There was a time where it seemed Blonde was a lock for a Best Picture nomination. A biopic about a famous Hollywood actress played by a rising star who looked “unrecognizable” in the role? That’s an Oscar bingo right there.
But the critical response to Blonde was polarizing, and it was only (“only”) nominated for one Academy Award. What a nomination, though! First time Best Actress nominee Ana de Armas is magnificent as Marilyn Monroe, and ahead of the 2023 Oscars, she spoke to the Hollywood Reporter about the reaction to the film.
“Of course, the reaction that gets the most attention is the one in the U.S., but that wasn’t the whole experience. It’s hard to hear these reactions, but you can always go back to what you experienced, and why you did it, and the reasons why you were attracted to the project. That is not going to change,” she said. de Armas called Blonde “not a movie that was made to please people or to make people like it.” In that sense, it was an unmitigated success.
She continued:
“I feel like the movie also makes the audience feel like participants. We contributed at the time, and we still contribute, in the exploitation of actors, people in the public eye. We, the audience, do this. And I feel like it’s possible that some people have felt like [someone] pointed a finger at [them].”
Blonde didn’t get the Best Picture nomination, but it did make history as the first NC-17-rated film to be released by a streaming service. Take that, CODA.
(Via the Hollywood Reporter)