Tânia Maria, with Wagner Moura in a scene from “The Secret Agent,” has drawn praise from international critics.Credit...Dado Galdieri for The New York Times

Brazil’s Newest Film Icon Is Not Your Typical Star

Clad in florals and puffing on a cigarette, Tânia Maria has captivated audiences with a striking, if brief, performance in “The Secret Agent,” Brazil’s latest Oscar contender.

• Jan. 22, 2026

Even shielded by dark sunglasses, Tânia Maria de Medeiros Filha can’t step outside these days without fans fawning over her.

“Wherever I go, people recognize me,” the 79-year-old actress said. “It’s marvelous,” she added. “But it hasn’t gone to my head.”

No, Ms. Madeiros doesn’t have a decades-long career as a leading lady of Brazilian cinema. In fact, she has just a few credits to her name, some of them as an extra. Before setting foot on a film set for the very first time a few years ago, she spent her days weaving rugs in her sleepy hometown in Brazil’s northeast.

Now, Tânia Maria, as she is commonly known, is causing a major cinematic stir at home and abroad with a show-stealing performance in Brazil’s latest buzzy film, “The Secret Agent.”

With a modest but captivating 11 minutes onscreen, Tânia Maria has drawn praise from international film critics, grabbed newspaper headlines and amassed more than 100,000 followers on social media in just months. And the movie that has catapulted her to fame overnight is now widely expected to earn an Oscar nomination on Thursday.

Tânia Maria, for one, chalks up the frenzy to her authenticity in a role not far from her real-life persona. “I think it’s because of my simplicity,” she said in an interview this month, in between takes for her next film. “I am that person. I am Mrs. Sebastiana.”

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An audience gathered at a theater in Rio de Janeiro this month to see whether “The Secret Agent” would win any awards at the Golden Globes. It won two. Credit...Dado Galdieri for The New York Times

“The Secret Agent,” a slow-burning political thriller set in the late 1970s, tells the tale of a former professor, played by a melancholic Wagner Moura, who finds himself on the run from Brazil’s brutal military dictatorship. When he seeks refuge in a safe house in the city of Recife, he is welcomed by his hostess: Mrs. Sebastiana, played by Tânia Maria.

Clad in floral dresses and puffing on a cigarette, Tânia Maria portrays the housemother to a group of political refugees defying the regime. With authority and charisma, she plays matchmaker among her guests and plots their escapes from the country.

The film’s international success, a year after “I’m Still Here” earned Brazil’s first-ever Oscar for best international feature film, has spurred a fresh wave of excitement in Latin America’s largest nation. It also is shining a spotlight on the culture, folklore and dialects of the northeast, where the movie is set, inspiring pride and appreciation in the rich heritage of a region long overlooked in much of Brazilian cinema.

Tânia Maria, in her role as the straight-talking grandmother aiding strangers in trouble, embodies a familiar and beloved part of Brazil’s cultural identity, said Aline Diniz, a film commentator and television presenter.

“We’ve all met a Tânia Maria in our lives here,” Ms. Diniz said. “She is old-school Brazil at its core. She just feels like a hug.”

Tânia Maria got her start in cinema by chance, when Kleber Mendonça Filho, the director of the “Secret Agent” and one of Brazil’s most renowned filmmakers, came to her hometown to shoot another movie in 2018.

She noticed the commotion in town and wandered over to the set, where she learned the film crew was looking for local talent and paying the equivalent of $10 per day. “And that was that,” she said.

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Kleber Mendonça Filho, the movie’s director, at the Toronto Film Festival. He recognized Tânia Maria’s appeal after casting her as an extra for another film in 2018.Credit...Cindy Ord/Getty Images

Tânia Maria quickly won over Mr. Mendonça Filho.

“She was supposed to be an extra in the film,” he said in an interview. “But she caught my attention so much that I suggested giving her a line.” Tânia Maria’s single line in that production, “Bacurau,” quickly drew widespread attention on the internet.

So when Mr. Mendonça Filho started writing “The Secret Agent,” he says he couldn’t help but think of Tânia Maria as he conceived of her character.

“She’s someone who is very charismatic,” he said. “Direct, tough and, at the same time, good-humored,” he added. “She reminds me of all the older ladies I’ve ever known.”

Despite having no formal acting training, Tânia Maria is a natural on set, according to Mr. Mendonça Filho. “This is someone who nails it every single time,” he said. “She is a grand actress.”

Her acting chops have not gone unnoticed. In a pre-Oscar roundup last month, Variety highlighted her performance in a glowing review. And, in an annual list of memorable film appearances, The New York Times cheekily listed Tânia Maria’s few minutes onscreen as the “best cigarette acting” of 2025.

The actress said she is working on kicking that habit.

“Before, I used to smoke three packs a day,” she told Brazil’s biggest newsmagazine program this month. “If you want to hire Tânia Maria now, it’s without the cigarettes. I can put a cigarette in my hand, but I won’t smoke it.”

The attention garnered by the film, and by Tânia Maria herself, have set off hopes that Brazil could win Hollywood’s most prestigious prize for a second year in a row.

On a Sunday evening this month, film lovers trickled into a Rio de Janeiro movie theater for a watch party to see whether “The Secret Agent” would win an award at the Golden Globes, after racking up accolades at film festivals across Europe, the United States and Latin America.

But some were also there to win their own prize: being crowned the best Tânia Maria impersonator.

The half-dozen contestants were mostly clad in florals and oversized glasses. All puffed theatrically on make-believe cigarettes, as they snapped photos in front of a life-size cardboard poster for “The Secret Agent.”

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Marta Torres, left, Francisca Oliveira, center, and Sandra Maia participating in a Tânia Maria impersonation contest.Credit...Dado Galdieri for The New York Times

“I’m here representing our new icon,” said Marta Torres, 44, as she held up a massive cigarette made of construction paper. She was especially moved by Tânia Maria’s performance, she added, because she herself is from Brazil’s northeast. “I feel so represented,” she said. “There is something so Brazilian in her, and in the film.”

For Francisca Oliveira, 80, the actress she was imitating served as an inspiration. “She’s brilliant,’’ she said. “She has so much presence, she’s just so authentic and real.”

Just before the contest kicked off inside one of the auditoriums, Tânia Maria appeared on a towering screen. “Just stopping by to wish you all the best,” she said in a video to her fans, as they cheered and filmed her message on their phones. “Have a blast!”

Each contestant then strutted across a small stage, delivering a favorite line from Mrs. Sebastiana, the character Tânia Maria plays. The winner was announced: a 9-year-old boy in floral print and dark glasses eerily similar to those worn by the actress in the film.

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Felipe Machado, 9, impersonating Tânia Maria.Credit...Dado Galdieri for The New York Times

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Tânia Maria in “The Secret Agent” and Felipe Machado.Credit...Dado Galdieri for The New York Times

“He couldn’t eat all day, he was so excited,” his mother, Carolina Machado, 48, said. “He loves her.”

After the contest, the lights dimmed and the Golden Globes ceremony began. About an hour in, as the show cut to a commercial break, the smiling face of Tânia Maria, beamed from the screen again, toasting with the frosty beer being advertised. More thunderous applause followed.

When “The Secret Agent” was announced as the winner in two categories — best film in a foreign language and best actor in a motion picture drama — the room erupted in cheers that could have rivaled any World Cup final. Some jumped out of their seats, embracing each other and wiping away tears.

For Tânia Maria, the frenzy around “The Secret Agent” has marked the high point of her short career as an actress. But she certainly doesn’t plan to retire anytime soon.

“I’m not old, you know?” she said. “I’m just getting started.”

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Tânia Maria, projected during the Golden Globes viewing, said, “I’m just getting started.”Credit...Dado Galdieri for The New York Times

Ana Ionova is a contributor to The Times based in Rio de Janeiro, covering Brazil and neighboring countries.

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