TMS Muse of the Week: Melora Walters
(Jean-Paul Aussenard)
Whenever a new actor—particularly a new actress—is touted to be the ‘next big thing’ in Hollywood, I always think of Melora Walters. During a promotional interview for his then recent Magnolia (1999), Paul Thomas Anderson said that he wanted to write “something great and star-making” for Melora with the role of Claudia Wilson Gator in the film. While it is a great performance and Claudia is one of Paul’s most memorable characters, how many people are familiar with the name ‘Melora Walters?’ Probably not very many beyond huge film buffs and PTA fans. Magnolia has garnered a polarizing reception since its release, but most agree the cast is packed with talent, including Melora. In fact, keeping Paul’s quote in mind, it’s probably not surprising to learn he began writing the script around Claudia, with the rest of the characters growing from there. Magnolia was released to solid reviews and award nominations for Best Screenplay and Best Ensemble Cast during the 2000 awards season; but afterwards, Melora carried on with her modest, lowkey outputs on screen.
My favorite thing about Melora is that all these years later, her Wiki page is only six sentences long. One of the best, steady working character actresses out there and only a list of credits to her name. I’m going to take a wild guess and say that’s probably intentional on Melora’s end. Before Magnolia, the actress was a familiar face in films and on TV shows that are still enjoyed today. Her first movie was playing a small, but memorable, role in Peter Weir’s Dead Poets Society (1989), which quickly followed with a recurring part on the second season of CBS’ “Roseanne” (1989-90). More guest appearances followed on episodes of sitcoms like ABC’s “The Wonder Years” (1991) and CBS’ “Seinfeld” (1994), ABC’s drama “NYPD Blue” (1995), and even a bit part in Tim Burton’s classic biopic Ed Wood (1994). In 1996, Melora and PTA collaborated for the first time with his debut feature, Hard Eight [also referred to as Sydney]. The two must have made quite the impression on each other, because they reunited—along with Hard Eight co-stars John C. Reilly, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Philip Baker Hall—in Paul’s second film and first big critical hit, Boogie Nights (1997) playing likeable, fictional pornstars in the 1970s-1980s. Two years after that, most of the cast of Boogie Nights were back for Magnolia.
(HBO Entertainment / Warner Bros.)
Since then, Melora is still around regularly on film and TV, and is probably most recognized these days for her roles in Eric Bress & J. Mackye Gruber’s sci-fi thriller The Butterfly Effect (2004), HBO’s polygamy drama “Big Love” (2006-2010) and Hulu’s teen comedy series “PEN15” (2019-2021). She tried a hand at writing and directing with the indies Waterlily Jaguar (2018) and Drowning (2019); and traded her natural blonde hair for dark brown at the turn of the century. Surprisingly [or maybe not], PTA and Melora haven’t worked together since Magnolia, as is the case with many of the actors from the filmmaker’s 1990s movies. Some assume Paul just naturally moved on from that period of his life once he settled down to raise a family with actress/comedienne Maya Rudolph in 2001. Which might simply be the case, as you can see a clearly different tone and atmosphere to his films since the ‘90s ended. Still, he continued consistently working with PS Hoffman until the actor’s death in 2014; and JC Reilly made a blink-and-you’ll-miss-it cameo in PTA’s most recent feature, Licorice Pizza (2021). Where’s Melora? IMDb lists her with a random ADR credit on The Master (2012), but I can’t imagine that took more than a couple of hours in a recording booth.
Before I discovered Paul was actually an exec producer for Waterlily Jaguar, I had my own theory. In that same 1999 interview I referenced earlier, which was featured as a forward to the officially published shooting script of Magnolia; Paul compares his role as her director to that of a lover, even though they weren’t involved personally. [Paul was in a press friendly relationship with music artist Fiona Apple at the time, and Melora was married to fellow actor Dylan Walsh.] If it were me, I wouldn’t feel comfortable with my superior using that type of vocabulary while publicly talking about our working relationship. But I’m also not Melora and have no idea what their friendship is or was like in person. Maybe they really did just drift apart for whatever reason, as is sometimes the case with friends and colleagues. Nothing in interviews or behind the scenes suggests there is any ill will between the two now. Whatever’s the case between, their work together speaks for itself and holds up strongly. Most fans and critics focus on Julianne Moore’s efforts in Boogie Nights and Magnolia, but Melora is still a highlight in each. Her Jessie St. Vincent is uniquely bubbly and sweet in Boogie Nights, and Claudia in Magnolia remains one of the more interesting troubled, yet endearing, young women in cinema. Melora might not have become a movie star, but she’s still working cinematically, which is more than some aspiring actors can say.