Asia Kate Dillon is a talented actor who has made their presence felt on the stage and in movies, TV, and video games. With two feature films and five prominent TV characters portrayed since their career began in 2009, Dillon notably starred in the financial drama Billions and the prison drama Orange is the New Black. In 2019, Dillon starred opposite Keanu Reeves in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum, one of the most successful action sequels of the 21st century.
With the series finale of Billions on Showtime on October 29, 2023, there’s no better time to highlight Dillon’s most impressive screen performances to date. From live-action to animated voice roles, Dillon continues to showcase their versatile command in various movies and TV projects.
7 LOS-307 in Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur (2023)
Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur is a Disney Channel cartoon that centers on Lunella, a teenage genius who inadvertently opens a time portal and transports a Tyrannosaurus Rex into the modern world. In their lone appearance, Dillon adds a convincing ethereal presence as LOS-307, a hyper-intelligent and sentient supercomputer with a desire to connect with humans.
Although it’s a brief one-off appearance, Dillon imbues the artificially intelligent machine with relatable human expressions. Typically, LOS-307 is kind, funny, and upbeat, especially when befriending Lunella during a chess match. However, when angry, LOS-307 overheats and becomes temperamental. The most impressive part of Dillon’s vocal performance comes when the machine reconciles with Lunella by stating what an honor it is to assist her mission, declaring that her type of AI is “like a human being.”
6 Paula in The Simpsons (2019)
Dillon voices a character named Paula in Season 31, Episode 6 of the long-running TV sitcom and all-around cultural institution, The Simpsons, “Marge and the Lumberjill.” The episode entails Marge competing in a lumberjack contest during a month-long getaway in Portland, Oregon. Paula is Marge’s lesbian trainer who, despite living happily with her wife, is viewed by Homer as a potential threat to steal Marge from him. Homer’s misguided perception leads to support for the LGBTQ+ community.
Despite the lone appearance, Dillon does their best to avoid homosexual stereotypes and give the character a profound sense of honor. Paula is physically tough and emotionally attuned to Marge’s needs, and by the end of the episode, Dillon represents Paula as an upstanding character with moral principles. Homer’s misunderstanding ends up making him look the most foolish while Paula comes away looking like the bigger person, with Dillon voicing the role with humor and heartfelt pathos.
5 Inez in The Outside Story (2020)
The Outside Story is a character-driven comedy that stars Brian Tyree Henry as Charles Young. Charles is a shut-in literary editor who rarely leaves his 2nd-story apartment. Yet when he accidentally locks himself out one day, Charles is forced to face the world and encounter nosy neighbors, odd strangers, and old acquaintances who test his introverted nature.
In the only feature film appearance of their career since John Wick 3, Dillon shows up as Inez, a young piano prodigy who becomes mortified when Charles passes by her apartment window. Despite feeling threatened at first, Dillon gives Inez a compassionate human touch when Charles explains his existential plight to her on the street. The brief but memorable performance proves that Dillon can be called on to deliver supporting comic relief whenever needed.
4 Valentina Romanyszyn in Gen: Lock (2019-2021)
In their best voice performance to date, Dillon does an excellent job of bringing Valentina Romanyszyn to life in the underrated animated Sci-Fi series, Gen: Lock. The animated action-adventure series takes place on Earth in 2068, where humanity has been enslaved by an autocratic government. As such, it’s up to pilot Julian Chase to control a giant Mecha and free the population. Valentina is a non-binary retired Russian special forces operative who joins Julian’s team.
Throughout the 15 episodes that Valentina appears in, Dillon is given plenty of action-packed combat and dramatic storylines to showcase their voice-acting aplomb, including their reluctance to continue fighting with the resistance. Val is not only a skilled marksman and fighter, but also a shape-shifting wraith, who goes back and forth between various male and female identities. Because Dillon is non-binary in real life, they convey the character with honesty and earnestness that increases the visibility of marginalized groups.
3 The Adjudicator in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum
By far their best movie performance thus far, Dillon brings a ruthless and terrifying air of authority as The Adjudicator in John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum. The Adjudicator is an enforcing agent of the High Table who judges those who double-cross the organization. When Wick kills crime boss Santino D’Antonio, Dillon’s Adjudicator ascends as the movie’s main antagonist.
Dillon plays The Adjudicator with measured precision every step of the way. On the surface, The Adjudicator is elegant, and polite, and vows to handle their business without resorting to lethal violence. Deep down, The Adjudicator is a cold, distant, and calculating opportunist who never shows their emotions or indicates their true motives. Dillon gives the character a quasi-supernatural quality that is not only convincing but is far more unique compared to past Adjudicators and main enemies in the franchise.
2 Brandy Epps in Orange is the New Black (2016-2017)
Dillon scored their big breakout TV role in the acclaimed Netflix original series, Orange is the New Black. The prison drama tracks the criminal evolution of Piper Chapman, a woman who is sent to jail for laundering drug money and faces institutional oppression. In a striking tour-de-force turn, Dillon plays Brandy Epps, a hateful white supremacist who rallies against the women, Jews, and people of color in the prison.
One of the hardest things for an actor to do is play a loathsome character with zero redeeming qualities and make them believable. Dillon does just that in the show, making viewers absolutely detest Brandy’s misguided prejudices, hate speech, white power group participation, and violent attacks on the prisoners. While an attempt is made to humanize the character by showing their intelligence and ability to commingle with the groups they supposedly hate, Dillon’s best work as Brandy comes when expressing the character’s evil intentions.
1 Taylor Mason in Billions (2017-2023)
Without a doubt, the best performance Dillon has given thus far comes as Taylor Mason in Showtime’s financial/political drama Billions. The series follows the rivalry between Bobby “Axe” Axelrod, the CEO of Axe Capital hedge fund, and Chuck Rhoades, a high-powered politician who tries to bring Axelrod to justice for his criminal dealings. Dillon steals the show as Taylor Mason, a shrewd non-binary financial analyst who rapidly climbs the ranks at Axe Capital before launching their own firm.
Often depicted as the smartest person in the room, Dillon radiates such powerful onscreen command as Taylor that it’s easy to see why Axelrod trusts them so much. After witnessing their out-of-the-box strategizing, Axelrod promotes Taylor to CIO of Axe Capital. Yet, not one to take orders, Taylor leaves and becomes CEO of Taylor Mason Capital. With 69 episodes played over 7 seasons, it’s no wonder why Dillon has earned three consecutive Teen Choice Award nominations for their superb performance as arguably the best character in Billions. The rich storylines and compelling character development over time have led to a consistently convincing portrayal of a real TV trailblazer.
This story originally appeared on Movieweb
