Tom Pelphrey’s Ozark Emmy Nomination Was Overdue

The Emmy Awards have a history of giving guest acting nominations to actors that they had previously snubbed as “makeup noms.” After being snubbed of a Best Supporting Actor nomination for the first three seasons of Better Call Saul, Michael McKean finally received an overdue nomination for his performance as Chuck McGill in the fourth season episode “Winner.” Similarly, Kate Mara received a Best Guest Actress nomination for the Season 2 premiere of House of Cards, even though she had been snubbed of a Best Supporting Actress recognition in the first season.

It may not be as nice as a major nomination, but these performers may appreciate being recognized after there was outcry over their initial snub. This year, the most identifiable “makeup nomination” is Tom Pelphrey for his role as Ben Davis in the fourth season of Ozark. Pelphrey had been a favorite for Best Supporting Actor for the third season, having scored nominations at both the Critics Choice and Satellite Awards. Despite the Emmy Awards’ overwhelming support for Ozark, Pelphrey somehow missed out.

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It’s nice to see Pelphrey receive the recognition that was overdue. Pelphrey’s performance on Ozark almost single-handedly changed the direction of the series, and set it up for success once more. After the intense trajectory of the Byrde family crime saga in the first season, the second season was a major decline in quality. Season 2 was more intense, but lacked the grounded familial bonding moments that had made the first season so unique. It felt like Ozark’s only goal was to push the viewers’ limits. However, the debut of Ben Davis showed that the show had a heart again, and concluded with the most heartbreaking moment of the entire series.

Wendy Davis (Laura Linney) had proven by the end of the second season that she was much more than the “Lady Macbeth” to her husband, Marty (Jason Bateman). Between lying to her children and manipulating Charles Wilkes (Darren Goldstein), Wendy had become a nearly irredeemable monster through her quest for power. Her claims to be doing everything to protect her family grew increasingly hard to believe, despite Linney’s excellent performance. The gray moral boundaries that Ozark had established so well in its first season were becoming lost.

Everything changes for Wendy when her brother, Ben, randomly shows up after being fired from his job. Wendy had alluded to her brother’s “troubled” past when discussing her concerns about her son, Jonah (Skylar Gaertner), but the third season showed just how unhinged Ben truly was. He gets an opening scene lifted straight out of Fargo. After growing irritated with students on their phones while he is working a part-time job as a substitute teacher, Ben throws all of their cellular devices in a wood chipper, and assaults the unfortunate worker that happens to be standing by. It’s the exact type of darkly comic mayhem that Ozark does so well.

However, once Ben shows up in the Ozarks after running from the local authorities, he shows a much more sympathetic side. He’s charming, funny, and brings up amusing stories from his past. Pelphrey felt like a breath of fresh air; the tone of Ozark had gotten far too grim, but Pelphrey added just the right amount of levity. He wasn’t just there for comic relief. Pelphrey’s performance helped set many of the characters on Ozark on a more interesting character trajectory.

Marty is naturally hesitant about bringing in Ben, considering his struggles with bipolar disorder. Wendy insists that she needs the support, and that as long as Ben can stay on his medication schedule, she will be able to control him. This shows Wendy’s overconfidence, but it also reveals that she simply needs a friendly face. Her marriage with Marty isn’t ideal, and her children have grown to detest her. Even if she’s just scolding Ben for his behavior, it’s clear she takes some comfort from the familiarity. Pelphrey’s playful attitude allowed Linney to show a more human side to Wendy. Both actors are able to allude to a fraught family history that isn’t always spelled out.

Ben’s insertion in the story also gives Jonah more to do. Jonah has never been as socially adept as his sister, Charlotte (Sofia Hublitz), and he’s struggled to connect with anyone in the Ozarks. His only real friend before Ben was Buddy Dieker (Harris Yulin), the elderly tenant of the Byrdes’ new home. Ben becomes a “cool uncle” to Jonah, and actually seems to be impressed by Jonah’s aptitude for scheming and laundering. Jonah’s inventiveness had only frightened his family before; he finally gets to hear words of support. The heartfelt bonding scenes between Pelphrey and Gaertner are the moments that were almost absent from the second season entirely.

Ben also helps give Ruth Langmore (Julia Garner) a new direction. Ruth’s fiery attitude had begun to wane in its charisma, but her romance with Ben showed her at her most playful and sincere. Ruth is put in an awkward position; Wendy warns her repeatedly about what will happen if Ben goes off his medications, but she still continues to see him. Ruth is assured that this is simply Wendy’s manipulative nature talking, but Ben’s temper erupts in one of the most jaw dropping scenes of the entire series.

Enraged and incoherent, Ben tells Erin Pierce (Madison Pierce) that her mother, Helen (Janet McTeer), is secretly working alongside the Navarro drug cartel. This shatters Helen’s relationship with the Byrdes, and things get even more intense when Ben crashes the launch party for the Byrdes’ charity venture and assaults Marty. Although he’s admitted to a psychiatric facility, the Byrdes know that Helen and the Navarros won’t let this one go. Wendy has to prove how far she will go to sustain their operation.

The Season 3 episode “Fire Pink” is the most devastating episode of Ozark’s entire run. Pelphrey shows a deep, tormented realization of his situation. He knows that his family will pay the consequences for his actions, and reverts to a childlike state of dependence upon his sister. Ben’s tear-stricken apology to Wendy is utterly heartbreaking. Wendy is forced to abandon Ben in a parking lot and reveal his location to Helen. Although Linney received a Best Actress nomination for the season, her performance wouldn’t have been nearly as powerful without Pelphrey’s work.

Pelphrey deserved a makeup award for the egregious snub, but he’s just as excellent in the season four flashback as he was in the third season. Pelphrey received his guest nomination this year for the episode “You’re The Boss,” which shows his heartbreaking realization that his sister has abandoned him. The Ben storyline essentially saved Ozark, and it’s largely responsible for generating hype for the fourth season.