But after people finally watchedon Netflix, what many took issue with was the lack of onscreen dialogue from women, particularly Anna Paquin's character, Peggy Sheeran. Sheeran is arguably one of the most important female characters—if not the most important—in, but it's not entirely possible to discuss the full impact and purpose of this character without spoiling the movie a little bit, so beware.
The daughter of Frank Sheeran, a teamster and labor union official connected to the Bufalino crime family, Peggy is introduced as a child . When her father comes home one day to discover a shop owner had shoved her in the store, he grabs Peggy, brings her down to the store, and beats the guy, curb-stomping his hand until it is a bloody pulp. Peggy watches in horror and doesn't say much to her father for the rest of the film, as she now knows what Frank is capable of.
When young Peggy meets Russell Bufalino , the crime boss who got her father into the family business in the first place, she senses something off about him. Her relationship to Russell is presented in stark contrast to the relationship she cultivates with Jimmy Hoffa . The two have a sweet, almost familial attachment to each other, bonding over their love of ice cream sundaes.
"Why?" she asks him. "What?" her dad replies. "Why?" she asks once more. "Why what?" Frank responds. "Why haven't you called Jo?" Peggy says. After speaking those seven words, the character instantly recognizes that her father most likely had something to do with the disappearance of one of his closest confidantes.
Though Paquin's role is a supporting one, an Oscar-winning actress speaking just seven words in a 3.5-hour film naturally rubbed audiences the wrong way.