[Warning: Potentially Triggering Content]
Well, this is a piece of unexpected and intriguing Hollywood news!
Last week Variety reported a little scheduling change that mostly flew under the radar: Netflix was moving their Marilyn Monroe biopic Blonde from this Fall to some undisclosed time in 2022.
The film, adapted from the bestselling historical novel, has been in development since 2010, with Jessica Chastain and Naomi Watts attached at one point or another. By the time the movie actually got made it was Ana de Armas taking on the role of the ultimate blonde bombshell.
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Per the rag, no reason was given for the delay, but the highly anticipated project already had early Oscar buzz, so quite a few industry insiders wondered if the streaming giant was delaying the film to focus on an awards push for it next year, while they focus on other movies this year.
However, based on one report, that is about as far from the reason as possible.
According to World Of Reel this week, Netflix is not waiting to give Blonde an Oscar push — because they’re “absolutely horrified” by it!
The report claims the film’s final cut is currently on its way to getting an NC-17 rating and is full of sexually graphic material, including a rape scene and a scene of — we could not make this up — “bloody menstrual cunnilingus.” The movie is also reportedly just plain strange, with moments that include a fetus talking to Marilyn about her abortion.
The outlet claims Netflix was indeed hoping for an awards player, but what they got was an artsy, inaccessible indie film that they CANNOT sell with its current rating. They’re asking for a new cut, but director Andrew Dominik is not playing ball!
Dominik is not exactly known for blockbuster fare; his most popular films are the Brad Pitt vehicles The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford and Killing Them Softly, the latter of which is in the elite club of films to earn an “F” Cinemascore — which often go to only the most dark or obtuse art films that wide release audiences do NOT get. But that’s not what Netflix wants.
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For what it’s worth, even the author of the celebrated original book, Joyce Carol Oates, called the adaptation “very disturbing.” She also called it “brilliant,” tweeting:
“I have seen the rough cut of Andrew Dominick’s brilliant adaptation, and it is startling, brilliant, very disturbing and (perhaps most surprisingly) an utterly ‘feminist’ interpretation… not sure that any male director has ever achieved anything [like] this.”
So hey, that’s pretty strong praise from the National Book Award winner.
We’re guessing if Dominik sticks to his guns and the film gets an NC-17, Netflix will choose to bury it in January of February, releasing it without any ad push at all. After all they’re likely still gun shy over that whole Cuties thing.
What do YOU think? Does this sound like a Marilyn biopic YOU are interested in seeing??
[Image via Jaime Espinoza/WENN/20th Century Fox/YouTube.]
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