When Disney dropped Secretariat back in 2010, they weren't just trying to sell a horse movie. They were trying to capture lightning in a bottle. Most people remember the Triple Crown winner—Big Red—as the star, but honestly, the cast of the movie secretariat is what keeps it on cable TV rotations sixteen years later. It’s a weird, charming mix of Oscar winners and character actors who look like they stepped right out of a 1973 Sears catalog. You've got Diane Lane playing Penny Chenery with this steel-spine elegance, and then John Malkovich shows up looking like a flamboyant golf pro. It shouldn't work. Somehow, it does.
Penny Chenery wasn't just some housewife who got lucky. She was a powerhouse. To play her, you needed someone who could look comfortable in pearls but also hold her own in a room full of chauvinistic tobacco-chewing owners. Diane Lane was that person.
The Anchor: Diane Lane as Penny Chenery
Lane’s performance is basically the glue holding the whole production together. If she didn't sell the desperation of trying to save Meadow Stables after her father’s health declined, the movie would’ve felt like a generic Disney afternoon special. She brings a quiet intensity to the role. You see it in her eyes during the coin toss scene with Ogden Phipps (played by James Cromwell). It’s not just a game; it’s the survival of her family legacy.
Interestingly, the real Penny Chenery was actually on set during filming. She even had a cameo! If you look closely during the Belmont Stakes scene, she’s sitting in the stands. Having the real "First Lady of Racing" watching you play her must be terrifying for an actor, but Lane handled it with a lot of grace. She captured that specific 70s brand of female empowerment—not loud and shouting, but persistent and immovable.
Malkovich and the Weirdness of Lucien Laurin
Then there's John Malkovich. He plays Lucien Laurin, the trainer.
Now, if you look at photos of the real Lucien Laurin, he looks like a fairly standard, slightly grumpy grandfather. Malkovich decided to go a different way. He’s wearing these loud, checkered suits and hats that look like they were stolen from a circus. It’s a polarizing performance. Some racing purists hate it because it’s so over-the-top, but let’s be real: movies need flavor. Malkovich provides the spice. His chemistry with Lane is sort of like a grumpy brother and an overachieving sister.
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He portrays Laurin as a man who had basically given up on the sport until this "tremendous machine" came into his life. The way he talks about the horse isn't just professional; it’s reverent. That’s the key.
The Supporting Players: More Than Just Background
The rest of the cast of the movie secretariat is surprisingly deep.
- Nelsan Ellis as Eddie Sweat: Honestly, Ellis is the unsung hero of this film. Playing Secretariat’s groom, he provides the emotional heartbeat. While the owners are talking about "syndication rights" and "breeding shares," Eddie is the one sleeping in the stall. Ellis, who many know from True Blood, brings a soulful quality to the role. He’s the one who truly knows the horse.
- Otto Thorwarth as Ron Turcotte: This was a smart casting move. Thorwarth wasn't a professional actor; he was a real-life jockey. This is why the racing scenes feel so authentic. You can't fake the way a jockey sits in a saddle at 40 miles per hour. By putting a real rider in the role of Turcotte, director Randall Wallace saved the film from looking like a "green screen" disaster.
- James Cromwell as Ogden Phipps: Cromwell is the king of playing wealthy, slightly intimidating men. He doesn't have a lot of screen time, but his presence looms large. He represents the "Old Guard" of racing—the people who didn't think a woman belonged in the winner's circle.
Accuracy vs. Hollywood Drama
We have to talk about the "villain." Pancho Martin, played by Nestor Serrano.
In the movie, Martin is portrayed as this aggressive, almost cartoonish antagonist who taunts Penny. In reality? Pancho Martin was a legendary, respected trainer. He was competitive, sure, but the movie definitely cranks the "mean guy" dial up to eleven for the sake of drama. This is a classic Disney trope. You need a foil. Serrano plays it well, but if you're a horse racing historian, you probably rolled your eyes at some of those press conference scenes.
And then there's the horse. Or rather, the horses. Five different Thoroughbreds were used to play Secretariat. The main one was a horse named Trolley Boy, who won a "Secretariat look-alike" contest. Even the equine members of the cast of the movie secretariat had to go through a rigorous selection process.
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Why This Cast Still Matters for SEO and Fans
People are still searching for the cast of the movie secretariat because the film has become the definitive "horse movie" for a whole generation. It’s the Rudy of racing. When you look at the ensemble, you’re looking at a group that understood they weren't just making a biopic; they were making a myth.
The film covers the 1973 Triple Crown run, but it’s really about the 1970s transition of America. The costuming, the dialogue, the pacing—it all fits. You’ve got Margo Martindale as Miss Ham, the secretary who basically ran the business side of things. Martindale is a powerhouse character actress, and she gives Miss Ham a grit that reminds you that Penny wasn't doing this entirely alone.
Beyond the Screen: What Happened to Them?
After the film, the cast went in wildly different directions. Diane Lane continued her streak of being one of the most reliable leads in Hollywood. John Malkovich... well, he stayed Malkovich, doing everything from indie films to high-fashion modeling. Tragically, Nelsan Ellis passed away in 2017, which makes his performance as Eddie Sweat even more poignant when you rewatch it now. He was a massive talent taken too soon.
The legacy of the cast of the movie secretariat isn't just in the box office numbers ($60 million, by the way—decent, but not a blockbuster). It’s in how they made a story where everyone already knew the ending feel tense. We know he wins the Belmont by 31 lengths. We know the clock. Yet, when the camera zooms in on Lane’s face or Turcotte’s hands, we still get goosebumps.
Facts You Might Have Missed
- The Real Jockey: Ron Turcotte was a consultant on the film. He worked closely with Otto Thorwarth to make sure the "language" of the race was right.
- The Hair: John Malkovich's hats were so distracting that some critics actually mentioned them in their reviews as a "supporting character."
- The Sound: If you listen closely during the racing scenes, the sound of the hooves was amplified to sound like "thunder." It’s a bit of cinematic trickery that the cast had to react to during post-production.
- The Casting Choice: For the role of Penny, the producers originally considered several other A-list actresses, but Penny Chenery herself felt Lane had the right "presence."
Taking a Deeper Look at the Production
If you’re interested in the cast of the movie secretariat, you should really look into the behind-the-scenes footage. You can find a lot of it on the Blu-ray extras or various YouTube archives. Watching Diane Lane interact with the horses is fascinating. She wasn't just an actress hitting a mark; she spent weeks getting comfortable around Thoroughbreds, which are notoriously high-strung animals.
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You should also compare the movie’s portrayal of the Meadow Stables staff with the actual history. The book Secretariat: The Making of a Champion by William Nack is the gold standard here. Nack is actually a character in the movie, played by Kevin Connolly (from Entourage). Seeing Connolly play a journalist who is clearly in love with the sport adds another layer to the ensemble.
Moving Forward: How to Experience the Story Today
If you want to dive deeper into the world that the cast of the movie secretariat brought to life, here is what you should do:
- Watch the 1973 Belmont Stakes Footage: Go to YouTube and watch the actual race. Compare Ron Turcotte’s real riding style to Otto Thorwarth’s performance. It’s eerily similar.
- Read the Nack Book: As mentioned, William Nack’s writing is the foundation for the film. It gives you the gritty details the Disney version polished over.
- Visit the Virginia Museum of History & Culture: They often have exhibits related to Meadow Stables and the Chenery family. Seeing the real artifacts makes the performances in the film feel more grounded.
- Check out the Soundtracks: The music by Nick Glennie-Smith is a huge part of why those performances land. It’s soaring, orchestral, and very "Disney," but it works.
The cast of the movie secretariat did more than just recite lines. They took a legend—a horse that basically became a national hero during a time of political unrest (Watergate, Vietnam)—and made it human. They showed that behind every great athlete, even a four-legged one, there’s a messy, complicated, and incredibly determined group of people.
Whether you're a horse person or just someone who likes a good "underdog" (or in this case, "super-horse") story, the casting is why this movie holds up. It wasn't just about the horse. It was about the people who believed in him when nobody else did.
Check out the film on Disney+ or Amazon to see these performances again. It’s worth a rewatch just to see Malkovich’s wardrobe, honestly.