After last month’s Making a Scene video (see previous update), Variety has posted a lengthy article from this interview with Toni Collette: Each morning as Toni Collette brushes her teeth, an owl stares back at her. The stoic bird of prey is not perched outside her window but rather ornately sitting on her countertop, contorted into the shape of a ceramic coffee mug that she places her toothbrush into before she starts her day. “It’s there looking at me daily — twice a day if I’m dentally honest,” Collette says. “Maybe I need a new receptacle.” Even if its days as her morning companion are numbered, the mug is a surreal artifact of her newly Emmy-nominated turn as Kathleen Peterson, a North Carolina woman found dead at the bottom of her stairs in 2001 — a case dramatized by HBO Max’s true crime limited series “The Staircase.” The shocking death occupied headlines for months as her husband, Michael Peterson (played by Colin Firth), was tried and convicted of her murder — all of it later chronicled in a 2004 French documentary also called “The Staircase.” The making of that doc was part of the 2022 series. The complete interview can be read over at Variety.

I guess she is always kind of there because it’s all about the fallout from the loss of her. But this telling of this story was an opportunity to give Kathleen a voice, to make her real and whole, to allow her to live beyond the notion of ‘victim.’ (Toni Collette, Variety, August 06, 2022)

HBO Max’s “The Staircase” miniseries retells one of true crime’s most notorious cases: the death of Kathleen Peterson, through a fall from a staircase in her home. “We felt a lot of pressure,” series creator, showrunner and executive producer Antonio Campos told Variety. “I remember, when something wasn’t right, we’d be like ‘it’s called the Staircase! We just need to get this right.’” Campos was joined by executive producer and writer Maggie Cohn and actor Toni Collette, who portrayed Kathleen, for Variety’s “Making a Scene,” presented by HBO. In a conversation with Variety deputy editor Meredith Woerner, the three discussed the three depictions of Kathleen’s death that are seen over the course of the miniseries, and broke down how the sequences were staged and shot. The complete article and video can be found over at Variety.

Collette’s intentionally, hard-to-watch portrayal of Kathleen’s death was always going to be silent Cohn revealed. There were never going to rely on past Hollywood antics to hype up the moment. The brutality of this real woman’s passing was to be laid care with just Collette’s breathing marking her passing. “I remember being surprised and affected by what she was doing, I mean it,” Campos said. “It was very shocking to see because you can kind of suggest the sound or what kind of movement would be, but when you see an actor as good as Toni commit to an idea 150% and go for it, it’s shocking.” The crew actually had to pad the staircase to protect Collette and the stunt actor from injuring themselves on the green screen staircase. As for Collette, her intent was to give Kathleen a voice beyond what the public already knew from previous conversations. “The documentary doesn’t really see her as much more than a victim, she’s quite objectified, so it was a bit of a responsibility to kind of create her from not very much,” Collette said, referring to the 2004 documentary series the miniseries depicts the filming of. “It’s a lot to have to do that three times. But the reality of it is worse, so I just hope I did her justice.”

Congratulations to Toni Collette for receiving a nomination for the 74th Primetime Emmy Awards as Best Actress in a Limited or Anthology Series or TV Movie for “The Staircase”. She shares the category with Julia Garner (Inventing Anna), Lily James (Pam & Tommy), Sarah Paulson (Impeachment: American Crime Story), Margaret Qualley (MAID) and Amanda Seyfried (The Dropout). For “The Staircase”, Colin Firth was also nominated as Best Actor in the Limited Series category. This is Toni’s fifth Emmy nomination. She was previously nominated in 2007 as Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Miniseries Or A Movie for “Tsunami: The Aftermath”, in 2009 and 2010 as Outstanding Lead Actress In A Comedy Series for “United States of Tara” (for which she won in 2009) and most recently in 2019 as Outstanding Supporting Actress In A Limited Series Or Movie for “Unbelievable”. The 74th Primetime Emmy Awards will be handed out during a live ceremony on Monday (for whatever reason), September 12, 2022.

Congrats to Toni for receiving the first nomination of the new awards season as Best Actress for “The Staircase” by the Hollywood Critics Association. If you’ve never heard about the HCA, it’s because this is only their second annual awards ceremony for television programming. Toni shares the category with Amanda Seyfried (The Dropout), Anne Hathaway (WeCrashed), Daisy Edgar-Jones (Fresh), Elle Fanning (The Girl from Plainville), Jessica Biel (Candy), Lily James (Pam & Tommy) and Margaret Qualley (Maid). “The Staircase” has received 4 nominations in the top categories, as listed below. The HCA will have a two-night celebration at The Beverly Hilton, with the broadcast network and cable TV awards ceremony being held on Aug. 13. The streaming awards ceremony will take place on Aug. 14.

Best Streaming Limited or Anthology Series
Best Writing in a Streaming Limited Series: Antonio Campos
Best Actor in a Streaming Limited or Anthology Series or Movie
Best Actress in a Streaming Limited or Anthology Series or Movie

We’re still a good week away from the July 12 announcements of the 2022 Primetime Emmy Award nominations, but critics, experts and online award afficionados are already ranking those with the best chances to score nominations. One thing pretty much everyone agrees on: The limited series field is crowded with more worthy performances than the designated 6 category spots. While “The Staircase” and Colin Firth’s performance as Michael Peterson are treated as shoo-ins in their respective categories, Toni Collette seems to be facing stiff competition in the Lead Actress field, thanks to celebrated turns by Amanda Seyfried in “The Dropout”, Margaret Qualley in “Maid”, Julia Garner in “Inventing Anna” or any actress in the “First Lady” miniseries. Most awards predictions still see Collette in the supporting field, so at this time it’s a wild guess. We will see July 12.

Australian actress Toni Collette is an Emmy winner for “United States of Tara,” who’s been delivering fantastic work for decades. Opposite Colin Firth in the HBO thrilling limited series “The Staircase,” she’s front and center in one of the most delicate turns yet. While a supporting actress submission may have been warranted (especially given the competition in the field), she has enough voters that respect her work in the TV Academy. Her well-reviewed turn in Netflix’s “Pieces of Her” also helps her. (Clayton Davis, Variety, June 23, 2022)

The final episode of “The Staircase” entitled “America’s Sweetheart or: Time Over Time” aired last Thursday, bringing closure to an otherwise ongoing real life saga that will most probably never be solved. Many thanks once again to Jess, who has been capping the entire series for us. Much appreciated.

After navigating a possible retrial, a 73-year-old Michael confronts a life-changing decision. Meanwhile, Martha and Margaret each share long-buried truths, and Sophie comes to terms with a revelation.