Brad Pitt has nothing but praise for Ana de Armas’ performance as Marilyn Monroe in Andrew Dominik’s upcoming drama “Blonde.” The Oscar-winning actor produced the film through his Plan B production banner after starring in Dominik’s directorial efforts “The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford” and “Killing Them Softly.”
“She’s phenomenal in it,” Pitt told Entertainment Tonight of de Armas’ turn as Monroe. “It’s a difficult dress to fill. It took 10 years of preparation. It wasn’t until we found Ana that we were able to cross the finish line.
De Armas’ casting as Marilyn Monroe has come under fire since Netflix released an official trailer for “Blonde” in late July. The ‘Knives Out’ and ‘Blade Runner 2049′ actor is Cuban, which has outraged some viewers at the way she’s been cast as an American icon. De Armas’ accent in the “Blonde” trailer doesn’t entirely match Monroe’s signature tone. Viewers complained that de Armas still had his Cuban accent in the role, which is not Monroe’s sound.
Despite the outcry over the casting of de Armas, the official Marilyn Monroe estate expressed support for the actor. The film is not authorized by Monroe’s estate, but the band said in an exclusive statement to Variety: “Marilyn Monroe is a singular Hollywood and pop culture icon who transcends generations and history. Any actor who steps into this role knows they have big shoes to fill. Based solely on the trailer , it looks like Ana was a great casting choice as she captures the glamour, humanity and vulnerability of Marilyn. We can’t wait to see the movie in its entirety!
“Blonde” is based on the novel by Joyce Carol Oates and co-stars Bobby Cannavale, Adrien Brody, Julianne Nicholson, Xavier Samuel and Evan Williams.
“We worked on this movie for hours, every day for almost a year,” de Armas told Netflix Queue earlier this year of the movie. “I read Joyce’s novel, studied hundreds of photographs, videos, audio recordings, films—everything I could get my hands on. Each scene is inspired by an existing photograph. We were looking at every detail of the photo and debating what was going on in it. The first question was always: “How did Norma Jeane feel here?” We wanted to tell the human side of his story. Fame is what made Marilyn the most visible person in the world, but it also made Norma the most invisible.
“Blonde” will have its world premiere in competition at the Venice Film Festival before streaming on Netflix from September 28.
