for her work in drama and comedy, two of her most memorable and most-quoted characters have been in horror films – “The Sixth Sense” still standing as her sole Academy Award nomination of a long and varied career. “Hereditary” should have easily secured her another nomination as well, but that’s another story. Both essays on the film are very empathetic towards Collette’s performances. The full list can be checked out over at Variety.

Number 68: The Sixth Sense: Ghosts are terrifying. But grief and regret? Those deeply human concerns that incessantly haunt the living — and according to many a supernatural film, torment the dead as well — may be several shades scarier. This notion is at the heart of the petrifying film that made M. Night Shyamalan’s name synonymous with horror (and twist endings), launched its dead-people-seeing young actor Haley Joel Osment into temporary child stardom and gave Toni Collette one of the most heartbreaking roles of her career as a troubled single mom still grieving the loss of her own mother. Led by an ethereal Bruce Willis through a soul-crushing revelation and its merciful resolution, and caressed by studious Gothic hues, “The Sixth Sense” grasps that the best ghost stories are ultimately ones about all of us earthbound creatures with unresolved aches.

Number 36: Hereditary: Ari Aster’s deeply freaky trance-out of a supernatural thriller starts off as a sinister but familiar tale of a family being torn apart by ghosts. It’s full of things that would look right at home in the megaplex horror-bash-of-the-week: séances with moving objects, decapitated bodies and crawling ants, and the way that Charlie (Milly Shapiro), a gawky odd duck of a girl, glimpses apparitions who could be figures out of a “Smile” sequel. But Aster stages it all with a meditative menace (Toni Collette gives a performance as the anguished mother worthy of Liv Ullmann). And as the film’s mystery shifts over to Peter (Alex Wolff), the family’s morose pothead of a high schooler, you realize that what we’re seeing is a vision of the afterlife taking over the here and now. The climactic sequence is a stunner that makes you feel like you’ve passed through the looking glass.

Also from Entertainment Weekly, here’s a nice bit from the Toronto promotion of “Knives Out”. Toni Collette was robbed of an Oscar nomination for Hereditary. This is a fact, but we suppose you need some sort of proof beyond her tour de force performance as an unhinged mother who maybe wants to throw her son out a window in the horror hit. So, don’t believe us. Believe Chris Evans, the moral compass of America held together by chiseled abs of steel. When asked to recommend a movie everyone should see from the past decade, the retired Captain America actor immediately turned to the woman sitting next to him on the couch in EW and People’s TIFF video suite. “Can we say Hereditary?” he said, nodding to his Knives Out costar. “I’m not joking,” Evans continued. “I really do feel like the horror genre is one of those genres that’s been undermined. Most horror [movies], everyone’s like, ‘What’s that sound? I have to explore it.’ I want to see a movie where someone is scared to the bone because they heard that, not to explore it for the sake of the engine of the plot.” Hereditary, the first feature film from Midsommar director Ari Aster, starred Collette as Annie, who along with her family quickly begins to unravel after the death of her mother, as increasingly strange occurrences befall them. Speaking directly to Collette, he said, “Hereditary had a few of those scenes where you did things that I wish I saw in horror movies where you were losing your s—.” Evans shouting “I’m giving you the decade nod!” is the #HereditaryContent “Film Twitter” needs right now.

As we speak, Toni Collette is attending the 34th Annual Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica. She is nominated as Best Female Lead for “Hereditary”. A first batch of pictures have been added to the photo gallery with more updates to come.

Happy New Year everybody! Over the last couple of days, the remaining regional critics circles have announced their winners, and Toni has been acknowledged with Best Actress prizes from the Houston Film Critics’, the North Carolina film critics and the Nevada Film Critics Society. She has been named runners-up for the Best Actress by the Iowa Film Critics Circle and has received nominations by the Columbus Film Critics, the Austin Film Critics Association and the Society of LGBTQ Critics. The first televised ceremony, at which Toni is nominated, are the 24th Annual Critics’ Choice Awards by the Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) and the Broadcast Television Journalists Association (BTJA) on January 13, 2019. She won the Critics Choice Award back in 2007 as part of the ensemble for “Little Miss Sunshine”. Given the absolute lack of campaigning from A24 towards “Hereditary” and Toni Collette, fingers need to remain crossed until the Oscar nominations are announced on January 22.

Today, two more critics groups – The Seattle Film Critics Society and the St. Louis Film Critics Association – have announced their annual winners, and Toni Collette has won Best Actress by both! Seattle has had Collette paired in the Best Actress category alongside Yalitza Aparicio for Roma, Olivia Colman for The Favourite, Regina Hall for Support the Girls and Lady Gaga for A Star is Born, while the St. Louis’ Best Actress category included Colman, Gaga, Charlize Theron for Tully and Glenn Close for The Wife. For the Academy Awards, most critics have the performances by Close, Colman, Gaga and Melissa McCarthy looked – although none of them, with the exception of Colman, have won any critics awards. The fifth spot seems poised to be taken by Emily Blunt, as a late player to the game with Mary Poppins Returns. If you have a look at the Academy’s love for musical and dismay for horror, it’s not really playing into Collette’s cards. But here’s hoping. With most awards seasons being horribly predictable, at least there’s something to look forward to when their nominations are announced in January. P.S. This is probably the last update for 2018, unless something incredible happens, which is probably not the case, so enjoy your Holidays everybody, have a great time and see you all in 2019! Frederik

The Broadcast Film Critics Association (BFCA) and the Broadcast Television Journalists Association (BTJA) announced today the nominees for the 24th Annual Critics’ Choice Awards. Their nominations are always a curious case, as they have been criticised in the past to nominate people on their buzz, and getting a full house. This year, they made the strange decision to give out seven slots for Best Actress, but Toni’s in, so who cares :-) She shares the category with Yalitza Aparicio for Roma, Emily Blunt for Mary Poppins Returns, Glenn Close for The Wife, Olivia Colman for The Favourite, Lady Gaga for A Star Is Born and Melissa McCarthy for Can You Ever Forgive Me? – so, basically everyone who’s in talk for Best Actress anyway. “Hereditary” has received a second nomination for Best Sci-Fi or Horror Movie alongside Annihilation, Halloween, A Quiet Place and Suspiria. The winners will be revealed at the star-studded Critics’ Choice Awards gala, broadcast live on The CW Network on Sunday, January 13, 2019 from 7:00 – 10:00 pm ET (delayed PT).