Simon Rex deserves an Oscar. Yes, you read that correctly. Simon Rex, former MTV VJ and Scary Movie actor who used to rap under the name Dirt Nasty deserves an Oscar. I certainly never expected to write those words, but then I saw Rex’s performance in Red Rocket and, well, here we are.

Directed by Sean Baker and written by Baker and Chris Bergoch, Red Rocket is the story of Mikey Saber, a former adult-film star who moves back to his hometown in rural Texas. Mikey is a fast-talking schemer who has relied on charm to get by in life, but now he’s down on his luck and crashing with his always-annoyed ex-wife Lexi (Bree Elrod) and her mom Lil (Brenda Deiss) in their rundown house and trying to earn some cash selling weed. The people who know him best are immune to his constant bragging about past accomplishments, but he still feels cool in the eyes of his younger neighbor Lonnie (Ethan Darbone) and 17-year-old donut shop clerk Strawberry (Suzanna Son), who he sees as his ticket back to fame. 

There’s not doubt that Mikey is pure sleaze, a total manipulative creep who talks a mile a minute and acts like a big shot despite his current pathetic state. He’s lived a lifetime of weaseling out of consequences and leaving a trail of broken people in his wake. Yet there’s something very charming about him and while he’s never quite likable, he’s incredibly entertaining to watch.

He best walks the line between anti-hero and straight-up villain in his relationship with Strawberry, who seems like the picture of small town innocence when we first meet her. She’s a sweet little lamb to this scheming wolf and we just know he’s going to destroy her life. She proves more savvy than we first thought and like us, she can see through a lot of Mikey’s bullshit, though she’s willing to roll with it a lot more than most people would. 

Certainly the writing and direction play a huge part in why Mikey is such a great character, but most of the credit here goes to Rex, who walks the line between sleazy and charming in a way that would be tremendously difficult for even the most skilled actor. We don’t like Mikey, per se, because he’s basically a red flag personified, but like Strawberry we’re still drawn to him and maybe, just maybe, even rooting for him a little bit. 

So while it may not have big CGI battles like the biggest movies this year, definitely give Red Rocket a watch so you can see why I think the guy from these movies should be a serious contender for an Academy Award.