Spoiler Alert: This list contains spoilers for ‘Poker Face’ Season 2.As the Murder She Wrote and Columbo of the 21st century, Poker Face has finished out yet another successful and triumphant season. Following the antics of Charlie Cale (Natasha Lyonne), a woman with an innate knack for detecting when people are lying, the Peacock crime comedy is celebrated for its ability to introduce extraordinary guest stars into the “case-of-the-week” format.
Created by Rian Johnson, Season 2 brought the eccentric Charlie on a tour of America as she continued to hide out following Beatrix Hasp’s (Rhea Perlman) mission to get her. Along the way, she encountered an array of colorful characters, made some new friends, and solved murders in every shocking way possible. The compulsive do-gooder’s tour of death featured sloppy con men, eccentric child stars, and a psychopathic grade schooler, all played by Hollywood‘s brightest. It’s time to celebrate the best guest stars of Poker Face‘s second season.
Poker Face
- Release Date
-
January 26, 2023
- Network
-
Peacock
10
Simon Rex
Episode 5 “Hometown Hero”
Of the many odd jobs that Charlie takes on, one of the more menial is that of an administrative assistant in an office building across from Velvety Canned Cheese Park, home of the Montgomery Cheesemongers baseball club. After being hit by a ball, she returns it to the ballpark owner, played with perfect eccentricities by Carol Kane. Changing jobs and working as a ball girl, Charlie is on the prowl to uncover the truth behind rising star Felix Domingo’s (Brandon Perea) death.
As the pitcher who lost his groove, Rex captures the downfall of a star past his prime with ease.
The episode puts the focus on “Rocket” Russ Waddell (Simon Rex), an aging pitcher who is being forced into retirement. Russ and his fellow players hatch a plan to bet against the team to cash in before his departure. Only it’s Felix who catches on. As the pitcher who lost his groove, Rex captures the downfall of a star past his prime with ease. He portrays the character as someone who is hanging onto something not worth saving. Though Kane and fellow guest stars Ego Nwodim and B. J. Novak have their moments in their bit parts, Rex has fun in his part, bringing a layered performance to the pitcher.
9
Sam Richardson
Episode 7 “One Last Job”
When it comes to Sam Richardson, typecasting is a thing. Usually playing the wise but bumbling neurotic type, Richardson tends to play the hero. During his time on the seventh episode of Poker Face, Richardson ends up playing the bad guy by default.
Usually playing the wise but bumbling neurotic type, Richardson tends to play the hero.
As an aspiring screenwriter working at a big box store, Richardson brings that charm to electronics salesman Kendall Hines. When his best friend and store manager, Bill Jackson (Corey Hawkins), has to fire him, with the ulterior motive to motivate him to move to Los Angeles to pursue his dreams, Kendall ends up living out the action of his magnum opus. Teaming up with a thief named Juice (James Ransone), Kendall is caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. Richardson’s portrayal has Richardson’s-isms in it, but those moments where he lacks remorse expand Richardson’s ability to go against the mold.
8
Katie Holmes
Episode 2 “Last Looks”
Everyone has a dream. Just ask Greta Finch. In the second episode of Poker Face, Katie Holmes takes on a mortician’s wife who works alongside a film crew while they shoot a low-budget horror film. With aspirations of a new life as a make-up artist in Miami, she tells her husband, Fred Finch (Giancarlo Esposito), she wants a divorce. What ensues is a comedy of errors that results in Greta’s death.
Holmes’ freedom as Greta brings out the dreamer in all of us.
While many of the celebrities who take on the death role on Poker Face only have so much time on screen, Holmes makes great use of her character. Greta sees a world of opportunity thanks to having new people walk into her life. Playing Greta like a kid truly seeing the world for the first time, Holmes brings a tenderness through her optimistic vantage of the world. It comes as a stark opposition to Espisito’s performance, which we’ll get to later. Holmes’ freedom as Greta brings out the dreamer in all of us.
7
Corey Hawkins
Episode 7 “One Last Job”
With Charlie on the run, it’s rare for her to find moments of intimacy. Making friends along the way, Season 2 gave Charlie that moment of romance. That is, until death just continues to follow her. She’s a magnet for murder. Anyway, taking on the romantic lead, Hawkins is simply a charmer. One might not think that Hawkins and Lyonne would be a dynamic romantic duo, but they manage to bring out the best in one another.
While many characters are filled with eccentricities, Hawkins brings an authenticity to the romantic lead.
Bill is one of the most generous characters Poker Face has introduced across its two seasons. While many characters are filled with eccentricities, Hawkins brings an authenticity to the romantic lead. It’s why learning he’s the casualty of the episode makes it immensely harder to watch. Though we know that Charlie will never be able to settle down with love, Hawkins gave us that moment of reprieve in an often humorously twisted story.
6
Giancarlo Esposito
Episode 2 “Last Looks”
Esposito is one of the most dynamic character actors of our generation. Thanks to roles like Gus Fring on Breaking Bad and Better Call Saul, Stan Edgar on The Boys, and Sidewinder in Captain America: Brave New World, he’s become the go-to villain. But in those moments where he plays someone a bit more upstanding, like A.B. Wynter in the tragically gone-too-soon The Residence, Esposito’s range defines his extraordinary acting prowess.
…Esposito balances the hero and villain for a tragically dark character.
On Poker Face, Esposito balances the hero and villain for a tragically dark character. Fred Finch is a man stuck in his ways. He’s found himself in life that he may not have dreamed for himself, but he’s made it his identity. When Fred spirals after learning his wife planned on leaving, the dark side emerges because he lost control of something he never truly had control over. Esposito does a great job playing off Lyonne’s quirks as Charlie. And let’s be real, who doesn’t want to have an epic death? Esposito goes out with a bang. Literally.
5
Taylor Schilling
Episode 11 “The Day of the Iguana” and Episode 12 “The End of the Road”
Though Lyonne had a historic career prior to the hit Netflix series, Orange is the New Black fans were hoping for some reunions this season of Poker Face. Though Adrienne C. Moore appeared for a small part during the season’s sixth episode, it was the arrival of Taylor Schilling that had fans in a tizzy.
Like Schilling’s character Piper Chapman, Agent Annie has a bit of a rough facade.
Appearing in two episodes, Schilling portrays the recently divorced Agent Annie Milligan. Like Schilling’s character Piper Chapman, Agent Annie has a bit of a rough facade. Appearing as a foil for Agent Luca Clark (Simon Helberg). If you were hoping to see some incredible interactions between the OITNB alum, you were sorely denied the opportunity. With Charlie back on the run and Luca giving her an opportunity to escape, it might be Annie who will be the main pursuer of Charlie come Season 3. From guest star to recurring role, could this be Schilling’s trajectory on Poker Face?
4
John Cho
Episode 8 “The Sleazy Georgian”
Imagine making a list of great guest stars, and the iconic Melanie Lynskey doesn’t make the list simply because her part was significantly smaller. It’s a wild proposition, but when it comes to Poker Face, if you end up portraying the corpse, chances are your other big-name guest stars will knock you off your spot. Such is the case in the eighth episode of Season 2.
His ability to make you think, even knowing the truth, that he might be a good guy speaks to the depths of Cho’s ability on screen.
The episode begins with a chance morning chat in a hotel bar in Philadelphia, where Regina Gilvary, played by Lynskey, takes notice of a mysterious man named “Alec,” played by John Cho. Eventually revealing himself to be a conman, Regina wants to get in on the action, only to be caught in a moral dilemma when she believes she has murdered his accomplice. Upon learning that Regina killed herself due to perceived guilt, it’s Cho’s character’s accomplices who eventually turn on him. Cho brings a slimy performance to Poker Face, ripe for the world of the series. His portrayal of a conman comes with ease. His ability to make you think, even knowing the truth, that he might be a good guy speaks to the depths of Cho’s ability on screen.
3
Method Man
Episode 10 “The Big Pump”
Method Man may be best known for his work in the world of rap and hip-hop, but he does have an extensive resume. Often stuck to a type, Method Man flexed his range thanks to his guest spot on Poker Face.
He doesn’t make him out to be a one-dimensional meathead; Method Man gives Brick a nuanced portrayal of a man struggling to get by.
Taking on a gym owner with the desire to help others connect through pumping it up, Method Man’s Francis “Brick” Bricantino is filled with immense depth. He doesn’t make him out to be a one-dimensional meathead; Method Man gives Brick a nuanced portrayal of a man struggling to get by. Sure, his scheme to hype up his clients by selling off stolen breast milk as the “good stuff” so his gym doesn’t go under, Method Man finds the notes of humor within the levity needed to make Brick an ever-so-slightly empathetic bad guy. Method Man’s performance is elevated thanks to fellow guest stars Jason Ritter as frustrated client Rodney and Natasha Leggero as the easy-does-it wife and accomplice. The levels and beats Method Man brings to the screen allow him to keep up with the season’s big guns.
2
Alia Shawkat
Episode 9 “A New Lease on Death”
If you binge-watch Poker Face, it’s clear that the common thread of the season is con artists. Like following death around every crevice in America, Charlie somehow has managed to find herself intertwined with every con person on the prowl. In the season’s ninth episode, Alia Shawkat takes on Amelia Peek, a woman ripe for using fruit to scheme her way into the hearts and apartments of the unsuspecting.
Shawkat eases into her ability to flip moods on a dime.
For fans of Arrested Development, there is absolutely a universe in which Amelia is a variation of Maeby Fünke in an alternate timeline. Shawkat eases into her ability to flip moods on a dime. Even when Awkwafina‘s Maddy catches her on her con, Amelia is able to get the better of her. Even if it means staging a murder as an accidental death. Shawkat is sly and cunning on Poker Face. She’s simply a delight in a stacked season of guest stars.
1
Cynthia Erivo
Give her all the awards! Coming off of an extraordinary year starring in Wicked, Cynthia Erivo set the tone for Poker Face‘s second season. The beauty of the comedy crime series is the ability to get some of the best actors to play roles outside their comfort zone. Erivo didn’t just do that once. She did it five times!
Perhaps the campiest entry of the season, the premiere episode followed Charlie as she finds herself trying to help her new friend Delia collect her hard-earned inheritance, which she and her sisters had earned while appearing as kid actors. Taking on the Kazinsky sisters, the episode gives Erivo the ability to take on a variety of accents, personalities, and costumes, all while having the time of her life. There is a reason why Erivo is in the conversation about being a future EGOT. She is absolutely exceptional, balancing some campy performances with grounded characters. The five characters are each a variety of uniqueness, and yet, Erivo might make you think you’re watching Lindsay Lohan and her non-existent twin from The Parent Trap. Five exceptional performances by one phenomenal actress.